Chapter 5
"Dr. Shilpa, he is Dr. Armaan Mallik. As you already know!", Dr. Sehgal re-introduced her with the new senior doctor, Dr. Armaan Mallik.
Shilpa was shocked, so as Armaan. They were in such an awkward situation which they couldn't even ignore.
"Well Dr. Armaan, you both know each other that's why I'm assigning her as your assistant, for your first case here", Dr Sehgal informed Armaan.
Armaan blinked his eyes and it sound to him as if wish has fulfilled for the first time, but Shilpa was thinking opposite.
"Yes Sir!!", they both agreed in unison.
"Ah! Dr. Shilpa, have you discussed with the interns, about Dr. Mallik?", Dr. Sehgal asked.
Shilpa closed her eyes and apologized, "I'm sorry sir! Yesterday there was a serious emergency in the hospital so--", she tried to explain.
"It's okay Dr. Shilpa. I know about that emergency", Dr. Sehgal affirmed being a friendly doctor.
"Aaj introduce karaiye mujhe koi hungama nahi chahiye. Aur agar kuch aisa hua to being a disciplinarian...ap janti hai kya hoga", he continued himself being a strict and disciplined dean.
She nodded her head positively in agreement.
They both left the cabin together, But Armaan was confused that why Shilpa was not happy, in fact why she was shocked when she came to know that he was going to be, her senior.
But on the same side, Armaan was feeling as if all his questions were going to solve, soon.
Shilpa called the ward boy and ordered, "Please inhein hospital dikha dijiye"
"No need for that Dr. Shilpa.", Armaan retorted back.
"I'll do it myself. Aap bas mujhe mera cabin dikha dijiye", he said to the ward boy looking at Shilpa.
Armaan was waiting for her usual answer back but she didn't, and he took a sigh observing the change Shilpa.
Locker Room
"Oho these lockers are so small in size, poora samaan hi nahi ata", a girl in a long full-sleeve kurta and leggings sulked, while stuffing her belongings inside the locker.
"Oh My My! Aaj kuch aur maang leta to wo bhi mil jata shayad", a man in casuals entered inside the locker room and commented.
She turned her face in the man's direction and glared him.
"Zaroon! For good sake, stop blabbering these cheesy lines", she annoyed, and again engrossed in her previous task.
"Now you have to learn to deal with cheesy lines", Zaroon said while stepping forward to her.
"Poori zindagi inhein sunna hai aapko, to be Mrs. Kashaf Zaroon Junaid", he moaned coming closer to her and caressed her hairs aside from the back of her neck.
Kashaf closed her eyes and turned her back towards the locker and patted his shoulder, "Stop it Zaroon!"
While blushing she changed the topic and asked, "Tumhara locker humesha khali rehta hai, after all you have a separate cabin"
"So?", he asked arching his brow up.
"So what? Gimme some space in your locker...I mean for my stuff", she said while pouting.
After seeing the pout he grinned, "Bade buzurg keh ke gaye hain"
"Kuch pane ke liye kuch khona padta hai", he mumbled huskily.
"Meaning?", she creased her brows in unawareness.
"Meaning!", he pulled her towards him from her waist and nuzzled in her ear, "Just a kiss! Jyada kuch nahin"
Kashaf closed her eyes, as he was so closer to her and she parted her lips but something interrupted.
"Aham! Aham!", the coughed sound interrupted them.
Zaroon left his hold from Kashaf and they parted from each other. Kashaf was blushing like hell when she realized their two colleagues have witnessed her and Zaroon's cozy moment.
Kashaf's colleagues were grinning and trying to control their laughter when the guy started the conversation.
"Aham! Yahan to locker room, lover's park bana hua hai", he giggled.
The girl pressed her lips to not laugh and accompanied the guy in the conversation, "Haan Kashaf! Pehle bata diya hota hum thoda late ate", she mocked as she was an innocent child.
"Bas bhi karo yaar! We didn't you know you have come so earlier", Zaroon tried to cover it.
The guy took the command and said, "Hmm! Pata bhi kaise hota! Kashaf ko dekhne se nazar hi nahi hatti aapki, nazare kaise dekhenge...SIR", he teased them while emphasizing the word Sir.
"By the way Gunjan, your idea to come earlier was superb. Haan!", he complimented the girl and chuckled.
