Philophobia

TWENTY-EIGHTH

"She had a terrible accident one and a half hour ago."

His mind went numb for the thousandth part of the second and a strange feeling enveloped his whole body. Painful goose bumps rose the millimeters of his skin and the world came crashing down.

Sataish.

It was just a moment that halted his existence; just a plain moment that was so hard on his nerves as if the world had contracted and then released again, thrashing everything in between.

"She is well now, right?" Words slipped hurriedly without him knowing that he was saying and his hands involuntarily turned the steering wheel to the hospital. His breathing ragged and the palms felt tremors weakening his grip on wheel.

"Sir, she is in the theatre. Please drive safely. We are taking her care."

She appeared on the curtains of his mind plucking fresh flowers from the lawn and inserting them in white glass bottle to be placed on his study table while the direct sunlight tanned her face.

His mind took him back to Paris when she told the doctor that they owed his health and left the room.

"You owe me. I am coming. Save her."

They say time flies but did they know that often seconds turn into centuries?

...

"No scalp injury, right?" He asked with worry lacing his words to his university professor and he nodded.

"Irtiza, do not lose hope. She is lucky enough that in time her treatment started. For now it is most important for you to compose yourself. We are trying. You are here. Together we will do this if Allah wills. Son, getting me?" Dr. Ali held his shoulders and he gulped difficultly.

"Sir, I want to know the clear position now. Please tell me everything. What do the injuries say?" His eyes quickly roamed the doctor's face and he comforted him.

"Since she has lost a great deal of blood then we can guess that this is the only problem for now. Her forehead suffered the most but Allah has been very merciful that there is no internal injury surprisingly. The problematic factor is that there may be some deep clot that would clog the breathing passage. She will be shifted to ICU after some time then we will monitor her closely." His ears heard and he held his forehead in desperation.

"Will they permit me to see her? I want to see her now." His voice drenched in pain shook the aged doctor and he gazed at his brilliant student and nodded instantly.

"The team of surgeons is now shifting her in ICU, Irtiza. Have faith in Allah." Patting his shoulder he said and walked to the theatre.

In the mist of his concern and desolation there was something more than everything that was troubling him, hurting him with the fierce waves of pain.

What was that? His mind was failing to answer.

He sensed ICU just behind his back opened and the beeps of multiple machines vibrated his eardrums. The theatre door slid apart and showed a stature with his life lying on it; still, pale and lifeless.

In the whim of moment she was shifted to ICU and his motionless body observed his retreating steps to fall on the waiting benches. It seemed that the tiredness of the whole world and the fatigue of all mass clenched him. The ICU beeps were ringing in his mind, the stubborn mind that snatched her life.

What had he done?

Nearly killed her?

It was a big revelation that jolted him wholly. It was the cruel reality that echoed her words in his ears again.