A/N : Guys, here's a request. Before you start reading a chapter (not only this, but others that you read too), please do see the media above as well. Because the SwaSan pic that I always put in the media above relates a lot to the chapter and is ninety nine percent like a pic from the chapter.

Happy reading! ❤

~*~ CHAPTER 13 ~*~

As Swara bombarded Sanskar with questions regarding the condition of her mother, he prepared himself to speak up and she waited while holding her breath.

"Swara, your mother... she is fine. Thankfully, the operation is successful. Your mom is out of danger."

'Out of danger' these were the words Swara had wanted to hear from Sanskar. She knew, she freaking knew her Maa had to be safe. And now...

And now that her mother was finally declared to be safe, Swara couldn't help but allowing her tears to flow from her eyes... once again. She just heard... that her mother was fine. She couldn't have asked for anything else.

Honestly, she didn't understand herself how she felt right now. Happy, about her Maa being safe and finally out of danger; or sorrowful, for her mother for being put in this life threatening condition in the first place. All of it shouldn't even had happened at all.

But she knew for one thing... the heaviness and fear of losing her mother that she was carrying on her shoulders for almost seven to eight hours seemed to be getting off her.

Swara closed her eyes and let out a sharp sigh of relief, internally thanking Durga Maa for listening to her. She joined her hands and thanked her for saving her mother.

Her Maa was safe! She was fine!

"Thank god!" Swara sobbed slowly that turned heavier and she was immediately side hugged by Anushka, who seemed to be equally relieved. And she broke down again.

With the thought that just few hours ago, her Maa was fighting for her life. And now... she was finally fine.

"Aunty is safe, Swara." Anushka pacified her. "Now you don't have to worry."

"Yes, you are right." Rajat nodded his head smiling. "But you know, we did have some ups and downs between the surgery though. But with a doctor as brilliant as Sanskar around in such a critical operation... you know, nothing can go wrong." he admired Sanskar and he half heartedly nodded his head. Swara's incessant tears bothered him more at the moment.

"Swara, actually, she is safe. But amidst the accident and then this surgery, she has gone through an excessive blood loss. And her body has to cope up with it as soon as possible. The only way for her to survive this heavy blood loss is blood transfusion. We have asked for necessary supplies from our blood bank and thankfully since her blood group is not rare, we can easily arrange for a quick blood transfusion." Sanskar explained.

"B-Blood transfusion?" She uttered worriedly and Sanskar nodded his head in a yes.

"The only thing is this might turn out to be a long process for her because she has had blood loss from many parts of her body. So, she's again going to be shifted to the ICU from the OT room."

"And then?" she whimpered. "She will be okay, right?"

Sanskar nodded his head. "Yes Swara, she will. We just have to take care of her. Blood transfusion -- to be very honest -- can be a very painful process in her case."

The thought of her mother going through so much pain once again made her knees weak.

"Along with blood getting filled in her body, she might experience some symptoms like fever or else shortness of breath," he told her truthfully. He knew Swara had every right to know about her mother's status even if it would hurt her. "We just don't have to let her fever reach her brain. We also need to make sure that her vitals are good enough. And just to ensure her well being, she's going to be put in intensive care unit, and I'll be the one looking out for her. Otherwise, she is fine, Swara, I can promise you that." He assured her again..

"C-Can I see her?!" This was something Swara had been waiting for since the whole day. "Please, can I just see her for once? Please Sanskar." She whispered to him at the end, not being able to bear the heartbreak anymore as she once again felt painful for her mother being in such a condition in the first place.

Sanskar knew she had every right to see her mother, and she didn't need to ask him like this, "Yes, you can. But she'll be soon taken to the ICU for the blood transfusion and after she gets shifted there, you won't be able to see her then."

"It's okay," she stuttered as she still couldn't contain the heaviness of all emotions inside of her. "I'll go and see her now."

He nodded her head in convenience, as Swara immediately made her way towards the room, all the way to meet her mother.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Swara entered the room with slow and heavy steps, as if her slightest move would harm her mother somehow. She walked all the way towards the bed... the same bed where her mother had been lying for nearly a day. The same bed that now smelled more like antiseptic and other kinds of strong medicines, or perhaps not the bed, maybe the entire room itself smelled like that.

Swara's heart broke yet again for the umpteenth time as her already-tear-filled eyes lied on the most important and valuable lady of her life that was her mother... who was right now lying there unconscious, with several kinds of machines and systems attached to her pale body.