"Shut up Samrat!! Stop teasing them now", Gunjan scolded him while laughing.
"Jaisi aapki aagya!!", Samrat mocked and bowed down to taunt Gunjan.
"Ho gaya? Now tell me, kisi ne Shilpa ko dekha kya?", Kashaf asked to all of them.
"Nahi! Has Dr. Khadoos has arrived?", Samrat giggled.
"There is nothing to laugh at this", Gunjan retorted back.
"Pata nahin kahan hai aaj!!", Kashaf said with incognizance.
"How do you know that she has arrived?", Zaroon asked.
Kashaf gave a fake smile and spoke, "I've asked on the nurse station. Sister told me ke wo bahut jaldi aa gayi thi aaj"
"Oh yes! I forgot", Zaroon smack his forehead and said.
"Kya hua?", all the three interns asked in unison.
Zaroon replied while running outside the locker room, "Jald pata chal jayega"
And he left all the interns in confusion with scrunched brows. But they came to senses when heard an announcement.
*Sare interns nurse station par report karein*
Nurse station
Few minutes later, all the three interns Kashaf, Samrat and Gunjan were on the nurse station, when the fourth intern Shilpa arrived with Armaan.
"He is Dr. Armaan Mallik, the new senior doctor of the hospital", Shilpa introduced Armaan to all the interns, which remind them the last words of Zaroon.
"Interns!", Shilpa brought them in senses.
"Huh! Yes Dr. Shilpa", Gunjan replied.
"Okay! So now we have two senior doctors, Dr. Zaroon Junaid and Dr. Armaan Mallik. I hope you all will co-operate with him", Shilpa asked professionally arching her brows.
They all nodded and finally Shilpa introduced all the interns to Armaan and he greeted back.
Shilpa assigned their respective duties and informed finally, "Kal se aap log Dr. Zaroon ke ilawa Dr. Mallik ko bhi report karenge"
They all nodded and Shilpa announced, "And I'm no more a disciplinarian. Dr. Zaroon is going to assign the duties"
All the interns agreed and departed for their duties.
Armaan was confused, that is it was the same Shilpa Malhotra, who used to break each and every rule, and now she herself was reminding her colleagues to not do it.
Children Ward
"Open your mouth! If you will not take medicines at time, to jaldi theek kaise hongi aap?", she asked widening her grey almond shaped eyes and feed the syrup to a little girl.
The little girl gave a weird expression while gulping the bitter syrup at which Shilpa, laughed which didn't left unnoticeable by Armaan.
Armaan came near to Shilpa and asked, "Now shall we discuss the case?"
"Hmmm!", she hummed and opened the case file.
Armaan was now astonished with her changed behavior, which was completely opposite to the girl with whom he used to work, 1 month back.
Shilpa started discussing the case but he was not in his senses, in fact he was somewhere else not in the case. Armaan was thinking that merely in 1 month how a person can change from the head to toe.
Shilpa noticed his lost behavior and said, "Dr. Mallik!"
He came to the reality with a jerk, "Huh!"
"We were discussing about the case", she replied in confusion.
"Oh yes! Aap mujhe file de dijiye. Main ise dekh loonga", he replied while caressing his temples at which she nodded.
Armaan's Cabin
Armaan was sitting on the chair, resting his elbows on the table and his hands were intertwining in a fist at which his chin was resting.
Every time, whenever he used to involve himself in the file, his concentration followed the path of Shilpa's behavior, which was now completely changed, from top to bottom.
One question was eating him since one month, "Why Shilpa did left Mumbai, and that too in a haste".
And now when he wanted to make her realize, "Saccha pyaar or sacchi dosti humesha sath nahi rehte", she wasn't that Shilpa who told her, "Saccha pyaar aur sacchi dosti kabhi humse door nahin jate"
She was someone else, with her face. The modern US return has changed into typical Indian girl, in salwaar kameez. The toddler has become a calm and peaceful girl. The talks of the chatter-box have now wandered their path. The beautiful smile was vanished, and the chummy eyes have stopped talking, but why so.
The whole day has passed and Armaan was aghast with her changed behavior, in fact the changed Shilpa. He kept thinking and left his cabin quickly.
