Abhira Off-Tracks: Short Stories

The Loss - Part 6 (Last)

The Loss - Final Part

"Hello-"

"Abhimanyu!" Kairav's frantic voice rang in his ears, "Bade Papa ko kuch ho gaya hai! Please jahan bhi ho, foran aao!" he said and hung up before Abhimanyu could ask him anything.

The lines on his forehead deepened in worry. Everything was going fine until last night. He himself had checked Bade Papa's vitals. It was only a few hours back that his team conducted the routine tests and Bade Papa was simply good to get discharged. Not paying attention to the little smile that had crept on his mother's face, Abhi informed her of the situation and dashed out of the house, sat on his bike and drove off.

"Thank God!" Neil wiped the sweat off his brows, "Kairav online tha isliye immediately plan execute kardiya, warna bhai yahin pe humein grill karke saara sach nikalwa lete."

"Manish uncle aur Chacha ji ke saare plan pe paani fer dete so alag!" Parth shook his head, "Thank God Manish uncle ne Kairav ko mana liya ki baat aur plan mein shamil ho gaya."

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3 P.M.
Birla Hospital

"... aur yaad rakhna kisi ne bhi agar Dr. Abhimanyu ka call uthaya, toh mujhse bura koi nahi hoga. Aap sab-"

"HARSHVARDHAN BIRLA!"

The walls of the Birla Hospital's reception echoed with Dr. Abhimanyu Birla's thunder.

"Ab..Abhimanyu?" Harsh took no time to put on the mask of panic, "tumhe phone aaya tha na? On-duty doctor's figure out nahi kar pa rahe Manish ji ko kya-"

Abhimanyu stepped inside the hospital lobby, grabbed his father's hand and strode right inside Bade Papa's ward, where he sat ready on his wheelchair with a smile on his face and an envelope in his hands. The smile, however, faded on seeing the fury in Abhimanyu's eyes.

Abhimanyu's bike had ditched him right outside the gates to his house. Worried and wondering if it may be another impending heart attack that the doctors aren't able to recognize, Dr. Abhimanyu rang up the doctor in-charge, but neither did he pick nor any of his assistants. The moment he realized he could not get in touch with anybody from the hospital, he knew Harsh Birla had something to do with it. And then, Dr. Abhimanyu Birla called up Dr. Arohi Goenka.

Arohi very conveniently ditched on her Kairav Bhaiya, Bade Papa and Harsh Birla to reveal to him the plan made by the trio to call Abhimanyu in an emergency and give him some surprise.

"Sir, and Mr. Manish Goenka," Abhi clenched his fists, "pehli baat. Hospital mein panic failana band kijiye, aur dusri baat, jhoot bolna chhod dijiye!"

Harsh stood still.

"And Kairav," Abhi turned to a guilty Kairav standing in a corner, "tum kabse inn bade logon ki badi badi baaton mein aane lage?" he asked, gulping the lump that formed in his throat, "Inhe aaj thoda sa pachtava hoga, kal phir sab pehle jaisa. Aur kal phir tum bhool jaoge apni behen ki muskurahat ke parde pe peeche chhipa dard."

Kairav hung his head.

"Mr. Goenka," He turned to Bade Papa now, the tears in his eyes revealing his agony, "aap nahi chahte Akshu mujhse mile, baat kare, koi bhi rishta rakhe, theek hai." He folded his hands, "Lekin Akshu apne hi ghar se door rahe, itna bada parivar hote hue bhi akele rahe, yeh theek nahi hai."

"Akele kahan thi Akshu," Harsh smirked, "tumhara Valentine gift tha na uske paas!"

Abhimanayu froze. Kairav revealed to him everything from the start, from how Manjiri found Akshara and sent her away to how she confessed to Manish.