Sharmishtha's head was bandaged, where a huge wound on her forehead was visible. There was a small bruise on her right cheek. Her neck was buried underneath a big brown bandage around it and as if things couldn't get any worse, her left arm was plastered too.

Sanskar was correct when he had said that even if her mother was out of danger, she was still critical. And that was why she was to be taken to intensive care unit.

Swara sat on a stool near her mother and stared at her with several emotions swirling in those large black orbs of hers. She never expected her mother to see like this. She couldn't even imagine what if something would have happened to her mother!

She owed so much to Sanskar for saving her mother... but what if he couldn't had saved her? What if situation couldn't had been in his hands but instead in the hands of her cruel fate?

Swara softly grabbed Sharmishtha's free hand, and her other hand caressed her fingers. Those cold, pale hands... a lone tear dropped down her cheek as once again she was reminded of her mother's fragile condition.

"Ghar se nikalne se pehle..." Swara began, as she clutched Sharmishtha's hand with both her hands, letting her avalanche of emotions flow in a go. "I told you to take care of yourself Maa. Kabhi nahi sunte ho na aap meri baat ko!" Swara sobbed once again, as remembering her Maa's state hours ago broke her for the infinite time. "I told you to take care of yourself Maa. You know it, I can't bear if anything happens to you. You're the only one I'm living for Maa. You're the sole reason behind my existence. Aap ho, toh mai hoon. Agar aap ko hi kuch ho gaya... toh mai kaise jee paungi? Have you ever thought about yourself? Why can't you take care of yourself Maa? When I left our home, the only thing I'd ever told you was to take care of yourself... still you didn't listen to me. Even Dida is not here. You know what, I wish Dida was here. I want her to slap you for how careless you have been today!" Swara broke into sobs and bent her head against the blanket beneath which her Maa was lying. "When will you learn to take care of yourself Maa? When? W-h-en!" Her voice broke into soft sobs.

All of a sudden, it hit her that this woman who was right now lying between so many medical systems and stitched at too many places, all fragile and pale, this woman was nothing like the strong, healthy woman Swara had known in her entire life. Every little moment they both spent together, suddenly started flashing right in front of her eyes until she couldn't take this damaged state of her mother anymore...

"Please get well soon Maa." Swara uttered heavily amidst her sobs. "I can't see you in this condition. I can't see you like this. Please open your eyes only for once, so that I'm assured that you are fine. Please Maa, you h-ave to get well soon..."

She did not utter a word ahead as she let her tears soak the blanket above her Maa who seemed to be unconscious... in a peaceful way but still... seeing her mother unconscious like this made her heart go so heavy.

And near the door, Sanskar was watching everything. He watched everything silently, watched how Swara cried for her mother's well being, witnessed the love she had for her mother, he was staring at them with a blank expression on his face as he battled internally with his own heart and mind.

As Swara wiped her tears weakly, she leaned towards her mother, planting a soft kiss on her forehead as if her slightest movement might hurt her in some way.

"Please jaldi thikh ho jao, Maa." Swara uttered to her for one last time.

And as Swara turned around to leave the room, bottling up all her emotions, she suddenly got the feeling of being wobbly. As Sanskar still looked at her, Swara couldn't focus on her vision anymore. Instead her breaths turned uneven as she felt her head moving slightly, before everything in front of eyes suddenly became dark and she hardly remembered anything as she faded in darkness.

"SWARA!" Sanskar immediately noticed her getting giddy. Shocked, without wasting any moment, he ran towards her. As Swara was about to fall down, holding her head, Sanskar immediately held her close to himself as she slipped into unconsciousness in his embrace.

Swara fainted in darkness.

Sanskar panicstrikenly patted her cheeks, somehow trying to bring her back to her senses.

"Swara, Swara." Sanskar tried bringing her back to consciousness but she didn't get up. "Swara utho. Swara!"

No, not at all. Swara didn't deserve this much pain! No human being as pure as Swara deserved to go through so much pain! Why was God so unfair to her? Why was fate being so cruel to her? Sanskar's eyes filled with unshed tears as he stared at the person whom he could never know in spite of how much he tried, and yet he felt as if he knew everything about her. He stared at the broken soul who was lying unconsciously in his arms, who had been through what she never deserved in her life.

