[fasterboy]

PART 34


“Leave the kids with us for tonight, Khushi. We will take care of them. It is your..”


Khushi cut Swati across with an awkward smile on her face.

“First night, I know, Aunty. But I met my Kuhu and Arsh met his twin after months, I do not want to lose any more time with them. Anyways, one of the main reasons of this wedding and this situation is them. How can we take away the reason from the equation itself?” she questioned, eying her children in the pram affectionately.


“Your wish, Beta, but do not forget that the love between the two of you was also the major catalyst. Who knows, that love is just the thing required to ease the ache of your hearts,” mused Swati, caressing Khushi’s chin affectionately as she adjusted the embroidered skirt of Khushi for one last time.


Khushi was left alone with her thoughts to ponder over them. The last few days were a mess to say the least. The awkward looks, the cunning whispers, the embarrassing smirks and snide taunts, she had seen it all in the days leading to the wedding and she was sure that her parents and Arnav’s family would have seen no less than what she had to see.


She earnestly hoped that she would not be proven wrong, by taking the decision to marry Arnav, once again by the man himself. One heartbreak was enough to cause heartache throughout her life and she wondered if she had it in herself to bear another assault on her dampened strings of heart.

“Khoosi..”


The husky whisper from his lips made her turn away from the trail of thoughts and turn towards her newly-wedded husband. It was a moment she had waited for years and fantasized several times over in myriads of different scenarios like every teenager and a woman in love but to see the moment unfold in reality felt more surreal than ever. She could not help but wonder if the whole chain of events was the way destiny decided to fulfill her dream of marrying him.



Just as she was losing herself in the ocean of pleasure, wave of memories brought upon the salt to rub against the still open wounds on her heart once again. She could vow that she had seen sincerity in his eyes but so did she when he upheld his end of the bargain, only to be cruelly betrayed. Several shades of a character, many dimensions of a personality, which one to believe and which one to forget - such was the dilemma was the wretched lover.

[fasterboy]

“How are you feeling now? I know the events of the day would have been stressful for you and it is not easy to forget some remarks so easily but I hope you are feeling better now,” said Arnav, drawing gentle circles at the back of her hand as Khushi looked at him lost for words.


“Khoosi?” he prompted, sensing the lack of acknowledgement from her side as she looked at him blankly with a brew of several emotions floating in her eyes.


“I don’t understand,” she whispered, her eyes holding the most lethal yet the purest hue of love - pain.


“Huh? What do you not understand, Khoosi?” he asked, the urge to erase the reason of her suffering swelling in his heart.


“I don’t understand what my heart wants anymore, Arnav. To believe in its racing at your proximity or its wallowing in regret at the memory of your betrayal; to remember its earnest desire to beat in synchronization with yours or play the memory of its ache due to the wound given by you; to have faith on my love or to reflect upon my broken trust, I do not know what to do, Arnav. How I wish I knew,” she remarked, the paradoxical combination of bliss and bane flooding Arnav’s heart at her expression of love and disdain at his actions.


To see one’s love in such a confused state was probably the toughest situation for any one in love and Arnav was no different. Her fears were not baseless, after all, the one who had pushed his first wife to depression due to his lack of clarity on his own feelings, the one who trapped her in her own contract, could he be the one to give clarity to anyone to bring them out of the trap of their complex emotions? It would be tough for anyone to trust him.


“Here goes your contract papers and proposition. I cannot trust any proposition from your side when you have removed any basis for me to trust you,” she exclaimed as she tore the contract papers into pieces and threw it to the side.


“The whole act leading to the surrogacy might have been farce, Khushi, but the importance of your trust in my life was not faked. When you had said that you have no basis to trust me, it shook me from within, awoke the conscience which lied dormant but unfortunately, it was not for a longer period of time. But this time, I took vows with you, with not just Fire as our witness but my love and my soul as the stake. Once again, you iterated your lack of trust upon me, and I promise one more thing to you, Khushi, this will be the last time you will ever complain of it. I will win your trust and never break it! It’s promise, on our love and the sign of our love!” he vowed, kissing the back of her palm lovingly.

