Malhotra's Clinic, Mumbai
Chandini felt a throbbing ache radiating all over her body, especially to the left of her midriff. She made an attempt to touch the area of discomfort with her hands; a sharp pain erupted from the back of her left hand while her right hand appeared to be weighed down by something heavy.
She groaned at the unexpected soreness she experienced and the stiffness in her limbs only seemed to escalate after her unsuccessful attempt to get them to move.
She made another effort and this time her right hand seemed lighter and she caressed her digits across the bandage that protected the cut. She winced in pain again and her eyes closed tighter.
She heard a sudden movement beside her and pried open first one eye and then the other to ascertain the source of noise.
She was hit by the afternoon sunlight streaming through the window and had to blink a few times to adjust to the lighting.
Where was she? She wondered, confused. She glanced around to take stock of her surroundings and from the sterilised look of the room she figured she was in a hospital room.
And all at once the events of the day came crashing around her and Chandini just squeezed her eyes shut to absorb the impact of it. She realised that she felt a lot safer at present than she did the former half of the day, but wondered how she got there. She realised she was not alone and the noise that she sensed earlier came closer. She opened her eyes and tilted her head to catch a glimpse of the looming figure.
Her eyes rounded in shock and she gasped when she found her husband leaning over the cot with concern written all over his face. His hand was raised as if to cup her cheek and this got her mighty confused. She must have sported a quizzical look cause the next moment there was no trace of it on his face.
He stepped away and murmured, "I'll go fetch the doctor. Give me a moment." And hurried out of the room.
Chandini was still in a state of confusion, observing her husband's strange behaviour. She realised that she was too exhausted to scrutinise it right now and tried to take a deep breath to calm herself.
Her mind transported her again to the dreadful incident that occurred earlier. A chill went down her spine when she recalled that someone deliberately instigated the stampede. Why would someone do that? She pondered. Was it possible that her intuition of being followed by a stalker real? And if it was indeed true, was it that someone who irked the crowd?
She was terrified thinking about the possibility and her whole body convulsed painfully just imagining it. She was somehow saved from exploring further when the door to the room opened and an old man with a stethoscope around his neck approached her, with Advay following him close behind.
"Ah...So I finally get to meet THE Mrs. Advay Singh Raizada in full form!", he spoke, with a warm smile spread across his face. "I'm Dr. Malhotra, Advay's family physician. Good to meet you, young lady; although I would have chosen better circumstances to get acquainted." He winked and extended his hand to greet her.
She shook his hand shyly and introduced herself, her voice sounding hoarse, "I'm Chandini and it's nice to meet you too, doctor."
"Before I examine you, can you put my curiosity to rest, my dear?" He asked, making Chandini frown a bit. "Oh, it is nothing, don't worry! I just wanted to know something. Advay is such an angry young man all the time, how in hell did you fall for such a brooding chap?" , he asked, laughing loudly.
