Chapter - 24
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I changed three times.
Not because I had to but because my brain absolutely refused to cooperate.
Every time I pulled on fresh clothes, my mind replayed the same two seconds on a loop. His hand at my waist, the ease with which he lifted me and the damn way he had already stepped back before I could say anything unnecessary.
By the time I finally settled on a yellow kurti with white palazzo pants and tied my hair up, I was irritated with myself more than anything else.
Get a grip, Parthvi.
"Itni bhookh lagi hai." I said to myself because there was no one in the room and decided to make my way to the dining room for breakfast.
I was halfway down the way when I forgot the turn I had to take so I asked a few attendants walking around and with their help, I was finally right outside the dining room and I could already hear Ishaan telling something to Pankhuri.
I took a few steps inside and found out that only Pankhuri, Ishaan and Adhiraj uncle were present there.
"Come on, Parthvi. It's just us here this morning. Ranaji and Yuvaan had an important meeting so they left to the office wing just a while back." Pankhuri said, and I gave her an understanding nod before I decided to sit right next to Adhiraj uncle.
"Aaj aapko mai khila doon, uncle?" I asked him softly, looking at him, waiting for him to respond to me in the way he can.
I was awarded with one blink and a very, very light twitch of the lip in what I assume was a smile.
I smiled back before turning my chair slightly towards him, taking a spoon. The cooks had prepared milk daliya for him today.
I scooped a little daliya onto the spoon and brought it close to his lips.
He opened his mouth just enough, slow but cooperative. I waited, patient, until he swallowed before moving the spoon away.
"Very good, uncle." I murmured, like one does with children, and then immediately felt silly about it. But he didn't seem to mind. If anything, his eyes stayed on my face, steady and calm.
I fed him another spoonful.
Ishaan had climbed onto the chair opposite us, legs swinging wildly. "Daadusa eats very slowly." he announced.
"That's okay," I said. "Hum dono bhi slow hi khaate hain Ishaan."
Pankhuri smiled from her place, watching us over the rim of her cup and gave me a small nod as I looked at her.
After a few spoonfuls, Adhiraj uncle's gaze drifted to my plate, still untouched.
"Main baad mein kha lungi." I said quickly, anticipating his question. "Pehele aap."
He blinked once again.
By the time I finished feeding him, the bowl was almost empty and I wiped his lips carefully with a napkin.
"Will someone take uncle back to his room?" I asked Pankhuri.
"Not yet, he likes to sit here until everyone is done eating and then usually Yuvaan or Ranaji take him out to the lawn for sometime before leaving for work." She replied.
I nodded.
"Okay, uncle! Let me quickly finish my breakfast and then Pankhuri, Ishaan and I will take you to the lawn where we can sit and chill! It's such a beautiful day outside." I said, looking at the three of them and I found agreement everywhere.
I finally turned to my plate and realised just how hungry I actually was. I ate, not rushing but not playing with my food either, aware of Ishaan narrating something dramatic about rabbits to Pankhuri in between bites.
"Pri, the brown rabbit is faster." he informed me seriously.
"It is!" I agreed with him.
He giggled, milk nearly spilling from his glass before Pankhuri caught it just in time.
Once we were done, an attendant came to clear the table. I stood up first and moved behind Adhiraj uncle's wheelchair, my hands resting lightly on the handles.
"Chalein?" I asked him.
He blinked once.
Yes.
We moved slowly toward the lawn, Pankhuri walking beside me, Ishaan darting ahead and then coming back to tell us how slow we were before running ahead again.
The winter sun felt really, really good today and the grass was still glistening with a little dew as
I parked the wheelchair near the shaded bench and crouched slightly in front of Adhiraj uncle. "Yahan theek hai?"
Another blink.
I smiled.
Pankhuri sat down, pulling Ishaan onto her lap when he tried to climb the armrest instead. I stood there for a moment, unsure what to do with myself, until Ishaan looked up at me.
"Pri, tum bhi baitho."
She hummed in response, eyes still closed.
"Maine notice kiya hai... I've never really seen anyone make uncle exercise. Physio, ya even simple movements." I paused, choosing my words. "Is there a reason?"
She opened her eyes then and looked at her father for a second before answering.
"He just refuses." she said simply.
I frowned a little. "Refuses?"
She nodded. "Completely. Ranaji tried first with proper doctors, routines and fixed timings. Yuvaan tried after that with a more gentler and different approach. Even I tried." She sadly smiled faintly. "Sab ne try kiya."
"And?" I asked, already guessing the answer.
"And every time," she shrugged, "he just... doesn't cooperate. He won't move. Won't lift his hand. Won't follow instructions. Jaise decide kar liya ho ki theek hone ka try tak nahi karna hai."
I looked back at Adhiraj uncle who was now looking in a distance and not at any of us, his expressions hardening.
"Doctors say physically trying would help," she continued. "But you can't force someone when the resistance isn't in the body but in the mind."
I nodded slowly. That made sense.
