Part 9 – Her Heart Therapist

It was around 10 am when Karan heard a man enquiring about Samiksha’s ward.
“Thank you sister.”
Raj Sinha thanked nurse for the information and proceeded through the corridors towards Samiksha’s ward.
“Who was he asking for?”, Karan clarified his doubt of hearing her name.
“Sir he was asking for Samiksha. He is a friend from her college.”
Even though Sakhi’s words provided some relief to Karan the other day, just the thought of another man going to meet her made him creepy.

“Hello beautiful.”

Raj’s voice startled Samiksha and she was not very glad to see him there.
“Hello. How did you know about my injury?”
“Come on, I was present there during that match and I saw you getting hurt. Untill I reached the spot, you were taken in the ambulance for treatment.”
“Oh. That was nice of you. Thanks for visiting too.”
He handed over a lovely bouquet to her.
“You didn’t bother to visit me before though,” Samiksha said sarcastically.
He smiled and said,
“I had to visit Calcutta urgently. I received an urgent message that my mother was unwell.”

For the first time

Samiksha listened patiently to him. And she also regretted the way she spoke to him earlier, realising she might have blown up the whole situation.
“How is she now?”
“She is much better, thank you. She worries for me a lot. I am alone here in this city and she is concerned for me. I wanted admission in this college so I had to take some decisions. Couldn’t help it. And, when are you getting discharged?”
The question collided with the entry of a not so smiling Dr. Karan Jaiswal.
“I guess my patient needs rest now. In case you have finished offering her your sympathy and good wishes.”

Raj looked at him and Samiksha intervened,
“Karan, meet Raj. He is from my college.”
“The nurse informed me. So Raj, can I check my patient?”
“Sure go ahead.”
“I also meant, she needs rest”, Karan said with a calm tone.
“Oh, in that case I will leave now Sam. Do take care. The visiting hours in your hospital are quite short doctor.”
Raj said bluntly to Karan.
Karan replied with a calm.

“Well Raj,

patients are meant to rest in hospitals with minimum contact with the outside world. You should be aware of this.”
Samiksha sensed an unusual envy in Karan’s voice.
“Raj you take care of your mother alright. See you. Bye.”
Samiksha ended the conversation between the two, for better reasons.

As Raj left, Karan closed the door and strode towards her. Samiksha was looking wide eyed at him with a nervous glare.
He sat besides her and took her wrist in his hand. Undoubtedly her pulse was accelerating.
His eyes never left her as he checked her pulse. His firm grip on her wrist made her aware of his present state of mind, making her even more nervous.
“You don’t look at your watch for the time doctor? You are reading my pulse,” Samiksha finally opened her dry mouth and dared to question him.
“I need not even check your pulse today, as I know your heart is racing like horse this moment. What is making you so nervous by the way? Your pulse is unusually high and I can hear your heartbeats without my stethoscope even.”

Samiksha couldn’t take

off her eyes from Karan, as she was new to this maiden, serious and possessive side of his.
Finally he loosened his grip and brushed his thumb against her wrist, looking deep into her eyes. Samiksha had turned stone.
It was for the first time had she experienced the closeness of a charming man, who happened to be her crush.
The room was full of beats from echoing from her thudding heart. Karan came closer to her and asked,
“Is he the ‘boyfriend’ with whom you chat?”, Karan questioned stressing on a particular word.

“He? No.”
Words betrayed Samiksha as her heartbeats already had.

He was so close to her, she could smell his masculine scent without a perfume, as he was allergic to perfumes. She traced his features closely for the first time, with her eyes. His dark eyebrows, his beard, his fine jawline, his appealing forehead, which was tensed at present due to obvious reasons, might be.

“Answer me.”
She was at loss of words. He slowly brought his hand towards her face, tracing her face edge with his long fingers. She was so lost in his gaze, forgetting that her hand was now on his chest.
“Tell me Samiksha, do you really have a boyfriend?”
Her name sounded so pleasing from his mouth.
“Yes, why do you doubt about it?”
Karan had a certain calm on his face inspite of the tense situation both were caught in.
“Because your body, your heartbeat and mouth are not in co ordination at all.”
The sensual silence in the room and Karan’s nearness took away the thinking capabilities of her brain.
“No, I don’t have one.”, she whispered, gazing deep into his eyes.
“Then why did you lie to me?”
“I, um, wanted to make you jealous”, she told straightaway.

He smiled

from the corner of his lips and swiped her hair away from her forehead.
“Why are you so innocent? Do you know what have you done to me?”
She looked at him with a naive expression and whispered,
“What?”
He smiled and as he was about to speak, he overheard the unlocking of the door and got up quickly.

Jolly entered and kept a bag on the side table, greeting Karan. She noticed the flush on Samiksha’s cheek and asked her by a quick raise of eyebrow,
“What happened? Is everything fine?”
Samiksha brushed off the possibility of any such thing with denial. Karan cracked his knuckles to brush off the tension in the air.

“So when can I take my friend home doc?”
“Hmm. Whenever you wish,” Karan said confidently.
“But it would be advisable if she stays for a week more as the healing would be faster here.”
“I see. But we can administer the medicines at home too.”
“But is there medical help to attend to her at home?”
Jolly paused and looked at Karan.
“Yup, I give up. You can keep my friend here as long as you wish.”
There was a certain naughty touch to Jolly’s words though.

“But I must say,

you have cured my friend two ways.”
“And they are?”
One is her foot and the other is her arrogant, adamant behaviour.”
Samiksha now lost it and yelled,”What do you mean?”
Karan was already laughing at Jolly’s sweet admittance.
Samiksha eyed both of them and turned in the opposite direction at one move. Her foot ached badly, resulting in her painful cry.

Karan was near her at once.
“Are you fine? Why can’t you take care? You have been operated, don’t you understand?”
Jolly was undoubtedly startled at the concern he showed but she suspended her intution for the time being. Certainly, the concern was not just from a doctor.
“Am fine. Sorry,” Samiksha told him mildly.
Karan left the ward after ensuring Samiksha was fine and Jolly sat right in front of her, looking straight into her friend’s eyes.
“What’s going on?”
“What?”, Samiksha tried to change the topic.

Jolly noticed

the blush on her friend’s cheeks and smiled.
“Are you in love sweetheart?”
Samiksha’s smile escaped her lips and she nodded stretching out hands for hugging Jolly. Both the friends hugged and shared the sweet moment. They chatted and talked their hearts out.

Love was in the air.

https://pieces-of-life.com/

Credit for images : https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=zindagi+ki+mehek