17~NOT just a passionate affair~Pt58 - The long road to recovery-4 Nov

OSR 58 - On the long road to recovery!

JANUARY

PRIVATE ROOM - LONG TERM CARE WARD

'Want me to update you on a few more interesting developments now?'

She blinked her eyes. That signal meant a 'Yes'

Yup. It was like sign-language. A basic form of communication that the couple had jointly worked out in the past few days. A win-win solution that'd helped both, Jodha to express herself clearly and others to understand her better. Well, ever since she'd gained consciousness, her speech had been fluctuating between 'coherent' and 'inarticulate' - her eyesight sporadically shifting from 'clear' to 'hazy'. Not surprising then that simplifying the conversation process had made life easier for everyone since - and would keep it easy till all her faculties eventually returned to normalcy!

'Hmmm...' he chuckled 'You mean interesting developments jaise how Meera and Renu have become pretty thick pals lately?'

Her brows raised up. Her sleepy eyes widened. The tired smile broadened into a surprised one - she couldn't believe what she'd just heard

'Yeah!' Jalal grinned at her 'expected' amusement 'Well... you know how Abdul taunts Renu relentlessly... and the only person who's able to keep his masti in check is Meera... so, one can imagine why Meera and Renu have grown to become such thick pals...' his grins slowly mellowed 'Crazy or whatever... one thing's for sure though... our gang's been my source of strength through everything!'

She didn't respond for a second - as though she was deep in thought.

Taking the cue, he bent lower - so she could convey what she wanted to.

Once her semi-blurry vision had managed to identify the outlines of his face, she directed her voice near his ears - the attempt requiring all of her wilful concentration to do so 'Ab... Abd...' she stuttered 'I... I... s... sorry... P...Payal... Maan...an Abdu...'

'You sorry?' Jalal softly reconfirmed 'You mean you want to apologize? To Abdul, Maan and Payal? Why?' he studied her features intently 'For having suspected them?'

She blinked 'Yes'

'Sure...' the boyfriend smiled perceptively 'And I'm certain they'd understand you too... I told you na, they are all as good as gold! Waise... Payal has been extremely apologetic about all this too... in fact, her entire family had come down from Delhi to offer us their support...' he paused. His pensive tone gradually took on a form of light-hearted cheer 'And one more interesting development... your brothers call me by name... your parents address me as beta! Quite a twist, ain't it?'

Her expressions immediately froze. Her eyes moistened. Then, a tear drop fell. Followed by another. And some more - throwing her man totally off guard!

'Hey... hey... hey...' Jalal leaned forth to wipe the droplets off 'I shared that news to make you happier... not to make you emotional...'

However, she wasn't just being emotional. If he could see what was going inside her head, he'd know that she was bawling her heart out. In unparalleled relief. Her family accepting him as their own wasn't just an 'interesting development'. It was the biggest victory they'd won - after a long tedious war she'd waged against her very own. A victory where she had finally managed to gather all her loved ones to one side - to HER side!

'Beta' the very word sounded like magic. No wonder then that those euphoric feelings had moved her to no end.

'Basss...' a few poignant minutes later, Jalal took out his hanky to soak up the final droplets 'Basss ab!' no doubt he empathized with her sentiments and let her have a cry about it, but he wasn't going to let this persist any longer. As it is, any undue mental stress wasn't advisable in her condition. Such an outburst was definitely risky - and going to increase the magnitude of her headaches exponentially.

So, his stares became more-and-more unforgiving till Jodha finally had no other go but to relent. With a sad blink 'Ok... ok'

A brief spell of stillness thereafter, she scrabbled at his sleeve - utilizing a massive amount of self-will to move those three fingers. She wanted to ask him about another significant issue. An issue she'd wanted information about ever since she'd awoken two days ago 'The pfff...' she mumbled, but the word wasn't resonating right. So, she tried again 'The profff...' she tried once more 'P... profffess...'

