Girish and Dadaji were overjoyed to see that Ambika had gained consciousness. After spending some light moments with her entire family, Ambika had started to look drained. The nurse insisted that she needed to rest as per the doctor's order. Sameer managed to send both men back home to rest as well. They had been travelling and had been up most of the night. He did not want Dadaji to overexert himself, especially after the emotional toll of the past few hours. Girish, too, looked fatigued. Sameer could see the weight of worry etched into his face. He was initially hesitant to leave, but Sameer's gentle urging made him comprehend that it was not practical to crowd around Ambika. The exhaustion of past two days and sleeplessness of last night, combined with the tension, had made him tired.

During daytime, Munna came over with his mother. He received the news of the accident only in the morning, when Naina called him to inform that she would not be coming to office. After spending some time with Ambika, Sameer and Munna stepped outside the room.

Standing in the corridor, Munna placed a hand on Sameer's shoulder, his voice filled with concern for his friend, 'Tere gharwale aur Pandit yahan nahi they par main toh tha. Tu mujhe ek phone hi kar deta. Akele manage karna kitna mushkil raha hoga.'

Sameer told him about the phone fiasco.

Munna muttered in frustration, 'Isse achha toh pehle wale landline phone they. Ek jagah rehte they par kam se kam hamesha chaloo toh rehte they. Yeh cell phones toh kabhi bhi dhokha de dete hain.'

'Haan yaar. Kal agar Naina ne sab kuch nahi sambhala hota toh pata nahi kya ho jaata. Jab nurse ne Blood Bank mein call karne ke liye bola toh meri jaan hi nikal gayi ki kya karun. Woh toh achha hua ki Naina ka blood group same hai isliye foran mummy ke liye blood ka arrangement ho gaya.' Sameer let out in a strained voice.

Munna was relieved to hear this, 'Kismat ne saath de diya bhai. Shukr hai Naina iss haalat mein thi ki khoon de sakey. Agar Naina ko zyada chot aati ya uski tabiyat kharab hoti toh sach mein mushkil ho jaati. Usey bas maathe par hi lagi hai na?'

Sameer sighed, 'Tujhe pata hai Naina mujhe kuch batane wali nahi hai. Lekin maine nurse se pucha tha, jab Naina faint ho gayi thi. Usne kaha aur koi chot nahi hai.'

'Faint?' Munna gave him a startled look, 'Kahin internal injury toh nahi hai? Doctor ne kya kaha? Scan wagerah karwane ko nahi bola?'

Sameer shook his head, 'Injury nahi, bas BP low ho gaya tha, blood dene ki wajah se.' Sameer explained what he had learnt from the nurse. Then, as an afterthought, he told him what Natasha had mentioned on the call, about Naina's haemoglobin levels being low too.

Munna's eyes widened in shock, 'Yeh kya keh raha hai Sameer? Kitna Hb hai Naina ka? Aise mein khoon dekar usne kitna bada risk liya hai tujhe andaza bhi hai?'

Sameer nodded slowly, 'Jaanta hun. Doctor ne bataya tha ki woh faint ho sakti hai aur girne se chot lag sakti hai. Usey rest karne ko kaha tha. Naina so gayi thi thodi der.'

Munna looked at him in disbelief, 'Sameer, khoon dene se Hb aur low ho jaata hai. Aise mein brain tak oxygen nahi pohonch paata. Kuch bhi ho sakta hai.' He poked Sameer's chest as he stressed on his next words, 'Kuch bhi ka matlab jaanta hai? Sirf faint nahi, coma mein jaa sakte hain... aur... aur isse zyada bhi.'

Sameer felt the ground beneath his feet slip away. He stammered, the seriousness of the situation dawning on him, 'Yeh tu kya keh raha hai Munna? Aisa... aisa nahi ho sakta. Nahi, Naina aisa nahi karegi. Nahi karegi na?' He looked at Munna with hopeful eyes.

But before Munna could respond, he visibly trembled as he recalled Naina's words... 'agar mummy ko kuch ho jaata toh main bhi zinda nahi reh paati. Main khud ko khatm kar leti'.

His face drained of colour as he processed the gravity of Naina's intention and actions. She had known all along what risk she was taking, yet she had gone ahead with it. For her, it was more important to save Ambika than her own life.

Munna noticed the play of emotions on Sameer's face. It was evident that Sameer had been ignorant about all this. But he was not able to fathom how the hospital could be so careless. When he stated the same, Sameer told him about the concern of the nurse. When he had gone out to get sandwiches for Naina, the same nurse had stopped him and asked him to take care of his wife, because Naina might not pay attention to the need to do so herself since she was in a distraught state.

