“Ab batao,” he said after they settled down with their juice glasses. While he had gone to fetch the juice, Nidhi had been thinking hard about what to tell him. But she could not make up her mind.

“Aap to mujhe interrogate karne lage,” she said.

“Aur main bahut achchha interrogator hoon. You can’t distract me!”

“Baat kuchh bhi nahin hai Dr. Ashutosh… well… aap challenge jeet gaye… Lekin main aapko aapke naam se nahin bula sakti…”

“Koi baat nahin. Main dubara challenge le sakta hoon. Aur zindagi bhar leta rah sakta hoon. I loved winning the challenge the way I did it,” he smiled meaninfully.

“You did?”

“Ummhmm. You didn’t?”

Nidhi gulped.

“We are talking like friends Nidhi. Please talk to me.”

“I… I just am not sure of how I behaved.”

“How did you behave?”

He only got a harder gulp and downcast eyes in reply. A small frown appeared on his forehead as he tried to think what was bothering her. And then it dawned upon him.

“Hmm… So, you are worried that you lost the challenge…”

“Nooo…”

“That you could not resist me and were tempted to the point of desperation…”

“Desperation…” she repeated the word in a small voice.

Ashutosh grinned, “You surprise me Dr. Nidhi Verma. You are a doctor and such a competent one. And you really think there is something wrong about being sexual?”

Nidhi gulped hard again. When he put it that way and spoke so rationally, her worries did seem ridiculous. Till now she was worried, even ashamed, about having behaved rather ungracefully and desperately under the influence of her hormones.

“You just know how to put things the right way.”

“Nidhi. You better start seeing things the right way. Because you have no idea how desperate I am to push all the boundaries with you.”

She blushed hard. Ashutosh took her juice glass from her and kept both their glasses on the side table. Then he turned back towards her, put his arms around and pulled her close to him. “Pagal ladki,” he mumbled, “But I love even your madness.”

She rested her head on his chest. “I love you.” There was some moisture in her eyes. But she blinked them back. They were the tears of happiness, but she did not want to worry him any further.

“Nidhi,” he spoke after a while.

“Hmm?”

“Shaadi kar lete hain?”

“Abhi?” That was sudden and Nidhi was surprised.

“Nahin,” he laughed, “Ek-aadh hafte mein.”

“Aise achanak?”

“Hospital mein sabko pata hi hai. Main to uski wajah se hi tumhari internship khatam hone tak rukna chahta tha. Lekin ab koi wajah nahin hai. Agar tumhein aitraaz na ho to…”

“Mujhe kyon aitraaz hoga? Aapko lagta hai ki main English movies waali dating kar rahi hoon itne dinon se?” she quipped drawing a laughter from him.

—

2 months later (Nidhi and Ashutosh are happily married)

“Suniye,” Nidhi was interrupted just after she had signed in the register at the reception and was making her way into the ward. Ashutosh had come to the hospital early in the morning to attend a complicated surgery.

“Yes?” she turned around to see a young girl, barely eighteen or nineteen, standing there. She looked pale, tired and almost sick.

“Dr. Ashutosh Mathur yahan kaam karte hain?” the girl asked in a strong Avadhi accent.

“Ji. Aap kaun?”

“Hamein unse milna hai. Bahut zaroori hai.”

“Woh to abhi surgery mein honge. Aapka naam?”

“Radhika.”

“Radhika Ji. Aap… Are… Kya hua?” Nidhi held her as she stumbled. She did not faint, but it was clear that she was unwell, “Aapki tabiyat kharaab hai? Main…”

“Nahin. Hum theek hain. Hamein bas Dr. Ashutosh se milna hai.”

“Dekhiye. Unhein der ho jayegi aane mein. Tab tak koi aur aapka check-up kar dega…”

“Madam. Hum bilkul theek hain. Bas thoda paani mil sakta hai kya?”

“Ek minute. Aap baithiye yahan,” Nidhi escorted her to a nearby bench and made her sit down. Then she asked a wardboy to get a glass of glucose water. She offered it to Radhika and it made her look visibly better.

“Bahut bahut dhanyawaad.”

“Aap kahan se aayi hai?”