He guessed it at once. What she was meaning to ask. And just as he did, the warmth in his charms faded away. To be eclipsed by a grave frown around his brows 'You mean the stalker?' he corrected her since he couldn't stand the creep being addressed as a 'professor' 'You want to know what happened to the stalker?'

She blinked 'Yes'

Jalal Muhammed had to look away for a few seconds. So his girlfriend wouldn't gauge the outrage steadily seeping into his temperament.

The stalker. Every time this subject was broached, his mind inadvertently returned to the darkest chapters and grimmest flashbacks from his recent past. Which is why he'd avoided speaking about it in her presence. At least for so long 'The stalker's strapped to a wheelchair... and the doctors say that's how he's going to be for the rest of his life...' he muttered, aware that he was being temporarily sucked into an ominous world - a murky world far away from the light and airy ambience he was sharing with Jodha now. Nevertheless, the 'realist' in him also knew that this was a world he would have to revisit every so often - at least till the villain's chapter had been closed forever ''Anyway, I've got the best lawyers in the state fighting this case for me... so, he's not been granted bail, despite the hell he raised in court!' his jaws clenched up 'I am going to fight this case as mercilessly as I can. With the evidences and eyewitnesses I have against him, I'll ensure he gets the maximum possible sentence...' a few preoccupied seconds later, he reverted his attention to her more-soothing presence.

It was then that he noted the semblance of a few frowns - a hint of confusion on her otherwise calm face. He understood 'I know what you must think about this, Jo...' he spoke for her, predicting what she would have said had she been able to voice her opinions 'Since he has mental issues, you want him to be sent to an asylum, right? But, I don't think that way. Nope! The man knew what he was doing... he was hiding evidences... covering his tracks... so, he's getting no sympathies from me... no sympathies for snatching my pet away... for laying his dirty hands on my girl... for trying to ruin my life...'

Just then, his tirade was brought to an abrupt halt. He'd felt something tugging at his sleeves. Again.

Glimpsing down, he noticed how her index finger was pointing somewhere. At something else altogether.

'Sh... sh...' she stammered 'Sho...'

He watched her from close quarters for a few moments. It was obvious that she was veering away from this 'Stalker' discussion.

'Shol...' she persevered 'Sholfffer...'

'Sholfer?' Jalal verified 'Kyaa hua? You want to know how my shoulder is doing?'

She blinked 'Yes'

'Achaa...' he vented a soft sigh - his tone gradually turning as tender as it'd been a minute ago. Well, how could he NOT melt at her adorably blatant efforts to calm his agitation down? 'I'm ok...' he showed her by rotating his left shoulder with caution 'See? Much better now...'

A mild smile hovered around her lips. It had to. After all, she could sense that her man was going to be fine - emotionally and physically.

And watching that smile on her lips only melted him some more.

Soon after, two of her fingers - that'd been holding onto his sleeve for so long - began making their unsteady way towards his wrist. Once he'd perceived what it was that she was trying to achieve, he assisted her. By helping her wrap all of her fingers around his hand 'Ab khush?'

'Reee...' she whispered thereafter 'Reeed'

'Read?' he cocked his head in mild surprise 'You want me to read to you? Again?'

She blinked 'Yes'

'Hmmm...' making a swift visual search for the novel, he spotted it soon after 'I have spoilt you, haven't I? Reading out to you every day and all...' he laughed out loud, suddenly finding himself at a very happy place. When he held the book in his hand - the one that he'd read out to her everyday - he felt overcome by an intense surge of affection for whatever reasons.

Glimpsing up from its cover, he impulsively moved close to her - wanting to plant her lips a kiss.

But, he stopped halfway.

It was only then that he realized that her eyes were closed. ALREADY. She was fast asleep. SO SOON. Peacefully. Calmly. With her fingers still tightly wrapped around his wrist. Like she didn't want to let go of him even in sleep.