"Swara!" Sanskar tried for one more time but all in vain.

Realising that this wouldn't do, Sanskar immediately scooped Swara up in his arms, as he rushed outside the room holding her in his embrace.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Swara?!" Anushka was the first one to see Swara unconscious. "W-What happened to her?" She paniced and even Rajat looked on shocked.

"Usse chakkar aa gaya hai. Woh behosh ho gayi hai." Sanskar replied hastily as he immediately made his way towards a metal bench and kept Swara on it as tenderly as he could, as he was holding her so that she was lying down comfortably. And Anushka immediately sat besides Swara as she rubbed her cold palm.

Sanskar immediately did a quick check-up of Swara that involved -- he checked her body temperature, the redness under her eyes, her pulse rate and some other small things. After being done with it, the conclusion he came to, he took a deep breath.

"She hasn't eaten anything since morning." Sanskar concluded from her condition and Anushka looked regretfully at Swara. "It happened because of overstress. I'll do one thing," he told them. "I'll take Swara in a room and let her rest there. I'll also give her some medicines to calm her down. She needs to rest."

"Yeah, definitely." Rajat agreed to him. "She really needs rest.

"I'll help you in it!" Anushka spoke and without a single word, Sanskar picked Swara up in his arms again and both of them set out to look for an empty room for Swara to rest.

"Sanskar, I'll go and bring water for Swara." Anushka told him and Sanskar nodded his head. "Okay."

In a few minutes, Sanskar finally found an empty room and he immediately took Swara towards the empty bed, as he placed her on the bed as tenderly as he could as if his slightest move might hurt her in some way.

And then, he pulled the white blanket and laid it on her, as he saw her eyes closed as if she was in a deep, peaceful sleep.

As Swara still lied there unconscious, for a minute Sanskar sat on the bed besides Swara's sleeping figure, and that's when he finally noticed... those tear marks on her cheeks, her pale face, her face devoid of any emotion... it broke his heart.

Sanskar felt this sudden urge to comfort her by raising his hand, and ran his fingers across her cheeks, as if wiping those tears marks on her cheek. He himself didn't know how, but the softness and tenderness of her cheeks and skin gave him an impression of her being 'warm and milky'. But this time the touch didn't send any kind of shiver down his spine... it was all about only an emotional feeling that he got after looking at her.

"Aaj mujhe pata chala..." Sanskar uttered to her softly. "Tum bohot strong ho Swara. Bohot strong, in fact stronger than me."

Confessing that, he leaned towards Swara, and planted a very soft kiss on her forehead. Bottling up all his feelings inside of him, he got up from the bed and left the room to let Swara rest.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

It was night time and almost ten o'clock. Anushka had been with Swara in the room all this while and even though Swara was still in as much despair as she was before, she was atleast calm and better than before because of the medicines that Sanskar had given to her. Even if she persuaded a lot to her to see her mother for one more time, Anushka had convinced her and had assured her that she was absolutely okay now since the blood transfusion was successful. After a lot of requests, Swara was finally convinced and she was forced to sleep by Anushka. She waited in Swara's room only and slept on a bed besides her so that she would be there if Swara needed anything.

Sanskar was still in the hospital only, he didn't go back home. Somewhere, he didn't feel like leaving Swara or even her mother alone here even if Anushka was there, so he thought of waiting here for some more time.

He had informed Anushka about her mother being completely fine, and it would take some hours for her to wake up. Maybe by morning, she would, he predicted.

And here, Sanskar was leaning against a pole in a random corridor, his arms folded across his chest. He had some moments to ponder over his thoughts, and a moment for himself to take in what dark events had taken place today.

And above everything, he couldn't forget how Swara's condition was today.

How Swara broke down in his arms few hours back... how she poured her heart out to him... how she expressed her pain to him... how she cried... and how she had fallen sick now... it was all in his memory until he remembered those words by heart...

'You know... I never had a pleasant childhood. I was always taunted by our society because Baba had left us. They always considered us to be a bad omen. They always said we are the reason why my Baba left.'

'No matter what happened, Maa always taught me to stay strong and positive. No matter what had happened with me in the past, no matter what things have been in my life those five years back, I always knew I had to live for my loved ones. All this while, I stayed strong for the sake of my family. She was the only person who had been keeping me strong all this while, Sanskar. If anything happened to her, I will die. Mar jaungi mai. I can't live without my Maa. She is everything to me Sanskar.'

