Chapter 8 (End)
Riya's POV
Josh is recovering fast and now he can almost walk without any difficulties. I think between these 2 months, we have got very much closer to each other. I don't know if he has started to see me as more than a friend or not, but in these two months, I'm pretty sure that I'll never stop loving him. When I stayed five years away from him, I thought I'd be able to move on from him, but I could never do that.
It was almost 1:30 am and I was just on my way to see how my patients were doing. Actually, I was on a night shift. I saw someone, coming out of Josh's room. The body looked famine, so I considered it to be a girl but why was she hiding her face? Before I could go and check on Josh, I got some emergency calls and I had to attend them.
The next morning I went to check on Josh.
"Hey, what are you looking at?", I said as I entered his room and saw him staring through the window. He doesn't need a wheelchair anymore.
"Nothing much, I was just seeing the outside world", he said.
While we were talking I saw a pink flower near beside his bed. It looked like someone had just given him. The flowers looked fresh.
"Who gave you this flower?", I asked Josh.
"I don't know. I have been receiving this pink flower since the day I woke up from the comma. I don't know who keeps this every day and why that person does it. But one thing I know is that I feel like someone is waiting for me and has been longing for me for a long time. You know when I woke up from my coma, I heard about my mother's death and the doctors said it would be hard for me to walk again. That time my whole world seemed to get into the darkness. Then you came and made me happier, my world seemed to be much brighter. But when you weren't there, it was this flower which shone in my darkness. It gave me a certain feeling that I had to see the next day because I knew someone would keep the flowers again for me. So like this, I continued living, and then eventually you came and now I'm smiling again", he said looking at those flowers.
"He has been receiving flowers since the day he woke up from comma, and he doesn't know who keeps the flowers every day. Could that someone be that unknown girl? Who could be that lady? And what's his connection with Josh?", I thought in my mind.
"Hey...where are you so lost?", he laughed.
"Ah...nothing. I'm just tired, I had a night shift. I'll go home and take a rest. I'll see you by evening ", I said.
"Okay, take a good rest. I'll be waiting for you", he smiled. When he smiled at me, I felt so happy. It's good to know the fact that the person you love the most is waiting for you. But somehow, I felt some easiness. I felt like something would take him away from me. That time his smile gave me comfort, yet I felt some uneasiness in me.
It was almost 2 am. I don't have a night shift today, but I took my friend's turn and stayed at the hospital. Something is very suspicious. I am pretty much sure that that lady would come again.
While waiting for that lady, I didn't know how I fell asleep. But when I woke up, I directly went to check on Josh. And as expected, the lady was there in his room. I secretly kept an eye on her through the partially opened door.
That lady looked at Josh who was sleeping soundly for like 5 minutes. Before leaving, she slowly caressed his hands and kissed his forehead. That instant, I knew she would be now coming out, so I ran to that same spot and pretended to be asleep.
I heard her footsteps passing me. After that, I followed wherever she went. I think she sensed that someone was following her, so she started running. Then I couldn't hold any longer and just started running behind her.
"Hey, can you stop running? You cannot run away from me. Hey...", I shouted as I ran behind her.
At last, I caught her near the reception bank.
"Hey who the hell are you and what were you doing in Josh's room?", I pulled over her scarf and I was shocked to see that lady.
"An...Anna?", I stammered as I finally saw the face.
She didn't say anything but look at me with her tearful eyes.
"Madam, can I leave today? My daughter is sick", one of the nurses asked.
"Hmm sure", I said.
"Do you know this lady?", The nurse asked.
"You know her", I asked the nurse.
Anna held her hands and just shook her head indicating the nurse to deny the fact that they knew each other.
"Just tell me the truth. I can make a negative profile of yours to the director, I hope you know that I have the power", I said to the nurse so that she could speak out the truth.
"I'm sorry madam, I have to speak the truth", she said to Anna.
"Actually, she has been here all the time when Mr. Josh was in coma. Whenever his father left after coming in the morning, she would come and sit next to him all day. And she would silently leave when his dad or the relatives would come. After that when Mr.Josh woke up from his 6 months of coma, she didn't come but would always leave a flower for him every day. She told me not to tell this to him or anyone", the nurse said.
"You can leave", I said as I sighed.