He asked to the nurse in the corridor, "Have you seen Dr. Shilpa?"
~~oo~~
Kashaf was about to leave the hospital when Zaroon said, "Let's go main tumhe ghar drop kar deta hoon"
"Nahin! Tum jao actually I'm searching for Shilpa. Aaj bahut strange behave kar rahi thi. Chup chup si!!", she replied to Zaroon.
"Wo to humesha hi chup rehti hai. Nothing new", Samrat came into the conversation.
"Haan! Par aaj jyada chup thi", Kashaf answered back.
"Kashaf! Tum kal baat kar lena, you are looking so tired. Aur phir tumhari Ammi bhi wait kar rahi hongi.", Zaroon worriedly said.
"Aham!", Samrat giggled with Kashaf's exit at which Gunjan laughed out loud. And Zaroon glared him.
"Okay! Chalo", Kashaf agreed.
"Chalo Laila - Majnu on long drive", Samrat twisted his brow and chuckled.
"Shut up!", Kashaf and Zaroon both said in unison.
Gunjan laughed and bid a good-bye to Zaroon and Kashaf.
"Chal Gunj! Hum bhi chalte hain", Samrat said.
"Don't call me that", Gunjan replied annoyingly, while leaving the hospital.
At the terrace area
Shilpa was sitting alone on the stairs resting her hands on her knees. Her hairs were blowing with the flow of fog and the cheeks have become red, just like the apples of Kashmir.
"I've wished to not meet Armaan again, then why did it happen", she thought in her mind.
"Humesha jaise chahein hum waise hota bhi nahin", she hopelessly said to herself.
Suddenly, her brows scrunched and she thought, "Par Armaan yahan kyu aya hai, wo bhi transfer leke. Aur Riddhima, where is she?"
She pressed her lips and was in hell confusion. The different questions were hitting on her mind but the one question was constant.
"What if Armaan came to know about her feelings for him?"
She cupped her mouth with a thought and what if it becomes a reality. She looked at the roof and asked herself, "How am I going to hide my feelings for him?", and she left the stair and leaned her back to the railing of staircases.
And a lone tear fell down from her eyes which was about to fall on the floor but it destined to a handkerchief.
She shifted her eyes on the direction of the person in front of her, who was none else than Armaan Mallik.
"Chalo! At least ek aadat to nahin badli tumhari", Armaan sarcastically said.
"Matlab", she turned her back towards him and asked.
"You know very well what I mean", he retorted back.
"Poori badal gayi na tum. Par kyu? Why?", he shrieked in frustration.
She gulped down and said curtly, "Tumse matlab?"
"Look at me Shilpa. Tum wo nahi ho jise main jaanta tha", Armaan held her wrist and forcefully turned his face towards him.
But she kept quiet and jerked his hand off from her wrist.
"Accha to ye hi bata do! Why did you left Mumbai? Ye to bata sakti ho?", he finally asked his question.
"I don't need to answer anything about my personnel life, Dr. Armaan Mallik! It's nothing professional", Shilpa answered him looking into his eyes, that too without any tears.
"I thought, I can ask. Afterall kisi ne kaha tha ke saccha pyaar aur saccha dost kabhi door nahi jata", he disappointedly retorted back which was unexpected for her, which forced her to lift her eyes from the floor.
"But now I know, and I can understand kuch batein sirf kehne ke liye hoti hain", he sighed and gulped down the fresh lump.
"I didn't mean that. I'm sorry", she whispered in tears.
"No you don't need to be. Isi sawal ka jawaab janna tha aapse. Mil gaya", he retorted back.
"Par..", she tried to say but cut off by Armaan,
"It's okay. I've born to be alone. Parents ne sath chod diya, purane doston ne sath chod diya...yahan tak ke pyaar ne bhi sath chod diya. Aapki aur meri pehchan hi kitni thi", he said in single breath but nothing got unnoticeable by Shilpa, especially about Riddhima.
"Pyaar ne saath chod diya? Matlab?", she asked in utter shock, which made him realized what he has spilled out.
DO NOT AVOID NOTE: Due to some technical problems I am re-posting it here. And the Character sketch is on Pg 1 with the prologue!!
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A/N:Phew!! Long Update. But still a cliffy one. Now don't kill me. Please leave your views in comments and hit like button.
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