Chapter 6
The Sorry, The Thank You
Parth was eating the dinner brought to him by the sports teacher. How he wished someone else had bright it asking for him. He would have gotten the perfect opportunity to apologise, and to also thank her. But she never came back that night. And as the doors opened for one last time that night, he looked up anxiously, his eyes longing to see Vibha, his mind ridden with guilt for but appreciating her concern, her efforts. With a deep sigh, he looked back down at his bed as it was Samir.
Samir: Parth bro, ab kaisa hai tu?
Parth: Main theek hu.
Samir: Chal achcha hai, Sir ne kaha hai aaj raat tujhe yahi some ke liye. Tujhe kuch bhi chahiye?
Parth started to wonder if he could ask Samir if he'd seen Vibha. But why was he getting utterly impatient about this? Why was the 'sorry' and the 'thank you' so important? Was it just because she'd once told him that you should thank someone if they've helped? Or was it his own realisation to start bring responsible and accounting for his actions, good or bad? He was lost in a daze with these questions as Samir put his hand on his shoulder.
Samir: Bro, kya hua? Kaha kho gaya?
Parth: Huh?
Samir: Tu kabse yu hawa main dekhe ja raha hai. Kuch chahiye tujhe?
Parth: Nahi, tu ja.
Samir: Chal theek hai. Kal milte hai. Take care.
As Samir was about to open the double doors, Parth stopped him.
Parth: Sun...
Samir: Ha...
Parth: Thank you!
Samir smiled nd nodded his head. He felt happy that Parth appreciated his concern, so what if it was the first time. Better late than never, he always thought. He was about to leave but then turned around and looked at Parth.
Samir: Tune Vibha ko dekha?
Parth: Kya?
Samir: Ha, woh yahi thi, jab main dinner karne gaya. Lekin phir woh dinner karne nahi aayi, aur yaha bhi nahi hai.
Parth started wondering again. Why had she not gone for dinner? Was it because she was looking after him or was it because he made her so mad that she lost her appetite? Or was it both? Either way, his guilt was doubling, trebling.
Samir: Arey, tu phir se kho gaya. Tu ek kaam kar, khana kha le, aur phir so ha. Aaram karega toh shayad tujhe kal achcha lage!
Samir waved at him he said bye and Parth simply nodded his head. Parth then picked up his spoon to eat, but as soon as he was about to bring the bite of food close to his mouth, he remembered Samir's words that Vibha hadn't eaten. He involuntarily put down his spoon and slowly put the plate away. He hadn't lost his appetite, he just didn't want to increase his guilt tenfold.
It was early morning the next day. Parth woke up with the shining rays of the rising sun. He could hear the birds chirping outside and he thought today would be a better day. He would try and fix things, to the best of his ability. He got out of his bed and as he put his feet on the ground, his head started to spin. But instead of sitting down, he started to walk, but realised his head was spinning out of control. He held on to the window to pause for a second, and gain composure. And as he looked at the ground, waiting for his head to straighten out his blurry vision, Vibha passed by. She was going to the dance room to blow off her steam. She noticed Parth at the window, clinging on, and rushed inside.
Vibha: Parth!
Parth looked up at her, and his eyes widened. Was he seeing her for real or was he imagining it? But as his blurry vision started to become clearer, she came closer and asked again.
Vibha: Parth, kya hua? Are you okay?
Parth realised that she was there, again, to help him.
Parth: Woh, kuch nahi...
Vibha: Mat batao... Aur asie hi khade raho.
She wiped off the concern from her face, and then turned around to leave, but she felt his hand holding hers, to stop her. She turned back at him and looked down just to make sure it was him. It was indeed his hand holding hers, and she slowly looked up at him, while he lowered his eyes. The guilt starting to take over his eyes and his entire suddenly gloomy face as he continued to look down at the floor.
Parth: I'm sorry.
Vibha: (she was taken aback a little, but she was still quite angry) You're sorry? No, I'm sorry, tum to kisise dosti nahi karna chahte, mat karo, kisise baat nahi karna chahte mat karo...
She wondered what he was apologizing for, for a moment she thought there were so many times he should be saying sorry for, so many that she'd lost the count. But her anger was slowly taking over her questions and she just wanted to leave. Being there for him was proving to be more of a cumbersome chore without any results, so she was starting to think that it was better to walk away. She removed his grip from her hand, but just as she turned around to walk again, he put his palm on her shoulder and tried to move closer towards her. But the headrush made him lose his balance. He instantly grabbed the wall with another hand, as he kept holding on to her to not let her go. She turned back yet again and realized he was too weak. She noticed he hadn't eaten his food as it was lying stone cold on the corner table.
Vibha: Arey, sambhalo apne aap ko. Ab khana nahi khaoge toh chakkar hi ayega na!
Parth looked at her while she held his hand and took him back towards the bed. And as she made him sit on the bed, he tried to talk to her.
Parth: Lekin tumne bhi toh khana nahi khaya...
Vibha: Tumhe kaise pata? (she looked visibly confused)
Parth: Woh... tumne kyu nahi khaya?
