"Sir you need to sign the consent form before the procedure begins" came a nurse with a form and a pen.
He was taken aback. Did he have the right to sign those papers? He shared his heart with her, yet he did not share any relationship with her. He had willingly given her all the rights to rule his life, but he could not take a decision for her.
His impulsive decisions had always caused her a problem. What if this time too his decision to sign those papers caused her another problem?
"Can I make a call please?" he excused himself. The nurse nodded and he dialed Mr.Iyer's number hoping he will be able to make him realise the graveness of the situation. The phone rang but it was soon disconnected.
Redial - disconnect, redial - disconnect, redial - switched off.
"Sir please make it quick" the nurse alarmed him.
"Can't you....can't you begin the procedure without the consent form?" he asked apprehensively.
"No Sir, that's not possible at all" she firmly replied.
What could he possibly do now? He remembered Mihika. He was sure she would definitely come running for her sister. But how would he contact her in such short span? He knew no means to contact her. He could search for her profile on social networks but that would take a lot of time.
"Can we wait for some more time?" he asked hoping against hope.
"It's your wish Sir. But let me remind you that you have already wasted a lot of time and the patient has a severe injury on her head. The delay might cause the patient's life" she warned.
"No...no...I will sign it right away" He snatched the form from her hand immediately.
He read the paper, out of habit, before he signing.
'All operations and procedures carry the risk of unsuccessful results, complications, injury or even death, from both known and unforeseen causes, and no warranty or guarantee is made as to result or cure'
The clause was alarming.
"What the hell is this? What do you mean by it can cause death?" he acted insane.
"That's the rule Sir. Every consent form for a surgery carries this clause" she explained.
"I don't understand this. Why do you have to put this clause?" he roared.
"As mentioned, we cannot guarantee the results" she said calmly. She was probably used to tackling such irrational questions.
"Does that mean....Ishita....Ishitaaaa......" he could not build up the courage to complete the sentence.
"Calm down Sir. We will try our best to save her" she comforted him.
"What about the baby?" he was scared.
"We cannot assure you about saving both" she was honest in her reply.
He slumped on the floor having no clue what to do. He knew how important the baby was for Ishita. He remembered the unsaid promise he had made to her before she was taken into the OT.
"Sir please make it quick. The doctors are waiting to begin the procedure" she shook him.
"In case....just in case....you have a choice to save one of them, who will be saved?" he asked hesitantly.
"Legally, the mother will be saved because the fetus is not considered a 'human' under law. The clause is added at the end of the form, Sir" she informed.
'Mera bachha' her last words rang in his ears. He knew by signing these papers, he was knowingly breaking the promise he made to her. He was legally agreeing to end the life of her unborn baby, if the need be. And if he didn't sign those papers now, he could be killing both Ishita and her baby.
Even with conflicting thoughts, he had to sign the papers. He ticked against 'Spouse' under 'relationship with the patient' and with a shivering hand, he signed 'Raman Bhalla'
--------------------
"Congratulations sir! It's a girl" the nurse came out announcing after a life-taking wait of 4 hours.
All the worries forgotten, the moment he laid his eyes on the little bundle of joy clad in a clean white sheet. He breathed a sigh of relief as God had enabled him to fulfill the promise given to Ishita.
He looked at the nurse seeking permission to carry the baby. The nurse extended the baby towards him. Taking her in his arms, he touched her cheeks with his and closed the eyes experiencing the joy he had never felt before.
He was lost on the moment of bliss when the nurse informed him that the baby had to be taken for some tests. He felt a part of him going away with her as the nurse took her back to the Child Care Unit.
The smile that the baby had erupted on his face remained as he waited for the Doctor to come out with another good news. The baby was safe, that means Ishita would be safe too, as the nurse had told him that saving the mother would be their priority.
"How is she?" he asked with a confident smile, when the Doctor came out of the OT.
"We are sorry Mr.Bhalla!" said the Doctor with a frown.
"Sorry? What do you mean by sorry?" all the worst scenarios came to his mind "No!" he screamed.
"We tried our best but....due to heavy bleeding and delayed surgery, she has slipped into a coma" the Doctor informed.
"Oh shit" he cursed himself for being the reason for delay.
"But the good news is that she is out of danger" said the doctor to comfort him.
"Thank God" he breathed. "When will she come out of coma?" he asked.
"We cannot guarantee. It might take hours, days, weeks or years" he said. "As of now, we will keep her under observation. Thankfully she doesn't have any major injury. But we will be able to tell you her exact condition only after she has recovered from the coma." he added.
After 24 hours of observation, Ishita was shifted to Shagun Arora Memorial Ward, the most equipped room of the hospital that was used for treating special and critical maternity cases.
(Note: Have you heard of 'misleading clue'? FYI Shagun was that misleading clue of this story and she shares no relationship with IshRa or Ruhi. You can breath now and thank me later ;) Hahahahaha)
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"Kya mai apni beti ko ghar le jaa sakta hoon?" he asked the doctor. The doctors would not let him stay whole day in the hospital. The visiting hours were fixed and he had to oblige. So he decided to take Ruhi home.