Sanskar had never felt so helpless and painful in his entire life.

It was just as painful... as he had felt at that time. He knew what losing a mother felt like!

Fifteen years back...

Fifteen years back, he had felt the same nostalgia, same emotions. And today, he could feel the same feelings returning back to him as he saw Swara's condition.

The thought of Swara so close to losing her mother, the sight of Swara's tearful eyes, the thought that how she relied upon him to ensure that her mother was fine... This was all too much to take in for Sanskar. He just failed to understand what was going on.

He wasn't able to understand what broke his heart more. The fact that he had been in the same painful situation fifteen years back, or the fact that all of it happened with the same girl whom he was nearly coming to know more about, and was nearly coming to love... it happened with Swara.

But above everything... he couldn't forget those words. The words which Swara had told him. The words that pierced him like a knife. The words... which reflected the strength she was forced to keep for her survival in a world like this.

When she, yet indirectly but still, she had confessed to him about how she and her family had suffered throughout their lives because of that man she was forced to call her father, because of that freaking so called society, he finally came to know how Swara Bose was.

Swara Bose was a fighter. A survivor. An amazing woman who knew how to put on a brave front in spite of so many dark experiences hidden underneath her surface.

"Sanskar?"

Rajat's voice reached Sanskar and he looked on confused. Rajat was still in the hospital, he didn't go back home or sleep yet.

"Rajat?" Sanskar looked at Rajat and tried not to look into his eyes. "What happened? You didn't go to sleep?" He asked him half heartedly.

No, he didn't go. How was he supposed to go home when his best friend was here, hurt and worried.

"You also didn't go to sleep, Sanskar." Rajat asked him instead.

Sanskar shaked his head negatively. "I don't... I don't want to, Rajat. I don't feel like sleeping."

Rajat knew what was up with his friend, so he just got directly to the point.

"Swara ke soch ne tumhe yaha rukhaya hai." He concluded. "I know, you are thinking about Swara and her mother."

"How do you know?" Sanskar asked him in a blank voice, even if he knew the answer.

"We are best friends, Sanskar, and more than best friends we are brothers. Both of us can definitely see through each other. And at this time, I know you were thinking about Swara." Rajat told him, with a small assuring smile on his face.

Sanskar sighed deeply as he still had Swara in his mind.

"Maa ko khone ka dard samajh sakta hoon mai, when I have been through this myself." Sanskar confessed to him, still not looking at him but he had Rajat's full attention. "Today, when I saw how Swara broke down seeing her mother in such a critical condition, I suddenly remembered that fifteen years before I was in the same place as hers. You know, I still haven't forgotten the day when I was told that I had lost my Maa forever. Losing her changed my life. The day I lost my mother, I lost everything. I feel so terrible for not being able to do anything. Even now, I can only look at her, stare at her, but I can't do anything to save her. I cannot save my Maa and I still have too many regrets. I went through the darkest time of my life when I realised that I lost the most precious person in my life. But today... after seeing how Swara broke down for her mother's life, she reminded me of myself."

"I understand, Sanskar." Rajat came to him holding his shoulder to provide him brotherly comfort. He very well understood his condition. "I can see how you are feeling."

"And I feel so sorry to see Swara in such a condition." Sanskar confessed to him. "Even in the operation theatre, my hands shivered even thinking that what if something goes wrong by my hands? Swara would lose her mother forever and I would lose Swara's trust forever too. I don't want her to go through what I have been through, Rajat. I can't see her in so much pain."

His outpour of feelings was interrupted by Rajat as he immediately grabbed Sanskar into a hug. He tried calming his friend down, for he knew the pain Sanskar was going through. Things were no different at those times too. He knew what kind of turmoil his best friend was going through.

At one side, Sanskar's own situation had been no different. There was a time when he had seen him regret, seen him break down, and today... it was all the same. The only difference was... at that time, he broke for the loss of his mother, and this time, he broke for Swara.

And Rajat knew, Sanskar was in love with Swara, but he also knew that Sanskar didn't know it himself. And at a time like this, maybe Rajat shouldn't be telling Sanskar that.

"I know how you feel, Sanskar." Rajat comforted him and Sanskar took a deep breath, trying not to be overwhelmed by emotions.