[fasterboy]

Whether it was the butterfly kisses lacing her fingertips or the silver lining of his words, Khushi did not know which enchanted her more. Her lips broke into a smile as she drank in the beautiful sight surrounding her - a husband promising her love and yearning to win her trust and her beautiful twins sleeping peacefully - it was that precise moment that she felt blessed.


“When you said that you had no basis to trust me anymore, I was hurt beyond words, Khoosi. I know how it feels to be not able to trust the one whom you love and I just could not put you through the same pain. I wanted to do everything I could to reinstate that trust and hence this contract. Do you trust me now or you want me to give you more reasons to trust me?” he said, looking sincerely into her eyes and cupping her shoulder affectionately.



“It’s quite late in the night, Khoosi. We should sleep. After all, we never know when our little pranksters wake up, asking for their share of attention,” reminded Arnav, rising from his seated position.


Khushi just nodded at him as she moved to change her heavy attire. She had not expected for anything akin to the normal happenings of a passionate first night and she was not disappointed. They had a baggage holding them down and she would wait for the day she would lose them same, allowing her heart to love and cherish him the way it yearns to.



“Will you be comfortable sharing the bed, Khoosi?” questioned Arnav, after they had changed into a much comfortable outfit.

His concern for her feelings made her reminisce the time he had passionately promised that she would have the best sleep of her life and he would ward away the sleeping problems brought upon by her pregnancy.


“What if I would not be able to sleep?” she counter-questioned involuntarily as Arnav looked up at her with mild surprise.


“I will lull you to sleep, like I did in the past,” he assured, smiling at her lovingly as she stepped towards him and slipped her palm between his fingers.


“Then stay beside me, help me dream of our beautiful future and I will be waiting for it to turn true, for my mind to forgo of every complaint, for my heart to lose every constraint and for my soul to reunite with yours.”


__________________________________

[fasterboy]

great explained narration of feelings.....

everyone has his/her own share of love and betrayal..... arnav, khushi and rati....

rati is looser..... lost everything in her life...... only for arnav...... but not due to arnav... but because of her own thoughts, acts and betrayal

khushi gained whatever she never expected... not from arnav.... but from rati....not only leftovers... but the admiration and care ...at the time of need

but .........arnav....... he was never punished for his wrongdoings.... but rewarded... everytime... for his betrayal with his parents, rati, khusi even his children
"every dog has a day" changed to "some dogs have a life" so as this bastard arnav

thanks for continuation...............

keep updating regularily.....

Thanks.

[fasterboy]

Nice bro

Please comment on update.

[fasterboy]

PART 35


________________________________________


Few Days Later,

Khushi was, quite deservedly, declared as the new President of State Pediatricians Committee after the untimely and unfortunate demise of the previous member. She previously held many honorary positions and also worked as a delegate to numerous conferences held pan-India and globally. After the initial condolence, remembrance and investiture, Khushi was ready to take up her duties as the President when she walked into her cabin.


“Sorry, Khushi, but we have an important Court case today in court and you will have to attend it, in the your right as a President. A few of our members, conducting independent research, have found out three companies manufacturing drugs which are potentially harmful for the children, due to higher than the recommended concentrations of the constituents present in them and some controversial components present. This rushed investiture is also due to the same,” explained Sumit, the Secretary of the Committee.

[fasterboy]

“But why was I not informed of the same before? At least, I would have prepared for it,” questioned Khushi, taking the file forwarded by Sumit which had the details of the composition of the drugs.



“You had suddenly taken leave and turned up married without telling any of us, so we thought that we will keep you out of this since the case had begun when you left to Shillong but when Kushal Sir passed away and we came to know he wanted you to be the President, the Committee decided that you were the best candidate for the post and as a President, you are necessary to attend the proceedings,” he replied, his tone expressing his apology for the same.


Khushi absorbed the information along the constituents mentioned in the file. Her memory along with her expertise in Pharmacology indicated the various side effects which could manifest through the prolong usage and exposure of them and which were particularly enhanced in case of children since their neurons were still not myelinated completely.


