Chapter-5 : The Medicine

Shashank does not know what to do. he thinks to go in Rosie flat to see that dead body. As it is very early morning around 5 A.M. he slowly goes at the door to open it but the fear of seeing a pregnant woman's death which could remind his mother does not give him that courage to see her and open the door. Then in anger to himself he bangs himself somewhere on the wall for two three times. He does not know what to do, then he remembers Steve, now he wants confess everything through Steve. Then he runs from his flat to Steve's medical store which is in the town, 1.5 km away from that haunted house. he takes shortcut through the way of jungle.

In the very early morning, when Steve is sleeping in his store gets disturbed from big bell rings at the door. He wakes up and when opens the door he sees the tired and scared. Then Steve gets surprise to see him there suddenly because he has told him not to get out of his flat until the share market scam case get resolved. Steve pulls him inside the room and also checks outside if somebody has seen him entering to his medical store.

Because Shashank has run almost 800m distance to come in medical store, he is breathing heavily before he could say something. His body is full of sweat. Steve feels that he is here to say something about his case. But when he hears what he says about his last night's incidence, he gets shocked and surprise.

Shashank Says all the story from the beginning of 3rd July to till 7th July. He explains that after the fight of 2nd July's night between them how He settled with Ryan next morning and how he made him to kill Rosie. He also explains that now he is feeling full guilty on what he has done which he should not have done. He even shares his mother's story with him and because of that his eyes have opened. And at last, he says that he wants confess himself Infront of law and takes all responsibility alone giving the same logic like his mother told him that he is only the responsible for the crime and no one. Not even Ryan who offered him fifty million to do that job.

Listening to all his things, Steve gets shock but as his friend he wants to save him because he feels that Ryan is more guilty on this, he should not have taken any advantage to the financial condition of Shashank. He feels that Ryan took advantage of Shashank and current poor economic condition. Then Steve tries to convinces him that he is not guilty and he was just manipulated at his weakest time.

Steve says, "now listen Shashank, you are not guilty alone in this case, as you explained you even tried to save her and that Ryan also should get punishment on this, so don't confess anything right now it's not right. He played with your mind, Let's wait until he returns back and then we will decide. Till then you have to again hide yourself. So, now you are going to stay in the secret room of this medical store.

Shashank still does not like to listen to him. He sticks in his thought that he wants to get punishment and wants to end his life getting the punishment for his sin and receive a forgive from his late mother. Steve tries a lot to convince him and makes him not to do that. however, at one point of time he is able to convince him by saying that at least he has to stay quiet until the cheque of 20 million given by Ryan is Cashed. He also says that if 20 million is cashed then at least using that money they can help to those family financially, who lost their money and closed one due to suicide in that share market scam case for which he is one of the responsible people. If it is done then his all sins will be washed away, then he can surrender himself to police to get forgive from his mother.

Shashank thinks that idea is better and says, "ok, that's good idea, until cheque is cashed, I won't surrender myself, I will be hiding myself in this secret room of this medical store, and why don't you go to my flat get that cheque before it get lost. I have kept that cheque inside novel called 'The Secret Hero' in page no:224."

Steve thinks to go his flat to find out facts. In order to do his personal investigation and get that cheque which according Shashank is right now in his room inside the page no 224 of Novel book. Before that he hides him in the secret store room of the medical store. Steve made that secret store room, under the ground of that medical store to hide himself from the people when he wanted to hide himself during his university exam or during some experiment works in medical practice and even sometimes, he used to keep some materials which sometimes required to hide from the people and sometimes even when he needs time for himself. So, no one knows about that secret room which was made in downstairs under the ground.

Steve now goes to Shashank's flat in that haunted old house. He sees all the room condition. He finds the bottle of sleeping tablet which is left with just 2 pieces out of 15 tablets. He keeps that bottle inside his pocket. Then he finds the Novel 'The Secret Hero', as told by Shashank. He turns to page no 224 where he has said that he kept the cheque of 50 million.

As soon as he turns the page his mobile rings. The call is from Shashank who is right now in the medical store, he called from the landline phone of the medical store. He called him to say that he just turned the TV and saw the news where that homeless guy who took his black jacket yesterday has been caught by police with all the jewelries and cash, because all the jewelries and cash were kept in the big pocket of same jacket and that jacket was later on taken by that Homeless guy. Shashank also says that the date in the computer is showing wrong date, instead 8th July it is showing 3rd July and because of that he could not update the internet in computer to watch the news so he had to open the TV.

Now Shashank asks him to run away from there as soon as possible police might be coming because that homeless guy will bring those police to defend himself. Steve gets surprise listening to that. He just grabs the things for what he came for and then leaves the flat and puts a lock from outside.

Then he proceeds to Rosie and Ryan's flat. Instead opening the door by himself, he presses on the ring of the flat. Then the door is opened by someone. And that someone is Ryan, who is standing with his sleepy eyes wearing his boxer and T-shirt.

