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This chap is affectionately dedicated to - Deepali314🖤✨
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"Sometimes we don't know where our life is going; but whatever we do, wherever we choose to go... we are carving a path for ourselves and for others, and that will surely lead somewhere............"
Just as Manjiri was about close her books and muster them back into her bag, her phone vibrated on receiving two consecutive notifications. Opening it straight away, she saw that there were two text messages from Shaurya,
"I'm waiting outside...
Be quick!"
Looking at the two texts on the phone's screen, she paused for a fraction of second and thought about it. Although she couldn't think of a reason, but still she hastened her assembling of her belongings after moving her fingertips on the phone for sending him a reply.
"Ok!
Just give me 5 mins."
Instantly she received another text from his side,
"Fine!"
Though his texts were far from being the conventional coquettish texts but still after knowing that today he has come to pick her up from college, the corner of her mouth slightly rose involuntarily. Her heart felt pleased at then. She immediately stood up from her chair and picked up her bag,
"Ruchika I'm going home...
Bye!"
"What's the hurry?...
Stay for a while!
Or at least let Tara return then we all will walk along outside together."
Ruchika insisted as she saw Manjiri passing by her desk.
"I'll get late if I'll wait for her...
I should probably must go.
Kindly excuse!"
Saying this Manjiri sneaked out of the library without any further delay. Ruchika wanted to oppose her as she couldn't understand why Manjiri was behaving so outlandishly all of a sudden... Dismissing her thoughts she again made her busy with her work, and forethought to call Manjiri in the evening to ask for the reason of her sudden departure.
Shaurya was in a middle of a phone call when Manjiri came and made her comfortable on the passenger seat.
Soon sensing the car driving on some unknown path other than the way home, she glanced at him but he was still on the call. So she softly whispered,
"Where are we going?"
Still centralizing his eyes' entire heed on the road and his ears' on his handfree Bluetooth phone, he signalled her to wait without even peeking a glance at her. After a few seconds, his call ended. Looking at her side he simply uttered,
"It's Saturday!"
"So?"
"What so? You forgot so soon. Remember Arsh?
His engagement?
On Saturday?
.....
That's why Maa asked me to take you to shop for the evening."
Shaurya did not know why did he even agreed to finish all his work and comply with his mother's whim. Recalling her words - 'girls adore to shop', he at last evasively made up his mind to take Manjiri to shop. Though he himself was least interested in shopping and all.
"Oh no today's Saturday!"
Manjiri muttered this with a distasteful expression. Knocked out by this sudden realization, she quizzed him circumspectly,
"Do I really need to attend that?"
"Hey! Aren't you the same person who wholeheartedly accepted his invitation?"
"I did so because he was requesting a lot...
By the way you and Dev Bhaiya only go please."
Manjiri's tone was filled with unspeakable caution because she was a little stressed with the thought that what if he compelled her to accompany. And at then she didn't know how will she be able to rebuff his insistence. Taking a pause she added,
"Furthermore, I don't want to shop anything... as more than half of piles of clothes of mine stitched, bought or gifted in the wedding are still untouched.
So now no more please!"
"Alright!
Don't dwell on it, it makes no odd. Let's move to home."
Turning his head to her side, he replied casually. He very well knew that his collected and highly diffident wife doesn't prefer blending with new people, so he candidly accepted her refusal without a word. And with his these words, she threw him a satisfied thanking smile. But at next moment, on apprehending something she knitted her eyebrows and questioned him
"Why are we heading towards the home?
Umm... I mean don't you want to shop anything for yourself?"
"Madam! Just for your clarification I too got married freshly, so as of now just like you I too have many clothes naturally."
Hearing his frisky words Manjiri rolled her eyes in mirth. With a tease of playfulness in her voice she asked
"Really? What a coincidence!
You never introduced me to your wife?"
"Well there's no use of meeting her, because she has got a moody temperament...
Therefore chances of you getting ignored by her are very high."
Manjiri frowned at his words and looked away exasperatingly.
On the other hand after offering her a devilish smirk Shaurya added,
"So Madam when will you introduce me to your husband?"
"Guess what Sir, there's no use of meeting my husband too....
Because he's a prisoner of his phone, you'll get tired of waiting for him but his endless phone calls won't finish..."
All of a sudden interrupting their light hearted and farcical conversation, his phone started shrieking.
"Told you!"
She groused this when he simpered apologetically to her before finally receiving his call.
"Two people meeting is destiny..........
But two people staying together is all about efforts!!!"
_
"Gotta get back to the hospital.....
A little work has to be done, it won't take much time."
"Why now?
Finish that off tomorrow..."
"That's not my hospital, I do job there so have to go....
You also come, it won't take time I assure."
"What will I do there?
You only go..."
"Wait for me till I submit the reports to the Chief Physician... I'll be back soon."
Manjiri still wanted to protest but then remained quiet comprehending the urgency.