“I completely understand your reasons, Sumit. Also, this looks serious and needs to be taken care of immediately. Let’s go,” said Khushi, taking her belongings from the cabin as Sumit smiled at her professional mannerisms and followed her to the parking where the other committee members were waiting for them.


Sumit and Khushi got onto the car registered under the Committee’s name as he began briefing her further about the case and the steps they had taken, the way the companies had continuous ignored the warnings as it ignited the fire of resentment in her heart at the companies which were playing with the lives of several innocent children just for materialistic pleasures.






Special Court,



“May I call upon the Defendants of the case: AyurCare, Shanthi Medicals and Bose Group?”


Khushi felt the very ground underneath her feet slip apart as Shanthi Medicals was the healthcare company owned by her own husband - Arnav Singh Raizada. She could not understand why he hid the case proceedings from her and how could his company play so dirty.

[fasterboy]

As the Defendants paid their respects to the Bench consisting of members from Judiciary as well as the Medical Council of India, Khushi earnestly hoped that the Shanthi Medicals mentioned was not the one owned by Arnav, since he had never mentioned of such a case ever before.



But alas, destiny was in no mood to fulfill her dreams as she found herself facing her husband when he turned around to take his seat and their eyes met each other; while one held surprise and shock the other pair held disbelief and pain.



“Let us begin the proceedings! The Prosecution may begin,” announced the Chief of the Bench, Dr. Madhuri Sharma.


“Thank you, your Honor! I would like to call upon the Advisor to the State, Pharmacological Affairs, Dr. Vishal Bose and Advisor to the State, Pediatrics, Dr. Harshwardhan Kapoor,” requested the lawyer of the Prosecution, Aditi Singh.


“Permission Granted!”


“Dr. Bose and Dr. Kapoor, here is the official composition of the drugs manufactured by the companies AyurCare, Shanthi Medicals and Bose Group from their own companies as signed by their respective CEOs. Do you find any potentially harmful components in those that are highlighted by the State Pediatrics Committee that you feel should have been avoided or must be avoided in the drugs designed?” questioned Aditi, passing on the file which was scrutinized by both the doctors with great attention to detail.



“All the highlighted drugs pose a risk to the health of the children. Yes, they are very efficient for the usage for adults but pose a risk at the same time, which elevated further in the children,” commented Dr. Harshwardhan.



“Also, the concentrations are completely haywire. I wonder, how they got the approval for these drugs with such composition,” pointed Dr. Bose, as Aditi smirked slightly as she passed on some papers to be passed on to the Bench.



“Your Honor, here are some articles, published by various recognized journals, which prove our point and the composition of the drugs which was obtained after great struggle in the very court, for quite understandable reasons,” remarked Aditi snidely, as Khushi gave up the very hope of Arnav’s company getting a clean chit but she felt betrayed at several levels by her husband who kept her in dark and not just played with her emotions but with lives of several others.

[fasterboy]

“Every company has the right to keep its combinations confidential and that’s what my clients were doing! Your Honor, the Prosecution is making this tussle personal now,” objected Kunal, the lawyer of Defendants.



“Objection Overruled! Please speak up if you have something to say about the accusations, because I wonder if you will get any other chance to do so, looking at the various details we have obtained,” said Dr. Madhuri.



Kunal had almost nothing to say except for a few articles, from lesser known authors and journals, which had lower credibility which he presented but it was known to him from the beginning that it was a lost case.



As the Prosecution received a copy of the articles, Khushi could help but see the silver lining of the scenario. Although it was not proven beyond doubt or established, the drug composition could yield some good effects but nevertheless, the Bench was likely to doubt rather accept.


“After looking into the cases, listening to both the sides, the Bench holds the three companies guilty and immediately terminates their license to manufacture drugs. 75% of their funds are to be seized and offered as a compensation to the victims found in the researches and the rest are to be added to Chief Minister’s Fund For the Children. The Case is now closed, but however the option of Appeal still lies in the hands of the Defendants!”