"Are you sure Mr.Bhalla? Bin Maa ki bachhi ko sambhalna koi asaan kaam nahi hai" said the Doctor. "I mean Ishita is still in coma and she will have to stay here for another couple of days until we are sure that she is ready to be discharged. Will you be able to manage the baby all alone? Uski Maa uske sath nahi hogi"
"I am sure doctor. Meri Ruhi ke paas uski MAA hai" he stated confidently. "Mai use uski Maa ki kami kabhi mehsoos nahi hone doonga"
"Ok then...If you are sure about it, you can take her home" smiled the doctor.
"Sir you have to fill this form for the birth certificate of your daughter" said the nurse when Raman was paying the bills.
"Ok" he said after burping the baby as instructed by the nurse, and placing her in her crib.
First thing he had to fill in was the name of the baby. He hadn't thought of a name yet. He didn't have a right to think of the name either. It was Ishita's right. How could he snatch that right from her? But the circumstances were such that he had make that decision too on her behalf.
As if on cue, a memory flashed in front of his eyes.
When he and Ishita were working together for the Children's Skill Devpt Project, they were required to meet a lot of kids who were eligible to be admitted to the centre. They had aimed at innocent kids with criminal backgrounds, but there was one special case of an 8 year old girl who was a victim of domestic violence and molestation. A brilliant and gifted child had lost her self-confidence and gone mum due to the atrocities she has faced.
Raman was highly impressed with the way Ishita dealt with the girl, making her speak and confide in her. He had got another reason to fall in love with Ishita. After counselling the girl, Ishita discusssed about the girl with Raman. She was quite effected with the story of the little victim. She kept talking about her and also mentioned to him that this girl would always stay in her memory, so will her name 'Ruhi'.
To lighten her mood, Raman had asked if she would name her daughter after this girl in future. "Well that's a wonderful idea! Ruhi....If I have a daughter in future, I shall definitely name her that" She sounded delighted.
Raman had chuckled at her remark.
"What??? You think I am not serious?" she asked frowning.
"I never said that" Raman acted innocent.
"On a second thought, the name Ruhi ends with I. I for Ishita" she remarked.
"Hmmm....Great discovery. Waise I don't have a problem either in naming my daughter Ruhi, as it begins with R. R for Raman" he winked giving her a hint about his feelings for her and his dreams of having a family with her.
"Hmmmm....right! Go ahead" she had said jokingly which Raman had considered as a green signal for him. Raman offered to drop Ishita back home but as always she refused the offer.
"Why do you always refuse my offer?" he had asked finally.
"Samajhdaar ko ishara kaafi" she exclaimed and left in a cab.
'Mai tumhara ishara samajh gaya Ishita!' Raman though with a dreamy smile assuming she was speaking about the name 'Ruhi'.
If only, he had realised that not Ruhi, but refusing his offer was a signal for him. A red signal that was, not green.
Thankfully, he knew what Ishita would have wanted to name her daughter. Without a second thought, he wrote 'Ruhi' in front of name, added 'Bhalla' after it mechanically.
'Father's Name: Raman Kumar Bhalla' he wrote in a flow, quite naturally. Although he had not admitted it verbally, since the moment he had taken Ruhi in his arms, he had unconsciously become a father to her.
He realised what he had done, only when he was required to fill in the next line.
'Mother's Name: .............'
What was he doing? He was claming Ishita and her daughter, without Ishita's consent. Didn't he do the same to Ishita before when he had proposed her in public? Wasn't he committing the same mistake again?
Unable to make a decision, he left the form incomplete.
Another nurse came running to him and informed that Ishita had recovered from the coma. He rushed to her ward. She had her eyes open but was giving a blank look. She stared into the oblivion and screamed holding her head.
Raman was pushed out of the ward as the doctor and nurses attended Ishita.
Later, Raman was informed by the doctor that Ishita had lost her memory. He did not know how to react. He had been waiting from a week for her to come out of coma, so that he could ask her all the questions he had on mind, contact Mihika or anyone Ishita would want to inform her whereabouts. He would explain to her under what circumstances he had to sign the consent form as her husband and had hoped she would understand. That would be the end of his responsibility and his journey with her. He did not expect anything more than that for he had learnt a lesson from his past experiences and accepted that she was not meant for him.
But now everything had turned upside down. The one he loved, he craved for, he was mad for, lied in front of him in a conscious yet unconscious state. And on the other side, lied the half filled form for Ruhi's birth certificate.
Recalling his conversation with Subbu's wife and Mr.Iyer, he gathered that Ishita had no place to go to. All the paths he could visualise at this time led her towards him and him towards her.
Selflessly or selfishly, he could not decide, he picked the form and resumed filling it.
His vision turned blurry as he wrote an 'S' in the blank against Mother's name. 'H' he added with a lot of difficulty. When he was about to write the next letter 'I', he realised that he had missed writing the first letter of her name. Making a decision finally, against his conscience, he wiped his tears and added an 'I' before 'S' and completed the name as ISHITA RAMAN BHALLA.
-------------To be continued----------------
Long chapter after a very long time...
Now I am planning to take a brief break if it's ok with u guys...
PS: Not proofread