Ryan, "ahh, you, what's up? why are you here, so early morning? We have paid all the rent on time?"

Steve, "I am not here, to collect the rent of this flat but here to say something about this Novel."

Ryan, "what rubbish? Don't you have any work? This is not the time to have fun, are you gone mad, is this even time to read Novel?"

Steve then says, "it's really urgent, I need to tell you about your neighbor Shashank, the one whom you fight with, yesterday."

Ryan, "are you gone mad, what happened to him, is he dead? And what about this Novel?"

After then he lets him in. When Steve gets inside the Flat, he also sees Rosie. Rosie is preparing herself to go for morning walk wearing her jogging attire and keeping the ear phone on her ears.

Steve is not surprised to see her alive and getting ready to go for jogging. Instead, he says, "hi Rosie, what's up?

Rosie, "Hay, how you doing? So early morning, I need to go, see ya"

Then doing little warm up she leaves the flat for her jogging in the fresh air. Steve gazes her sexy body flat stomach like an athlete he gazes her until she leaves the flat with little smile. Ryan gives gentle hit on his head to make him stop gazing at his wife. Ryan says, "you came early morning to see my wife's sexy body or to talk with me about that son of a bitch."

Then Shashank locks the door properly, sits and make Ryan sit in front of him in the dining table to explain everything. He starts by saying, "first, don't call him son of a bitch, he is not bitch he is a sick person."

Ryan gets surprise to listen why he is saying like that and why he wants to explain his things to him. Steve explains him he wants to say all these to him because the thing that he is going to explain him is connected to them as well.

He then explains all the story of Shashank, his childhood sad story of his pregnant mother and betrayer father and the psychological effect of that sad childhood incidence. His recent scandal in share market scam and reason behind living secretly and hiding himself since long time. He also says that how he has started going to mental depression after his girlfriend left him as he was being bankrupted and everything was lost from his life. Steve says that Shashank started taking the drugs but as a friend and supporter he started helping him to get out of mental depression and also helped him to hide until the case of share market scandal gets resolved.

Steve explains that Shashank gets more weaker everyday as he was having drugs, alcohol and was not having proper sleep. Being a medical student Steve gave him one medicine to which work as sleeping tablet as well as mental depression controller.

While explaining Steve takes out the bottle with just two table left in it and says, "this is a tablet called Citalopram, which contains Serotonin."

He explains the feature of the tablet that consuming the table with proper dose having proper food helps the people to get proper sleep, gives strength and controls the depression, but if the same medicine is overdosed than the effect can be very dangerous since there will be unnecessary supply of high-level Serotonin in our body. It affects in the functioning of brain, sleep walk, confusion, restlessness and hallucination. And if it is not controlled in time people can do suicide or may kill others too.

He comes to the point explaining that last night, Shashank after having small Quarrel and fight with Ryan he went to him and share the relationship status of them to him, the reason behind toxic relationship of the couple. Then later may be due to some reason he took half bottle of medicine at once and then he got sleep and saw a dream, the dose was so much that even after waking from that deep sleep in the morning he is believing and confused that whatever he saw and whatever he did in the dream is all real.

The surprised and curious Ryan asked, "what did he see in the dream?" Then, he describes everything what he has seen in the dream. He explains in the same manner as Shashank explained him. He explains, how Ryan went in his flat to offer him 20 million and convince him to kill his wife Rosie, and how he killed her and again seeing her being pregnant how his internal nice human got raised inside him and later on he ran to get help to save her but he slipped on the road and banged his head and one homeless guy came to help him but he helped him to get in his room then he took away all stolen jewelries and cash when he was unconscious. And in the morning, he was confused with his dream and reality and came to meet him to explain his dream as real incidence for him.

Listening to this story Ryan get serious and feel interested in his explanation. Now Steve explains one more important detail on this. He says that Shashank now wants to confess his crime and to be the part of the punishment alone because he thinks that he killed an innocent pregnant woman and made a big sin. So, he wants to wash away all his sin by confessing himself alone in front of law.

Ryan interrupts, "But why he wanted to do so, yes I agree it was his dream, nothing is true. His brain is still in the state of dream but from his angle these things exist then why he want to confess it alone, he could blame me, is he that much psycho even in the state of dream? or this is also the effect high level of Serotonin?"

To clear this Steve explains, Shashank's real story of his father and mother's story. His father killed his mother for third lady and ran aways and may be those things are reflecting in his story. He thinks that his father was guilty person who killed his six-month pregnant mother and never got punished. Now he wants to punish himself who did the similar pattern crime killing an innocent pregnant woman like her mother. Steve adds that he wanted to confess the crime because he even hallucinated his mother who came and said she would never forgive him for killing the innocent pregnant Rosie until and unless he confesses his crime and get punishment for his sin.