Arnav, on the other hand, felt more defeated than ever before with the Court announcing its decision which effectively closes his company which he had built from scratch through his prime years, sacrificing every bit of his personal life to it. As he slumped to his seat after rising in respect for the Bench when they walked out, he felt the very energy leaving his form.



Despite his pitiful appearance, Khushi could not help but feel myriads of emotions, most of them aligning with resentment arising within her. He had vowed to gain her trust but it seemed like he had destroyed her trust beyond everything, after all, there could be no excuse to manufacture drugs which held so much risk to the population, being a Doctor who thrived to see smile on her patient’s face and a mother who loved her children beyond everything.


Was it the end of their relationship or a new beginning?

[fasterboy]

PART 36


Her eyes scanned his curled up and shivering form with several emotions washing over her soul. While her love, for the man who sinned against the cause she lived for, broke her aching heart into myriads of pieces, her conscience burned her very soul in ways she could fathom not.


“Khushi, shall we leave?” questioned a member of the Committee, pulling her out of her reverie.


“I need to catch up on something else at this moment, Shiv. If you can excuse me, I will join you later,” said Khushi, trying her best to keep her tone professional and facade of nonchalance on while internally she could feel the pain of thousand daggers stabbing her.


Her voice made the man of her thoughts look up to the source as he felt himself sinking further into the vortex of darkness and hysteria. His wife, the one whose trust he was yet to win, could have managed to evade her pain from the eyes of the onlookers but not the one to whom she had lost her heart.


Her pain only broke him further from inside, both for being the cause of it and for not being able to do anything in regards to the same.

[fasterboy]

As the Committee members left the Court Room along with all the other officials, Khushi began walking towards her husband who had stood up, preparing for the upcoming battle between his love’s heart and soul.



“You never told me that you had this side to your personality too, Mr. Arnav Singh Raizada?” she questioned, her voice merely a whisper but held the potential to cause more damage than the one several octaves high in the heart of one standing in front of her.



“I agree that this should not have happened, Khoosi. It was not supposed to happen this way, trust me,” he said, moving close to her as he tried cupping her shoulders when she took a step back.



“Trust you?” she asked, a self-deriding chuckle leaving her lips as her eyes turned blood-shot.


“Khoosi..”

[fasterboy]

“I earnestly hoped every moment of our marital life that I will trust you wholeheartedly one day, that you will give me every chance to do so. You have let me down on so many levels today, Arnav. How could you even play with lives of children when you love them so much? HOW?” she demanded, fury taking the better of her.



“It was not supposed to be this way, darling, like I said. I did not want any of this to happen,” he exclaimed, trying to move closer to her but it was only the physical distance that he could erase.



“So you are telling me that your company was manufacturing drugs without your knowledge and approval? Even if it is true, why did you never inform me of this case? When were you going to reveal this?” she questioned, breathing heavily, as if she trying extremely hard to not let sorrow wash over her and escape her eyes in the form of brine.



“I wanted to tell you but you were pregnant at that time. I did not want to put you into any kind of stress and what happened after the delivery is known to both of us. I didn’t want to add another trouble to our platter,” he answered, losing his control over the tears which were filling  his eyes.


Khushi took in a deep breath as she took in his answer. The reminder of the time they spent in Shillong proved to be bane to her soul and her heart alike, albeit for different reasons.



“You still didn’t answer my first questions. Are you trying to imply that your company manufactured these drugs without your knowledge?” asked Khushi, praying that the answer is in affirmative and since it was a joint case, the lawyer conveniently forgot to raise the point.


But, alas, the destiny had something else in hold for them.


“No. I knew,” he replied, looking everywhere else except for the shattered woman in front of him as heart resonated with the breaking of her heart once again.


Khushi stumbled back as her last straw of patience, the last shred of hope and the last piece of heart broke in myriads of pieces.

[fasterboy]

“But I didn’t know that they had harmful side-effects on children. My trips to Shillong had taken toll on my schedule and in one such case, since I wanted to stay back for the maximum duration possible, I did not ask for any case reports or articles regarding this composition when it was proposed. In fact, we even bribed the Authorities to get the drug into the market. I was so confident of my team that I had forgotten that no one was higher than any of the seven vices. I wish I had rechecked it at least once,” explained Arnav, holding her in his arms as he tried to make her look at him as sincerity gleamed in his eyes.



