Conditions Of Shashank | 18+

Chapter 45: Two roses

(Later that night)

Sarla had left early after finishing her work due to an important work.

At home, Ishika searches for a stick, muttering, "Just wait, Kumar... I'll teach you a lesson today..."

On his way home from the office, Ujjwal stops at a flower shop to buy two roses. One is to apologize for the morning argument over medicine, and the other is a preemptive apology because she also has to take her night dose, which might make her upset again.

Whenever Ishika pouts, crossing her arms and turning away, Ujjwal finds her so cute and adorable that he feels like hugging her and showering her with kisses.

Sitting in his car, he starts adjusting his hair. Lifting the front strands while looking in the mirror, his mood dampens as he notices his receding hairline.

Although it isn't too prominent yet, the fear of it worsening bothers him.

He reaches home, and as soon as Ishika hears his car, she grabs the stick and opens the main door.

"Ishika... Do you have a stick in your hand?"

"Yes, Kumar," she teases him playfully.

Ishika is being playful because for many years, people only criticized her, and now that she's receiving love and affection from Ujjwal, her playful side is coming out. And Ujjwal likes her playful side.

"Why? What happened?" he pretends, feigning ignorance.

"Oh, so you've forgotten what happened this morning?"

"What happened, Ishika?" He steps closer to the door, trying to enter, but she stops him at the threshold.

"Kumar, you can't enter the house today," she says, showing him the stick to scare him off.

"Ishika, are you sure I can't come in?"

"Absolutely!"

"Okay. I'm leaving then." He starts walking away.

Watching him leave, Ishika sees his back as he moves farther away. When he suddenly turns around and looks at her, saying, "See, I'm really leaving," she plays along by turning her back to him to show she's still upset.

Boom
*
*
*

Suddenly, Ishika is engulfed in flames as an explosion occurs.

"Ishikaaa" Ujjwal shouts, running toward her, his legs weakening with every step.

He reaches her, pulls her out of the fire. He immediately tries to extinguish the flames on her body.

After putting out the fire, he carries her farther away. Before losing consciousness, Ishika whispers, "Kumar..."

"Ishika... Ishika, open your eyes, please!" He pleads, holding her, trying to wake her up, but she remains unresponsive.

Half of her body's skin is severely burned, including part of her face.

He gathers all his strength, places her in the car, and drives toward the hospital, repeatedly calling her name to wake her. His heart races with anxiety.

At the hospital, Ishika is taken into the ICU. He calls his mother-in-law, Anay, and Mayank, struggling to keep his voice steady.

Meanwhile, the fire brigade has started extinguishing the fire in the house. The houses nearby remain unaffected due to the distance.

Ujjwal sits on a bench, deeply worried. Whenever he closes his eyes, he sees Ishika in flames, struggling.

Soon, Sneha, Swara, Anay, Mayank, and Prachi arrive.

Anay and Mayank approaches Ujjwal, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

Sneha is inconsolable, clinging to Ujjwal's arms and sobbing, "What happened to my Ishika?"

"A gas cylinder explosion," he explains.

Sneha imagines the pain Ishika must have endured and weeps uncontrollably. She hugs Ujjwal and asks, "She'll be okay, right, Ujjwal?"

"She'll be fine," he tries to comfort her with encouraging words.

Swara and Prachi also console Sneha.

Ujjwal discreetly wipes away his own tears, convincing himself he cannot afford to cry. He must stay strong for everyone else.

Swara also struggles to hold back her tears.

After a while, Ujjwal suggests to Swara and Prachi, "It's late. Please have dinner with mother-in-law and rest."

Sneha refuses, insisting, "I don't feel like eating," and demands to see Ishika.

"We can't see her right now. The doctors are treating her," Ujjwal explains.

Inside the ICU, the doctors clean Ishika's burns, apply dressings, and perform other procedures. At 12:30 AM, a doctor steps out.

Everyone stands up anxiously.

"The patient is still unconscious..."

Swara holds Sneha's hand tightly.

"... Over half of her skin is burned. Once her condition stabilizes, we'll need to perform a skin graft surgery," the doctor says.

Sneha breaks down again, pleading, "Can I see her?"

"Not right now," the doctor replies.

"Doctor, is it serious?" Ujjwal asks, hiding his tears.

"Some burns are deep. She'll recover, but it will take time."

"Okay"

Few minutes later, Ujjwal turns to Sneha, "The doctor said she'll be fine. Please eat something now."

He asks Anay and Swara to take mother-in-law home for the night.

After much persuasion, Sneha agrees to leave with them.

Ujjwal thanks Mayank and Prachi, urging them to go home as well.

"I'll stay here with you," Mayank insists.

"I'm fine now, Mayank. You both should go home; you have work tomorrow."

Fine?

No, he isn't fine.

He just doesn't want to burden them further.

Mayank and prachi leaves.

Once everyone is gone, Ujjwal sits on the bench, closing his eyes and recalling how Ishika tried to say something before losing consciousness but could only utter, "Kumar..."

He quietly wipes his tears and hides his trembling hands in his pockets.

At 4 AM, Ujjwal begs a nearby doctor to let him see Ishika.

"What's your relation to her?" the doctor asks.

"I am her husband."

"Okay, but only for 5 minutes. To avoid infection, you must wear a mask and cannot touch the patient."

"Understood, doctor," Ujjwal replies, putting on the mask.

He slowly opens the ICU door.

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