Hi every one ... 😊
Sorry for delay in post... had a lot of marking to do. Hope the post will be worth the wait😉.
This one is specially for my writing mentor and friend Sharmishtha... love you dear🤗
shari
Part 6
From what he had heard
Ashutosh concluded that Rangnath had hired her, so how to get out of this
situation, deep down the question that was nagging him did he want out. After
two years their path had finally crossed, he perfectly knew that their relationship
would never be what he wanted but seeing her had weakened his resolution, he
thought that if she remained around in the hospital from afar he would see her.
With this thought in mind he stepped in Rangnath's office.
For a second it seemed
that time had stopped, Rangnath for once was at a loss for words, Nidhi was
stunned at the sudden entry, she never thought that he would come and find her
out.
" Dr Rangnath could you
explain what is going on here, I leave the hospital for a few days and when I
come back what I see is complete mayhem." He said in what he hoped would appear
as a normal voice. To the outsider it would seem that he was ignoring the fact
that there was someone else in the cabin yet as he was talking to him his
thoughts remained about her.
"Eh hmm Dr Ashutosh...
welcome ... back, mayhem what do you mean we had a minor staffing problem after
you left but that's got sorted we have Dr Varma who kindly accepted to join us
...Once more''
For a moment Ashutosh was
quiet, it was one thing to have seen her and another to hear that indeed she
was there and INDEED she was back in his world. Finally he turned his eyes
towards her and what he saw did not surprise him it was an echo of his own
feelings... longing mixed with confusion.
Two years ago they had parted ways because of that
same reason... feelings, back then it was because there was no way their
feelings would have been accepted by her family and society. But now what had
changed? He wandered, was it him? Was he ready to let go of his fear of what
others would think and do something for his own happiness for a change. However
doing so would not hurt her? He was still battling with this myriad of emotions
when he realised that she was saying something:
"Dr Ashutosh, now that
you are back, I feel that my presence is no longer required" she said in an
emotionless voice. Seeing him back, hearing his voice had been a bitter sweet
sensation yet she knew that she had to move on as she had promised him that she
would never be the one to give him any reason to be uncomfortable. He had
wanted her out and she was going to stay true to her word no matter how much it
hurt her.
After two years of a
separation which he was cause of, this was the one time he was having a good
look at her, true he had seen her when she brought that patient but this was
his first real good look at her. The woman in front of her looked like his
Nidhi but the eyes were different, those eyes that had always reflected her
feelings now looked expressionless...
'Dr Ashutosh..." she
repeated and this brought her back to reality.
"Dr Nidhi, why do you say
so? You have joined the hospital isn't, I would deem it as unprofessional if
you leave your job midway." He replied
sternly. That was it, the dice was cast... he knew that he was playing with
fire yet he could not stop it... maybe these two years not seeing her had made
him selfish but her working here would mean seeing her at least... for him that
would be enough.
Nidhi looked at him
stunned...did she hear him right... the one person who wanted out was now
preventing her from leaving. What should she do? Coming here had brought her
back to life, back from that emotional desert she had been wandering since the
past two years. Yet now she was at a crossroad, going would mean closing the
door to seeing him again, staying would mean the possibility of being hurt again,
could she run that risk again?
"Nidhi" she heard
Rangnath calling her, "More that the friend, this time it is the doctor
appealing to you, If Dr Ashutosh has no issues about you being here, Would you
please stay at least for the sake of the patients, the children need you here,
and in such short notice it is going to be difficult to find someone to step
in"
"Okay" she replied, "I am
going to stay till you find someone to step in". She knew that she was going to
regret it but being in the same place as him was a stronger pull.
Ashutosh did not know
whether to feel relieved or scared. She would be back in his world, but this
time he would stick to his resolution, seeing her would be enough, knowing that
she was safe, happy would bring him happiness. He had learnt it from the first
time, being in her life had lead to pain but not this time.
Rangnath heaved a sigh of
relief, but what was more interesting to him was the look on the faces of the
two individuals now facing each other. Watching them was an interesting
experience as neither had realised that they were open books and their feelings
could clearly be read, two years ago two people who were meant to be had parted
ways for reasons best known to them.
He had seen Ashutosh
turned back to the hard almost ruthless man that he had been before Nidhi had
entered his world, as for Nidhi, he had seen her retreat into a shell where she
rarely came out, She only opened up to Anji, true she did try to project an
image of being happy but from his own observations and from bits and pieces
that Anji had mentioned she was far from being so. With a final glance to the
pair, he went out with the hope that things would work out for them.
comment:
p_commentcount