Chapter 6

CHAPTER 5

3 months ago

 

                    Three days. It took 3 days for the doctors to pronounce Kria fit for surgery. Precisely three days thirteen hours and twenty-seven minutes ago, the gang had rushed through the doors of the casualty, Rey and Swayam carrying a writhing Kria nursing her bruised and visibly swollen right knee between them. The same doors before which Rey was stood. He had gone to retrieve his mobile phone which he had very carelessly left behind in his car in his haste. While returning, he had decided to take the emergency entrance which would lead him to the section housing the operating room where Kria was being operated.

                   

 

Standing there was like reliving that night all over again. As soon as the doctor left, Sharon had called up Kria's mom and broke the news to her as gently as she could. It was slightly disconcerting to see Sharon trying to be gentle and considerate, Rey was too lost to notice then. When Kria's mother turned up at the hospital, the gang was completely at loss at how to handle her. Turned out, Rey thought as he began walking, they never needed to do anything. She was terribly worried but there was a resigned look on her face. As if she had expected something like this to happen long long ago.

 

                    Rey entered the waiting area where everybody else was gathered and was greeted with an air of solemnness. On the sofa at one end, Kria's mother sat nursing a cup of long forgotten tea. On her either side sat Simi and Rinni, both trying to comfort her but not knowing how. Sharon was at the very end, leaning against a window and staring blankly ahead.It was strange to see her away from Kria's mother. He expected Sharon to be right next to aunty the whole time, seeing as Kria and her had become such bosom friends lately. Rey saw all the boys huddled on a sofa opposite to the one the girls had occupied. Amar was nervously biting his nails and Bharat was swatting his arm away every single time, thoroughly irritated.Rey also noted that this was probably one of the few rare occasions when he got to see Vicky and Nil so serious and not cracking a single joke.

 

His eyes roamed around and he caught Swayam's figure, huddled against another window closest to the door. His eyes wandered between him and Sharon. Both held identical poses. And they say they are poles apart scoffed Rey. But the next instant, he softened. This probably was the hardest for Swayam. Kria was his first friend at St. Louis and probably the one to coax him to start dancing in the first place.

He looked around the hall one more time. This was going to be a long wait.