DESTINY'S FAVOURITE CHILDREN

1. Home? Is it?

The surgery went on for 6 long hours. MS had told Sakshi about the situation so she had come to the hospital with food, now the more difficult task was to make them eat. MS and Rishabh both were numb and Sakshi knew it could not go on like this. Rishabh needed a shoulder to lean on and who better than her husband?

"Rishabh come on bachcha, eat something" Sakshi called Rishabh but he just sat there unresponsive.

"Rishabh" Sakshi went and sat besides himhim, she tore a morsel and coaxed him to eat "kha le bachcha, mumma won't like to see you ill when she wakes up, haina"

And this worked,Rishabh ate a chapati before blurting "bas ho gya bhabhi"

"Just a little more, ye aadhi roti aur bas fir nahi bolungi tujhe" She fed Rishabh a little more, Rishabh had no energy to protest.

Sakshi was glad atleast one of them had eaten without much protest, and now that Rishabh had eaten, it wouldn't be that difficult to make her husband eat. She moved to MS after kissing Rishabh's forehead.

MS looked at her. She knew what he was not asking "Virat ko maine abhi kuchh nahi bataya hai, so gya tha wo aur naraz-waraz kuchh nahi hai wo, thoda sa grumpy ho rha hai, maan jayega kal subah tak" Sakshi told him sensing his worry.

"Did he eat? "

"Haan khila diya maine aapke laadle ko, now will you start eating? "

MS looked at her snarkily and started eating. His wife had this uncanny ability to be so understanding and irritable at the same time.

The three of them held on to each other till the surgery completed. MS rushed to ask from a doctor who just came out of the OT.

"The surgery is completed Mr Deshmukh but her condition is still far from stable."

MSD's heart started palpitating faster "Far from stable? What does that mean? Is she okay? "

"Mr. Deshmukh we can only tell after 24 hours, she needs to open her eyes or else there are chances to slip into the coma"

MS could hardly manage to stand. The fate couldn't be so cruel to him, he had just gotten his mother back and again the destiny was hell bent on snatching her from him.

Sakshi held him to stop him from falling, just like she had done all this time, ever since she met him. Behind the calm and confident exterior, she saw a broken and vulnerable man, who just needed love to heal.

"Can we see her? " Sakshi asked the doctor.

"Sure, but one by one. No crowding inside the OT please"

MS guided Rishabh inside the room, while he himself sat outside. Rishabh went in, stayed for some two minutes and came back silently. He didn't have the heart to stand there and look at his mother's lifeless figure.

"What happened bacha?" MS asked as he sat besides him numbly.

"Kuchh nahi bhaiya, aap milo unse " MS understood the fear. He ruffled Rishabh's hair and went inside.

He looked at the women sleeping on the hospital bed, he was seeing her after 16 long years. He had craved for her everyday and now that he saw her, she wasn't even looking at him. He sat there holding her hand gently, deciding to never let go of her again. He didn't know how long he sat like that before Sakshi called him "Subah ho gayi hai mahi, go home and sleep, kal se yahi ho tum, aur rishabh ko bhi le jao, I'm with her "