FF Recompleted: 'Discovering Love' (Index Pg 1) - Page 7

"Mujhe nahin pata hai ki ye kaun hai? Lekin ye bachcha behosh pada hua tha sadak par," Nidhi was explaining the staff of Jeevan Prabha, "Shayad kamzori ki wajah se..."

"Ji doctor bas abhi pahunch hi rahe hain..."

"Der karna sahi nahin hoga. Main khud bhi doctor hoon. Aap please mujhe stethoscope aur doosre instruments dijiye. Main check karti hoon."

"Lekin..."

"Please..."

"Ji theek hai. Aaiye."

Nidhi was examining the patient and asked the nurse to prepare saline water to be given to him, when Ashutosh entered the room.

"I am so sorry sister," he addressed the nurse, "Main traffic jam mein phans gaya tha. Kahan hai bachcha?"

"Ji wahan. Jo madam use le kar aayi thi, unhone kaha ki woh bhi doctor hain to woh use treat kar rahi hain."

Ashutosh ran towards the bed. Nidhi had already noticed him and had stood up when he reached there.

"Dr. Nidhi?"

"Y... Yes Sir," she stuttered again, but Ashutosh ignored it and asked her about the patient. He was satisfied with the treatment she had given to him.

"Sir. Aap yahan bhi kaam karte hain?" she asked after the patient had been settled down. She wasn't feeling nervous after getting a confirmation from him that she had treated the boy right.

"Ye mera hi hospital hai. I mean, mere Baba ne banwaya tha. Jeevan Prabha hospital and orphanage."

"Oh!" Nidhi was surprised and that afternoon from five years back came back to her mind. "Aapke Baba kaise hain?" she asked.

"Aap mere Baba ke baare mein kyon poochh rahi hain?" Ashutosh was confused.

"Actually ek baar, kareeb paanch saal pahle, main aur mere Baba unhein yahan laaye the. Unhein heart attack aaya tha aur woh hamare ghar ke paas the us waqt."

Ashutosh looked at her surprised, "Unhein aap yahan laayi thi?"

"Ji. Main agle din aayi thi unhein dekhne. Lekin in logon ne bataya ki unke bete ne, I guess they meant you, unhein shift karwa diya hai. Woh theek to ho gaye the na?"

Ashutosh nodded in negative and said sadly, "Nahin Dr. Nidhi. Woh theek nahin ho paaye. He didn't survive the cardiac arrest and passed away."

"Oh!" Nidhi felt extreme sadness envelop her, "I am sorry."

"But thanks a lot Dr. Nidhi," for the first time since she had met him Nidhi noticed a hint of emotion in his voice as he talked, "Unki madad karne ke liye. At least unhein saari care to mili. Otherwise..."

"Thanks ki koi zaroorat nahin hai Dr. Ashutosh. Woh to mera farz tha. Meri jagah koi bhi hota to yahi karta. Lekin obviously aapke Baba bahut achchhe insaan the. Bahut logon ka bhala hua hai unki charity se. Unhein bahut logon ki duaen mili hongi. Unki aatma ko zaroor shanti milegi."

Ashutosh smiled sadly.

"Main chalti hoon, Sir. Baba ghar aa gaye honge aur akele bore ho rahe honge."

"Baba?"

"Mere father."

"Aap bhi apne father ko Baba kahti hain."

"Ji. Ajeeb coincidence hai na?"

"Yeah. Aap kaise aayi hain?"

"Maine ambulance bulwaya tha."

"Phir main aapko drop karwa deta hoon."

"Nahin Sir. Main bus le kar chali jaungi."

"Takalluf ki zaroorat nahin hai Dr. Nidhi. Mera driver aapko drop kar dega."

"Lekin Sir..."

"Come with me."

Nidhi had no option but to take his offer.

--

"Sir. Indian Academy of Pediatrics ke annual convention ke passes aa gaye hain. Hum typically inmein se ek kissi intern ko dete hain. Who should we select this time?" Rangnath asked Ashutosh during the departmental administrative meeting.

