FF:NO GREATER LOVE(MP):Updt pt31B 11/02 pg121 - Page 90

Milind looked at Prachi's huddled form on the floor; fear in his eyes; then dropping the phone ran to her, "Prachi," he called. 'PRACHI!!" and as he took her head in his lap, he noticed how pale she had become. "Prachi, please wake up, Prachi don't do this to me; Prachi" Milind said the panic and fear clear in his voice. What if she was really ill? What if something happened to her? What if his nightmares did come true like Sukriti had said? He would be left all alone; she was all he had."Prachi", he called shaking her one more time, and then wanting to waste no more time, he picked her up, picked up his cell phone and ran down the stairs to his car. He put her in the back seat and then in a hurry got into the driver's seat and made a call to the doctor, "Dr. Suri, are you at the hospital, I'm bringing Prachi to see you, she isn't well...she fainted...one second she was fine and the next...she hasn't been well...but she'd never have told me...she..."

"Calm down Milind, I am not at the hospital but Dr. Jhanvi is there. She will take care of Prachi. Don't worry Milind, it will be okay"

Milind hung up in fury, and threw his phone on the seat next to him; Dr. Suri was so patronizing; he thought he knew the answer to everything, it was so easy for him to talk about being calm. Milind knew he was dying every moment he saw Prachi unconscious.

Once at the hospital, it seemed Prachi had started to gain consciousness; and when Milind picked her up, she slowly muttered "Milind..." and he looked at her with a blank expression not knowing what to do. Rushing inside the ER, still carrying her in his arms, he put her down on one of the chairs, "Prachi, can you sit? Should I call for a stretcher? I am going to talk to the nurse, I'll be back, If you need me just call...okay" and saying that he ran a hand over her head and carressed her cheek with the other hand. "My wife, she fainted..."he told the nurse at the desk, "Dr. Suri said I could see Dr. Jhanvi" he told her, the nurse nodded and said "I'll page Dr. Jhanvi, and meanwhile, could you please fill out a few forms? Has your wife been a patient here before?" the nurse asked gently. 'Yes...Yes" Milind states, "she was in an accident, a few months ago" he took the clipboard the nurse was handing him and went to sit by Prachi who seemed fully alert, "Milind,.." she said "Why are we here, i just got a bit dizzy, look I am totally fine now...stop wasting time, you have the dinner with Preet to go to, Let's go" and saying that she tried to stand up but then feeling dizzy again, sat back down holding onto Milind's arm, "Prachi...why are you doing this? Don't mess around with your health" Milind whispered in fury and then turning towards her and whispering in her ear in a voice with emotion "You are so important to me, I can't let anything happen to you...if I had looked after baba; then maybe...maybe..." and Prachi realized then how frightened he was as she put an arm around him. "Mrs. Mishra..." a voice called and Milind turned to see a very pretty lady, 30 yrs old at most looking at them with a smile through her glasses.

"Hi, I am Dr. Jhanvi; Dr. Suri called to ask me to see you; he says you are the daughter-in-law of an old friend of his" and when she said this Milind immediately felt bad for being angry with Dr. Suri. "Can you walk or would you rather a wheelchair?" Dr. Jhanvi asked; "I can walk" Prachi managed, not looking at Milind knowing fully well he'd be giving her a disgruntled look out of the corner of his eye, a look urging her to take the wheelchair the doctor was offering. Prachi followed Dr. Jhanvi and Milind finished filling out the forms, wanting terribly to go behind them, and as he finished signing it he ran to where he had seen Prachi and the doctor disappearing, "Dr. Jhanvi" he asked a nurse walking by, "my wife is with her..." "straight down, last room on your right" and Milind walked towards it, scared of what he would hear from the doctor hoping his Prachi was fine and nothing was going to go wrong, trying not to think about all the scary scenarios running through his head.

