"What changed between us?" his question repeated itself for the umpteenth time in her head and she covered her ears with her pillow. That question. She didn't like it. She didn't have the answer and it felt too confusing when she attempted to find it.
Nikki heaved a sigh and tiredly closed her eyes, surrendering herself to sleep.
Abhimanyu lay on his back, staring up at the dark ceiling from his bed. It was the middle of the night, but his mind was restless. He needed sleep, he knew that, but his mind wouldn't oblige. That question he had asked Nikki today afternoon…it had come out of the blue. He had had no intention of asking something like that. In fact, he didn't have the slightest idea he was going to ask that. The question led him to a maze…he didn't know the way out.
Her insecurity, her need…he had felt it. He had known she needed his support and he hadn't thought once before providing it. But why did he have to ask that? He himself had no answer to the question. Actually, it seemed more of a fact than a question…
He rubbed his eyes and sighed. This is so confusing. Nikita Malhotra was driving him crazy… He turned on his side and slowly fell asleep.
*****
The interns stood at the nurse station, glancing apprehensively at Armaan and Nikita, the two best friends…inseparable, now looking daggers at each other. Armaan gave Nikki cold stares, while she had undisguised hurt in her eyes.
The interns saw Abhimanyu Modi approaching towards them, and exchanged confused glances with each other, wondering why the boss of Sanjeevani was heading their way. Did he know of what they had said about him yesterday at lunch? They shivered at the very thought of his reaction.
"Good morning interns", he addressed them crisply, and all of them except Armaan and Nikita stood in attention pose in front of him. "Dr. Keerti is absent today, so I shall be giving you your duties", he declared, glancing suspiciously at the interns, who, for the first time, where actually paying rapt attention to whatever he was saying…something was definitely wrong.
He gave them their duties, but it never escaped him that Armaan and Nikita had a strange distance between them. He remembered Nikki's words last afternoon, about her fight with Armaan. He could see what she meant. Armaan's eyes were glowing embers, to say the least. And the glares were directed at him. He didn't mind that much, but the fact that Nikki was extremely disturbed with the turn of events bothered him. He noticed the tension between the two friends, and the difference in their attitude. While Armaan seemed angry, Nikki appeared to be quite depressed. Anger, he could handle...but depression...well…he would have to see to that.
"Okay…now that you've all gotten your duties, I've an announcement to make", he stated, and they all looked at him. "We have two new doctors joining Sanjeevani for an exchange programme from the Apollo Hospitals. They shall be here temporarily, and I want you all to welcome them warmly and-" he raised his voice when they started whispering excitedly, "I would prefer it if you kept your crazy antics to yourselves during the time they are here."
As he was saying this, two people came and stood behind him, and the assembled interns gawked at them shamelessly. "Let me introduce to you, Dr. Shehnaz Akhtar and Dr. Akash Mathur…they're not interns, but they're fully qualified doctors, senior to you. So please, treat them with respect", he turned to the two new entries and smiled at them.
Armaan's eyes seemed to have glued themselves to the lady before him…Shehnaz. She was tall, had long dark hair that came down to her waist, big, kohl-lined eyes, and beautiful dusky skin that made her look nothing short of an exotic Goddess. But sadly, she wasn't looking at him…her dazzling smile was directed at…at Abhimanyu Modi. Armaan blinked. Once, twice…no…his vision was okay. This gorgeous beauty was looking fondly at none other than his arrogant boss. He wished he could have died right then and there.
Anjali and Muskaan were carefully checking out the guy standing in front of them…Akash. Tall, muscular, handsome. He appeared intelligent…but cute no doubt. The few undone buttons of his white shirt gave them a generous view of his strong chest. Dark eyes and a boyish smile with dimples…perfect.
"Ahem…doctors", Abhimanyu's pointed cough brought them crashing back to earth. Smiling slightly at their open stares, Abhimanyu introduced Akash and Shehnaz to the gang.
"Dr. Akash, your duty is with Dr. Nikita," he nodded to Akash. "Dr. Shehnaz", he continued, looking at the file in his hand. "You shall help me in the New Sanjeevani Project."
The interns dispersed, chatting excitedly about the new additions to their gang. Anjali couldn't get enough of the handsome Dr. Akash, which left Atul none too pleased as he tried to reason with her. Abhimanyu shook his head at the crazy interns and walked towards his cabin, gesturing towards Shehnaz to follow him. She obliged, somewhat tentatively.
Once in his office, Abhimanyu went directly to his chair and sat himself down, and gathered some files. When it struck him that she wasn't seated yet, he told her nonchalantly, "Take a seat."