"I want Swara's mother to get well soon." Sanskar confessed to Rajat and he let him. "I am doing everything in my power so that her mother gets fine. Mai Swara ko itne dard mein nahi dekh sakta, Rajat. Jis dard se mai gaya hoon, mai nahi chahta ki Swara ko bhi uss dard mein se jaana pade."

Letting out the heaviness in his heart that he had been bearing for almost an entire day, he finally pulled away from Rajat to look at him, and Rajat immediately noticed a hint of tears in Sanskar's eyes.

"I know, Sanskar, but you have to stay strong." Rajat told him what Sanskar knew. "Remember, two lives are depending on you. One is Swara's and other is her mom's. I know you are very strong yaar. Have you seen Swara? She trusts you a lot. She trusted you with her mother, that's why she knew her mother was going to be fine. Trust me, everything will be fine. I know things are not good now, but they will soon fall in their places when the right time comes. Sab thikh ho jayega yaar, I assure you." He assured him, as he raised a hand to wipe that hint of tear in Sanskar's eyes and Sanskar nodded his head.

"I know." Sanskar agreed. "And I have to keep my promise. The promise that I made to Swara that I'll save her mother no matter what happens. She trusts me, Rajat, that's all I need and is enough." He told him wholeheartedly.

"I know." Rajat told him, as he thought something. "Look, Sanskar, I really think you need to sleep. Have you even looked at yourself? You look like you have ran a million miles. Whole day you've been walking here and there, look how tired you are." Rajat pointed out his tired expression and Sanskar finally smiled a little bit. "You need to sleep, or else you'll fall sick and then you won't be able to keep your word."

"Okay." Sanskar finally listened to Rajat. "But I'm not going home since I have to look out for Swara's mother. What I'll do is, I'll spend my night here today."

"Okay, then!" Rajat replied. "Atleast you agreed to have a good sleep. That's all I wanted."

And with that, both Sanskar and Rajat finally called it a day. But with Sanskar still engrossed in his own thoughts, he was hardly able to sleep, but then he finally slept, with a hope that everything would be fine and so will Swara's mother.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

It was morning, about six o'clock.

Golden sun rays fell all the way from the window of the room on Sharmishtha's sleeping face. She now looked much better. Her bruises seemed to be healing, but bandages were still there in their places. She showed a slow yet a peaceful recovery.

And besides Sharmishtha's bed... on the chair... Swara was there, with her head on the bed, sleeping in a bit uncomfortable position but still her sleep was calmer and quiet, with she being around her Maa.

She had shifted in her mother's room in midnight only, as she had come to know that her mother was no more in the intensive care unit and was now in a normal room. No sooner she came to know about it, she came here and slept besides her Maa.

Still, there was a kind of distress in Swara's facial features. Her face looked pale, her petite frame looked slightly weak, but her calm demeanor was still as innocent and beautiful as ever.

"S-h-o-n-a..."

A meek attempt of speaking left Sharmishtha's lips as her eyelids that had been really heavy on her since yesterday, suddenly seemed to be lifting up, as she was very slowly regaining her consciousness.

"Shona..." Sharmishtha uttered weakly again.

And as Swara heard Sharmishtha's voice, her eyes immediately shot open, as she lifted her head from the bed, only to see her mother who still struggled a bit to open her eyes fully.

"Maa!" Swara acknowledged her Maa's attempts to look at her daughter.

"Shona..." Sharmishtha's half-opened eyes stared at her daughter. "I a-m fine."

Her mother had woke up. She was looking at her.

And after so many hours of despair and feeling of losing her Maa, now Swara was finally breathing. She was finally alive... after all these twenty hours.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Precap : Some moments of Swara-Sharmishtha, and some SwaSan scenes.
Also... something unexpected is coming.

A/N : I know we all love our SwaSan to death and we can't see them in this much pain. Even I feel sad for making Swara suffer so much but as I have already told you all, this story is not only about all roses and rainbows but also some heartbreaks and unexpected twists and turns. Hey, that doesn't mean that happiness won't be there. It will be there, very very soon. But I hope you all will still forgive me and bear with my weirdo imaginations till the end. 🙈

Anyway... lighter moments coming up soon. ❤ What do you think will happen next? I'll give you all a clue -- Swara's past will finally be revealed in a couple of chapters. And about Sanskar... woh tumlog hi jaano. 😉

Lots of love. ❤😘 Thank you so much to each one of you for reading!