He says more interesting facts that he has been affected from this dream so much that, today is 8th July. but he thinks that he has already passed 7 days in his dream from 2nd July night after he slept, while in real it's just 3rd July morning today. According to him, he killed Rosie on 7th July night when there was heavy rain fall and Ryan is right now in Bangkok as a part of the plan. But in reality, there is not even a sign of single drop of the rain.

He says "he has been affected so much that today, when I was searching in his flat, I got call from him he said that that homeless guy who took his jacket with jewelries and cash has been caught by police and he knew this news from the TV that I have kept in my store."

Ryan, "what, but you said he met that homeless guy also in the dream, which is fictional and how did he see him in the TV?"

Steve, "yes, it's true he met him in the dream, but the news he saw is not real because that is again hallucination because my TV has been out of order in the last two weeks."

Ryan, "meaning he is hallucinating everywhere, but I did not understand what about this Novel you brought 'The secret hero', what is the relation between this case and this Novel."

Steve says, "yes there is a great relation, Shashank has habit of reading fictional Novel like this, and whatever dream he saw, whatever he did in the dream is somehow inspired from this Novel, he told me to find the cheque in page no 224 and when I read the page no 224 in that page the Black mask hero kills one lady exactly in the same way like he killed Rosie in the dream."

Ryan, "but how?"

Steve, "this novel is about one hero, who wears black dress and hides himself in a leather mask, kill some rich corrupted people, get their money and give it to poor people and becomes their secret hero and to whom police can never catch him. So, in his dream that black dress masked hero is himself, rich people is your wife and the poor people is that homeless guy."

Steve also explains the fact of people's dream that our dreams depend on either what we experience or what we see, what we feel, our past or what we read, which have great impact in our life. In the case of Shashank same thing has happened. Many factors of his life experiences are responsible for what he saw and last night in his dream.

After saying all the things Shashank tells him that he told all these things to him because Shashank might behave him different way and just not to get in confusion and that he is right now just a sick person, but not a psycho which can create a problem between them. His treatment will be done as soon as possible and says that in the name of humanity they must help him to get out of such mental illness which right now he is going through. Ryan does not say anything on his request just lost in his thinking. Steve then thinks to leave there and says that he came there to inform him about all these and says that he has to go to open his medical store.

Steve, "Okay, bye Ryan, see you later, I will inform about this to Rosie as well."

Ryan does not react to his bye; he is still lost inside his thought. Steve thinks that may be because of such socking story he is thinking about it and lost somewhere.

Steve, "isn't it so shocking? Human brain is such a complicated thing in this universe."

Steve then leaves as he get near to the door, Ryan calls him by saying, "hey Steve? Stop." Steve turns back listening to his sudden call. Ryan asks him what is he going to do with him. Steve replies that it's simple that he has to be counselled and also has to be given some therapy and will understand that everything was his only a dream. And for that he has also invited one therapist whose name is

Dr. Edward. He also mentions that everything has to be done with process, if suddenly it is told to him then it might harm his brain and psychology which could be serious problem later on.

Then Ryan says, "I have one more solution to this problem."

Steve, "solution? What solution?"

Ryan asks him to sit again and tell him that he has thought about new idea. He says that if he wants to confess his crime to wash his sin then let him do whatever he likes, don't stop him, and firstly cancel your appointment with Dr Edward".

Ryan says, "let's not tell him any truth, let him believe that it was not his dream but reality"

Steve, "But why? he needs a help"

Ryan, "he needs help that's why I will make his dream comes true."

Steve shockingly, "what? you mean, you will kill Rosie in real and get her all property."

Ryan, "yes, just don't stop him from confessing his crime, though it was in his dream, but idea is not bad that after killing Rosie everything will be mine."

Steve hesitates to do that and say, "what are you talking, this is not right, it's sin and think about humanity, you don' t knows even in the case of Share Market Scam he is very much innocent, some bad people trapped him in it, now how can we also be like that, that also with my own closed brother like friend who had helped me a lot in my difficult days."

Ryan then shows a greed of money to him, "twenty million, for this job I will give you that 20 million which I gave Shashank in his dream, I will be giving you in real."

Listening to 20 million, Steve gets into thinking and stop his words, he forgets everything. His thought of humanity falls down in front of that 20 million offer.

Ryan, "what happen now? I am serious I will be giving you that 20 million in real and just forget about everything, your dream of opening your own big clinic and medical store will become true and you don't have to work under anyone entire your life, what do you say?"

With two heart decision, the fight between his inner white angel and black devil, the black devil wins and he agrees to support him. Ryan tells him that according to the dream the murder has happened in 7th July, so he says that he will murder Rosie on 7th July in the same way as it was done in his dream and described in that Novel- 'the secret Hero' in page no 224. Steve also says that now he will be not telling anything, instead he will make him believe that he murdered and make him prepared to confess his crime on 8th July and surrender himself in front of law.

After that Steve and Ryan join their hands as the final deal is done between them. Then Steve leave from there with his new plan with Ryan.