After The Rain

Chapter Twenty-One - Pandemonium

It's not the fear of losing them
that scares us,
it's that we have given them
so many of our pieces
that we fear losing
ourselves
when they are gone.

- Atticus Poetry (Love Her Wild)

~

A tensed silence prevailed after Akash’s words. Horrified faces stared at him while he himself seemed too shocked to move.

Anjali was the first one to recover.

“H—hos—hospital!” she breathed out, her movements frantic as she reached  out to grab the nearest person. “We need to go to the hospital!”

Her eyes followed the person she had grasped. She had the briefest glimpse of a familiar pair of brown eyes, caught the last remains of frozen incredulity in them before it was  replaced by a look she could not have deciphered, for her brother moved fast. He staggered backwards only one step before dashing down the front steps. His momentum woke the rest of the family. Gasping and shouting, they all made to follow.

Anjali settled herself quickly in the car with Chotte just as he revved the engine to life. Next to her, Nani and Mami were squeezed in—Mama-ji and NK Bhai were in the car behind them, having shouted over the chaos that they would be picking up the Guptas on their way.

Akash, who was sitting in front in the passenger’s seat, mumbled under his breath, his face pale, “Payal-ji…I have to tell her…I have to…” but his hands shook so badly that he couldn’t do anything but stare wide-mouthed at the number he was trying to dial.

The hospital was a short drive away from Shantivan and Chotte’s driving was so frantic that they had reached there in record time. Yet, the journey had seemed incredibly long to Anjali. Keeping her hand on her chest, she screwed her eyes shut in quick prayers. Meanwhile, her mind continued to conjure up horrible images, each worst than the last.

She shouldn’t have done it. She shouldn’t have told Khushi-ji to take the car with Mohan-ji whilst she waited for the next car which was a few more minutes away. She should have been the one there, not Khushi-ji.

“Hai Devi Maiya, raksha karna…” she murmured, her voice choked.

Chotte was out of the car before he had even properly parked, followed by Akash. Anjali had to stay behind for a couple of seconds to manage Nani who seemed to have been on the verge of fainting. Having convinced her to wait in the car with Mami, Anjali hurriedly followed her brothers.

She found them shouting at a couple of nurses and a doctor.

“What’s—what’s going on?” she asked, her heart in her throat. Akash extricated himself from the brawl whilst Chotte swore loudly and began dialing something on his phone.

“They’re saying the ambulance has not yet arrived,” informed Akash, breathless.

“They’re on their way. The accident site was a long way away but don’t worry, they’re with the medic and—” the doctor trailed off, for all of a sudden they heard the blaring of sirens. Anjali whirled around, wide-eyed whilst her brothers hurried towards the vehicle.

Chaos broke again. Nani and Mami had reached the ambulance at the same time as them. The door opened amidst the shouts of her family and the reassurances - and a couple of admonitions - from the hospital staff who were trying to keep the path to the hospital clear. Anjali watched with trembling hands as the paramedics came out, carrying the stretcher.

She had to stifle a sob when she saw Mohan-ji—his hand bent at a strange angle, his leg bleeding profusely and his forehead a nasty color of purple. He was thankfully conscious, albeit groaning and writhing in pain. He froze when he caught the sight of his visitors and sobbed, his words barely comprehensible.