*** CHAPTER 25 ***

Swara anxiously shifts her gaze from one family member to another just waiting for someone to say that whatever she has interpreted is wrong, that whatever she has concluded is wrong, it is just her thinking that way and it’s nothing like that but to her utter dismay nothing of that sort happens. Instead the pale, dull faces with uncertainty quite evident in their eyes break every last bit of her hope and she stumbles in her steps.

He’s not Shlok! He’s not her husband!

With the realization dawning upon her, every dream she has had of a beautiful future ahead with ‘him’ gets crushed mercilessly and all of it stumbles down to her feet shattering her heart into innumerous pieces.

Swara: You all have been lying to me! All this while?!

She still fails to believe that the ones she has so proudly called as her own have cheated her. Annapurna takes a step ahead to console her daughter and Swara takes several steps back.

Annapurna: Swara, beta. Just listen.

Swara: Where is Sanky?

Annapurna: Swara…

Never in her life has she felt so helpless that she has to tell her daughter-in-law that her husband is no more! That her son is no more! Can a mother be any more helpless? With every step Swara takes away from her, Annapurna feels her heart breaking even more.

Swara: Where is Shlok, Maa? Don’t tell me all of you left him there only? We…

Laksh: What do you mean by ‘there only’? Swara… do you remember anything?

Laksh interrupts immediately and that comes like a shock to everyone. All of them have been wishing for Swara to remember everything but never have they ever expected her to remember everything like this, in such a situation.

Swara: W-What…

Laksh: What happened that night, Swara?

Swara: What happened? Don’t you know… Wait… You all did leave him there, right? Then, why are we here? We should go?

Annapurna: Swara, listen. Shlok…

Swara: Yes, Shlok. Your son, Maa. He’s hurt and we have left him there. He must be in so much pain, Maa. We have to go.

With that being said, she turns around to run out of the hospital but is instantly held back by Laksh holding her wrist.

Laksh: Where are you going, Swara? First listen to what we all are saying?

Swara: What is there to listen, Laksh? Your brother…

“IS DEAD!!!”

And with Laksh’s one shout everything goes silent. Swara, being caught dumbfound, fails to mumble even a single thing. Dead?! And the very next moment, everyone is stunned even more by an ear piercing sound as a callous slap lands on Laksh’s face.

Swara: How dare you, Laksh? How can you say such a thing about your brother?

Laksh: He. Is. Dead. Swara. And the other one is on the verge of dying. Please… please get a hold of yourself.

Swara: I…

She opens her mouth to protest again but the next moment the door to the ICU opens and doctor steps out.

Durga Prasad: Are you all ready?

Doctor: Yes, Mr. Maheshwari. We are taking him for the operation. Any more delay will cost him his life.

Durga Prasad nods his head solemnly and with a single nod, the doctor leaves. Annapurna breaks into another round of hysterical cries as she witnesses her son being pulled out of the intensive care unit.

Swara’s body goes stiff as she founds him pale with pain, motionless, lying there with his eyes closed as if he’s in a deep slumber. She fails to understand herself what has left her more heartbroken… him being in such a heart wrenching condition or the awful truth that the one she has come to love is not her husband but someone she is completely unaware of. She doesn’t even know what his real name is and she has been claiming that she’s in love with him all this while!

Irony of fate! Isn’t it?

As he’s being pulled away by a couple of nurses and ward boys, the back of Vidhaan’s hand brushes against her hand. Doctor’s recent words ring in her head and Swara immediately holds his hand.

Swara: Y-You can’t leave just like that. Did you hear me? You have to come back. You can’t leave without answering my questions. I won’t let you. You have to…

Laksh: Swara, let him go!

Swara: I want to know why he did this to me!

Durga Prasad: But if you don’t let him go now, you’ll never be able to find out. Let him go this instant!

And this time it’s her father-in-law who roared shutting everyone up. Swara’s hand slips off Vidhaan’s hand and everyone hurries him to the operation theater.

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“You’re the most special person of my life, Swara.” That’s exactly what he has told her. But has he been just saying it all this while? Or has he really meant it? The feelings, the love, the passion… everything seems like nothing more than a mere façade to her right now. Everything is a lie! Everyone she has come to love leaves her sooner or later... Mother, father… husband and now… She isn’t even sure what she should call him. Who is he to her?

The huge avalanche of tears tugging mercilessly at her heart makes her clutch the fabric of clothing near her heart as she slumped down on to the floor in front of the operation theater. Annapurna immediately runs to the aid of her daughter and the moment Swara finds herself in the succoring embrace of her mother, her first tear breaks free and rest of them follow without a fail.

Swara: I failed, Maa… I failed as a daughter then… I failed as a friend, as a wife now!

Annapurna: No, Swara. It isn’t your fault, beta. Nothing of it was! Please… stop crying!

Swara: Why… Why is it always me? Why?

Annapurna: Shh! Shh! It’s okay. Everything will be fine!

Annapurna keeps cooing and pacifying her daughter for several minutes before she realizes that she has passed out again.