Sighing gently at his now-oblivious girlfriend, he replaced the book on the side table 'Happy New Year 2015 Jodha... once again!'

Nope. He didn't have any real regrets at the abrupt end to their rendezvous. She had managed to stay alert and spend time with him for half an hour today - longer than she could the past couple of days. She'd managed to smile and use her fingers THRICE in half an hour - more than she'd ever done since coming out of the coma. Good signs!

Some of the tubes were off. The colour was slowly returning to her skin. She'd even approved of the fancy nickname 'Rockstar' that he'd given her new hairstyle - the shiny baldness

All good signs indeed!

However, that didn't mean that this young man never endured disheartenment. He never showed it openly - but, he did. After all, it was no easy feat to sit back and watch his otherwise sprightly partner now struggling to perform the most basic tasks. Struggling to speak. Struggling to focus. Struggling to lift a finger. Struggling to stay awake!

So, on every instance that he did feel 'low' about being a helpless witness to her ongoing inner battles, he resorted to a mantra. He recalled the few wise words her supportive counsellor had mentioned

'Just imagine someone wakes you up from deep sleep in the middle of the night! Your eyes... your speech... your thoughts... your balance... your actions would all be disoriented, tired and dazed for some time, right? That's exactly how Jodha feels THROUGHOUT the day. Her senses are similar to a child's - they need time to re-adjust. Her confidence needs time to rebuild. She may act out-of-character during this spell. It'll take time... maybe months... but, with good care and therapy... she should get there... go back to what she was!'

FEBRUARY

'Slowly but steadily, getting there...' she darted a pleasant nod at the expectant faces of the parents - giving them the much-needed encouragement following that proclamation 'Not bad at all...' the well-dressed middle-aged woman then directed her assistant to help the patient lay back on the pillow. She was done with both, the medical reports and evaluating the elbow-and-wrist flexing exercises for the day 'The speech-and-language therapy is coming along well too... I can see the changes, Jodha...'

She smiled in response 'Y... yes d... d... doctor...'

'Hah! A broad smile! Happy patient makes for a happy doctor' the woman quipped 'Waise, I noticed that the bouquet's size has become extra-large today!' through her charming bespectacled-eyes, she indicated towards the grand arrangement on the short side table 'What's the occasion?'

No proper answer came. Instead, the remark seemed to have sparked a few more 'hush' grins - this time on everyone else's faces too. It struck the doctor then - especially when observing the part-approving part-awkward expressions on the parents 'Oh... I remember! It was Valentine's day yesterday, na?' she patted her patient's hand 'Anyway, have a good day Jodha! Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Singh!'

'Thank you doctor'

Not long after the doctor and her entourage had left, a gentle tap was heard on the door

'Aha!' Vishal guffawed loudly - as soon as he heard that tell-tale 6 pm knock 'Ting! Ting! Ting! Time for us to leave... but today, I have something interesting to show him before I go...'

'N... n... n... no...' Jodha protested 'M... mamma... h... he'

'Bas Vishal!' the mother snubbed, evidently irked by her son's never-ending pranks

'Haan' papa warned 'Stop teasing her all the time...'

'Par papa...'

'Hello...'

Unfortunately, before the family could reach a conclusive verdict on the sibling-tiff, the door had been opened

'Hello... uncle... aunty... Vishal...' he wished them, instantly sensing that he'd interrupted a typical 'Singh' family-scene. He then turned to greet her - with a special gaze reserved for her alone 'Hi Jo!'

'Hello beta... how is your shoulder now?'

'Oh fine uncle...'

'Hey Jalal...' Vishal deliberately butted in, before Jodha could speak up 'Shall I show you something I clicked?' walking up to the young man, he zoomed into a picture he'd taken earlier 'Jodha wanted me to delete this photo... but I think it's funny and funky!'