Anna's POV
"So you were the one who kept those pink flowers in his room for the past 8 months huh!", Riya asked me as she handed me a cup of coffee. We were seated on the bench near the hospital area.
"Hmm, I dared not show myself in front of him. I was afraid his condition would only worsen", I said.
"But why did you just leave him? Couldn't you fight for your own love? He said you left him for another guy, he said you loved him only for the money. But I don't believe that. I could see that you really loved him not for his money but for who he was. If I didn't see that, I wouldn't have left him with you. I would have fought. I know you are not a gold digger. So what's the matter?", she asked.
And when I heard those words from her, I had tears in my eyes. I was deeply touched. She is still that kind and cool girl Riya I knew before. No wonder Josh considers her as the best woman in his life.
"Thank you so much Riya for trusting me. I wish you were there all the time", I said and cried.
"Hey...can you stop crying? You know that you look ugly when you cry. Huh, don't cry...I don't know how to console people", she frowned and I laughed slightly before crying out loud again in her arms.
2 years ago.
Josh's mom is just opposite to how Josh is. He is warm and gentle, he cares about people's feelings. But his mother is as cruel and is as hard. She doesn't care about how other people would feel unless she gets what she wants. She locked Josh in his room and now it's almost a month.
She made my life a living hell. She would always pressure me to break up with him and she even went to the extent of firing my sister-in-law who was working as an assistant manager in her hotel. Still, then, I didn't give up.
But one day, my niece fell severely ill. There was a tumor in her abdomen. We had to admit her to the hospital. My sister-in-law was unemployed, and my brother's whole earnings fell short for the operation. We didn't know what to do. I worked overnight in different works, while my brother was taking care of his daughter.
Then his mother came and offered me a deal.
"I will help you financially with your niece's health. I will even make sure your sister-in-law gets her job back. But you have to leave my son alone. You have to break up with him", she said.
That time, I had to choose between the love of my life and the life of my niece. And I chose my niece's life. I was helpless, and I had no choice but to leave him.
"Please save my niece's life", I fell on the ground as I cried.
"You have made a good decision. Now you have to leave this country too. I'll make everything ready for you in Australia. You'll have a good job and you'll live a problem-free life there. But you have to be away from my son", she said.
"Madam, I promise I will break up with him. But please don't tell me to go to another place. I promise you that I'll never show myself in front of him nor will I ever go near him. Please let me at least see him from behind, at least from afar", I pleaded to her.
"Okay, but make sure you make him hate you. Make him hate you so much that even if he sees you, he feels disgusted", she said and left.
Back To Present
Riya's POV
"And that's it. I had to leave him to save my niece's life. But there wasn't even a single day, where I never thought of him. I secretly watched him every day. Just seeing him from afar is enough for me and I can continue living just like this", she said as she wiped her tears.
After listening to her, I didn't know how I should react. At some point I felt sorry for her, at some point, I had a great respect for her for being so courageous and enduring all this pain, at some point I despised Josh's mother for building a wall between them and at some point, I hated myself for not being there when they needed me. Only if I had been there, it wouldn't have ended that way.
"I know you love him a lot. But I love him too. I loved him before you, I loved him for so long. I thought I would stop loving him if I went away from him, but I couldn't. Let me be selfish for just this once. Can you please give him to me? Please, Anna. I never asked you for anything, but today can I ask you for something? Can you please give him to me?", I said as I cried.
........
Riya's POV
"Hey, you'll be discharged tomorrow. Aren't you excited?", I asked Josh.
"I am excited, but we'll not meet regularly anymore. So I'm not that happy", he said and I smiled.
"Umm let's go and take some walk around the hospital area. It is a season of spring and the whole place looks just so refreshing", I said and we headed outside.
I have always loved the season of spring. It brings out a new hope in me that I can always start a new life, a life that I want. And I'm just so glad, I have Josh beside me in my spring. And I hope he'll be with me in every season.
"Josh, can I ask you something?", I asked.
"Sure", he patted my head.
"What is your perspective of the word Love?", I asked. I thought it was the right moment to ask him. The weather was nice, the pink petals of peach flowers were blowing around the place while the wind blew. The scenario was perfect.
"You really want me to answer that?", He asked as he gently removed the petals from my hair and put a few strands of my hair behind my ears.