Khushi found herself in a quandary she had never imagined herself in. On one hand, her heart was begging her to believe her husband and stay by his side in the difficult times but her soul screamed of impartiality to her as it roused questions on his sense of responsibility and his morality.



“Let go of me, Arnav,” she whispered, deciding that she will have to share her problem to someone before it engulfs her as a whole and staying so close to her love was not letting her think straight.


“Khoosi...Khushi, please! Please don’t leave me! I just lost my company, but if I lose you and the kids, I don’t think I can survive!” he begged, cupping her face with his shaky hands as he drew her closer, looking straight into her eyes as tears flowed from his eyes freely.



“Please, Arnav, I don’t think I’ll survive if I stay here any longer! Please!” she said, his hands automatically dropping to his sides as her words evoked a deep sense of angst, remorse and turmoil in him.



What will be the future of Arnav and Khushi?




</p></p>

[fasterboy]

PART 37


____________________________________________________


Court,

Khushi had walked out on him after uttering the single most damaging sentence Arnav had heard in his whole existence. Her words continued to reverberate in his ears, much like his heart which continued to beat with every beats of it shadowed by guilt and pain.


His mind was being torn apart by his thoughts - did he do right by not stopping her or his action of letting her go was the right option?


Only his heart would know the pain it had endured while eying the retreating back of its beloved and the way it had hardened itself to prevent him from engulfing her in a bone-crushing hug. Her walk out was not the cause of his pain but her pain was the dagger which struck the very chord of his heart.


The way her eyes glistened with disappointment and her voice shook with the pain of betrayal ensured that he would lose his calm and composure for months to come and it would haunt him till his last breath.


The saner part of him pushed him to inquire if she had reached safely since she was known to be quite rash in driving when she was in the wrong mood. Fate had decided to bestow sorrow at every step when Arnav rang several of his acquaintances at several places she could be expected at but it was of no avail. Khushi had neither reached his home nor her hospital.


Only one name surfaced to his mind as he felt sure that the person would surely know the whereabouts of Khushi, being so close to her - Rachna.


“What am I hearing, Arnav? Your company is involved in making hazardous drugs for children? How could you?” questioned Rachna, without giving a chance for Arnav to speak.


“I will give you ample time to accuse me, berate me and even punish me, if you deem fit, Rachna. But right now, we should search for Khushi. She is missing, after walking out on me. She was chosen as the President of the Committee who filed this case,” explained Arnav, her shivering and trembling form as she walked out flashing in front of his eyes as he struggled to maintain his tone.

[fasterboy]

“What?! She never told me about this. I will try calling her and speaking with her. I will surely find her,” assured Rachna, despite being furious over Arnav, being a doctor and mother but she knew that it was not the right time and her friend was her priority at that moment. She had seen love in his eyes towards his friend and she knew that the love in him deserved some dignity and respect.


“Please! I already called up home and her hospital, she isn’t there in either of the places. I just hope she didn’t drive herself into.....” His voice cracked unable to complete his sentence as fear of losing his beloved engulfed him completely.


“Don’t! She will be alright, she better be or I will kill you myself!” warned Rachna, tears filling up her eyes as she knew how reckless Khushi could be in driving in her worse moods.



“If something happens to her, there won’t be a need of killing me, Rachna, for I will kill myself!”



_______________________________________________




Khushi’s Apartment,


Khushi twisted the key in the lock of her old abode as the situation twisted her heart with a dagger of love. Her old home, which she had bought out of her own earnings, was reminiscent of her struggle, her determination, her sacrifices and her love through the course of being a doctor and an unrequited lover. Every nook and corner had so many bitter-sweet memories and she was sure that they would act as the elixir which could save her from the poison of betrayal suffocating her.


Her heart traveled to day Arnav landed up at her doorstep, demanding her to look back at the deal he had himself spurned away and had sought a vow from her to forget her love for him. The painful concoction of tumultuous emotions began brewing in her heart as she relived the same experience once again.