Munna placed a reassuring hand on Sameer's shoulder, comforting him in a soft voice, 'Sameer, main samajhta hoon teri tension. Lekin humein Naina ko bhi samajhna chahiye. Usne yeh sab Ambika aunty ke liye kiya hai iska matlab woh aunty ko sach mein bohot pyaar karti hai. Usne aunty ki jaan bachane ke liye apni taraf se best samajh ke kiya hoga, par usey yeh sochna chahiye tha ki apni jaan ko is tarah risk mein daalna sahi nahi hai.'

Sameer nodded, the worry in his heart twisting every breath that he was taking. He knew Munna was right. He too loved his mom, and would have done anything to save her life. But Naina taking such a risk was not acceptable to him. He shuddered at the mere thought of something happening to Naina. If Ambika got to know of it, she would be livid. He had to talk to Naina, had to make her understand the gravity of what she had done. But deep down, he also knew that Naina's determination was not something easily swayed. Still, he couldn't just stand by and let her take such risks without saying anything. For her sake, and for his own peace of mind, he had to find out why she took such a drastic step.

After Munna and his mother left, Ambika drifted off to sleep. Sameer whispered to Anaya to stay with her before he gestured to Naina to follow him out of the room.

'Kya hua? Doctor ne kuch bola hai kya? Mummy theek toh hain na?' She hastily walked with him as Sameer marched ahead without a word.

'Bolo na Sameer kya hua hai? Hum kahan jaa rahe hain?' Panic creeped into her voice when Sameer did not answer.

He stopped abruptly, and turned to face her. Naina looked at him with a worried expression. The words he had been meaning to say got caught in his throat as his gaze settled on her. Her face, pale and drained, seemed even more fragile. The dark shadows under her eyes had become prominent against the pale skin. He cursed himself silently... why hadn't he noticed it before.

The thought of her falling into a coma, or worse... he squeezed his eyes shut as Munna's words played in his mind.

Naina's heart clenched with fear. She grabbed his arm, her eyes impatient, 'Sach sach batao kya kaha doctor ne. Kya hua hai mummy ko?'

He exhaled as he opened his eyes, guilt creeping into his voice, 'Naina, tumhe apne baare mein bhi sochna chahiye tha.'

'Kya?' Naina was perplexed, 'Mere baare mein kya sochna hai?'

Sameer looked into her eyes, 'Tumhe itna bada risk nahi lena chahiye tha. Kitna Hb hai tumhara?'

Naina's face tightened as realisation set in. She crossed her arms, turning to look away, 'Tumhe ismein padne ki zarurat nahi hai. Main apna khyal rakh sakti hun.'

Sameer took a step closer, his gaze fixed on her, 'Dikh raha hai. Zara shakl dekho apni mirror mein. Chehra safed pad gaya hai.'

'Safed pade chahe kaala, mujhe parwah nahi hai. Mummy ki zarurat ke aage mujhe apne complexion ko importance deni chahiye thi kya?' She snapped in a sharp tone.

Sameer was frustrated at her rigid stance, 'Tumhe achhi tarah pata hai main complexion ki baat nahi kar raha. Tum jaanti ho na tumhari iss harkat ka kya effect ho sakta hai? Agar tumhe kuch ho gaya toh?'

'Toh kya? Aur kya hoga mujhe? Behosh ho jaungi? Zyada se zyada mar jaungi?' Her jaw clenched as she turned to face him, 'Meri life se zyada important mummy ki zindagi hai. Maine jo kiya apni marzi se kiya. Tumhare kisi sawaal ka jawab dena main zaruri nahi samajhti. Dubara mat puchna. Yeh baat yahin khatm ho gayi.'

'Chupp. Bilkul chupp.' Sameer hissed in a fit of anger, holding a finger over his lips to emphasize his words, 'Har baat tumhare kehne se khatm nahi ho sakti. Tumhe lagta hai jo tum karti ho wohi sabse sahi hota hai? Saari samajhdaari, saara dimaag tumhare paas hi hai? Ji nahi, Mrs Naina Maheshwari, aisa bilkul nahi hai. Doosre log bhi dimag rakhte hain. Aur dil bhi.'

At the mention of her name as his wife, Naina's eyes turned hard when she met his gaze, 'Enough Sameer. Apni judgment sunane ke liye na yeh jagah theek hai na yeh time. Tumne mere baare mein jo bhi nayi theory banayi hai uske liye ghar jaane tak ka intezaar toh kar lo. Yahan mummy ki aisi condition hai aur tum mujh pe kahani likhne mein lage ho?'

His voice grew stern, 'Main koi kahani nahi bana raha Naina. Mummy ki jitni fikr hai mujhe utni tumhari bhi hai. Kal mujhe iske risk ke baare mein pata nahi tha. Par tumhe toh pata tha na.'

'Haan pataa tha. Lekin mujhe usse koi fark nahi padta. Mummy ki zindagi ke aage mere liye kuch aur matter nahi karta.' Her tone was almost dismissive, as if she wanted to walk away after stating her dictat.