After making herself comfortable while he searched around for a few files and arranged them, Shehnaz observed Abhimanyu. The same dark eyes, the angry but confident stance, the broad shoulders, the upturned stubborn chin, the tattoos…the silent demeanour. All that had changed in his appearance was that he seemed to have put on some weight and he looked a bit tired…and older, no doubt…much older than when she last remembered him.
They were on the terrace of their college building, their legs dangling from the cemented water tank on which they sat. He held her hand in his lovingly, fingers intertwined. Her head lay on his shoulder, and she listened to him humming a song softly under his breath.
"Abhi?" she spoke softly.
"Hmm?"
"You know…Riya was talking about how you won the match yesterday…" her voice trailed away slightly and she waited for his response.
"Oh really?" he countered her.
"Yes…she was saying you looked really nice in the new team jersey."
"Aaah…so you're insecure?" his teasing voice questioned her.
"No! I was just telling you."
"Oh…I see", he said, nodding his head and biting back a smile. "You know one thing, Riya is really pretty…she was asking me if I had a date for Prom night yet…" he stated, waiting for her to explode.
"WHAT?" she immediately removed her head from where it had been resting comfortably on his shoulder and looked at him incredulously.
"Yeah", he played on.
"You…you…" she started gathering fuel when she saw the corner of his lips twist slightly into a smile he was obviously trying to hide. "You meanie!" she hit him lightly on his chest, pretending to be angry. "You were joking!"
He openly laughed at her as she tried her best not to melt under his loving gaze.
"I hate you", she pouted.
"But I love you, na! That's the problem," he smiled and kissed her on the tip of her nose.
His probing gaze on her brought her out of her thoughts. A lot had changed since then. That twinkle was missing in his eyes. He still wore glasses, though, she noticed smilingly.
"Shehnaz?" he still said her name in the same way…he made it sound musical. She looked at him, feeling a faint pang in her heart when she found no warmth in his eyes.
"Yes Abhi?" she asked him, and didn't fail to notice the slight irritation he made no secret of at her calling him 'Abhi'. He hasn't changed.
*****
Akash looked at the girl trying to coax a particularly uncooperative patient into taking his medicines. She was…pretty, to say the least. Her raven hair came down to her waist, and her cheeks had a faint pink tinge in them due to the slight anger she was trying to control. He admired her simple beauty, and watched as she finally managed to make the patient take his medicines, a triumphant smile gracing her lips.
Nikki and Akash worked together in the general ward, talking a little and smiling a lot more. He liked that smile on her face…it made her look even more beautiful.
Nikki liked Akash. He seemed decent, and he paid her a lot of attention. He was smart and dashing…and most importantly, calm. He didn't seem the angry-young-man types. That was a nice change.
*****
Nikita walked into the cafeteria for lunch with Akash in tow. The interns were sitting at a table, chatting with each other, and she was pleasantly surprised to see Shehnaz sitting there as well.
They went and joined the table, and Akash and Shehnaz exchanged a hug, which the others watched with interest. Answering their questioning looks, Akash informed them, "We work together in Apollo. We've been friends since we were interns."
They started having lunch, and animated chatter took over the table.
"So, Shehnaz", Armaan drawled sexily and Riddhima looked at him suspiciously. "How was your day?"
"It was fine…I had duty with Abhi-Dr. Modi," she replied, and Armaan's eyes narrowed slightly and he glanced at Nikki through the corner of his eye. Nikki stiffened a bit when she saw Armaan x-raying her with his eyes.
"Dr. Modi, hmmmm…." He seemed a little unsure of what to say. "I hope he didn't scold you, he has a habit of doing that, the sadu!"
"Oh no…he's very nice…" she said fondly, with a distant look in her eyes. "He hasn't changed much really."
"What do you mean?" Armaan questioned her, as all pairs of eyes at the table popped at her last few words.
She suddenly came out of her reverie. "Huh?"
"What do you mean 'he hasn't changed much'? Do you know him?"
"That sadu?" Anjali supplied.
"Nice…and him!" Muskaan scoffed tactlessly.
"Sadu…" Shehnaz smiled slightly. "Well, he can be a bit short-tempered at times…"
"At times?" Atul's jaw dropped open.
"Short-tempered? He's always angry!" Anjali chimed in.
"Shehnaz? You know him?" Akash inquired from her side.
Riddhima and Nikita listened to the conversation quietly, their heads moving from one speaker to the other like those of spectators in a tennis match.
"I…uh…" Shehnaz suddenly appeared uncomfortable. To answer Akash's soft question, she looked at him and replied, "Yes, I know him."
