When love entwines....

Part 42

The eerie silence inside the house killed her... everything looked and felt different today... she felt she was hallucinating...
Stripping herself and standing under the hot shower soothed her aches... Wrapping herself with a bath robe she felt so exhausted and tired that she laid down on the bed and instantly fell asleep...
The physical and mental exhaustion had drained every single ounce of her energy today... plus her hormones....
Hours later, Juhi opened her eyes and was surrounded by darkness ... It took her a minute to comprehend where she was... It slowly dawned on her that she was at his home and she had come from hospital to freshen up and fell asleep... Picking up her Cellphone she was horrified to see it was Five in the evening and noticed there were six missed calls from Rahul and none from the hospital...
Sweat beads formed on her forehead as she chose to dial the hospital first to enquire about Shashank.... Sis Philo answered the call and updated her about his condition... Her heart sank hearing that he hadn't regained his consciousness yet...  Thanking her and letting her know she will reach hospital in an hours time, Juhi disconnected the call..

Taking in a deep breath she dialled , Rahul's number... On the fifth ring he answered the call
Maintaining a serious tone she spoke " Yes Rahul, I just saw your missed calls.. What do you have to say now..." she asked
There was a brief silence... " Juhi, Pooja passed away this afternoon..." Rahul's voice cracked...
"What..." Juhi was stunned ... " When .. I mean  what happened... I'm ..I'm so sorry Rahul..."
" It seems she passed away peacefully in her sleep.. and I wasn't there beside her when she left...  I reached an hour late.." he sobbed
" The funeral is scheduled for tomorrow at noon..." he added hesitantly not knowing if she would come
" I will leave from here in sometime and reach Mumbai later tonight...Rahul" Juhi confirmed..
"You take care .." she said and disconnected the call

Pooja and Juhi shared a very special bond even though her relationship with Rahul was strained... Juhi always considered her as her little sister.. She felt too numb to react...
On one side she was worried about Shashank's health and now she had to leave for Mumbai ... Left with no choice in between she dressed up and left for the hospital...
She wanted to see him once before leaving for Mumbai ...

At the hospital, she informed Anjali about Pooja and told her she needs to leave for Mumbai but will be back tomorrow night or the day after morning.. And also requested Anjali to keep her posted every half an hour regarding his condition...
Just when she wanted to go into the ICU , her phone rang and the call was from Sneha..
Juhi answered immediately... " Doctor the report is ready.. Can you collect it .." Sneha asked
" Yes .. I'm coming right away .." Juhi replied and walked towards the laboratory instead of the ICU

Her heart thumped against her chest when Sneha handed over the envelope to her...
With no courage to open the envelope, she stammered while asking Sneha " What does the report say.."
Sneha beamed with happiness and whispered " It's Positive , Dr Juhi .. Congratulations to you and to Mr Rahul..."
All colour drained from Juhi's face hearing Rahul's name...
Faking a smile, she thanked her and reminded her to keep it confidential...
Tucking in the report inside her handbag , Juhi walked towards and into the ICU...

Her heart sank once again when she saw him lying lifeless like this... She stood close to his bed... With no words spoken, she gently took his hand and placed it on her stomach... Tears brimmed her eyes... Words fail to come out of her mouth.. she entwined her finger with his and held it against her stomach... Tears streamed down her cheek... " I will be back very soon Dr Shashank and I want you awake when I'm back tomorrow...I have something very special to share with you ...." she whispered
Gently placing his hand back on the bed she placed a deep kiss on his forehead and his cheek and walked away...

Three and half hours later Juhi reached Mumbai.. Rahul's family, her parents, her family were all present at her house..
Juhi broke down seeing Pooja lying in the freezer box... She began to recollect all the good times they spent together...
A while later she looked for Rahul and noticed Rahul sitting in a corner away from the crowd... he looked lifeless.. with bloodshot eyes..
She slowly walked towards him ... Tears streamed down his eyes even before she could speak ... Juhi consoled him... and that was all she could do...