The Rathores in Therapy: A BCHD Epilogue

Chapter 21: Breaking the Silence

Last Time: As they lay together, wrapped in each other's arms, Kabir promised himself that he would never let the past affect him again. Tulika would stay in the past, where she belonged, and no memory of her would disturb their little family again.

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February 15th, 2023, 9:00 AM, Jain Counselling Centre, Jodhpur

Sandeep closed Kabir's file and pushed it away in frustration. He had been reading and re-reading the file for days but had more questions than answers regarding Tulika. A nagging feeling in his head convinced him he was missing something crucial - a key to the entire case - but he wasn't sure what it was.

He rubbed his temples and leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling. He replayed Kabir's sessions in his mind, searching for clues that might help him understand the situation better. He thought about Tulika, Banni, Yuvaan, and Atharva, trying to connect the dots. But the pieces of the puzzle refused to fit together.

He was interrupted from his musings by the sound of footsteps approaching. He saw Shobha walking into the room, carrying a stack of files. "Good morning," she greeted him cheerfully.

Sandeep nodded in acknowledgement but didn't reply, still lost in thought. Dr Shobha noticed the dishevelled state of the meeting room, with files and notes scattered all around the table and the whiteboard filled with scribbles. "What happened in here?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Sandeep sighed heavily and rubbed his temples. "I can't seem to make any progress with Kabir's case," he said. "There's something that I'm missing, but I can't figure out what it is."

"Do you want me to take a look?" Shobha asked, noticing his distress. "Maybe I can offer a different perspective?"

Sandeep looked up, his eyes brightening with hope. "Yes, please. I could use all the help I can get."

Shobha walked over to the whiteboard, trying to make sense of the chaos in the room. "Wow, you've really been working hard," she said, scanning the notes and scribbles. "Let's start fresh, shall we?" She picked up an eraser and started cleaning the board.

Sandeep handed over the file to Shobha. "Thank you," he said, relieved to have her help. "I've been going through this file for days, but I still can't seem to find the missing piece."

Shobha flipped through the file, scanning the pages. "What exactly are you looking for?" she asked.

"I'm trying to understand Tulika's role in this saga," he said. "She seems to be a key component, but I can't figure out how."

Shobha raised an eyebrow. "Maybe we're looking at this the wrong way," she said. "Instead of trying to figure out how Tulika fits in, let's try to list how she doesn't fit in. Maybe that will help us narrow down our search."

Sandeep looked at her thoughtfully. "That's an interesting approach," he said. "Okay, let's try it. What are some ways in which Tulika doesn't fit into this story?"

"Let's start chronologically," suggested Shobha. "Yuvaan was separated from his childhood friend Tulika - then called Bunty in a temple stampede when he was 7 and she was 3. He witnessed his father kill his mother shortly after on the same day."

"Right," said Sandeep, "and they didn't encounter each other for the next 20 years. But Yuvaan did name his stuffed dog Bunty and refused to part with it."

Shobha nodded and picked up a marker. "Let's start a timeline," she said, drawing a long horizontal line on the whiteboard. "We'll mark the important events and see if we can connect the dots."