"Dr. Nidhi Verma," Ashutosh replied without even thinking over it once.

"Dr. Nidhi?" Mallika interrupted, "Don't you think hamein kissi KMC ke student ko bhejna chahiye Ashutosh?"

"Mallika. Ye selection KMC ke liye nahin hospital ke liye ho raha hai. When we have taken her as an intern, she is an equal and she is the best intern we have here this year. So, she will get the pass." Ashutosh said in a final tone leaving no room for any further discussion.

"Theek hai, Sir," Rangnath noted it down as a to-do for himself and moved on to other matters.

--

"Sir," Rangnath came to Ashutosh' cabin.

"Yes Dr. Rangnath."

"Dr. Nidhi Verma convention ke liye Mumbai nahin jaana chahti. To who is the next choice?"

"Nahin jaana chahti? Kyon?"

"Maine poochha nahin, Sir."

"Woh abhi duty par hain?"

"Yes Sir."

"Unhein yahan bhejiye."

"Sure Sir."

--

"You do know that this convention is a great opportunity. Aap kyon nahin jaana chahti Dr. Nidhi?"

"Woh... Sir... Baba nahin chahte," Nidhi tried to cook up an excuse.

"Kyon?"

"I mean, unhein akela chhod kar jaana theek nahin hoga, Sir."

"Kya unki tabiyat kharaab hai?"

"Nahin to."

"Phir?"

"Bas Sir. Aise hi."

"Koi aur baat hai. What is it?"

"Ku... kuchh bhi nahin, Sir."

"Dr. Nidhi! Tell me the truth."

Nidhi looked exasperated.

"I am waiting," he spoke again.

"Sir. Mumbai jaana, aur wahan chaar din rahna mere liye affordable nahin hai... Gaon mein meri Dadi beemaar hain. Baba ki salary unke ilaaj mein chali jaati hai. Aur mere stipend se ghar chalta hai."

"To kya hua? Convention mein jaane ka expense to hospital bear karega," Ashutosh himself did not know that he was such a quick and smooth liar.

"Letter mein to likha tha ki sirf convention ke pass ka expense hospital dega..."

"Woh letter purana daal diya hoga Dr. Rangnath ne," Ashutosh lied again, "Policies update hui hain. Aap chinta mat kijiye. Aapke travel aur stay ka arrangement ho jayega. I will let you know."

"That's... that's great, Sir. Thank you very much," Nidhi was excited and decided to brush aside her skepticism.

--

"Flight tickets?" Nidhi was surprised,when Ashutosh handed her the ticket.

"Kya hua?"

"Main kabhi flight par gayi nahin hoon," she said sheepishly.

Ashutosh smiled looking amused, "Koi baat nahin. Main bhi isi flight se ja raha hoon. Main aapko pick kar loonga jaate hue aapke ghar se. Driver ko pata hai na aapka ghar?"

"Ji Sir."

"Aur haan. Packing karte waqt dhyaan rakhiyega. Cabin luggage mein koi liquid na ho, na hi koi nukili cheez."

"Cabin luggage?"

"Jo samaan aapke haath mein rahega flight par chahdte hue. Baaki ka samaan check-in ho jaata hai. Aapko use carry karne ki zaroorat nahin hoti."

"Okay Sir."

--

Nidhi followed Ashutosh nervously as they entered the airport, checked in their luggage and got their boarding passes. Since the security queue for men and women were separate, he explained to her the security process.

"Aapke bag mein laptop to nahin hai?"

"No Sir."

"Theek hai. Phir queue mein aapka number aane ke baad apa pahle apna saamaan us x-ray machine ki belt par daalengi. Phir doosri queue mein apna security check up karwayengi. Just like they do in the malls. Phir doosri taraf ja kar apna saamaan le lengi. Okay?"

"Okay Sir."

"This is just routine stuff Dr. Nidhi. Aapko itna hairaan-pareshaan hone ki zaroorat nahin hai."