Vibha: Arey, mujhe bhookh nahi thi! Main nahi khaungi toh tum bhi nahi khaoge kya?
Parth: Nahi... Haa... Mera matlab hai, nahi... Woh...
Vibha: Tumhe pata hai, tum bahut hi ajeeb ho!
Parth: I'm sorry.
Vibha: Ab ajeeb hone ke liye bhi sorry bologe?
Parth: No,I mean it, I'm sorry, I know you were just trying to help me yesterday. Aur maine pata nahi kya kuch keh diya.
Vibha: Ha... Theek hai. Tumhe realize ho gaya, itna hi kafi hai.
Parth was amazed, how could she have forgiven him so easily?
Parth: Aur ek baat hai...
Vibha: Ha, bolo...
Parth: Woh, thank you!
Vibha: Arey, tum theek to ho?
Vibha chuckled as she asked him if he was feeling alright as it seemed to him that he'd changed after just one hit to his head and face! Parth wasn't joking and he looked at her with a serious face, as if to tell her he wasn't saying anything light-heartedly, and that he meant everyone word he spoke, whether it was the sorry, or the thank you.
Vibha: Achcha theek hai, itna serious hone ki koi zaroorat nahi hai. Ab bolo, yeh thank you kis liye?
Parth: For helping me!
Vibha: Help? Maine toh kuch nahi kiya?
Parth: Woh, Samir ne bataya ki tum yaha... Wait...
Vibha: Ha... Woh...
How could she tell him that she was feeling guilty that Rahul had mixed sleeping pills in his water.
Vibha: Its okay, don't worry.
Parth: No, seriously, thank you! I appreciate it!
Vibha: You're welcome in that case!
Parth smiled back at Vibha as she let her lips move somewhat moderately to give him a faint smile. He tried to get up, holding the bed, still feeling drowsy and weak.
Vibha: Arey, phir se uth rahe ho?
Parth: Ha...
Vibha: Arey, tum samajhte kyu nahi!
Parth: I need to use the washroom...
Vibha: Oh... Toh theek hai chalo...
As Vibha finished her sentence, she held out her hand, and nodded whilst looking at him. He knew that she was trying to help him, but he refused.
Parth: Nahi, I'm okay... I'll manage!
Vibha: Mujhe pata hai tum kitna manage kar sakte ho. Abhi abhi dekha tha maine. Kaise window se chipak ke khade the!
Vibha tried to smile, while Parth retained his serious face and got up slowly, limping his way towards the doors.
Vibha: Arey, theek hai, help nahi chahiye, mat lo. Lekin main tumhare saath to chal sakti hu na? Agar tum gire, toh main tumhe utha toh nahi sakungi, lekin tum pe has to sakungi!
Parth heard what she said, and looked up at her while holding on to the wall. She saw that he wasn't smiling at her funny joke, and that he perhaps didn't appreciate any kind of humour.
Vibha: Arey, relax. Main mazaak kar rahi thi! Tum har baar itne serious kyu rehte ho?
Parth: Main aisa hi hu!
Vibha: Ha ha theek hai, aisa hi hu main (she tries to imitate him in a deep voice).
Parth smiles as he watches her imitate him.
Vibha: Shukr hai, thoda sa to hase tum. Ab chalo.
Vibha walked along with him in case he needed extra support, but he kept one hand on the wall as he walked down the corridor with her. They soon reached the boy's washroom. Parth looked at Vibha and started talking.
Parth: You can go, yaha tak aane ke liye thanks.
Vibha: Arey, tum jao, main yahi wait karti hu.
Parth: There is no need. I'll be fine.
Vibha: Arey baba, I know you'll be fine. But I'm still waiting. Go. Hurry up!
Parth: Okay.
As Parth left, Vibha looked towards the sun, that was shining nice and bright in the sky. She thought she was feeling really good already and didn't need to do anything anymore to lift her spirits, to make her happy again! Parth soon came out, looking distinctly languid. Vibha saw him falter a little and immediately held out her hand again (Song plays in the background: Dehleez pe mere dil ki, jo rakhe hai tune kadam, tere naam pe meri zindagi, likh di mere humdum... Ha seekha maine jeena jeena maine jeena, ha seekha jeena tere bina humdum. Mmm mmm mmm mmm). But this time she didn't say anything. She just wanted to help without putting too much pressure on him. Strangely enough, Parth slowly brought his hand out, towards hers, and then held on to her. He wasn't feeling too great, and it was better to take her help and move forward, rather than stand or walk on his own and make a fool of himself, and make his condition worse as a result.
Parth: Thank you.
Vibha: Tum kitni baar thank you bologe? Waise, welcome.
And as she looked at him while she acknowledged his gratitude towards her, she could tell that he was happy. Happy whether she was there with him, or happy because he was feeling good about himself for improving for the better. Whatever the reason was, she was happy, and she could feel an overwhelming sense of satisfaction and content. The 'sorry' and the 'thank' you had indeed brought them closer.
But they still weren't friends, do you think they were starting to become friends?
Edited by rosabelle - 10 years ago
Indian Mythology
Sampoorna
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