C42 The Uneasy Quiet

Arjun ran down the uneven hospital steps with the crumpled prescription paper still clenched in his hand. The early morning air was cold and damp, and the sky was just beginning to lighten behind the hills. The hospital compound was quiet except for a few stray dogs wandering near the gate.

He looked around until he spotted a small pharmacy shop across the road with its shutter half open.

The shopkeeper, an old man with thick glasses, looked up as Arjun entered.

“Emergency medicines,” Arjun said quickly, handing over the list.

The man scanned it slowly.

“Hmm… IV fluids… antibiotics… injections…”

He began gathering the medicines one by one from the shelves.

While waiting, Arjun stepped outside the shop and leaned against a pillar. His eyes wandered across the road absentmindedly.

That was when he noticed them.

Three men stood near a parked motorcycle a little distance away from the hospital gate. Their conversation was quiet and tense. One of them pulled something small from his pocket while another quickly handed him a bundle of money.

The exchange happened fast.

Too fast.

Arjun narrowed his eyes slightly.

Something about this looks wrong.

One of the men glanced around cautiously before slipping the object into his jacket.

Arjun exhaled slowly.

Not my business.

He reminded himself of that firmly.

Right now the only thing that mattered was Aisha lying unconscious in that hospital room.

The pharmacist called out from inside.

“Your medicines are ready.”

Arjun grabbed the packet, paid quickly, and walked back toward the hospital.

Still, the uneasy feeling sat heavy in his chest.

Something about those men didn’t feel right.

But he forced the thought aside.

Aisha first.

Inside the emergency ward the nurses had already started her IV drip. Clear fluid slowly moved through the tube into her arm.

She looked much better now.

Her breathing was steady, and the pale color had slightly returned to her face.

Arjun placed the medicines on the counter and watched the nurse prepare the injections.

Then he quietly pulled a small stool beside her bed and sat down.

For the first time since morning, he allowed himself to breathe normally.

“You scared me,” he muttered softly, looking at her sleeping face.

Her hair had fallen messily over the pillow, and the hospital blanket was loosely tucked around her.

She looked fragile.

Completely different from the stubborn girl who had gulped down half his milkshake just to prove a point.

A few hours passed slowly.

At one point Arjun stepped outside the hospital again to clear his head. He leaned against the wall and lit a cigarette.

The smoke curled slowly into the morning air.

His mind drifted back to those men.

Almost as if summoned by the thought, he saw them again.

This time they stood closer to the parking area near the side of the hospital building.

One of them passed another small packet while the second man handed him money.

The same quick exchange.

The same cautious glances around.

Arjun watched them for a moment through the cigarette smoke.

His instincts were screaming that something was wrong.

But he shook his head.

You’re not here as a soldier.

Right now he was just a man taking care of someone important.

He dropped the cigarette and crushed it under his shoe before heading back inside.

When he returned to the ward he pulled the stool beside Aisha’s bed again.

The IV drip continued slowly.

She slept quietly.

Her face already looked healthier.

Arjun picked up an apple from the fruit basket someone had left on the side table and began slicing it carefully with a small knife.

He sprinkled a little salt over the slices.

A few minutes later Aisha stirred.

Her eyes slowly opened.

For a moment she looked confused, trying to understand where she was.

Then she noticed Arjun sitting beside her calmly cutting apple slices.

He looked up and smiled.

“Good morning.”

Before she could say anything he picked up a slice and held it near her mouth.

“Open your mouth.”

Still half disoriented, she did.

He placed the apple slice in her mouth.

Aisha blinked in confusion while chewing.

“What… happened?” she asked weakly.

Arjun leaned back slightly on the stool.

“You fainted.”

Her eyes widened.

“I did?”

He nodded.

“You came out of the bathroom looking like you’d fought a war. Then you collapsed.”

Aisha immediately tried to sit up but he gently stopped her.

“Relax.”

She looked around the hospital room.

“You brought me here?”

“Carried you,” he corrected casually.

Her expression changed to slight panic.

“Oh my god… did I create trouble? Did the interns see? What did you do?”

Arjun chuckled softly.

“I picked you up, put you in the jeep, drove here, and ran inside carrying you like some dramatic movie hero.”

She covered her face with one hand.

“This is embarrassing.”

“You were unconscious,” he said. “You don’t get to be embarrassed.”

She sighed.

Then looked at the IV drip connected to her arm.

“Severe dehydration,” he added calmly. “Doctor said you lost too much fluid.”

Aisha groaned softly.

“The milkshake.”

Arjun gave her a look.

“The milkshake.”

She slowly looked at him.

“…You were right.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“I know.”

She leaned back against the pillow, looking tired but calmer now.

After a moment she looked at him again.

“You stayed here the whole time?”

“Where else would I go?”

She didn’t reply.

But a small, grateful smile appeared on her face.

Arjun quietly handed her another apple slice.

“Eat,” he said.

And for a moment the hospital room felt strangely peaceful.