Nidhi grinned foolishly.

After they were seated Ashutosh was surprised to see Nidhi taking out the latest copy of a pediatrics journal to read.

"Ye aapne issue karwaya hua tha hospital library se?" he asked.

"Yes Sir. Kyon?"

"Pahli baar aisa hua ki main issue karwane gaya to ye already circulated tha. So, I wondered..."

"Umm... Sir aap padhna chahte hain to le lijiye... Main baad mein padh loongi..."

"No. No. Its okay. I was just surprised. Aap padhiye. Kuchh interesting ho to mujhe bhi bataiye."

"Ji Sir."

A little while after take-off, the pilot announced bad weather requesting the passengers to wear the seat belts.

"Ye... kya ho raha hai, Sir?" Nidhi was terrified as the turbulence started.

"Turbulence."

And as if that was not enough to terrify her, they also passed through a mild air pocket. Nidhi gulped hard and on an impulse clutched Ashutosh' arm. He was startled. He sighed as he looked at her pale face.

"Nidhi," he addressed her by her first name and said softly, "Calm down. Sab theek hai. Air pocket tha. Ye sab usual baatein hain flight travel mein. Kuchh nahin hoga."

The turbulence went down and Nidhi relaxed a bit.

"Sorry," she was embarrassed, "Woh main pahli baar..."

"It's okay," he smiled again, "Unfortunately aapki pahli hi flight mein kuchh zyada adventure ho gaya."

"Ye meri aakhiri flight hai. Ab main phir nahin chadhungi," she said.

He laughed slightly, "Wapas to aana hai Mumbai se? Ya flight mein na chadhne ke liye wahin bas jaana hai."

She smiled back at him, "Yeah. Unfortunately aana to hai."

"Waise aap bata rahi thi Dr. Nidhi ki aapki Dadi gaon mein hain aur beemaar hain?" Ashutosh asked after a while.

"Ji."

"To aapko nahin lagta ki aapko unhein yahan le aana chahiye. Behtar ilaaj hoga."

"Sir. Ye baat mujhe aur aapko samajh mein aati hai. Meri Dadi ko samjhane ki koshish kar ke dekhiye."

"Kya matlab?"

"Unse gaon chhudwaana namumkin hai. Maine aur Baba ne itni koshish ki hai, itni baar unse kaha hai, lekin unka to bas ek hi raag hai - ki meri arthi gaon ki mitti se hi uthegi."

"Kaafi ziddi hain."

"Ziddi chhota shabd hai unke liye. Basically bahut khuddar hain. Mere Dadaji ki death bahut pahle ho gayi thi. Baba tab chhote hi the. Unhone akele unhein bada kiya hai. Kissi ki madad nahin li. Bas gaon mein ek chhoti se dukaan chalati rahi."

"Aapke Baba kya karte hain?"

"Cashier hain ek private company mein."

"Achchha. To aap apni Dadi ko dekhne jaati hain?"

"Haan. Jab bhi off hota hai hospital mein, chali jaati hoon. Gaon Lucknow se bahut door nahin hai. Lekin bahut backward hai. Kahne ko to bijli hai, lekin din mein ghante bhar bhi nahin rahti."

"To aapki Dadi akeli rahti hain."

"Akeli? Poore gaon ki auraton aur ladkiyon ki leader hain. Hamesha chaar log rahte hain. Jab se tabiyat giri hai, koi na koi unke ghar par hi sota hai. Pata hai ek baar maine unhein emotionally blackmail kar ke Lucknow laane ki sochi. To maine kaha ki main apni MBBS ki padhai chhod doongi aur gaon aa jaungi. Kyonki aapko dekh bhaal ke zaroorat padegi. Aur aap Lucknow nahin aayengi to mere paas koi chaara nahin hai. Padhai chhodni hi padegi. To pata hai unhone mujhe kya kaha? Kahti hain ki ye sapne mat dekhna ki teri Dadi ko besahara ho kar tujhse seva karane ki zaroorat padegi. Tu sahar ki chhui-mui ladki hai. Apni doctori kar le wahi bahut hai. Meri sewa karne ke liye mujhe betiyon aur bahuon ki kami nahin hai."