"Umm...I want to know", I smiled at him.
"Well, I think love is a feeling when you know that she is the one, even though you may not possibly end with her. You know that you'll probably be hurt, but still, then you want to try it. It is something that happens only once in a lifetime. We only live once, and we only love one person in that life. Even if it's not forever, it's always", he said.
I was taken aback when hearing his statement. Will he never be able to move on from Anna? Will he ever be able to love me?
"Hey, why are you so lost these days?", he slightly chuckled.
I know it will be hard for him to forget his first love, but he can always try, right? I know I'm being selfish, but I'm tired of giving up all the time. If he cannot give me her place, it's alright. I never really intend to take her place. Even if he could give me a small place in his heart, I would be happy. It would be more than enough. He will never give me that spot he has for Anna in his life, but I can always create my own place in his heart.
"But you can always give it a try, right?", I said to him.
"You want me to try new things?", he smiled.
"Hmmm...will you try to love me?", I said.
He remained silent for a while. His eyes were a little teary, but he had a smile on his face. His eyes and his smiles spoke all his emotions.
"Hmm... let's try together", he smiled and hugged me.
While he hugged me and said he would try to love me, I was happy but there was something inside me that didn't feel right. Was I making a good decision?
A part of me said I should at least let Josh know the truth. It said Josh deserved better.
But a part of me said, what about yourself? You love him too. You don't deserve any less than Anna. You already left him once for her. You should learn to be kind to yourself too.
And I chose to listen to the other part of me. I know I'm being selfish, but let me be selfish just for this once.
.......
Josh's POV
It was almost 11 pm when Riya went to her home. As she drove into the car, she waved me bye from the window. And I smiled and waved her back before walking inside the hospital.
Huh, this is the last night I'll be spending in this hospital. I have been here for 8 months and I have many memories here. I hated this place at the beginning but now that I'll be leaving, I think this place wasn't so bad.
"Huh, I'll miss this place", I sighed.
I went inside my room and packed my stuff since I'll be discharged tomorrow. After packing all the things, I sat on the bed and took those pink flowers in my hands. It looked like someone had just put these flowers a moment ago. It looked fresh.
I stared at the flowers for a long time and smiled.
"Huh, thank you for being there when I was almost losing hope in life. I wish I could thank you in person, but maybe it's not possible", I smiled.
"Thank you. Thank you, Anna. Thank you for everything. I will always love you", I said as I burst into tears.
The room was silent and dark. There was only the moonlight which lit that silent and dark room.
Last night: when Anna and Riya met.
I woke up in the middle of the night as I felt thirsty. It was almost 2.30 am. I couldn't go back to sleep so I just walked around the hospital.
While I was walking, I saw Riya talking with a nurse. I walked towards her. But then I couldn't take another step after what I just saw.
I saw my Anna. I was very angry at her to the extent that I didn't wanna see her. But after seeing her I just wanted to hug her. I hid behind a pillar and listened to their conversation.
I had tears in my eyes after knowing the whole truth. She loves me, she always did. Because of me and my mother, has to go through so many things. I wish I could have never left her. She was here all this time and I just couldn't see her.
I wanted to go and hug her, but one thing stopped me. Riya's one sentence stopped me.
"Hey, Anna. I know I'm being selfish here, but can you please leave him for me?", she said, and right that moment I stopped my feet.
"Huh?", Anna had tears in her eyes.
"I know you love him a lot. But I love him too. I loved him before you, I loved him for so long. I thought I would stop loving him if I went away from him, but I couldn't. Let me be selfish for just this once. Can you please give him to me? Please, Anna. I never asked you for anything, but today can I ask you for something? Can you please give him to me?", Riya cried.
Anna remained silent and hugged her.
After some time, she held her hands.
"Riya, I never intended to come in between you two. Even before 5 years ago and even now. I know you love him a lot, I can see it. And I know you can make him happier. I never came here to get him back in my life. I just wanted to see him for the last time before I finally leave him to you. I'm going to another city with my family. They already left. I just stayed here until he got better. But now that you are here, I can leave in peace. Please take care of him", she said and hugged her.
Back To Present
Riya has done a lot for both me and Anna. All this time she kept on loving me without expecting anything, she was there all the time when I needed her. She made me smile again.