Annapurna: Swara… Swara…

Laksh: What happened, Badi Maa?

Annapurna: She has fainted again!

A tear drops rolls down Laksh’s face as he caresses his best friend’s face. She doesn’t deserve this. None of this! And God has been so merciless to make her bear so much at such a tender age. He picks up Swara in his arms carefully and carries her to the doctor.

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Every moment feels like ages for the whole family as the doctors operate on Vidhaan inside. Each one of them have their eyes glued to the small red bulb above the door of operation theater with a bated breath but the most devastated one is the old couple whose breath has almost stopped as they are on the verge of losing their other son too.

What wrong have they done in their lives to deserve such a fate… or should they say for their sons to deserve such a fate?!

They have somehow composed themselves after the death of their first son but if something happens to their Sanskaar, whom they have found after twenty seven years, they don’t think they have the power to bear that fatal blow. If he doesn’t want to consider him as their parents, then so be it. If doesn’t want to be Sanskaar and be Vidhaan for all his life, they would happily oblige. But all they want right now is to see their son up again, smiling at them. Nothing matters to them more than this at the very moment.

Sobbing incessantly, Annapurna leans her head against Durga Prasad’s shoulder standing by the operation theater’s door motionlessly, whereas Ram paces up and down the corridor reporting the current situation to Ragini and Sujata as they are at home to take care of Chaitanya. They can’t afford the little one to see his beloved Sanky Papa and Swara Mumma in such a condition.

After six long hours, as the bulb gets switched off and the door opens with a click, all the three elders rush towards the doctor who has just stepped out of the operation theater.

Durga Prasad: Doctor?

Doctor: (sighs) Your son is a fighter, Mr. Maheshwari. The operation has been successful.

Annapurna bursts out with tears of joy as she finally feels like breathing again. And even Durga Prasad couldn’t help as a tear drop escapes from the corner of his eyes. They are alive again for their son has successfully fought his way out back to them.

Durga Prasad: Can we… Can we meet him?

Doctor: Not right now. He’s still unconscious. We’ll be moving him to the normal ward in about an hour and we hope that he’ll be conscious by afternoon.

Annapurna: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much, doctor!

Doctor: No need to thank me, Mrs. Maheshwari. It’s my duty and I’m happy that your son has made it. I’ll be seeing you all soon.

Ram: I’ll go and let Laksh know.

With that being said, the doctor proceeds towards his office whereas Ram runs out to inform Laksh who’s still tending to the unconscious Swara.

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After hours of unconsciousness, Swara finally opens her eyes to the blinding white light and moments later finally finds Laksh sitting next to her bed with a forlorn expression etched all across his face.

Swara: (slowly) Laksh!

Laksh: Swara, how are you feeling now?

Swara: Sanky? I mean that…

She couldn’t help worry. Yes, she is angry. She feels deceived but a small part of her heart is still wrenching as the sight of his face from outside the ICU flashes in front of her eyes every now and then.

Laksh: He’s still in operation theatre. It’s been six hours already! I don’t know…

But the next moment his talk is cut in between as his father hurtles inside the room and seeing him rushing in such a way Laksh sucks in a deep breath and Swara’s heart sinks. No matter what he has done, she will never want him gone. Never!

Laksh: Dad, what happened?

Ram: He… He made it. The operation was successful. He is safe now!

Unable to control his emotions Laksh rubs his palms over his face making a futile attempt to compose himself, but the traitorous tears fall down anyway. His brother is safe! He hasn’t lost his brother again!

Laksh: When can we meet him?

Ram: They’ll be shifting him to the normal ward in an hour and they are hoping for him to regain his consciousness by afternoon.

Laksh sighs with relief and turns to look at Swara who’s sitting there with an emotionless face. She feels helpless in front of her conflicting feeling. She doesn’t know herself what she’s feeling right now. Is she happy? Or is she sad? Or angry? Her tussle with her inner self doesn’t seem like ending anywhere sooner. But one thing she’s sure of is…

She needs answers… from him!

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“Bro, I’m back.”

Sahil gives a smug smile as he hears the excited voice of his sister calling out loud from the living room. Leaving everything he has been doing, that’s if he’s doing any, he hurls out to the living room.

Sahil: Welcome back, my lovely sister!

Kavita raises an eyebrow at the endearment and Sahil gives her a cheeky smile obviously trying to avoid her angry glare for what he has done before.

Kavita: You do know that this face and these talks don’t work on me, right?

Sahil: (rolls his eyes) Okay. Okay. Fine! I said it earlier and I’m saying it again… I’m sorry! From next time, if I’ll plan to do something, I’ll let you know in advance.

Kavita: Good!

Sahil: So, any success?

Kavita: Of course, if I’m on any task is there any possibility that it would be left incomplete!

Saying that she hands him a couple of photographs and the smirk on his face seeing them all is enough to express that how proud he is of his sister.

Sahil: (grins) That’s great! Sis, you’re the best!

And with a smirk, Kavita tells him everything that happened back there in Mumbai.