One peek at the photo and Jalal knew what it was all about. The snap had been taken outside the speech and language therapy-room when Jodha had probably been talking to herself. Probably practising some syllables - unaware that she was being watched. Not surprising then, that her expressions in the snap had come out quite weird!

Trying not to chuckle at their childish antics, Jalal glanced up at Jodha - but, she wasn't looking. Understandably, she wasn't too thrilled. Of course the bro was being a little mean here - but Jalal knew that his intentions weren't malicious. This is how Vishal was. A resident-jester making light of his family's hardships so the grief didn't get to them!

Clearing his throat thereafter, Jalal walked up to the bed and took his seat beside his annoyed girlfriend. Time to play peacemaker now!

'He's teasing you again?'

'C... con... constan...constantly...' she sulked, still glaring in the other direction 'I... I... w... wa...want y... you to... b... b... beat h... him!'

'Arre trust me... I would have thrashed him for teasing my girl...' Jalal grinned - while humouring both siblings simultaneously 'But to be fair... this is how tum donon have ALWAYS been... and I don't think I have a right to interfere with a typical bhai-behen argument' he winked 'Do I?'

After nearly twenty seconds of silence, she replied 'N... n... no...' that reluctant admission did come with an eventual mini-smile 'B... b... but...'

'Ok...' Mrs. Malthi spoke up - she'd had enough of the bickering 'Ab Vishal tum niklo yahaan se... bahut kar liyaa nautanki!'

'Haan... come with us Vishal...' the father chipped - having mulled upon the perfect ploy to punish his little brat 'Buy me and your mamma Pav Bhaji-chai... chalo...'

'W...what!' the son's shoulders drooped 'Not again...'

'Yes again!'

And before the chap could complain any further, he was almost nudged out of the room by his parents! So their recuperating daughter could avail some moments of 'mental' peace in the absence of this badmaash!

'There...' Jalal laughed - as the door shut behind the trio 'You've got your revenge!'

'Y... yes!' she beamed, giving her vision sometime to focus on her boyfriend's face so she could see his eyes clearer

'And that photo was super-sweet! Why didn't you like it?'

The joviality that'd barely come on, faded. Raising her shaky fingertips thereon, she felt the spiky quarter-inch roots on her own head. Then, she slowly stretched her quivering palm out. Frisking his shoulder-length brown locks. Touching his dynamic features. She'd have to be the only girl in town whose hair was way shorter than her guy's. Whose mannerisms were way more abnormal. And the more photos she saw of herself, the more it reminded her of this disappointing fact.

'Oy Rockstar...' he took her hand in his, aware of what was going on 'I told you na... it's all going to get better...' a caring haze graced him 'Waise... I want to know... what were you practising?'

A long pause ensued. She appeared increasingly nervous - like one would when preparing for a stage show. And then, she finally said it.

'Jalal'

'Huh!' he sat up. Stunned. Astonished. Impressed. Elated. She'd just uttered his name - with no stammer, stutter or slur whatsoever. The first word in the past one-and half-months that she'd mastered. Echoing crisp and clear! 'Say it again...'

'JALAL!' she repeated, with a little more confidence. Yes! It worked again. The practise had paid-off 'M... m... my val... valenti... gif... gifff... t... to... y... you' she concluded with a loving look. Well, he was able to spoil her with book-readings, flowers, a silk scarf for her head, extra-large bouquets for Valentines' and whatnot! SHE on the other hand couldn't - what with her still being strapped to a bed for most of the day. Thus, there was little else she could think of to 'gift' or 'surprise' him for the occasion. And if going by the extent of amazement in his reactions now, she'd achieved just that!

'Wow!' the boyfriend exclaimed in delight once more 'That sounds perfect! Just like how you used to call me...'

'Just like how you used to' those words. Those awesome words. Only a person with a condition similar to hers would truly understand the awesomeness of such a compliment. A spirit-booster like nothing else. So overjoyed was she by that point that she was walking on sunshine 'Sh... shall I... I...' she swallowed 'Sh... shall... I... I...' she swallowed again. The unforeseen surge of excitement was interrupting with her abilities to formulate the right words 'Sh... shall...I...'

