A knock on the door brought Juhi out of her deep trance... Still sitting down against the bathroom door with the strip in her hand, she felt hollow in her heart... Repeated knock on the door made her stand up, putting back the strip into her kurta pocket, she splashed cold water on her face... Wiping her face dry she walked out and opened the door ...
A worried Nurse Philo was at the door..
"Doctor, are you all right..." she asked
" Yes Sis. Philo , I was in the washroom...." she replied
" Dr Juhi, there has been fluctuations in the blood pressure of Dr Shashank... I thought you must see him...." she said
Nodding her head Juhi replied " I ll be there in a minute ..."
Walking back to her chair, she gulped some water... it all felt like a dream to her... Her feet refused to move... How was she going to face him now.... How would she tell him once he regains his consciousness.... How would Anjali react if she got to know about her pregnancy... And what about Rahul.... She felt her head exploding...
" I can't handle this alone ... I need you Dr Shashank.. I need you back soon...." she whispered wiping the tears off her face..
Picking up her stethoscope from the table, she walked to the ICU...As she neared his bed, she felt nervous for the first time... Her hands trembled as she checked his blood pressure...
Anjali and Sis. Philo who stood beside her were shocked to see Juhi's hands trembling..
" Dr Juhi, Why are your hands trembling..." Anjali held her shoulder...
" I'm just very tired..Anjali.. I need to rest..." she lied again although Sis Philo didn't look convinced with her answer..
With her trembling hands she managed to pick up the case sheet and prescribed the injections to be given...
Sure that the anaesthetic effect must have worn off, she looked worried and restless that he had not gained consciousness yet... There was so much to tell him..
"Why hasn't dad regained consciousness yet, Dr Juhi... I'm worried ..." Anjali's voice choked
"I'm hoping he will soon, Anjali...
I'm sure he will be fine..." Juhi replied with a faint smile..
"You must rest now doctor, before you collapse.." Sis Philo spoke who knew something was just not right with her..
" I will stay right here and monitor Dr Shashank and keep you both posted time to time... Please go and take rest..."
Nodding her head in agreement, Juhi walked out..
Closing the blinds of her cabin window, Juhi sat on her chair and put down her head on the table... The helplessness and loneliness she felt right now was different...Never in her life she felt that way... Her world turned upside down and she is clueless how to turn it upright...
Her head hammered... She lifted her head up and held it between both her hands.. Opening the drawer she pulled out a strip of pain killer... Just before popping out the tablet from the strip, she realised her state...
Letting out a deep sigh she dropped the pain killer back into the drawer and picked up a paracetamol tablet instead...
Popping in the tablet she decided to take a short nap resting her head back on the table ...
Two hours later she woke up with a jolt... It took her a few seconds to realise where she was....
Checking the time on her wrist watch she realised she had slept for two hours clueless about her surroundings...
She went to the wash room and splashed cold water on her face.. Making herself look presentable she rushed out of her cabin to the ICU...
There he lay motionless just like the way she had left him two hours ago...
Sis Philo briefed her that his blood pressure had stabilised now but there was no signs of consciousness...
With the first twenty four hours being very crucial , slowly a different kind of fear began to set in...
Relieving Sis Philo , Juhi sat on the stool beside the bed where Shashank lay... She held his hand in between hers and kissed his hand gently ... " I have something very special to tell you , Dr. Shashank... Please open your eyes ...Please talk to me... I need you more than I ever needed you..." she wept..
Anjali who walked inside the ICU to check on her dad, was moved by seeing Juhi's plight... She stood beside Juhi, placing a hand over her shoulders and consoled her saying "Relax Dr Juhi... Dad will come back soon... I trust you.."
A few minutes later after composing herself , Juhi remembered she had an important task to do..
Excusing herself while Anjali decided to spend some time with her dad, Juhi walked towards the Clinical Laboratory..
Sneha , the lab technician who adored and worshipped Juhi was surprised to see Juhi at her desk...
"What a pleasant surprise Dr Juhi..." she exclaimed ... " I'm sure Dr Shashank will be up very soon cause the best hands have treated him... Don't worry ..." she smiled
Juhi acknowledged her with another faint smile..
"I need your help, Sneha.." Juhi spoke out
"Anything for you Dr Juhi..." she beamed
" I need to get a blood check done... I think I'm pregnant..."
"Oh my god I'm so happy for you..." Sneha jumped with joy and hugged her...
"Sneha , listen to me first..." Juhi said breaking the hug... " I want this to be absolutely confidential... I don't want anyone at the hospital knowing about it...please.."
Breaking the eye contact and looking down further she continued " If the result comes positive , I want to first break this news to my husband and then we will decide when to let everyone know..." she stammered
" That's absolutely fine Dr Juhi... I'm more than happy to be of some help to you... Please come..." Sneha said ..
Collecting the sample, Sneha told her that she would call her once the report is ready ..
