Posted:
glad that you are planning to continue...thank you considering our request...😊
Originally posted by: Neetu2825Thanks a lot for all of your encouraging notes. I can't promise to be a frequent updater as I am quite busy with school, but I'll try to post updates when I can. It'll be nice if you guys give me feedback along the way...doesn't have to be praise...but writers are human too...and there is nothing more gratifying than an indication that suggests that people are still reading and keeping up with your story.
We all have a part to play...I'll do mine, and u guys do yours...and we'll see how it goes.😊
Hey Guys!
So here is part 21...I will be updating more to this tomorrow but for now, it is a good start to wet your appetite. Enjoy and do leave comments. Then, check back tomorrow for scene 2 & 3...maybe 4 too...lol...I haven't decided how long I want this part to be. 😆😃
Part 21:
Scene 1:
It had been a terrible morning.
Perhaps it was due to the high volume of people coming to the hospital today suffering from one mishap after another...or maybe it was one of those cursed days that tested your patience and dedication for your job...how well you lived up to your own ideals: The Hippocratic Oath.
Whatever the reason, by the time Vicky informed the Triage nurse he was going on his break, he was seriously starting to question his sanity for choosing the medical profession as a career.
He hadn't slept for over 24 hours...he hadn't eaten for 12 hours and presently, he was in a desperate need of a warm shower to alleviate the sore muscles in his body.
Rubbing the back of his neck, he hobbled down the hall towards his office...feeling aged beyond his years.
Maybe he should take a power nap and skip food altogether. As much as he desired nutrition, he needed restful sleep more.
Weighing between the two options in his mind, Vicky gave little attention to anything else as he opened his office door and stepped inside.
At the sight of the person before him, Vicky stopped short.
"Ahh, what are you doing here? I thought we already discussed everything necessary on the phone?"
Maan looked up from his lazy perusal of one of the books off of Vicky's bookshelf.
For the last hour, Maan had been patiently waiting inside Vicky's office to have a chat with him about Geet. "What took you so long? I was told you were going to have your break soon...that was an hour ago?"
"A couple of trauma cases came in last minute, so I was held up in the ER. I see that in my absence you have made yourself quite comfortable." Vicky replied, his gaze falling on the cup of coffee and a plate of cookies resting on a tea table near Maan.
Maan grinned in amusement. "Well, my brother is an important doctor in this hospital...that calls for some special treatment from the hospital staff."
Vicky rolled his eyes, a small smile playing at the corners of his lips. "I hope you were comfortable here."
"Of course! You have a beautiful office, Vicky."
On first appraisal, his brother's office was anything but a doctor's "regular office". It had a homely quality to it filled with things that reflected Vicky's personality. Instead of choosing conventional charts and tables depicting various health conditions and organ systems to decorate his walls, Vicky opted to hang paintings and landscapes that reflected peaceful retreats. Instead of the stiff office furniture, Vicky chose comfortable furniture pieces accentuated by warm office lighting and plenty of greenery in the small office space. The centerpiece of the entire office was the extensive bookshelf that took up most of wall on one side of the room. The dark oak wood bookcase was lined top to bottom with various books ranging from medical textbooks to English Literature.
Maan dropped into a seat in front of Vicky's desk. "Quite a collection of books you have here. Somehow, I never took you for a bookworm."
"I have changed a lot from what you remember, bro. But, anyway, forgot that. Tell me, why are you here?" Vicky asked as he walked towards his desk and took the seat opposite his brother.
"I distinctly remember telling you that I want to know what's going on with Geet."
"And I distinctly remember telling you that I cannot discuss patient information with anyone other than the patient itself," Vicky stressed.
Maan murmured under his breath. "Well, that will be a problem since your said patient is ignoring me right now."
Yet, Vicky was quick to notice that little interesting tidbit.
Grinning, Vicky leaned back in his chair trying to suppress a laugh. "My,my, looks like the great Mr. Khurana is wrapped around Ms. Geet's little finger. Tell me bro, how does it feel to have someone else hold the cards for once?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Maan countered defensively. "I was just concerned about Geet after seeing her reports this morning."
The smile vanished off Vicky's face in an instant as he leaned forward, asking softly: "She showed you the results?"
Maan: Yes.
Vicky: No.
Maan: What?
Vicky: "She didn't...your lying. Its written all over your face."
Maan suppressed his irritation.
Damn, he had forgotten how transparent he always was around Vicky. They shared a special brotherly connection...something he never felt with Dev. A connection Maan treasured, except during times when he needed to bend the truth.
"Okay fine, she didn't exactly show them to me. Geet dropped some papers this morning and I happened to catch a glimpse of one that stated she was undergoing further testing at this hospital. I am worried about her. What is going on with her health?"
Vicky quirked an eyebrow. "Careful brother, you might give me the impression that you actually care about Geet more than you let on...perhaps, she is more than just an employee to you?"
There it was again. Another person who happened to look too much into his concern for Geet. Why did people constantly have to bring that up? Wasn't it enough that his own heart had been questioning him lately? The last thing he needed was to have the rest of the world chime in their inquiries.
"Can you stop questioning my motives for a second and just answer my question?"
Vicky smiled in satisfaction. "You can't evade such questions for long, brother. Clearly you like her, why don't you just ask her to be your girlfriend?"
Maan clenched his teeth, trying to abide the rising irritation. "VICKY! ANSWER the question, man. "
"Look, I can only reveal that we are indeed running a few tests on Geet. DON'T worry...it is merely a way for us to monitor her progress...make sure that she is healing fine after the accident. It is nothing serious. It's fairly routine to do a follow-up of this nature on patients."
Maan released the breath he hadn't known he was holding. He briefly closed his eyes. His mind slowly processing Vicky's answer, while the resounding tension that had been plaguing his body since this morning slowly eased out his muscles.
"Why do you care about her so much?"
"I can't help myself," Maan replied softly.
Realizing what he had just said aloud, Maan opened his eyes, his gaze immediately captured by the blue-gray stare on the other side of the desk. "Then, why are you so afraid to tell her about your feelings?"
Maan shook his head. "It's not easy, Vicky. For one thing, I don't even understand these "feelings". For another, past experience prevents me from jumping into this without thinking things through. You of all people know what happened the last time I put myself in this type of vulnerable position...what happened when I let myself feel for someone...what happened when I trusted someone enough to let them close to my heart...how it almost destroyed me. How SHE almost destroyed me."
Vicky sighed. "You have to stop letting the past dictate your future. You need to forget the past and move on. You need to show Geet your true self...share with her about your past so that she can understand who you are today. Let bygones be bygones."
"Let bygones be bygones, huh? This coming from you? Someone who still hasn't forgiven me or Daadi for our past mistakes."
Vicky remained quiet, a frown marking his handsome face while he stared at his hands.
He felt helpless. One part of him desperately wanted to forgive his family for all the hurt, but he just couldn't do it. Something always prevented him from getting over it. He knew he was a hypocrite, preaching something he couldn't follow in his own life. All the same, he wanted his brother to be happy. For that to happen, Maan had to get over his painful past and accept his feelings for Geet.
"Besides, I wouldn't even know where to begin." Maan continued, avoiding the painful subject of separation between the two brothers for the time being at least.
Sighing, Vicky leaned over his desk to cover Maan's hand with his own, as he replied softly: "Start at the beginning...tell her what happened to your mother."
comment:
p_commentcount