'It's ok' he assured her - though he was infinitely pleased to see her so pleased 'Take it slow... take your time...'

'Shall I f... fini... m... my s... story?' phew! There she'd said it at long last

'You mean there's more?' his eyes widened 'Apart from fibbing about you boyfriendsss? And Blue Hawaiian? And exaggerating your love for handsome footballers? And drooling over James Rodriguez?'

'Y... yes...' she giggled

'Woah! You really did scare Mr. Raghuvanshi off, didn't you? So much so that he ran off in the middle of the night...'

'Y... yea...' she laughed - to the best of her ability

'Ok... go on...' a sly frown surfaced on his brows 'This should be interesting...'

And thus, she resumed her slow narration - a narration she'd begun a couple of days ago. Updating him on all that'd transpired at her end during the time that they'd been apart. Updating him about the family drama. The engagement nightmare. The Sahib Sindh Sultan adventure. His 200Rs that'd got her out of a tricky situation. She'd begun telling him about it all through many-a-laugh and joke. Yes, her diction was slurred and her mannerisms awkward. But for him, the experience was as enjoyable as it would have been, had she recorded it all live and played it back.

'Kamaal hai!' he grimaced in mock-anger, once she'd reached the end of her narrative-energy for the evening 'So you were busy enjoying pineapple halwa on my birthday, while I was moping over your photos!'

'I... I...' her heavy eyelids involuntarily closed for a while - succumbing to both, the weight of fatigue and regret 'I m... made you s... som... hal...wa... buttt I l... lost it... in th stalk...er's... hou...house...'

Fathoming the dipping levels of cheer in her tone, he was quick to jump to her rescue 'It's ok... you can always make me some more... after wards...'

'Sh... sure?'

'Of course I'm sure! A day WILL come when you will be able to make it again...' he winked with an air of certainty 'By the way, we both missed mine... but I want to ensure your birthday next month is special... tell me what do you want for it?'

'Wan y...you t...to c... com..plete y... your M B A pap...per!' PAT! The demand had come - like she'd already thought it well-ahead!

'What?' his gaiety had morphed into a confused frown 'To complete my MBA?' he couldn't hide his alarm. The topic she'd abruptly hashed was something they had never discussed since the debacle

'F...for b...both offf usss!' she disclosed. Assertively.

Much as everyone was tiptoeing around the sensitive matter, she knew - as did Jalal and everyone else - that her chances of continuing education were very slim. It would take years for her to achieve THAT level of normalcy. And with increased risk of permanent medical issues like 'Blinding migraines' henceforth, taxing her brain for such long hours might be near impossible! So, she wanted to derive the academic sense-of-achievement that she'd missed out in life through his accomplishments. As it is, his trophy stand had lost the opportunity to display the Outstanding Student Award. She wasn't going to let it lose the chance to show-off a framed SRI MBA certificate too - something it so deserved.

'God!' he exhaled again, not knowing what to say. This was a very sensible and touching ask from his girlfriend indeed. Besides, re-sitting one MBA paper wasn't the toughest of tasks for this able young man. However, with the many issues already swamping his daily life, he hadn't even given 'studying' a thought. How was he going to find the time to revise amidst office work, shoulder-appointments, hospital visits, lawyer meetings and the ongoing court case? Nevertheless. If she wished it, he would do it. For THEIR sake! To give her that sense-of-achievement!

'And what cake?' he subsequently added, half-expecting her to say Blackforest!

'Ch... choco fudshhhj!' she answered - springing another surprise upon him

'Oh!' he was nearly astonished. That was HIS flavour, not hers 'Fine!' his eyes playfully seemed to remark 'But... why chocolate fudge?'

