missed connections

yesterday with you

graduation day, age 24

Mysha parker finally made out alive, following four harrowing years at an overly competitive university. but it's okay, she's going to leave for an internship in another country in a few weeks.

she thought friends weren't that necessary. she already had enough, bhavya and sara. so she wasn't invited to any 'after parties'. she went to the ceremony with her mom and younger sibling, accepted the degree, ate and left. her mother and brother left early. they went in opposite directions.

mysha took a leave after receiving her degree but the absentminded rock slipped on the stairs and injured her hand. thank god no one saw this scene straight out of a cartoon. she informed her mom and walked to the nearest hospital. her tranquility was unnerving. it was like nothing happened.

at the hospital

"don't overwork your hand for a week and apply ointments on time"

"thank you, doctor" saying that mysha left.

Through the large panels of stairways, she got sight of a man on the rooftop of the opposite building.

"oh my god is he going to jump?" she was alarmed. she didn't seem like the one to care about strangers but she was very people-oriented.

her inner usain bolt woke up and she sprinted towards and through the less crowded wing of the hospital.

"please don't be late" she internally panicked.

there were too many stairs but she made it on time.

she sneakily made her way and spun the stranger who was facing the sky, by his wrist. his body landed in her arms.

"i don't know what made you feel miserable to this extent but trust me jumping off isn't the perfect solution" mysha cooed still holding him. she was out of breath yet she didn't bother shutting up.

the stranger didn't bother being in her embrace and broke down. they stayed like that for a few minutes; he was a few inches taller, so he had to bend his neck to reach her crook of the neck. she kept patting him.

her uniform near the shoulder are was completely wet by his tears. the stranger slowly gathered his composure and looked into mysha's eyes, gently. he was embarrassed, but she was unfazed.

"are you okay?"

"ye-yeah i'm fine" he almost choked on his words.

"let's take a seat there" she pointed towards a bench-like structure near the edge of the terrace.

she sat down and gestured to the stranger in a white bloodstained lab coat to take a seat, by tapping the empty space beside her. he agreed. she let out a sigh

"what happened?" no response.

"look here, buddy. it's fine. you know, talking helps; it won't solve anything but you will feel better. and i don't even know your name so it's not like i will haunt you for the rest of your life."

"it wa-as my first time co-leading a- a surgery today but i couldn't sa-ave him. he was 14. he ha-had so so much to live for. he put all his trust on my shoulders blindly. i am so inca- pable. i k-killed him, i took away his life. his family thought i could save him bu-but i let them down. i cant be a doctor. all these years were a waste." he stuttered all his words but mysha understood.

mysha was familiar with this feeling. she pitied the vulnerable man having a breakdown in front of her.

"it's okay. let it all out. i am confident that you are doing your best. and i don't think you are incompetent; if you were, you wouldn't have reached this far. i don't know much about how medical schools function but i know how tough and time-consuming they are. yes, your job is to "save" people but you are indeed no god. it was not in your hand, and from the way you are feeling guilty, i know you gave your best shot. i am reassured knowing we will have healthcare professionals like you in near future. cry a lot now but tomorrow, you have to wake up and begin a new day. everything will be okay. shush"

there was silence; not an awkward one but a comforting one. the sun was setting in the background. the sky had a pink tint and the feeling was very orange.

mysha waited silently for the man to gather himself together. he finally wiped his tear-stained cheeks and took a deep breath.

"sorry for what you had to witness and thank you for your words. i feel a little better than before. i was just caught off-guard. i haven't been home in weeks and now i lost my first patient. i am really, very, completely sorry for crying on your shoulders without consent. it was an invasion of privacy."

"oh no, it's fine. we have our moments. glad i was here." mysha replied with an eye smile, playing it off cool. little does he knows what a mess mysha was climbing 4 flights of stairs. how inflexible she is!

"this is so stupid of me, i should introduce myself. hello, i am-"

"resident number 17, Dr. Jamil has paged for you in unit A."

the man was cut short. he muttered a sorry and was about to leave until mysha grabbed him by his wrist.

she took out a lollipop wrapped in baby pink and kept it in his hand.

"you might need some sugar in your system. take care. goodbye."

he thanked her and ran towards the exit, slipping the candy into his bloodstained coat's pocket.

mysha noticed a black pen under the bench they were sitting on. she picked it up and saw the initials K.D. written in golden ink around the top.

"oh, that could be his. but it's mine now!" she laughed.

sometimes people need to hear words of comfort; not advice or where they went wrong. tell them everything would be alright even though it won't. the world is quite unfair many times. we are all going through unfortunate events. but the least we can do is comfort our fellow humans. we are humans with warm feelings, not stone-cold robots. cry a lot. let it all flow.

tomorrow is just another day.