Adhiraj uncle's gaze stayed fixed somewhere far ahead, jaw set just a little tighter than before. Not angry, just closed. Like a door that had been shut a long time ago and had forgotten what being open felt like.
I didn't look at him directly. Instead, I leaned back slightly on the bench, stretching my legs out, letting the warmth of the sun sink into my skin.
"I think," I said lightly, almost casually, "it must get exhausting when everyone keeps telling you what you should do."
She nodded once at me and no one said anything after that, except for Ishaan who was now running around us, occasionally giving Adhiraj uncle a hug.
I owed it to him and this family to at least try to talk to him to get better but that was not going to happen so suddenly.
I had to make some space for myself to achieve that but for now, this felt peaceful.
The meeting was about land records.
Two files were open in front of me. One was from the district office regarding the transfer of agricultural land near the eastern boundary and the other was a proposal from the trust about leasing palace owned land for a school extension.
One of the vertical leads was explaining numbers. I stopped him once to ask about the lease duration, he answered and I told him to reduce it by five years and add a review clause. He noted it down.
I signed the first file and pushed it aside.
While reading the second one, my pen paused.
My thoughts went to the morning.
I remembered finishing my run and looking up. She was on the balcony, wrapped in a blanket and standing still. When she saw me, she reacted instantly and turned to walk inside, like she had been caught stealing something.
I turned a page in the file.
Then the fountain came back to me.
Ishaan slipping, Parthvi trying to hold him and both of them in the water. Her sitting there trying not to make it a scene. Everyone laughing except her.
Her hair was plastered to her face and neck, water dripping from the edge of her sweater. She felt light when I lifted her out, lighter than I had expected.
I tightened my grip on the pen without realising and that brought my attention back.
The clause about maintenance costs needed correction. I crossed out a line and rewrote it.
This was work and needed my complete attention.
I signed the file and handed it back.
"Send this back after the changes." I said.
And I did not let my thoughts wander again.
The day ended later than planned and by the time I left the office wing, everyone had left.
I was walking back when I saw Parthvi.
She was standing near a junction of corridors, completely still for a second, as if concentrating very hard. Then she took a step to the left, stopped, frowned, turned around and walked two steps back. She muttered something under her breath, clearly unhappy.
I slowed without meaning to.
She sighed, clearly irritated and ran a hand through her hair. Then she looked up at the ceiling as if it might offer answers.
The corner of my mouth lifted before I realised it. She had lost her way.
She looked small there, surrounded by the long corridor, annoyed and lost and very much herself.
I walked toward her.
She did not notice me until I was close.
"Parthvi."
She startled slightly and turned around.
"Oh." She let out a breath. "Thank God."
I waited.
"I swear this place changes its routes every time I walk." she said, frustrated. "I've taken this turn twice already. Am I at Hogwarts?"
"No, you are not in Hogwarts. You just went the wrong way." I said calmly.
She looked at me, then glanced behind her. "Of course I did."
"Chaliye mere saath." I said.
I turned before she could overthink it. A second later, her footsteps followed mine and we walked in silence once again.
I turned my head to see her but found her fidgeting with her phone, looking down.
"Aap kisi ke phone ka wait kar rahi hain?" I found myself asking her.
"Haan, mumma ka. Maine call kiya tha but shaayad busy thi toh receive nahi kar paayi." she replied, her eyes finding mine once and I nodded.
I stopped walking.
"Parthvi," I said, not loud.
She looked up at me, eyebrows drawn together slightly.
"Haan?" she asked, her voice low.
I did not answer right away.
My gaze dropped, just briefly, to my sleeve.
She followed it without thinking.
Her hand was still there.
Her fingers loosened slowly, like her body needed a second longer than her mind to catch up. Then she pulled back at once.
"Oh." she said, flustered. "I....I'm sorry. I did not even realise."
"Kya hua?" I asked. "Dar gayi aap?"
She straightened immediately.
"Nahi," she said quickly. "Bilkul nahi."
"Achha, toh phir chalte waqt aap aisehi logon ka haath pakad leti hain?" I raised a brow at her.
The most beautiful shade of red adorned her cheeks then and I could not take my eyes off her.
"No....." she said. "That was... woh bas..."
She exhaled, clearly flustered. "Ishaan told me that there is a ghost here."
I waited.
"A very old one," she added, defensive now. "White clothes, long hair and cries at night. Lives somewhere near an old well."
I let out a short laugh before I could stop myself, hearing her words.
She frowned. "Aapko hansi aa rahi hai mujh pe?"
"Bilkul nahi. Mujhe Ishaan par hansi aa rahi hai." I said.
"That's not funny." she said, offended.
"He told Yuvaan last month that a ghost lives in the store room," I replied. "Before that, it was the garage."
She hesitated. "So nothing?"
"Nothing."
She nodded, relief slipping through.
"Aap Ishaan ki kahani ko sach maan baithi?" I asked, looking at her again.
"Ranaji, bhoot hote hain. Ek baar mai apne friends ke saath....." She started but stopped mid sentence, looking away.
