But Aanchal shakes her head and says stupidly, ‘No, I want to know what happened.’
Randhir and Ramit glance at each other, the fire in their eyes slowly calming.
‘What happened?’ I ask.
They understand that Tejal is not here because of Aanchal, but Gaurav.
‘Fine.’
We trail behind them, my mind racing as I try to make sense of the events that have led us here. With every passing second, I become surer of what has happened to her. I had been on the receiving end of violent outbursts from Gaurav. This is one of those.
‘That bastard...’ mumbles Ramit angrily under his breath.
‘Jaan se maar dunga use,’ growls Randhir.
Each step seems harder than the last. I keep mumbling my prayers, cutting deals with God.Please don’t let it be what I think it is and I will give up everything. Please. Please. Please.Maybe it’s all a misunderstanding. Maybe Tejal and Gaurav just had a small argument and she slipped and fell. Bullshit, my mind calls out. Gaurav relapsed. That’s why we are here.
We step into the room and my heart sinks. I feel sick immediately. The pale-yellow walls seem to close in. When I see Tejal, my heart fucking bursts.No.Tejal is lying on the bed, limp, half-dead. Her forehead disfigured by deep stitches and her body bound in a blood-soaked brace. Her face is unrecognizable, swollen and bruised. The sedation has left her lips slightly parted.
‘What happened?’ Aanchal’s voice trembles with shock.
‘Gaurav,’ Ramit replies grimly, unable to look into her eyes.
Randhir continues, ‘Tejal discovered his drugs in the bathroom. She tried to stop him and Gaurav hit her.’
Tears stream down Ramit’s eyes.
‘The police are on their way to pick him up,’ says Randhir.
Aanchal stumbles back in horror, her face pale with fear. I reach out for her before she collapses.
‘Come on,’ I plead desperately. ‘We have to go.’
Randhir and Ramit stand motionless as we leave.
Behind us, Randhir roars ferociously, ‘We want him in jail!Bohot ho gaya uska! Celebrity hoga saala ghar par!’
In the icy hospital hallway, Aanchal crumbles against me.
I mumble into her ears a feeble lie, ‘It’s going to be all right.’
We leave the hospital in silence, tears streaming down Aanchal’s face. An eerie silence follows us in the car, a paralysing fear gripping us both. My selfish thoughts turn to Gaurav and not Tejal, who lies beaten and bruised in that hospital room. Even then, my mind tries desperately to convince me that it will all blow over, he’ll be all right again soon.
It’s not Gaurav, it’s the drugs, I tell myself.
When we turn into our building, a police van waits at the gate. We take the longest lift ride of our lives before reaching her floor. Aanchal’s neighbours are huddled in front of her door like a horde of vultures and hyenas ready to feast on a fucking tragedy.
‘Gaurav! Gaurav! Open the door, Gaurav!’ We hear Aanchal’s Maa and Papa screaming from the inside.
It’s followed by loud thuds that echo through the hallways. Aanchal sprints towards her flat. I run after her, not knowing what awaits us behind that door. Terror courses through my veins. There are five policemen inside. They are not angry, butconcerned. They are staring at Gaurav’s room’s door which is bolted from the inside.
Two of them are outside the door, hitting it and trying to break it down with their shoulders. Aanchal’s Maa is huddled on the floor, her face buried in her hands, a wail escaping her mouth while her Papa kneels next to her, holding her hand and whispering desperately into her ear.
‘GAURAV!’ shouts Aanchal. ‘OPEN THE DOOR! IT’S ME!’
‘GAURAV!’ I shout. ‘IT’S ME! DAKSH! COME OUT!BHAI, KHOL DE DARWAZA!’
I attack the door along with the policemen.