“Is it so easy for you to go back on your words, Arnav? One day you asked me to my love of years for you because you wanted to be loyal and another you demand to look back at the proposition because you needed revenge. Now, after months, you haven’t changed, isn’t it? You wanted to win my trust but you broke it, once again, in the worst way possible,” she sobbed, crashing onto the ground, without caring for the pain her knees had endured during the fall.

[fasterboy]

“The children, who always manage to bring upon smile to everyone’s face, whose innocence could melt even the hardest of hearts, and for whom I chose to dedicate my life? Arnav thought it was appropriate to experiment upon them? Hey Mahadev, what kind of a test is this? Why did you allow me to choose someone who is breaking every bit of my ideals?”



She felt her whole form burn with the flame of love, of pain and of angst. But she felt that the flame was not enough to quench her thirst of obliviousness. She found herself walking towards the restroom she had frequently used to quench her thirst for the same; little did she know, the thirst could not be quenched by a flame but instead required the ambrosia of passionate and unconditional love.



Invoking the lord who had consumed the most deadly poison for betterment of the world, she collapsed under the stream of burning water, to survive the poison burning her from inside and choking the soul which screamed for its love.


She eyed the wall where she used to imagine her lord and began her worship, ignoring her own pain. Her skin was ablaze due to intense temperature washing over her body while her knees hurt for collapsing upon numerous times and staying in the crouched position for long.



But she could not care less. She wanted the pain to consume her, lest it allows her to forget the pain given by the one closest to her heart. As a mother of two and someone who loved children, the mere thought of her husband using children for his gains was enough for her heart to bleed and the unmerciful destiny decided to write the same in her fate.


Obliviousness finally embraced her as she lost the account of time, place and herself as she immersed herself into her worship.

____________________________________________________



“I am in front of her old home, Arnav. I will check upon her. I don’t know how she will react and I cannot promise you anything but she is my bestfriend and I won’t let her commit any mistake,” promised Rachna as Anurag parked the car.


They jumped out of the car and raced towards Khushi’s house, praying that she was at her home, safe and sound. Arnav’s call pulled them out of their jobs onto the streets on the lookout for her as they learned from Arnav that she seemed quite unstable when she walked out upon him and reached neither Arnav’s home, nor her hospital nor the committee headquarters and they thought of trying with her parents only if they had searched for her

[fasterboy]

everywhere else since they would be worried sick if she wasn’t there with them.


“Khushi’s car is here, so it means she is here,” noted Anurag as he pointed at the car as Rachna let out a sigh of relief as they walked into the elevator to take them to Khushi’s floor.


“I just hope she came here just for sometime alone and not to hurt herself in any way. Sometimes I wonder if supporting Khushi in marrying Arnav was a good decision or not,” wondered Rachna, as the lift took them into the higher floors.


“I’ll hope that we were right, Rachna, because there is no way to reverse the past and a separation at this point of time would only break them further, especially Khushi. She has been love with him throughout the time I have known her,” replied Anurag as he rushed out upon reaching Khushi’s floor to see that the door was left ajar.


“Khushi?” Anurag prompted, walking in, to find no one in the living room. He could hear the sound of water flowing at a constant pace but he could not see any sign of water in the kitchen or the dining room.



“Oh no!”


Rachna paced into the restroom attached to Khushi’s room to find her unfortunate guess coming true. She immediately turned the shower off while trying to lift Khushi up from the floor.


“Khushi! Are you okay? ANURAG! Come. Fast!” yelled Rachna as she quickly checked her vital signs as Khushi’s body temperature made her blood run cold.


“Dammit!” cursed Anurag under his breath as he lifted Khushi up in her arms with Rachna supporting her head and walked towards her bed. He placed her gently upon the bed as Rachna began searching for dry clothes which Khushi could change into.


“I’ll arrange for some ice by the time you change her. Do you need any of medical devices or instruments in the car?” asked Anurag, as Rachna pulled out a simple ensemble from the wardrobe.


