Banu and Nadim

ch 2 : unpromised

The atmosphere in the mansion has never been so tense.Not even eighteen years ago.when a contagious disease had spread in the village and even passed through the gates of the mansion, killing several people, including Khan's wife and his servant.And not even when the crops of the earth were occasionally destroyed by floods and times were hard, unless everyone worked together and got into trouble.
The news of Khan's death reached every member of the palace in less than a few seconds.Hearts were heavy with grief and eyes were shining with tears.from the oldest members of the mansion to their baby.

As mourning for the loss of a loved one is common all over the world, everyone felt the need to give up their work and mourn until their hearts were content to accept grief.But no one went to their wardrobe to wear black, no one wanted to be the first to mourn, not because they didn't accept Khan's death, they all knew that sooner or later they would get used to Khan's absence.No one wanted to be the first to mourn, because they knew there was someone before them who might have been destroyed under the pressure. The first person to declare mourning may not be able to raise his head again under the burden of this sorrow.

The rushing doctor tried his best to control himself.He placed the boy's body lying on the ground and grabbed the collar of Nadim's shirt and without looking for scissors he tore the clothes in tension.And shouted at the frightened crowd to come to them:

- Stay away, let the air reach him!

khanum brought him his medical bag.He performed a quick and superficial examination to find out the condition of the anesthetized boy.Cold sweat was on the doctor's body and he repeated to himself under his breath to calm down:«everything is going to be alright»

He looked at the audience and said as he wiped his forehead with a sigh :

- It was a mental breakdown, his blood pressure was low, It doesn't pose a threat
, move him to his room quickly

As soon as the news of the master's death reached everyone, the news of the boy's anesthesia spread in the palace.No one was shocked, everyone knew that after the death of the master, the main turmoil would begin.Everyone knew how dear this stepchild was to this stepfather.And everyone knew how sincerely and humbly this stepchildren respected, loved, and listened to his father. Indeed, most witnesses wished to have such a relationship with their child or parents.Often, everyone forgot that Nadim was a servant, and Khan a lord, and if Nadim did not use the word "lord" in his sentences, this fact would be forgotten.They were father and son without a blood relationship.

Everyone had forgotten the lifeless body and death of Khan a few moments ago.And they tried not to withhold any help from the doctor.They had two reasons.The first reason was that everyone had accepted Khan's death from the very first moment, and if they were looking for mourning, it was just to get used to this new situation and to respect the master.And the second reason was that, whoever died, was dead, no one had the power to resurrect Khan, so it would have been better if they had helped Nadim get better.As Nadim always helped them to feel better.If anyone needed help, the first person to rush to help was the young boy.No matter what the circumstances, or how capable he was, he didn't hesitate.Everyone in this palace was somehow saved by him at least once.
Everything happened in a very short but long time.Everything happened in a few minutes, but it was as if a new century was beginning with each passing minute.For three whole days, Khan was in bed, and on the last day his condition worsened, and the last few hours had become unbearably exhausting for everyone،And less than half an hour later, Nadim lay unconscious on his bed with wet cheeks and swollen eyes.

The bedroom was almost empty, there was no one but maybe .... two person.One was Khan's lifeless corpse lying on the bed and no one had the opportunity to put the white sheet on the corpse's face. And the woman who was by the terrace window, staring at the lush view of the courtyard from behind the silk curtain.Her face was emotionless.None of the incidents affected her.She had recently put out her second cigarette in an ashtray on the table.And there was still the smell of tobacco in the room.she asked herself how the old man would feel about his daughter's new destructive habit if he was alive.She said in a low voice :