*

Dr. Jhanvi did an exam on Prachi, checked her BP, temperature and weight; asked her questions about her LMP, whether she smoked or not, the units of alcohol she drank a week, if she was on any medication. Prachi seemed pale, and she had been dizzy and so she called for nurse to draw some blood so that she could run some tests. She suspected Prachi was anemic, however that wasn't why she had been pale, tired, dizzy; she had a feeling Prachi was pregnant. She asked Prachi if she was on the pill and if Prachi and her husband had been trying for a baby; and when Prachi told her that she hadn't been on the pill since her husband had wanted a baby soon; Dr Jhanvi had smiled and asked Prachi to come with her. Milind was standing at the door, looking impatient, when Dr. Jhanvi and Prachi appeared in from the exam room. Dr. Jhanvi smiled at Milind and asked him to sit, "Dr. my wife; is everything okay?" he asked in panic. "Well she does look pale to me, and we are going to check her blood for anemia but I think there's another reason for her being tired, dizzy; she missed her LMP but she tells me she thought it was because you've both been under a lot of stress...however I don't think so, I think your wife is pregnant; I can check and make sure if you wish; but its just as easy to get the home pregnancy test kit, check it for yourself and then call to schedule your first neo-natal appointment." Milind looked at the doctor in a daze as she said all this, pregnant...his Prachi was pregnant; they were going to have a baby. He didn't want to look at Prachi, afraid that his emotions would flow out from his eyes in front of the doctor; but he clutched her hand tightly in his, hoping she could tell how happy he was, the one dream he had always dreamed was coming true. Dr. Jhanvi gave Prachi a pack with the home pregnancy test kit as well as some vitamins and some more information on a first baby. Milind and Prachi walked out together, looking at each other with eyes full of love, as if they would brim with tears of happiness any second. Milind wanted to hug prachi, kiss her, thank her in every way for the happiness she was going to give him. They walked to the car, his arm wrapped around her, he opened the door for her before he got in and then when he got in he looked at her, as Prachi asked "Milind, you are happy aren't you? I know how badly you want a child, but Milind you haven't said anything...I can see the happiness in your eyes, I can feel it in your touch , but please Milind say something...you are happy, right?.

'Milind looked at her and when he saw that a tear had fallen down her eyes, when she had asked if he was happy; he kissed off the tear, kissed her eyes, then kissed her forehead and then holding her face in his hands, put his forehead on hers, "Prachi, I've wanted a family with you ever since I started to fall in love with you. This is my dream, Prachi; you, me and our baby. How can I be anything but happy;" he whispered, and finally the tears of happiness he had held back had fallen down his eyes in two clear streams. Prachi wiped them and kissed him holding his face, he smiled at her and then he hugged her tightly whispering, 'Prachi...thank you" in her ears as she felt another tear fall down his face onto her shoulder. Milind didn't even know what more to say to her, he was so overwhelmed. She was going to give him a family; his baba had been taken away from him, and Sukriti had said she hated him and he was no longer her family; but then this baby was going to come into his life. This small creature that was a part of him and his Prachi; his wish was going to take form. He kissed Prachi's cheek then promising himself to take as much care of her as he could, to stay with her, spend time with her and his unborn baby, and finally he pulled apart and they drove back home, the dinner with Preet forgotten.

*

"Milind look, the doctor was right; the strip...its blue...we're having a baby Milind" Prachi said to him showing him the stick. Prachi had rushed to make sure, and indeed Dr. Jhanvi had been right. " Milind we're having a baby" she said to him and Milind smiled at her and picked her up and swung her around as they both laughed, "Yes Prachi, we are; we're having a baby, our baby" and as he put her down, he kissed her with love, "Have I said thank you?" he whispered to her. "Yes Milind, yes you have" and saying that she had stood on her toes and reached upto him to give him a kiss; and Milind had again been overwhelmed by how amazing everything in his life had become. He kissed her back and then when they pulled apart; he walked her to the bed and sat her down and kissed her forehead.."Prachi, I can't tell you how happy I am, I can't tell you how badly I've waited for this moment and how eager I am to see our baby...all I can tell you is that you have given me one more reason to live life, your love was the first and now this baby. I can't thank you enough," saying this he put his forehead against his and they both stayed like that for a while as Prachi put her hand on his cheek. Milind's hand travelled to her belly and he smiled at her first and then pulled apart and put his head near her stomach, "Hello baby, he whispered as Prachi looked on; "come quickly, your papa can't wait to see you" and then planting a kiss on her stomach he rested his head there as a tear fell down Prachi's face. Milind was acting so child-like; he was expressing his happiness in ways that she would cherish forever, acting as if he was getting a gift no one else had, something that was just going to be his. Milind got up to see her tears and shaking his head, he kissed them off and then smiled at her, "Prachi...our baby..." he whispered again and then he hugged her.