“Bring the entire kit. I’ll have to run a lot of diagnostics on her. God knows from when she was in that burning hot water! Her temperature is running very high. Also, inform Arnav. I don’t care if he knows about this or not but I want redemption to burn him in the same way his actions burned my Khushi. If at all he loved her, he will surely burn in the flame of regret!” claimed

[fasterboy]

Rachna, switching on the fan at high speed and setting the room temperature to natural ambient temperature for Khushi to recover faster.


Anurag decided that it was not the time to argue with the best friend in his wife and rushed out to complete the instructions given by Rachna.


“Arnav, we found Khushi. She tried burning herself by hot water at her home. I suggest you to come as soon as possible.”

>________________________________________________<


Exams are still going on and will try to post other stories when they are done. I posted this update to show how doctors value their patients in wake of the attack at NRSMCH on a junior doctor, although I had planned it since long, but posted it faster in respect of IMA’s Protest today. Doctors, whose life expectancy is five years less than general public, dedicate their lives to save others, risking their lives through exposure to infections several times over, but with a smile on their face. But it’s attacks like these which erase that smile from our faces so I plead everyone reading this to condemn the attack and treat us doctors as a human, not as a God, in a humane manner.


Bhagwaan Jinko Kehte Hai, Woh Hai Akhir Ek Insaan,

Sangarsho Se Ladkar Jo Aapke Mrityu Ke Khilaf Jung Main Saarthi Bane,

Swayam Ko Chod Kar, Avaam Ke Liye Jo Jeevan Arpit Kare

Jo Insaaniyat Ke Khatir Jiye Unke Prati Thoda Insaniyat Darshaye

[fasterboy]

PART 38


“How is she now? Is she any better?” questioned Anurag, cupping Rachna’s shoulder as she appeared to be every bit of the worn off soul that she was.


“She is a lot more stable than she was a few minutes back, of course, physically. Mentally, I have no idea,” she answered, discarding her gloves in the dust bin as she eyed her dear friend with tears in her eyes.


“Couldn’t she call me once before taking such a harsh decision? Didn’t she consider me to be her friend? Then, why didn’t she find it important to discuss such a crucial matter, before acting on her impulse?” complained Rachna, love pouring out from her eyes and her voice as Anurag took her into his embrace, drawing soothing circles at her back.


“Of course she considers you to be her friend, Rachna. Maybe she did not have it in her to relate the happenings and relive them once again. She is fine now, relax. I have called Arnav and he will be here in a short while,” informed Anurag, as he caressed her hair softly.


“It’s all because of him and you called him. Why, Anurag?” she questioned, looking up into his eyes.


“Because he loves her and that gives him the right to see her. Or in other words, if he is truly guilty, it is his punishment to see her in this state. Do you really think someone who loves children as much as Arnav would intentionally do something to hurt them? He would have been truly unaware of the situation and maybe someone in his company exploited his trust upon them. He was always very irresponsible, spurning away one responsibility if he was taking up another, he could be responsible for only one thing at a time and maybe that ruined everything in his life, starting from his relationship with his parents, Rati and now Khushi,” he explained as Rachna began understanding the situation logically.



“It’s karma, isn’t it? Remember, Arnav did not believe Rati when she told a producer took advantage of her severely inebriated state and she did not indulge in him? Now, maybe, Arnav is only partially at fault and Khushi refuses to believe him. And Khushi, bless her love, gave the idea to Arnav to betray his marriage and she was betrayed by him in something so close to her heart. It’s all karma,” she mused, realizing that they were nothing but puppets in the hands of destiny.



Before Anurag could answer further, they heard Khushi turning in the bed, struggling to turn as her skin was still sensitive. The couple were by her side quickly as Khushi opened her eyes weakly, trying to adjust to the bright light and the blinding pain which coursed through her.


“Rachna...” she whispered as Rachna helped her to change her position and rest her back properly to the backrest so that she did not strain her back further.


“Why did you have to take this step, Khushi? Your Mahadev wouldn’t be pleased to see his devotee trying to burn herself by invoking him,” scolded Rachna as she handed over a water bottle to Khushi as she needed to keep herself hydrated to regain her health faster.