“Hamara gaon yahan se thoda door hai…”

“Dr. Ashutosh ko kaise jaanti hain aap?”

“Ji. Ek chikitsa-shivir laga tha hamare gaon mein, koi teen saal pahle. Logon ka muft mein ilaaj ho raha tha.”

It took Nidhi a moment to realize that she was using the Hindi word for medical camp.

“Radhika Ji. Yahan par kai achchhe doctors hain. Aapko Dr. Ashutosh ka intezaar karne ki zaroorat nahin, apna check up karwane ke liye. Agar paison ki chinta hai to…”

“Nahin. Nahin. Hum apna ilaaj karwane nahin aaye hain. Hamein kuchh aur kaam hai.”

Nidhi was getting impatient and thought of letting the girl know that she was his wife and she could tell her whatever she wanted to tell Ashuotsh. But she controlled her impatience. That was one thing she had been trying to do these days to keep Ashutosh happy. Not that he ever said anything to her, but it definitely bothered him if she didn’t treat people with some patience.

“Theek hai. Main Dr. Ashutosh ke liye message chhod deti hoon. Woh jaise hi free honge, aapse mil lenge. Tab tak agar aapko koi problem ho to reception par kissi se bhi kahiyega ki Dr. Nidhi Verma ko bula dein. Ye mera naam hai. Theek hai?”

“Ji. Bahut-bahut dhanyawaad. Hum yahan intezaar karenge.”

—

Nidhi walked into Ashutosh’ cabin during a break and saw Radhika there. He had a frown on his face, as if trying to think very hard.

“Main baad mein aaun?” Nidhi asked.

“No. Come in Nidhi. Ye Radhika hain…”

“Main mil chuki hoon. Aapke alaawa kissi se checkup karwane ke liye taiyyar hi nahin ho rahi thi,” Nidhi gave a teasing smile to Ashutosh. But he remained serious.

“Radhika. Aap kahan ruki hain?” Ashutosh asked the girl.

“Ji. Ek dharmshaala hai…”

“Wahan koi phone hoga?”

“Phone to nahin hai Doctor sahab. Lekin aap hamein bata dijiye kab aana hai. Hum wapas aa kar aapse baat kar lenge.”

“Radhika. Main yahan ek doctor ki haisiyat se kaam karta hoon. Yahan aur logon ko kaam par rakhna mere haath mein nahin hai. Main aapko koi waada nahin kar sakta.”

Radhika looked disappointed, but didn’t give up.

“Hum ek-do din mein phir aayenge Doctor sahab,” she said and greeted him with folded hands before leaving.

“Kya hua?” she asked.

“Main iske gaon gaya tha kuchh saalon pahle. Hamare hospital ne free medical camps lagaye the kuchh gaon mein. Iske father mukhiya the gaon ke. Unke ghar par hi ruke the hum log. I remember her as a very lively and healthy child. Abhi bata rahi thi ki gaon mein kuchh problem hui hai aur iski family ko bhaagna pada. Yahan aa kar kuchh kaam dhoondh rahi hai. Strange turn of fate. Her family was very rich and strong in the village.”

“X-Ray unit mein kuchh vaccancies hain, I think. Abhi-abhi main wahan se aayi hoon. Woh log baat kar rahe the.”

“Par woh trained thode hi na hai?”

“Nahin. As far as I know technicians nahin chahiye unhein. More like helpers – bhaag-daud ka kaam karne waale log. Utna to kar legi.”

“Haan. Bata rahi thi ki Inter tak ki padhai bhi ki hai usne. Lekin… aise kissi ki sifarish…”

“It’s not a big deal Dr. Ashutosh. Koi aisi badee post thode hi na dilwa rahe hain usko, jo woh deserve nahin karti ho. Inter tak padhi hui hai, shayad over-qualified hi ho.”

“Hmm… Achchha. Suno. Dekho agar woh chali na gayi ho to rok lo. Abhi hi baat kar lete hain.”

“Main dekhti hoon.”

Nidhi found her on the bench, where she had made her sit earlier. Radhika hadn’t left and looked extremely dejected. As if this was her last hope. She brought her back. Ashutosh spoke to the hiring manager and she got the job.

—

To be continued

(P. S. Next part is really going to be the last part :D)