She paused for half a second, her hand still near the handle, then pulled back slightly and looked at me before looking away again.
I opened the door instead of saying anything.
"After you." I said.
She stepped in and moved a little to the side, giving me space to enter, then stood there again, unsure.
I closed the door behind us. Then she walked a few steps in and stopped near the table, placing her phone down. Her shoulders dropped a little.
She looked around once, then sat down on the couch, tucking her feet under herself without thinking and picked up her book.
"For someone who believes in ghosts and is scared of them, reading that book every night before bed is not a very good decision, Parthvi." I said, taking my coat off and she looked at me once again.
"You know what this book has?" she asked, looking surprised.
"I do." I replied, loosening my tie.
"Then you would know that this is not about ghosts, it is a Psychological Fiction." she said.
"That does not make it any less unsettling." I told her.
She closed the book, keeping it back on the table.
"You are right. I shouldn't be reading it tonight or I'll keep imagining someone standing by the door." she spoke more to herself than me and tucked a loose strand of hair back behind her ear and stood up to pick her phone once again as I left her alone and went to freshen up.
When I came back a few minutes later, she was standing near the window with the phone pressed to her ear.
"Areee meri maa, mai theek hoon, promise. Accha bhaiya, bhabhi kaise hain? Aur papa?" she asked her.
She laughed a little at the response before speaking again, "Accha aap Jai bhaiya ko bol dena ki just because unko raat ke 6 baje uthna pad raha hai aaj kal toh iska matlab yeh nahi hai ki mujhe bhi uthna hoga aur agar unhone phir call kiya toh mai block kar dungi." she threatened.
(Okay, tell Jai bhaiya that just because he has to wake up at six in the night these days, it doesn't mean I have to as well. And if he calls again, I'll block him.)
She waited for her mother to finish and laughed again.
"Aap kuch bhi bol lo, woh subah ke 6 nahi, raat ke 6 hote hain. Meri clock aise hi operate karti hai aur karti rahegi.....haan theek hai, aap bhabhi ko khana khila do, mai kal call karti hoon. I love youuu." She finished before hanging up.
She still did not turn, kept looking out of the window until I kept my watch on the table and she then looked at me, finally turning.
"Chaliye, it is almost time for dinner." I told her.
She nodded once as we walked out together.
"Ranaji, ek baat puchun?" she broke the silence this time.
I looked at her while she was already looking at me and nodded.
"Kya Adhiraj uncle ke liye aap ek baar phir ek physiotherapist arrange kar sakte hain?" her question surprised me.
"Koi faayda nahi hoga uska Parthvi, Baba ne aaj tak theek hone ki koshish nahi ki hai, woh theek hona hi nahi chahte hain." I replied to her, both anger and disappointment rising inside me.
She turned her head to look at me and was about to say something but decided not to in the last moment, just nodding her head and looking away again.
That, more than anything, made me slow my steps.
The dinner passed in a haze. She still sat away from everyone because of Daadisa but Pankhuri made sure that she ate everything.
It was twenty minutes past eleven when she finally kept her phone down on the table and stood up from the chair near the balcony door and sat back on the couch.
I was almost done with the file too.
"Ranaji." she said, softly this time.
"Yes."
She took a breath. "Aapko gussa aaya tha na jab maine Adhiraj uncle ke baare mein bola tha."
I closed the file and looked at her.
"Aap par gussa nahi aaya tha mujhe Parthvi, iss poori situation par aaya tha. Itna aasaan nahi hai sab kuch." I replied to her after a while.
She nodded, accepting that answer without pushing. Then she surprised me.
"I understand," she said. "Sometimes people stop trying because trying would just hurt more."
I looked at her then.
She was not looking at me. Her eyes were on the folded blanket in her hands and I got up and walked to the window, stopping a little distance away from her.
"I didn't mean to interfere." she said. "About him."
"I know." I replied.
That should have been the end of it. Instead, she took one step closer. Not towards me exactly, just closer than before.
"I just......I just want him to get better." she said, her eyes on me.
I did not turn back to her immediately but I could see her reflection from the glass of the window, her shawl slipping slightly off her shoulder, the skin of her arm exposed to the cold.
Without thinking too much about it, I turned to face her and reached out, adjusting the shawl where it had slipped slightly off her arm. My fingers barely brushed her arm but she went still all the same after a small shiver ran down her.
She looked up then, her eyes meeting mine for a second before she looked away again, her grip tightening around the ends of the shawl.
"I know." I said.
She nodded, once and moved back to the couch and sat down again, smoothing the blanket over her lap as if arranging her thoughts along with it. The light from the lamp beside her was catching the curve of her cheek, the faint tiredness around her eyes that she tried very hard to hide.
"You should rest." I said after a moment.
She looked at me. "You too."
I almost smiled, but stopped myself in time.
"I will." I said.
She hesitated, as if weighing something, then nodded again.
"Good night, Ranaji," she said quietly and rested her head on the cushion, lying down, pulling the blanket over herself.
"Good night, Parthvi." I replied, making my way back to the unfinished document.