The Exchange

As Akshara was reviewing the music tour schedule on the plane, she saw Kunal get up from his seat across the aisle and walk towards her. He hovered over her head, bending down until he could reach her ear, speaking as quietly as possible. Maya was sleeping next to her, and he could not let his sister hear what he was about to say under any circumstances. "Akshara, jaise ki tumhe pata hai, yeh tour Maya kilye bahut jada zaroori hai...mein bas yeh kehna chatha hoon...tumhe yaad dilana chatha hoon...tumari kasam, tumara vaada...joh ek saal pehle tumne mujhse kiya tha." 

Without looking up from the schedule, she answered, "Dr. Kunal, mujhe sab yaad hai. Don't worry." 

Her lack of any reaction, any emotion never failed to surprise him. This had been her state for the past year...no matter what he said, she agreed without hesitation. Sometimes he felt like shaking her, wanting to see what she was actually feeling. He feared that there would come a day where she would somehow meet Abhimaniyu and he would not even know...as she would remain a blank slate. But, little did he know, the reason she was like this, the reason she had lost all life was that the very man for whom she breathed had been taken away from her. And the day she laid eyes on him would be the day she learned to breathe again. 

Kunal went back to his seat, shaking his head looking at Akshara. But, no matter how much she got on his nerves, he tolerated her...because she was the key to his sister's happiness, to her fame. 

She tucked the schedule back into her folder and slid it into her purse. Realizing that they still had four hours before the plane landed, she tried closing her eyes to get some rest. But, the second her eyes shut, Kunal's words about her promise and her oath started ringing through her ears...

She remembered how hard she had to beg Dr. Kunal to come back to operate on Abhimaniyu's hand a year ago. He had left due to Maya's deteriorating mental state, and no matter how many times she called him, it had gone straight to voicemail. In her desperation, she had left him hundreds of messages, begging him to come back, to save her Abhi. In each message, she told him that she would do whatever he asked, give him anything she could...all she asked was that he return her Abhi his passion, his ability to operate. And when he had finally called her back, he asked her for something that she could not have imagined in a million years. He told her how depressed his sister was, how her dream had been to become a famous singer...how due to their parents' death, she had stopped singing...and she had never been able to get her voice back no matter how much he tried taking her to different doctors. He told her that Akshara's voice was the closest thing he had heard to Maya's voice...how her voice could be the key to her success. He told her that he would come back to save her Abhi if she would save his Maya. 

At first, Akshara did not understand what he was asking. She told him to speak clearly...that she did not understand his riddles. Then, he laid it upon her...his condition....his offer for an exchange. She would become Maya's voice...sing for her behind stage, make her more famous than any other star in the country...and no one could ever find out...if anyone ever did, he would take it upon himself to make sure Akshara suffered the consequences. 

Hearing his words, she immediately agreed. Giving up her music, becoming his sister's voice was a small price to pay for Abhi's hand. She told him that she would start recording music under Maya's name as early as the next day if he wanted...she told him she could ever start in that exact moment. 

Taken aback by how quickly she agreed, Kunal felt hope for the first time since his parents died. But, he had seen how much Abhimaniyu loved her...how much her entire family supported her career. He knew that as long as she was with them, this would never be possible...they would never allow it. So then, came the second part of his condition...the part that turned her into a ghost...the part that took her life away. He told her that she would have to leave everyone she knew behind...she would have to move in with him and his sister...and that no one could ever find out where she was or why she had left. 

The moment she heard these words, her heart stopped beating. He could take anything from her and she would happily surrender. But, the thought of leaving her Abhi was what she could not bare. And even if she did disappear like Kunal was saying, even if she did assure herself that it was okay, it was what needed to happen for Abhi to get his identity back...what she could not fathom was the pain that she knew Abhi would undergo. He had asked her over and over again in the past few days for her never to leave him...he had pled with her to always be by his side. How could she break all of those promises she had made him? How could she be the reason he suffered even more deeply? 

And yet, no matter how hard she tried to reason with Dr. Khera, he was firm in his belief, in his demand. Either she could agree to leave with him the moment Abhimaniyu's surgery was completed, or she could forget about him ever operating again. 

She paced back and forth their room, trying to make the least amount of noise as possible. Abhi was in the shower, and he could not hear a single word of this conversation. His baby sister, his Anisha, had died just a few days ago...he was still reeling from that wound...he was still reeling from finding out that she had been having an affair...reeling from the drama that had ensued in court...now, if he lost his hand, she worried she would lose him forever. 

So, she told Dr.  Khera that if he agreed to fly back into town the next day to operate, she was on board with his condition...with the exchange.