And what did I do? I could never return her the love she deserved. I was never there when she needed me. I could only give her tears and nothing.
And this is the first time she has ever asked me for something. I can never forget Anna and I'll keep loving her. But I can always try my best to love Riya. She deserves so much better. And she wants me. I can at least give that to her. Everything is all messed up just because of me. Was I too selfish?
When I opened my eyes, I saw Riya beside me with a huge smile.
I looked at my watch and it was 8 am.
"When did you come here?", I asked.
"6 am", she said.
"You just kept watching me like this for 2 hours?", I was surprised.
"You could have woken me up", I rubbed my eyes.
"Emmm...you were soundly asleep so I didn't disturb you", she smiled.
I don't know why but I could see the pain in her smile.
"Are you okay?", I caressed her cheeks.
"Yes... I'm perfectly fine", she said.
"Let's go upstairs and lay down on the grass again. I want to do it before you leave", she said and dragged me up there immediately.
After lying down on the grass, we just stared at the sky and said nothing.
"Josh, I hope from today you can smile every day with the one you really love. I'm sorry, I was too selfish for a moment", she said.
"Hmm? What are you saying?", I asked as I half stood up.
"Hmm...huh", she sighed and smiled.
"Come, let's go. You'll understand very soon", she said and dragged me downstairs.
"What are you doing?", I asked as we were outside of the hospital.
"Huh, you know that I don't like it when people are too generous with me, right?", She said.
I was confused.
"Huh, you are still so stupid", she said.
"Can you see that girl?", She raised her eyes in the other direction. At first, I couldn't really identify the face as it was far. But as the figure approached nearer, the face became clearer. Tears welled up in my eyes as I saw Anna coming near me. As Anna stood right In Front of me with a smile and tearful eyes, I looked at Riya who was smiling at me.
Riya's POV
"Josh, I saw you secretly listening to our conversation that night. I'm sorry, I was carried away by my emotions for a while. I became too selfish for a moment. But since that moment, I couldn't look at myself in the mirror. I was somewhere drowning in my guilt. It felt suffocating and now I realize, I was wrong. I was wrong to think that I would be happy while keeping you in darkness. No matter how much I try, I cannot force someone to love me", I said with a sad smile.
"Riya... I'm sorry. I'm really sorry", Josh cried as he hugged me.
"Hey, can you stop hugging me for small reasons? It's already hard letting you go. Thank you so much Josh for trying your best to love me. But I cannot live in guilt my whole life. I'm thankful that I got to know you. We will always remain friends okay", I caressed his back.
"Now stop hugging me and hug this crybaby. Your girlfriend has been dying to hug you for so long", I said to him.
"Anna, I'm really sorry. Because of my mother...", he was finding it hard to speak
"It's okay, it's okay. I'm just happy enough that I can finally see you. Just be with me for all the time to come", she cried in his arms.
Huh, I can finally breathe now. I know I lost Josh for the 2nd time, but it's okay. I finally found myself back. Someone said if you really love someone...let them go. If they love you, they'll come back. Now I can relate to it. The only difference is, he'll probably never see me as more than just a friend. But it's okay, seeing him happy makes me happy, even though if it's not with me. Love is really a strange thing, right?
"Riya, thank you so much. Because of you, we are together again", Anna smiled.
"It's okay. Don't feel bad for me okay? You know I don't like it when people feel bad for me. It's like I'm losing my cool", I joked.
"Hey... I'll definitely get someone better than you. Someone who is more handsome and taller than you", I hit Josh's shoulder and he laughed slightly.
"Riya, you are really the best woman in my life. Thank you for being there", he smiled.
"Ah...eh...I know I know I'm great. Now you two can just go. You are finally discharged. Huh, it was so hard dealing with such a patient like you. Now that you are going, it's such a relief. Just go...I have so many patients in line waiting for me", I sighed and they laughed.
"Should we go", he said to Anna.
"Hmm, let's go home", she smiled and they finally went.
As I saw them going happily, I smiled with tearful eyes. They are finally happy and it's enough for me. Earlier I did say that I'll get someone better than him, but will I ever? Do I even want to find someone? As he said, we live only once and we love only one person in our lifetime. If it's not forever, then it's always. I don't know if I will ever love someone, but one thing I know is for sure that I can never forget him.
THE END!