Jodha allowed the ongoing jest in her sleepy eyes to respond for her 'Cos last time you stole half of my blackforest... this time I'm going steal half of your chocolate fudge!'

Unconvinced, he shook his head 'Liar!' Of course her reason was a lie! Her Chocolate Fudge request was only so she could celebrate HIS 'missed' birthday along with her own!

MARCH

AT THE HOSPITAL CANTEEN

'Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday Dear Jodha

Happy Birthday to you'

Having completed yet another loud besura rendition of the jingle, Abdul looked up at Jodha who was seated at an adjacent table 'What a party, Jodha!' cheerfully wishing the birthday girl by holding his fork up, he gobbled the last bite of his SIXTH slice!

'Th... th... thanks' she demurely giggled at his never- ending antics

'Abbe bukkad... cake cutting ho chuki hai...' Maan forcefully directed his friend's face to the now nearly-empty cake tray 'Aur kitni baar are you going to sing this song?'

'I know...' he cackled 'But I am just doing it to irritate the authorities' obviously, the prankster was referring to the hospital authorities - the ones who'd already made their way to the partying tables five times - to remind the raucous college group to vacate the area

'But Abdul' Jalal casually leaned back on his chair 'Maan has a point... I think we should make a move now...' his poor stomach could take the onslaughts no more - that too, combined bouts of onslaughts from too much food and too many laughs!

'TRAITOR!' instantly placing her hand on her heart - like she was suffering from heart break of some sort - Renu dismissed her bestie's all-decent law-abiding avtaar with a spot of unusual melodrama 'Throwing your friends out of your own party? And it's not even midnight yet...'

'Actually Renu' Meera whispered - a whisper loud enough to be heard by everyone around 'It's nearly 7 pm...'

'Janaab gets his daily dose of romance around this time na...'

'Ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo oooh!' the whole gang comically echoed in unison 'No wonder he's crankily throwing us out...'

'Oh no... not again!' kneading his brows to mask his unease, the young man hastily hurled his pals a Better-not-start-with-THOSE-jokes-now stare - indicating towards the Singhs who were sitting literally two tables away 'Her family's just there...'

But, the measures were too little too late. This wasn't going to come in the way of their tease-a-thons! In fact, with THIS lot - nothing would come in the way of their tease-a-thons!

'Shame on you Jalal...' Renu persevered as expected - much to the man's chagrin 'Incapable of being a good host to us for even a few hours! Everyday tho, your romance is on - behind the closed doors of that hospital room... do we ever intrude?'

'Yeah Renu!' Salim high-fived her 'And kyaa intrude? No one intrudes...now tho it's poora-ka-poora legal romance between these two, remember?'

'Exactly!' Abdul folded his palms into a namaste - as though depicting respect 'With aashirwaad of auntyji... and uncleji... and bade bhaiyaa!'

'Nalaayak doston!' Jalal was still unable to decide if he must break out into an angry glare or an amused chuckle. So, his expressions ended up somewhere in between the two! 'Better tone it down!'

'Someone's getting all fidgety!' Payal murmured - adding some more tadka to the masaaledar chats!

'He will get fidgety na...' Maan pointed to the familiar hospital surroundings 'Aakhir, sasural ka sawaal hai!'

Fuelled by the funny comment, the entire group erupted into a round of poorly-repressed snickers and sniggers

'Guysss!' the flustered young man ruffled his hair 'Mujhe marvaaoge! They might overhear...'

Interrupting the sermon midway, Abdul solemnly kept his palm on Jalal's shoulder - putting on a very straight-faced robotic 'star-trek' kinda look as he did so 'My master...' his voice sounded electronic 'Worry not about disappointing them. You have completed Mission Impossible successfully. You have impressed your in-laws 100%. There is absolutely NOTHING more you can do to impress them! Any further!'

'Crazy hell!' Jalal just decided to shut his eyes and glance away. This was embarrassing. Royally embarrassing!

'Well said Abdul!'