"How?" Seven voices asked her at the same time, Nikita and Riddhima joining in as well, and she was taken aback at the sudden interest.
"I…well…we were in the same year in medical college…he was my-" she stopped, her discomfort obvious.
"Your?" Armaan, Anjali and Muskaan asked in unison.
"My…well…uh…"
"Friend?" Armaan supplied.
"Enemy?" Muskaan offered, and the others rolled their eyes.
She simply looked at them bewildered.
"Boyfriend?" a voice said from her left, and she turned to look at Akash, whose eyes were gleaming mischievously.
She gulped uncomfortably, and nodded slightly, all the while colouring furiously.
"WHAAAAT?" the all asked in unison, and Nikki choked on her glass of water, and Riddhima observed her amusedly. This was going to be fun.
"He was your boyfriend?" Akash was openly laughing at her, highly enjoying her discomfort.
"Him? He can love someone?" Muskaan muttered to herself.
"Wow…" Atul appeared the only one who liked the prospect, and smiled at her, only to receive a swat on the arm by Anjali. He looked at her confused. "What did I say Anjali? Was I wrong?" he inquired in his innocent way, and she rolled her eyes at him.
"You…and Abhimanyu Modi," Armaan placed his head in his hand, massaging his temples. "God…what a revelation! No wonder the git appeared so happy today!"
"You two…you're a couple?" a soft voice asked Shehnaz, and she turned around to find Nikita observing her in a strange way.
Shehnaz faltered for a moment, and then said, "Actually…no. We broke up…" her voice trailed away as she watched Nikita's odd expression change to one of – if she was not mistaken – delight.
"Really?" Akash teased her from her side, and she blushed again. Thankfully she was saved from further teasing by the buzzing of her pager, and she ran off to find Dr. Keerti.
"Well…I thought so!" Armaan continued, with a small smile on his face. "That Modi and Shehnaz!" he chortled, much to the irritation of Nikki, while most of the others joined in.
'Why not? What's so wrong in that?" she asked Armaan coldly.
"Nothing's wrong," Armaan told her, his eyes expressing annoyance. "He can date anyone he likes…I'm just glad the poor girl didn't have to be with him."
Akash's eyes narrowed at the jab, but he observed Nikita as her nostrils flared with anger and her face flushed.
"Exactly, Armaan. He can date anyone he likes, and that's none of our business," she said bitterly. "You don't have to comment on everything."
"You know something, Nikki? I think that Modi has influenced you too much", Armaan spat angrily. "That's why you're defending him and arguing with your friends…you have no idea what's good for you and-"
"Armaan don't start again!" she warned him.
"See! You're fighting with me for that arrogant boss of yours! And let me tell you-"
"Okay guys stop it now!" Anjali and Riddhima said together in a bid to stop the two best friends from fighting.
"He started it!" Nikki complained hotly.
"Arrey guys come on, na…don't fight over that machchhar", Muskaan too tried to stop them.
Nikki's pager buzzed, and she started gathering her things.
"Now where are you going yaar? Don't be angry…" Anjali requested her softly, fearing she had gotten offended again.
"I'm going to help the 'machchhar'…" she glanced pointedly at Muskaan, "…with work. I have duty," she replied, and not waiting for an answer, stormed away.
*****
He watched her fume silently in her chair, and wondered what was wrong now. She was angrily playing with the end of her dupatta, and glaring at the table like it had dared to bite her.
He let her stew for some time, then asked her, "Dr. Nikita…you want to work or not?"
She looked up at him, anger and hurt clouding her eyes. He softened his tone a bit, and asked her again, "Nikki…we should get to work now."
She nodded in reply, and they started discussing the Project. All the while, he couldn't help but notice that she was very absent-minded. Most of the time she was staring blankly at a file or not listening to him, a distant look on her face. This irked him to a point when he just couldn't stand it anymore, and decided to confront her.
"What is it with you Nikita? You're not listening to me, you're not paying attention to work…what's wrong with you?" he burst out.
"Nothing," she replied shortly, bitterness lacing her tone.
"Nothing!" he scoffed.
She was looking down at the floor, avoiding his eyes. He noticed her stiffness, and understood that something was definitely wrong. He sighed at his tactlessness and mentally reprimanded himself for being so harsh.
"Nikki…what happened?" he asked her, his tone much softer. When she didn't reply, he again coaxed, "Did Armaan do something?"
She looked at him, her eyes filled with hurt, and he came around the desk and took her hands in his.
Writers Corner: Books, Stories & Poems
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