Ashutosh laughed at that, "To unke hisaab se doctori chhui mui ladkiyon ka kaam hai?"

"Mere saamne to hamesha yahi jatati hain. Kabhi taareef nahin karti hain. Lekin peechhe poore gaon mein apni doctorni poti ke naam ka danka peetti rahti hain. Gaon jaati hoon to log hamesha batate hain."

"Bahut kamaal ki hain aapki Dadi."

"Aur bahut zyada khuddar. Tabiyat kharaab hai. Lekin abhi bhi ghante-do ghante ke liye hi, dukaan zaroor kholengi. Log to unke liye respect ki wajah se hi kuchh na kuchh khareed le jaate hain. Lekin mostly wahan unse gappein maarne ke liye aate hain. Aur woh har mahine mujhe apni dawaiyon ke liye sau rupaye deti hain. Hamara bhi so called ehsaan nahin le sakti hain woh."

"Sau rupye mein kitni dawai aayegi?"

"Haan to hamein badi mehnat karni padti hain unse dawaiyon ka bill chhupane ke liye. Phir bhi dar lagta hai ki kahin kabhi gaon ke chemist ke paas na chali jayen prescription le kar. Kayamat aa jayegi us din. Woh to humne unse kaha hai ki mere medical college mein ya hospital mein discount pa dawaiyan mil jaati hain, tabhi is baat ke liye bhi maani ki woh hamein dawaiyan laane dengi. Khud nahin khareedengi."

"Wow!"

"Waise gaon mein kissi aur ki tabiyat kharaab hoti hai, to fauran mujhe phone karwati hain. Hospital door hai na wahan se."

"Phone par ilaaj karti hain aap?"

"Jitna ho paata hai batati hoon. Jab nahin samajh mein aata to hospital jaane ke liye kahti hoon. Hardly do ghanton ka raasta hai Lucknow se - capital city se, Sir. Lekin facilities ki halat bahut kharaab hai. Doctors nahin, dawaiyan nahin, ho bhi to log afford nahin kar paate. Main kabhi-kabhi apne saath dawaiyan le jaati hoon. Lekin poore gaon ka usse kya hoga."

"Right. Ye to well known hai ki health facilities ki halat hamare desh mein bahut kharaab hai."

"Ab saare doctors ko to gaon mein immediately bheja nahin ja sakta. Lekin main soch rahi thi ki aaj kal to video chats itne aasaan ho gaye hain. Agar gaon mein ek common computer lagwa doon to uske through common beemariyon ke ilaaj to ho hi sakta hai. Telemedicine ke baare mein log itni baatein kar rahe hain."

"Lekin Dr. Nidhi, jab tak patient saamne na ho, karte banta nahin hai diagnosis. Aapko aisa nahin lagta?"

"Sir. Yahan sawaal chhoti-chhoti beemariyon se logon ki jaan chale jaane ka hai. Obviously video chat ke oopar observation utni accurate aur comfortable nahin rahegi. Lekin un logon ke paas aur kuchh bhi available nahin hai."

"Interesting," Ashutosh seemed to mull over it and Nidhi returned to her journal.

"Sir. Do aur log aane waale the na department se is convention ke liye? Woh log kahan hain?"

Ashutosh was startled, but he managed to lie once again, "Haan. Un logon ne alag se booking karwai hai.I think unka schedule different tha. I am sorry, maine aapse confirm kiye bina aapki booking is flight mein karwa di. Koi problem to nahin thi na?"

"No Sir. Not at all."

Ashutosh sighed, reclined his chair and closed his eyes hoping that he did not have to lie more. He couldn't have told her that others were not traveling in business class like him... and her. They had booked on a low-cost airline. Everyone had to pay for their travel and stay from their own pockets.

--