"Family?"
Slightly startled by the sudden interruption, Shivaay looked up to see a man seemingly in his mid-twenties staring at him curiously.
"Pardon me?" mumbled Shivaay in confusion, not understanding his question.
The man sat down on the bench beside Shivaay and pointed at the big door. He questioned again, "Who is in there? A family member?"
Not appreciating the intrusive and personal question, Shivaay curtly nodded and went back to checking his emails on the phone.
He also nodded and then smiled sadly. "Mine too. My brother is admitted here."
Shivaay's gaze softened. Spending the entire night in a waiting room was tough. Spending the entire night in the waiting room of a Drug Rehabilitation centre was tougher.
"Same..." Shivaay replied solemnly.
"He is your real brother?" the man asked.
"Yeah..." Shivaay whispered.
What else could he say? Om was his first cousin. But it never felt that way. Om was like a real brother. He was more than a real brother. He never thought of Om or Rudra as different people. They were one unit - the body, the mind and the soul. What he felt for both of them was indescribable. But in any case, he could never quite explain what exactly he felt for Om. Playing with words and expressing freely was anyway Om's department, not his.
"I thought so because you look worried..." the man pointed out. He turned to look at Shivaay and said, "Actually, I have been observing you for the past two weeks now. All these days, I couldn't muster up the courage to come and talk to you."
"Really?" Shivaay raised a brow.
"Yeah. You always have that big guy with you..." the man grinned sheepishly.
Shivaay sniggered lightly. "He is my bodyguard."
"I must say this though, he does a swell job of protecting your body. He is damn scary..." the man said seriously.
"He does!" chuckled Shivaay. After a small pause, he asked, "How long has your brother been here?"
The man sighed before replying. "Three and a half months now. It's a bad case. He keeps on relapsing."
"Alcohol or...?" Shivaay left the question hanging.
"Drugs," the man replied nonchalantly. "And your brother?"
Shivaay pressed his lips. "Same. Drugs."
Both of them fell into silence.
"You come here every night?" he questioned.
"Yes..." Shivaay told him and typed out a message to Khanna to get him two coffees.
The Rehabilitation centre was very strict about its policies. Om had to remain in complete isolation and no one was allowed to see him. But it had not deterred Shivaay from coming to the centre and sitting in the waiting room. How else could he assure himself that his brother was doing fine? After a few days, the centre had taken pity on him. They would allow Shivaay to sit with Om after he had slept. It was enough for Shivaay.
"Actually, he isn't even my real brother..." the man began slowly breaking Shivaay's thoughts. He kept his eyes on the wall in front of him and said, "He is my first cousin. But we have been inseparable since childhood. His parents are class-one assholes and that affected his mental health. As a means to cope with the stress, my brother resorted to substance abuse for some peace."