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Walking out of the office of ‘Grace’ with an enraged face, Kavita glares at the picture on her mobile screen as she passes by the school grounds.

Kavita: Orphanage policy… my foot! Couldn’t he tell me just a name? I don’t care if that old man doesn’t tell me anything, I will find who you are.

She has been glaring at her mobile phone when someone bumps into her from behind and the mobile phone falls down from hand on to the soft grass of the ground.

Kavita: What the hell?!

The small girl who has bumped into her accidentally flinches back at the harshness of her tone and picks up her phone hurriedly.

Girl: I’m… I’m so sorry, didi. I didn’t…

And that’s when her eyes fall on the Kavita’s phone and she gives her a big smile.

Girl: Are you our Vidhaan Sir’s friend? Is he coming back?

And that’s all it takes for Kavita to realize that this is what she has been searching for all this while. Even the goddess of luck has blessed her this time!

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Everyone waits for their beloved to open his eyes as the morning passes, but the afternoon passes too and he still hasn’t opened his eyes. The anxiousness amongst everyone increases with every passing moment and the doctor arrives to check up on him.

Annapurna: What happened, doctor? Why hasn’t he woken up yet?

Doctor: Relax, Mrs. Maheshwari. It happens in some cases. It takes time to wear off the effect of anesthesia. Please let me check.

Annapurna steps aside from Vidhaan’s bed as the doctor steps closer to examine his whereabouts and after a few minutes of examination he calls upon the nurse with a worried expression.

Durga Prasad: What’s wrong, doctor?

Doctor: I think we need to do a few more tests.

Ram: Why? You said he was out of danger.

Doctor: I know but his head injury was severe and I’m afraid that…

Durga Prasad: What?

Doctor: He’s showing symptoms of coma, Mr. Maheshwari. I need to…

“No, he can’t!!”

Hearing the shout everyone turns around only to find Swara standing at the doorstep, still with an emotion deprived face.

Swara: He… He can’t go into coma!

Laksh: Swara, what are you doing here? I asked you to rest for the time being.

Laksh calls her out of frustration but all Swara does is ignore him as she walks past everyone straight towards Vidhaan’s bed and holds his arm tightly.

Swara: You have to get up. Do you understand? You can’t escape just like that. You can’t go into coma. Come back! You can’t go without answering my questions. GET UP!!

Noticing Swara losing her cool, Laksh immediately rushes by her side and holds both her shoulders pulling her away from his brother.

Laksh: Swara, let’s go. You need to rest.

Swara: Leave me, Laksh. He can’t go like that. I won’t let him. He…

And as Laksh starts pulling her out of the room, she breaks into loud sobs wiggling under his grip.

Swara: Laksh…

Laksh is all set to cut short her speech but she stops abruptly all by herself even before he could say anything. Even her sobs quiet down a bit. And when everyone notices what has actually happened, they all are left thunderstruck.

Down, near the edge of the bed, Vidhaan has caught two fingers of Swara’s left hand as Laksh has been pulling her away from him. Swara is taken aback by the weird sensation as she feels the pressure of his hand increasing on her fingers. And as he opens his eyes, the only word that escapes his lips is…

SWARA!!

And Swara feels her entire resolve falling apart!

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A/N

IMPORTANT!! PLEASE DON’T SKIP!!

Hello everyone! Just as I said in the latest chapter of TO YOU, MY HEART I SURRENDER, I’m requesting it here again… Please… Please… Please don’t post any query regarding the updates of any story on my profile’s message board or in the comment box of my stories because all it does is leaving a negative impact on whoever sees my profile. I seriously don’t like this! I said you all can message me anytime. I always reply to your messages. So, please DM me whenever you have any query!

I know the frequency of my updates has decreased in last few days but I have my own reasons. It’s becoming too stressful for me to manage everything along with my job preparations. I’m undergoing severe writer’s block right now. So, to ease things out a little bit, I have decided that I won’t be writing any new one shots for a while now and I’m going to put one of the stories on hold. Kindly, choose one you want me to complete first…

1.To You, My Heart I Surrender
2.The Hidden Half

Also, I’m not going to write the second season of Tujhh Mein Rab Dikhta Hai because the social issue I have picked up this time is Domestic Violence and honestly, once I start I don’t want to listen… Why Swara is married to someone else? Why am I playing with a reader’s feelings?? Or that I don’t love swasan anymore!! Because I have been getting such responses lately. Everything you read can’t be a fairy tale, right? If you are reading a story, the least you can do is trust the writer and appreciate their effort. This thing has really hurt me a lot!

I have never set votes and comments target for next update, I never shout on any of you for comments because I feel that if my story will have that essence in it, readers will automatically comment. I welcome one word comments with the same love with which I welcome a comment of one whole paragraph. I call you all my second family but if this is what I’m going to get in return then I’m sorry… I won’t be expecting anything from any of you from here on.

Sorry, if you are hurt because of my words but I seriously wanted to get this out of my heart. I’m sorry once again! Kindly, choose one story you all want me to complete first.

See you all soon. Till then stay blessed and happy reading!

With love,
Stella ❤️