[fasterboy]

“I was broken, Rachna. I didn’t know what I was doing. I loved him so much. His company played with the lives of children who were already struggling with ailments, how could he?” she sobbed, her voice shaking with pain which was both mental and physical but it was the emotional turmoil which wretched her.



“You really think that he would do it, Khushi? Ask yourself once. The man whom you have loved, the man who loves children so much, would he risk other children’s lives? Would he tarnish his company’s reputation which he had built from scratch, giving it all that he had?” asked Anurag, taking his seat beside her feet as he changed the side of the cold pack from her knees which had been scbangd badly.



Khushi looked over to Rachna, wondering if she agreed with her husband’s words, because she knew that Rachna would always want the best for her friend and was one of her best well-wishers.


“Yes, Khushi. I don’t think he is capable of doing it. He is irresponsible alright but a rogue and fraudster, I don’t think so. He loves you enough to not do a thing which would hurt you so badly,” added Rachna, applying cream over her hands which were burnt by holding the scalding hot water in them.


“I wanted to believe him so badly but he did not say a thing which would negate what was said in the court. Yes, he could not have informed me of the court case when I was pregnant or when we met after four months but i expected that after our marriage, he would not hide a thing from me. If he felt that somebody in the company had cheated him by creating the wrong drug, why did not he act on his instinct? Why did he not get an investigation done or revealed at the court? My heart still wants to believe him, Rachna, but my soul and my conscience, they are lost. I want answers and only he can give them,” she replied, preventing her tears from leaving her eyes, lest the dam of her heart broke.


The doorbell began ringing as Anurag volunteered to go and open the door, which revealed a very disheveled Arnav Singh Raizada, panting and pained, fragile and fatigued, full of lament and full of love.


“Where is she?” he demanded, eying round the house as Anurag pointed towards the room in which Khushi was as Rachna walked out, deciding to give privacy to the couple.


“Khoosi...”


A loving yet broken whisper left his trembling lips as his staggered steps dragged him towards the who who ignited the flame of love in him.


“You had wanted to punish someone; it should have been me, why did you take it upon yourself? I am your culprit; I had vowed to win your trust and the unfortunate idiot who broke the vow. It should have been me to burn in that water, blaze in redemption and smoulder in love, not you!” he exclaimed, collapsing on his knees by her side, as the tears in her eyes finally descended down.


“You think seeing you in pain would have given me pleasure, Arnav Singh Raizada? You are highly mistaken if you think punishing you would have alleviated my pain. It would have instead pushed me into the flames of hell. Please tell me, how did this happen? Who, according to you, has changed the composition of the drugs to form this dangerous concoction and why didn’t you do anything about it?” she asked, placing her arm over his, the love which she showered through her eyes acting as an embalmation to his soul.


“Because I have no idea who it can be. Vivek was taking care of the company when I was with you in Shillong. He never studied pharmacology, so he has no idea. I asked him to approve on my behalf while I just manually approved for the heck of it. I have no idea when it was approved and the name under which it was requested. The composition logged into our servers doesn’t match the one displayed in court. There was no way I could prove that I was unaware because such a big goofup in the servers mean someone higher up and it would only increase suspicion on me,” he replied, raking his fingers through his hair as he pulled it.


“We will find a way to prove that you are not involved in it, Arnav. Don’t worry. I know quite a lot of lawyers and I will meet with them, starting with the legal advisor of our hospital. I can’t ask the Committee to take the case back but you file an appeal and I will make sure that justice is served,” she promised, determination lacing her tone, adding to his strength.


“So, you do believe me?” he demanded, placing his arms on her sides, careful to not hurt her as he knew that her skin would be sensitive.


“Believing you is the only path leading to my sanity, Arnav, so I am walking on it, guided by my heart and its love for you. If I don’t, I will lose myself and should you fail in this, I don’t think I will be able to survive because my soul will be destroyed in the lament of your love and daggers of my conscience. But I am willing to risk it, in the hope of a beautiful future with you, in the hope of fulfilling my childhood fantasies and in the hope to unite with you, this time once and for all. “