Arranged marriage was an age-old story that Khushi, the youngest of the infamous Gupta family, who revolutionized and dominated the trading market for generations, knew well.
For it was the only thing she heard growing up.
But that neither prepared...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"Move it!!"
"Ma'am calm down, we got it from here-"
"No, you don't! I'm a resident doctor here, so stop wasting my time and go page the cardiologist-on-call!"
The intern –a gawky first year who joined only two weeks ago– gasped.
"NOW!" Khushi yelled, running into Abhaya Hospital as the paramedics pushed the trolley carrying her father ahead of her.
They ushered Alok into the emergency ward, which was oddly empty tonight. There was a flurry of nurses as they transferred Alok onto a bed, secured an oxygen mask over his barely breathing mouth and started an IV line with various doses of medications, all of course under Khushi's orders.
Her mind, strangely, was very calm. When Arnav had been admitted into the hospital, not too long ago, she had driven herself crazy in panic, not being able to contain her pounding heart at the possibility that he might be seriously injured. And yet, she felt none of that as she watched her father being stabilized. She wished she knew why.
"What's going on here?"
Khushi looked up to see Ved hurrying into the room, pulling out his stethoscope.
"I told the interns to get Dr. Matthews," she said, slightly annoyed at not being taken seriously.
"She is on her way," he answered. "Where did you find him? Today is your day off, right?"
"He is my father."
Ved stopped short. "He is your father?"
"I went to see him tonight," Khushi pressed on, seeing little use in futile conversations. "And we were... talking when he suddenly collapsed. His pulse was very weak, and breathing was evidently slowed. He has a history of high blood pressure and has been on medications, so it didn't take me long to figure out what happened. I called the ambulance and brought him here right away."
Ved nodded, listening intently to Alok's heart.
"Do you need me to leave?" Khushi asked. Hospital policy mandated that family members should not be anywhere near the patient during treatment.
"No, of course not. It's just... are you alright?"
"Yes – why?"
"Well, for starters he is your father. I would have expected you to have burst into tears or something... but here you are, giving the nurses instructions as if he was any other patient."
"And what kind of a doctor would I be if I panicked in emergency situations?"
Ved wasn't convinced. "Where is Arnav?"
"He's busy," she said with a shrug. "I will wait outside. Let me know when you have the results."
She calmly walked out of the ward and sat down on a bench nearby, wishing Vihaan was here. Having left her phone back in the penthouse, she had no way of updating him about Alok's heart attack. Perhaps it was for the best, her brother was not particularly good at handling bad news.