'For example, today is Jodha's birthday... HER party... WE are the guests... but who gets offered the most cake?'

'And who gets coddled and spoilt the most?'

Everyone present at that table answered - in perfect harmony! 'Janaab Jalal Muhammed, of course!'

'I can so imagine a typical Bollywood scene in future...' Meera resumed 'Our typical jamai raja Jalal sitting at the Singhs' dining table... being offered food more than he can ever eat!'

'Makkai ki ghat se leke Malpua tak!'

'God!' with his ruses to end their silly jokes not working, Jalal darted his silent girlfriend a sheepish grin 'Sorry about this crazy lot!'

'Arre it's ok' Jodha blinked sportively - if anything, she was having just as much fun!

Soon after, he reverted his attention to his pals 'Arre enough yaar... you guys going to use up ALL your jokes now? Why not stock some for later?' that was the final ditch attempt to get them to stop. If not, he'd have to physically begin nudging them out

'Abdul...' Salim suddenly acted all-horrified 'Janaab is worried we're using up all our jokes now! That we'll have nothing to tease him shaadi ke baad!'

'Dath!' Abdul flicked his palm dismissively 'These are all decent sasur-jamai jokes...' he rubbed his hands in glee 'For shaadi ke baad, I have a totally separate ISPECHIAL stock...'

That's it! He better put a stop to this enjoyable nonsense before her family overheard the HOT topic on discussion. Clicking his fingers repeatedly, he stood up from his chair - threatening his pal with a phony display of anger 'Abdul you're dead... nikal.. get up.. nikal...'

'But...'

'Sir...'

An irate voice brought the ongoing humour to a temporary halt. A few staff from 'administration' seemed to have made their way to the canteen - obviously, to put a stop to the prolonged celebrations

'We'd request you all to please vacate the canteen now...'

'Please bear in mind that this is a hospital'

'Others have started complaining...'

'Sure sure...' still recovering from the merry-riot, the young man turned to address his lively crowd 'Things are getting serious... dekh, I warned you all!'

'Arre ok ok baba... we'll make a move...'

'Us unfortunate people understand all you problems and reservations ji...'

'Anyway... Happy Birthday Jodha!'

'Th... thanks evry... evryone' she beamed back

'Waise Jalal, mazaa aa gayaa yaar! Three cheers to this canteen party!'

'Sach mein... kitne dinon baad...'

'And who would have thought we all would have such fun at a hospital canteen?'

Well, their awe-struck adulation was in no means an exaggeration.

While this was no 5 star music dance & glitz event; the boyfriend had pulled out all the stops to make this evening as memorable for Jodha Singh as possible.

Be it emotionally bribing the canteen-staff into cordoning-off a quarter of the hall for this party. Be it getting their friends and her family around. Be it organizing a mini Tambola to keep everyone entertained. Be it ordering a special two-in-one mega Blackforest & Chocolate Fudge cake. Be it arranging for everyone's favourite starters and snacks. Jokes. Laughter. Masti. Mazaak. The party had it all. Basically, the past two hours had been nothing short of a blast. No surprise then that the group were in no mood to leave - at least not till the authorities literally stepped-in to drive them away from the premises.

'Thanks guys for coming around' he acknowledged their compliments - with the broadest of smiles - as they made their slow and eventual exit from the place 'Thanks for making it happen... Meera, Payal, Abdul, Renu, Sana, Salim, Maan... see you all soon...'

'Bye Jalal... bye Jodha...'

'Bye guys...'

'B...bye...'

*************************

'Baap re...' mamma gasped under her breath, once she'd seen the last of that boisterous college group 'Ye Jodha and Jalal's friends are such a noisy bunch! And what a mess they make...' surveying the vicinity, she turned to her sons 'Bhagwant... Kranthi... Vishal... we'll take these gifts to the car na... and take it back home...'

'Jee...'

'Haan...'