The words hit him hard, stoking his anger even more and he blurted instinctively, 'Par mujhe fark padta hai. Bohot fark padta hai. Agar tumhe kuch hua toh main seh nahi paunga Naina. Because I...'

He suddenly stopped short as he took in the glare in Naina's eyes. In frustration of his own helplessness, he was about to say more than he had intended to.

Running a hand through his hair to get some control, he took a deep breath before continuing, 'I cannot let you suffer because of me. Tumhe aisa karne se pehle sochna chahiye tha.'

Naina lowered her eyes to stare at the floor, uttering in a voice that was more of a whisper, 'Kuch pal aise hote hain jinmein socha nahi jaata. Sirf woh apna nazar aata hai jiski jaan par ban aayi ho. Uss waqt khud ki zindagi maut ka khyal nahi rehta, bas uski zindagi bachani hoti hai. Kyonki woh zindagi aapko apni jaan se zyada pyaari hoti hai.'

There was a silence of a few seconds, in which Sameer had a strange feeling, as if Naina wasn't talking about this incident, but something else.

When she looked up, her eyes had a forlorn emptiness, 'Mujhe kahan kuch hua? Lekin sab itne kismat waale nahi hote. Kisi apne ko bachate hue woh apni jaan ganwa dete hain.'

Sameer's breath hitched. The pain in her eyes was much more intense, as if she herself had lost someone. He wanted to talk, to probe what she meant by such profound words, but he could not speak. Not when Naina was at the lowest she had ever been. Her eyes were too raw, too vulnerable with some deep grief. He had never seen her like this, and for a moment, his frustration melted away, replaced by a curious concern for what was making her suffer. She wasn't her usually composed self. But was barely holding herself together in the aftermath of the events. He just stood there, his heart aching, feeling helpless at the silence between them. It wasn't just about his mother. Something else was also haunting her, and it hurt him to see her burdened by it.

'Tum chalo mere saath.' He held her wrist and started to walk, in a different direction from the room.

'Kahan?' Following his step reluctantly, Naina was taken by surprise, 'Mujhe kahin nahi jaana. Mummy...'

'Mummy ke paas Anu hai.' He cut her short, 'Humein doctor se baat karni hogi... tumhare liye.'

'Nahi Sameer.' Naina stuck her feet to the ground, forcing him to stop.

Sameer stopped abruptly, turning back to face her with frustration flickering in his eyes, 'Tum samajh kyon nahi rahi Naina? Jo hona tha woh toh ho gaya par at least ab humein pataa toh hona chahiye ki tumhe apna khyal rakhne ke liye kya karna hai. Doctor ko puch toh lene do ek baar.'

Naina shook her head, her face pale but her voice firm, 'Doctor ko nahi bataa sakte.'

'Kya matlab?' Sameer was taken aback by her fear.

When he did not budge, Naina had to tell him how she had forced the nurse, and now this could not be revealed to the doctor or the nurse would be in serious trouble.

Sameer pursed his lips, anger rising in him once again. He knew how stubborn Naina could be. No wonder she had made the nurse do something which was against the rules.

Looking back at her, he declared in a determined voice, 'Toh fir nurse ke paas chalo. Itna toh woh bhi bata sakti hai ki tumhe theek rehne ke liye kya karna chahiye.'

*****

It had been a week since Ambika had come home, after spending four days in hospital. Even in those four days, Sameer had not just taken care of Ambika but had kept a keen eyes on Naina's food and routine. He made sure that she got proper rest, had adequate amount of iron rich food and fluids in her diet and did not exert herself, because these were the main things the nurse had pointed out. She had been apologetic when he had questioned her, but explained tearfully that she had presumed Naina was the daughter, and as a daughter, she could understand Naina's concern because she too had lost her father a few months back. He had decided not to press the matter. Instead, he had made a list of all that needed to be done to ensure that Naina recovered quickly. The nurse assured him that with supplements and proper diet, Naina would be able to get a healthy haemoglobin level within a couple of months. He had asked her to recommend the tests that needed to be taken to find out all about Naina's health. He had to literally force Naina to get the tests done. He did not regret the emotional blackmail either. A smile played on his lips as he recalled how annoyed Naina was when he told her that he would tell everyone in the family about her heroic act if she refused to go for the tests. With her eyes shooting arrows at him, Naina had to give in.

And now, it had been ten days since she had been taking supplements. Sameer noticed the subtle changes every day, the way her energy seemed to return slowly, the way color had returned to her face. Her pale complexion was now glowing with renewed health, the dark circles under her eyes had faded, and the fatigue that had weighed her down was finally lifting. It had lifted the burden from his shoulders too.

Sorry for the delay. Am too pressed with work at the moment. Will try to post on Monday or Tuesday