Suddenly there was thunder, and from the balcony in their room Milind could see the rain falling; he wanted to run into the rain, play, scream, shout to the world about how happy he was but suddenly a fear griped him, a fear that something bad may happen, that something may jinx it and so he restrained himself. After everything that had gone wrong, he couldn't risk jinxing this happiness that he and Prachi deserved. Prachi felt him tense up and pulled apart, "Milind...nothing will happen, I promise, we will get this happiness...don't worry; everything will be fine" she said to him. He nodded then and Prachi smiled at him, waking up to change and when she returned Milind was standing in the balcony, feeling the raindrops fall on him, his white shirt drenched to the core and showing off his biceps and the white undershirt her wore, his hair stuck to his head, droplets falling down his face. "Milind...what are you doing, come back in" Prachi said but he wouldn't move; he smiled at her, "Prachiiii.. MY DREAM...ITS COMING TRUE...we are going to have a baby" and he threw his head back and laughed and as Prachi watched him she realised that for the first time since she had married him, she had seen him laugh so freely, seen him this happy. She watched him with a smile and then realized he would catch a cold, "Milind please, come in...you'll catch a cold" and she started to go towards him, 'No Prachi, don't come out; you'll fall ill, I don't want you to fall ill..I'm coming" and he ran back in and shook his head splashing raindrops on her, and laughed as he held her, "You know, I'm going to turn one of the rooms next door, into a nursery for the baby, and we'll go to NYC and shop for the baby; get toys from F.A.O Schwarz, we'll get our baby what I never had, we'll give him or her the life I never had...I can't begin to express my happiness; I don't know what to say that will show you how happy I am...thank you Prachi, for coming into my life, for taking away my loneliness; for giving me your love; for giving me a baby..." and then he held her face in his hand and planted kisses, as Prachi's eyes shed tears of joy.

*

Prachi slept in Milind's arms, as he carressed her cheek, put back her hair and at times put his forehead on his, he feared falling asleep scared that he would see another nightmare where his baby and his Prachi were being taken away; he wanted to cherish this moment, and as he remembered his nightmare about Prachi having complications due to the pregnancy and leaving him all alone witht he baby, he promised himself that he wouldn't let her exert herself. He would make sure she rested, not let her do as much housework or office work as she liked to do; in fact he too would cut back on his hours and work from home, stay around her. Thinking this, Milind went to sleep, one arm around Prachi and the other on her stomach.

*

Neev was pacing back and forth in his office. He had to find a way to destroy Milind. Nothing was working according to plan, Milind was almost cleared of all charges on the drug scandal. He had to do something about the drug lord he had paid off to plant the drugs before he gave him away. And he had to destroy Milind Mishra; it seemed taking the land deal away from him, and the Goa hotels hadn't done much, he had to do something bigger, perhaps blackmail Preet, or worse yet, ruin the restaurant before it even opened to show Milind Mishra that messing with Neev Shergill meant nothing but total catastrophe for him. Prachi had rejected his love and riches; hadn't she? He would make Milind so frustrated that he would leave her, and destroy all that Milind had. That would show her, because as much as she had fought all this wile, Prachi would have nowhere to go but come to him. Smirking about his new plan, he called his men to get all the dirt they could on Preet Juneja. This game wasn't over, not by a long shot. He sent an SMS to Preet, "Still time PJ, accept my deal; I'll give you twice the amount MM did; wouldn't want you to regret later" Neev.