As her family gathered the many gifts, presentations and bouquets from the tables to have them placed in their car, Jalal decided to take a breather. He was exhausted. It'd been a long day. And the bustle over the past couple of hours had been relentless. Walking up to his girl's table, he took a seat on a chair. Right opposite hers. Watching her preoccupied form in silence for a few seconds.

Like a child engrossed with its new toy, she was busy fiddling with her brand new mobile phone - the precious gift he'd gotten her for her birthday

'What are you doing, Jo?' he murmured softly 'All by yourself?'

'Shhh!' she whispered - her gazes still fixated upon the Iphone's screen 'H... hav beeen tr...trying to sssend you a sssecret text b...but my f...fingers...r... shaky'

'Wow!' his eyes lit up - in anticipation of some mischief. A secret text? That was definitely a first - the first time she'd made any such flirty insinuation in the past two months 'And you want to tell me what it's about?' he enquired with a crafty smirk

'Ufff eyes... hur... hurt...' finally conceding defeat, she placed the instrument down - before peeping up at him with a sad pout 'Was j...just asking you ab...about your physssio ap...appointment...'

'Oh!' he slowly nodded, trying not to let his bewilderment be shown. Physio appointment? And here he was - anticipating a 'naughty' moment of some sort!

'Wh...why... whattt happened?' she innocently asked, wondering what had brought about that 'confused' frown on his face

'No... nothing...' he brushed off the 'errr' instants with a swift smile 'Waise... hope your headache is not too bad...'

'It's b...bearable...' she darted him a reassuring look 'Sssat up for l...longer than usual today na...'

'So, you DID enjoy the party?'

'YES Jalal!' the birthday-girl put out her twitchy-fingers and took his hand in hers, displaying her heartfelt gratitude once more 'It was s...superb. Th... this fo...fone's the b...best! I am ssso l...lucky...'

'Then why did you hardly interact with our friends? Why have you been so silent?'

Jodha's gazes drifted-off - into oblivion for a moment. Like she was reflecting upon something 'I... I.. tr... tried...' her voice had become a tad mellow 'B... but th... they c...can't underssstand m...my wor... words...na...' no, she wasn't being self-sympathetic here. Her reservations were true. She knew that all her loved ones were trying hard to make her feel normal. Yet, having people constantly staring at her facial contortions. At her lips. Constantly asking her to repeat herself was a reality quite dispiriting

'No one c...can underssstand m...me ... clearly yet!' she reminded her boyfriend the pragmatic truth 'None essxcept you... and m... mamma! Not even p... papa and b...bhaiyya!'

*****************

'No can understand me...'

She hadn't realized it when she'd made that comment. For that matter, neither had Jalal - but bade bhaiyya was literally three tables away - walking up to them as he'd overheard his little sister make that confession.

'No can understand me yet. None but you. Not even bhaiyya!'

Yes, she was referring to her language here - yet the significant statement also held many underlying tones. Was it HIS 'Choti' passing such a remark about him - the sibling whom he always assumed he understood best? Maybe that time had passed and things had changed. Maybe she was more of Jalal's 'Jo' than she was his 'Choti' now. After all, isn't this what transpired in every family when little sisters grew up?

So, was it time for him to step back henceforth? To confidently allow this prospective young man to care for his sister as he deemed best? To give her hand - the tiny hands he'd been wary of letting go for so long - into the palms of a man she'd chosen for herself. After all, this was one person she appeared to be able to relate to more than anyone else.

That could just turn out to be the fastest road to recovery for his Choti. Or rather; that might be the only road to recovery for his Choti!

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If this made it a worthwhile read, please leave me a comment/like if time permits, as it helps the writer in me to keep going 😳

Omg Kalgi... you're first.. don't you wanna put up that Banjaara post... 😃

Originally posted by: lashy

Omg Kalgi... you're first.. don't you wanna put up that Banjaara post... 😃

Done😃

Congo lashy🥳

Congrats Lashy for new thread.