Episode 14

It’s for the first time in months that Samrat wakes up with a jolt, his breathing laboured and eyes wide. It’s not until he looks around his room once and makes sure that he is alone that he heaves out a sigh, his hands unconsciously squishing up the pillow between them. He only realizes that he’s holding such an object when his gaze falls at it, brows furrowing in confusion wondering how the pillow landed in his arms because the last thing he remembers it had been lying far away on the couch. Though instead of mulling over the fact and solving the mystery he brushes it off because currently, he has other important things to think about like the dream that he just had.

Vague image flashes beneath his closed eyes as he tries to remember the dream, seeing visions of a vague night that takes him four years ago when everything happened, when he lost what seemed to him like his everything, crying in front of someone he doesn’t recognize.

All he can remember are those eyes that peered over him from beneath the scarf, eyes that he still can see clearly behind his lids. And those words that the unknown girl had said to him, words that he has for reason unknown kept treasured in his heart, worked for him as a thread of hope, stopping him from succumbing to the sweet temptation of despair and death.

Yes, he does think about it once in a blue moon.

Maybe it’s all just his imagination, a series of images that his mind has created for him to keep him get going, but those words that still echo in his ears, tell him otherwise. Tells him that the girl who had said those with that sweet, quiet voice was very much real.

“I don’t know who left you but it’s their loss.... They don’t know what they are missing out on..... Life is shorter than you think. You shouldn't be hung up on the past.....Had it been me, I would’ve never left your side.”

It’s a tragedy he never got to experience those snippets of  words that he remembers, never got someone to stay by his side in his life. Some left him because they wanted to, some got defeated at the hands of death while some shredded his hearts into pieces before going.

Still, those are the words that make him look forward to the next day even though he doesn’t think that anything could be less true than them, in a hope that he will find the owner of them once and would finally get a chance to extend his gratitude to them, to return the favour, to tell her that no one in this world compares to her; to the person who supported a stranger when his own people didn’t.

Someday, he’ll find the owner of those eyes.

Someday.

*

“Here, eat this,” Raghav says nudging the spoon against Tara’s lips while Ranveer stands behind him, his arms crossed against his chest, an uncharacteristically stern expression decorating his face.

“I don’t want to.” Tara huffs, looking at the brothers and then at Mihir and Ruhi who sit beside her for help, but they too betray her, Ruhi while shaking her head in a no and Mihir by heaving a sigh and telling her, “Enough is enough, Tara. You had diabetes and you didn’t tell us. Now eat this without any more drama.” Mihir repudiates and everyone’s eyes collectively widen at the sudden outburst.

“It’s ok, Mihir. She is fine now.” Ruhi perches in, trying to calm the man down but Mihir doesn’t comply.

“How is this ok, Ruhi? She should have told us. What if it wasn’t with us that she had lost her consciousness, what if someone else was there? Anything could’ve happened.” he admonishes making Ruhi look down with a gulp, with Tara’s condition being no different, staring at the ground guiltily, getting reminded of how because of the said condition they had to cut short their mall trip.

Only fifteen minutes into their mall trip and Ruhi gets a call, handing the ice cream cone to Mihir in favour of picking up the phone.

“Is calling from the theatre allowed?” she mumbles, giving Mihir a small smile when he chuckles.

“Bhai are you guys not watching –” Ruhi is cut off short as his brother speaks to her with a panicked voice, her own eyes widening as she listens to the new, hanging up the call and standing from their place.

“It’s Tara, she fainted,” Ruhi informs Mihir, distress marring her face.

They both don’t take more than five seconds to reach their friends, immediately getting into the car and taking her back at home, their personal doctor already awaiting them there.

“Do you even know how worried everyone was?”  Mihir continues reprimanding the girl, but this time Tara graces him with deadpanned look as if not believing a single word he’s saying to which Mihir gives an affronted expression.

“What? I was worried as well, ok?” he narrows his eyes before continuing, “Anyways, the doctor said that you’ll have to eat something every two hours, and you will!”

Tara huffs again, this time accompanying it by rolling her eyes and an exasperated, “Fine,” with an unavoidable stress on the ‘I’.

Thankfully, after that she doesn’t throw a tantrum, quickly eating up the food.

Ranveer goes out of the room as he seemingly takes up a call, while Raghav goes out to put the now empty plates in the kitchen.

That leaves Ruhi, Mihir and Tara in the room.

“I’m sorry about that day, though,” Tara says, looking at her friends who look at her funnily.

“About which day?” Ruhi questions, a confused frown on her face.

“That day. Our trip. You guys were supposed to go on a date.” She says making Ruhi’s eyes widen at the revelation. However, the poor girl doesn’t even get a moment to gather her thoughts or flush a little when Mihir intervenes.

“Don’t worry about that, Tara. Your health is more important than any of those things. Just think about yourself for now, alright?”

Mihir says and the girl nods. Satisfied when leans back on the chair and when he turns to glance towards Ruhi, it’s only to find the chair empty. And before he can even think of going around to find her, the agency calls him.

He promises to talk to her as soon as he is back.