Skin & Blister

15

In next to no time I and Shrey were walking into the cafe just beside the building of e-box cinemas. We took a seat. I drank the whole glass of water which was brought to us. Shrey motioned to a waiter for more water.

A waitress came to us and asked for our order. Shrey ordered two cups of coffee.

"Hey, we don't have money." I said to Shrey.

"I've." Shrey said and took out some money from his jeans pocket.

...

After ten minutes of waiting impatiently. I saw Ayaan at the cafe door.

I stood up and ran to the doorway.

"Ayaan." I said, hugged him and started a kind of crying.

"Hey, don't cry." Ayaan said. When I moved away from him. I saw Shrey standing there beside us.

Ayaan hugged Shrey too.

"We should get out of this place now." Ayaan said.

"Hmm." Shrey spoke.

"Our coffee?" I said.

"That's really not at all important." Ayaan said, grasped my hand and took me to his car.

"I've my car at uncle's house." Shrey said.

"Ohh yes, tell me Ayaan if Maa and Papa are fine." I said. We were in the car. Ayaan was on the driving seat, I was sitting beside him and Shrey was sitting on the backseat.

"They're very much fine." Ayaan said in a highly tempered voice. "Shrey, pick it up later. It's not safe to go there right now." Whatever Ayaan was saying was really not getting into my head but I didn't speak anything. I was really not in a state of asking anything about what was happening and who were the people who kidnapped us.

We drove for almost 45 minutes and in those 45 minutes I told Ayaan everything which had happened, while Shrey was talking to his mum on Ayaan's phone. We were still driving when instantaneously I noticed that the route we were in was not taking us home. Neither ours nor Shrey's.

"Where are we going Ayaan?" I asked.

"Ira?" Ayaan said.

"Yes? Where are we going?" I repeated.

"Hospital." Ayaan said.

"Why? What happened?" I was shaking very badly. Shrey had also shifted a little towards the front seats.

"Dad's car blasted today. Somebody had fixed a bomb under it." Ayaan said.

"Anwar?" I said teary-eyed.

"He wasn't in the car."

"Why are we going to the hospital then? You people have sent the car to the hospital?" I said and gave a mirthless laughter with tears cascading down.

"Zain was very much ne-" Ayaan was saying only when I barged in.

"Is he alright?" I asked. The watery eyes kept on flowing. And I kept wiping off the tears.

"Not much." He said. "We've reached." We were parked in front of the Hopewell Hospital.

I got out of the car and ran inside the hospital to the reception area.

"Zain Ahmed." I said to the lady who was standing as the receptionist.

She started going through the register placed in front of her. "Room number 204." I nodded and went to the hospital lift. It wasn't working so I used the stairs. I galloped upon the staircases. Talia mom was visible when I reached the 3rd floor.

"Talia mom?" I called out.

She ran and came towards me and hugged me tightly. She was crying. My eyes got wet again. Neil was standing beside us. His eyes were totally red.

Talia mom tried speaking but it was very tough for her to speak simultaneously while crying so she rather motioned me with her hands towards the room 204.

"Can I go in?" I asked to Anwar who was standing just outside the room.

"Yes, but of no use." I got scared when his words reached my ear. He continued, "He's lying comatose , sustained by respirators."

His last sentence completely shook me. Zain was in coma. I was in a situation when I was not even sure what reaction was to be given. I was totally oblivious for a few seconds.

Ayaan and Shrey had also arrived till then.

I opened the room door and went inside.

Zain was lying on the hospital bed. His whole body was covered with a white linen. Only his face and his right arm were seen. I moved to the foot of his bed. I saw a small bench near the bed. I adjusted it in front of Zain's arm. I sat on it and touched his arm lightly with my fingers.

"Hey? Wake up. Please." I said. I waited for his reply. His eyes were closed. I wanted him to sit, look at me and talk to me. I wanted him to hug me, condole me and tell that nothing really happened.

"Zain please wake up. I want to talk to you." I said again. I was in so much of mental agony that my words were not coming out clearly. "Look, I'm seriously telling you, I'll leave if you are not going to wake up and sit. At least say 'Irr' once. PLEASE." I didn't want to cry in front of Zain so I stood up immediately after saying and headed back to the corridor.

I sat on the chair outside the room and wiped off the tears which were continuously streaming down my cheeks.

"Anwar please tell who did this?" I asked austerely.

Anwar nodded.