_
_
_
"I'm moving in every direction but forward....... like my life is a movie and in which all the scenes are playing out of order."
Reaching the hospital, Manjiri straightened her tunic and came out of the car with reluctance and hesitancy.
"Come on!"
Hearing him she nodded obstinately and started accompanying him to his workroom or the examination room in 'Neurosurgical Intensive Care Unit' on the second floor.
As soon as she entered inside the building, the typical smell of hospital reached her nostrils which zipped her in a nostalgic coma. The sudden zephyr of bitter and hurtful memories alongwith the gleaming white lights over her head started stupefying her brain. By now she was perspiring in spite of walking through a air-conditioned hall.....
Her gaze fixed on an empty bench which seemed to her the similar looking bench on which she once waited for an eternity with no updates about what was happening inside. As she passed through the corridor, her eyes shifted to the signboards and precaution stating charts. To her they too looked similar to the ones she used to read for uncountable times in order to pass her time. All these things made her miss her grandmother. At that moment she was completely blank, not just in expressions but in her mind as well. Her innermost feelings were making her sick. The hospital sounds appeared to be muted to her. She was just absentmindedly following Shaurya who was walking to his own tune.
"Stay here till I come..."
Entering the examination room or can say his consulting room, he quickly picked up a few folders and rushed out uttering these words to her. His these sudden words kind of shook her out of her trance. Her mind finally started registering the new surrounding. She looked around the room indifferently and walked towards the desk where Shaurya's name plaque was kept.
All of a sudden sound of repeated knocks on the door made her turn around. At then she observed a 40 or a 45 year old lady walking into the room and settling down on one of the two desks placed in that room. Manjiri quickly took a notice of the name plaque kept on that desk - 'Dr. Sheena T. Batra' ( Spine Surgeon ).
The lady had sleek black hair pulled back in a neat bun. The big round spectacles she wore framed her facial features. One look at her and you could easily tell that she was a thought reader.
"Come... Have a seat till he returns."
Hearing that lady's clear tone, Manjiri smiled a bit in order to greet her and walked towards her desk trying to act casual.
"Well I guess Shaurya will be busy for the next 20 minutes approximately, so by then you can at least drink some cold water to calm your disturbed mind."
At first Manjiri felt stunned by her these sudden words but then without thinking much she took a sip of water politely.
"You feel okay now?"
The lady inquired with concern.
To which Manjiri nodded her head with a slight smile. Noticing a transparent moustache of sweat upon her upper lip and her unsettled facial expressions, the lady again inquired
"I guess you're feeling uneasy here... Right?"
"Umm... Yes!
I hate visiting hospitals."
Inadvertently these words slipped from Manjiri's mouth. Hearing this the lady's forehead creased into deep lines. Widening her caring big eyes she questioned
"Why so?"
Uttering this she immediately checked on herself and added,
"You don't have to answer that, I'm sorry!"
On taking a note of the hidden easiness and compassion in that lady's words and voice, Manjiri failed miserably in suppressing her emotions. At first she thought to lie but then for the sake of the generosity and the genuineness the lady was showing to her, she finally managed to narrate her whole experience briefly with a heavy heart. Unknowingly tears poured out from her eyes while she was speaking. But after it was over, she felt better.... She felt composed. Her mood improved and at then she realized that sharing things can certainly help in restoring emotional balance.
On the other hand the lady heard her each and every word intently without passing any judgement.... In between she kept on saying affectionate words to Manjiri which unconsciously pushed her more to let out all her negative experience and views regarding the hospitals.
"My dear, you know there's a fine balance between honouring your past's detestable experiences and losing yourself in it....
You're still tangled around the contours of your last experience of the hospital where you lost your loved one.....
There is still a great deal to be done by you in your life so instead of lingering in the same old corridor, try allowing your heart to make new memories...."
Suddenly Shaurya entered the room pushing the door open, putting off the hearty and genuine conversation flowing there.
Looking at the lady he spoke these words with a beaming face,
"Chief approved all the reports Sheena Ma'am!"
"That's great Dr. Mohan!"
Finally shifting his gaze towards his wife, Shaurya muttered
"I'm done with all my work. So let's get moving..."
With this Manjiri stood up agreebly and at next moment she felt that lady's palm brushing her back while saying
"Take care... And keep in touch dear."
"You too Ma'am!"
Stretching a tender slight grin on her face Manjiri replied. She could sense her mind being rebooted by her worthwhile words and advice.
Shaurya looked a little surprised while witnessing the scene in front of him. He stressed his mind to think for the reason of why his senior was behaving so tenderly with Manjiri... and that too in the very first meeting.
"Some of your life's best days haven't even happened yet.......
You have not seen it all!!!
You have not felt it all!!!
There are more people for you to meet, more places for you to see and a lot many firsts' to experience.........."
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This is it for now. Hope you liked it. I am sorry for the mistakes.
In case if you want to share your views or suggest something, you are more than welcome.
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