Thanking her, Juhi walked back to her cabin
She decided to go home and freshen up ... Informing Anjali about the same , she left with Shashank's driver to his home...
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...
The next morning after all the rituals , the cremation took place... Rahul was devastated.. and so was his family ...
After returning back home Juhi decided to stay back that night and leave for Pune the next morning...
Sis Philo and Anjali kept updating her regarding Shashank's condition. There was neither improvement nor deterioration in his condition... the former being a cause of concern ...
Juhi decided to freshen up... While Rahul just walked out of the washroom.. A while later Rahul knocked on the washroom door, while she was taking a shower...
" Juhi , do you have your cell phone charger with you... I'm not finding mine.. and I need to make some important calls..." he said
Turning off the shower she replied " It's in my handbag.. in my wardrobe... Take it from there.."
Rahul walked to her side of wardrobe and opened the door... He found her handbag...
Unzipping it he put his hand inside looking for the charger... When his fingers felt the wire he pulled it out simultaneously dropping the envelope from her handbag...
Relieved he found the charger , he bend down to pick up the envelope which fell down...
Picking it up he noticed, the envelope had the Laboratory seal of Sanjivani and " Dr JUHI " written in capital letters ...
Maybe some patients report he thought and put it back into her handbag...
He walked two steps and stopped in his track... " Why would Juhi carry her patients report in her handbag... It is supposed to be filed along with the case sheet..." he thought
Tucking the charger into his track pants, he turned back and opened her wardrobe again.. Taking out the envelope from the handbag, he pulled out the paper...Unfolding the paper, he felt his head explode when he read the contents of the report ..
"Dr Juhi ..
Pregnancy Test - Positive..."
Tears and rage clouded his eyes as he shut them... Crumbling the envelope in one hand, he opened his eyes and saw Juhi standing with a horrified look seeing the envelope in his hands....
Banging the wardrobe door close, he charged towards her and pushed her towards the wall...
He pinned her by her shoulder to the wall and yelled at her...
" What the fuck is this report...
You are pregnant when I haven't even laid a finger on you...
So you cheated on me sleeping with that man behind my back while you are still married to me... What a bitch you turned out to be , Juhi..."
" I'm sorry... Rahul... I can explain everything to you... Please..." she cried
"I always thought you were only attracted towards Shashank ... And I thought it would go away with time once we spend time with each other... but you turned out to be something else... How could you do this to me Juhi..." he cried moving away from her facing his back towards her...
Composing himself he turned towards her with rage filled in his eyes " You know what , your explanation doesn't mean anything to me now... I will see you in the court... and until then don't show me your goddamn face.. get out of my house and my life right now before I kill you... He yelled
" I hate you, Juhi.. I hate you..."
Juhi stood crying ..She had no words to explain herself or defend herself..She knew she was wrong... Wrong because she choose her heart over her mind... and there was no right or wrong in love ...
She knew staying back would only worsen the situation, so she got dressed, packed a few clothes in a suitcase and walked out of the house... knowing she may never come back to this home once again...
Walking outside the gate, she booked a cab... Just then her phone rang..
It was Anjali's call.. Juhi answered the call on the very first ring .. " Yes Anjali..." she said
" Dr Juhi, dad just regained his consciousness..." Anjali sounded happy
That very moment Juhi forgot all the turmoil she underwent in the last 48 hours and even the one that happened a few minutes back...
Tears of joy streamed down her face..
"Dr Juhi, it would be better if you could come back soon.." Anjali sounded tense
" I'm starting from here right now, Anjali... and I'm coming straight to the hospital... See you soon.." Juhi said
" We are waiting for you Dr Juhi..." Anjali replied and the line went dead ..
A few minutes later, the cab arrived..
As the cab sped through the city and thereafter the outskirts, Juhi thanked God for bringing Shashank back...
She felt all her problems would be solved, now that he is back.. He would handle everything..
She blushed thinking about how she would break the pregnancy news to him and his reaction ...
With hundreds of thoughts running down her mind and hoping for rainbow after a storm she smiled happily to herself for the first time in the last 48 hours...
Three hours later she reached Sanjivani... Paying the cab driver an extra five hundred rupee note she rushed inside the hospital ..
Her heart knew no bounds to meet him..
Leaving her luggage in her cabin she rushed towards the ICU only to be stopped by Anjali who looked shaken and sad...
" Anjali , I can't wait to see him... let me meet him first and then I ll get back to you..." Juhi said as she made her way through the door
Anjali held her hand and stopped her... She looked damn serious
" What is the matter, Anjali..." Juhi asked
Words failed to come out of Anjali's mouth
" Your silence is killing me .." Juhi almost yelled
Finally gathering courage, Anjali spoke.. " Dr Juhi, Dad has lost his memory... He doesn't recognise anyone ... Not even me ....."
Juhi's body froze.... She felt someone suck out the air from her body.. Her legs began to tremble and she held the wall for support as she crashed on the chair outside the ICU......