An ICU Story

"So none hasn't come from my house..." Rahul stated disappointingly.

"But I am here nah! I will be forever." Poushali answered with utmost love and care.

There was a deep silence in the ICU cabin except the beep beep sound of the ICU monitor. Poushali was feeling a hollowness into her bosom. She was fully aware that this was going to be the last meeting perhaps, as Doctor had said. Still, she had faith somewhere in her heart that a miracle maybe happened. Therefore she was trying to show him courage by her eyes.

Rahul was looking at her with eyes full of tears. Poushali was controlling herself but she couldn't do that anymore. Tears dropped like dews from the leaves.

Everyone keeps blaming this pandemic that it is destroying, it is snatching everything. But somewhere it is building, it is bonding, it is giving too.

26years old Rahul was suffering from chronic kidney disease from ten years and just the moment his family had thrown him as a lost case, his thirteen years relationship, his beloved Poushali embraced him, kept him within her territory, safely, gently, and did whatever was required. Poushali and Rahul were never beloved only. They were best friends, sometimes they had played the role of parents, the role of a guide, a teacher, a family, everything to each other. Their relationship had all the layers of togetherness. 

No, this is not a mere story of illusion, yes sometimes some parents, some families can be that much corrupted too that they never feared to throw a person out of the family just because he is not fruitful now, just because they had given all their love towards their child as an investment and as now they are not getting the return, so they stop investing. Yes, just like a business. But love is not a business, it never expects for return. Love is that which can be done without expectations. Poushali and Rahul had done just the same. Though Rahul had still expectations that perhaps someone from his family will come to meet him at his death-bed, but none had come from his so-called blood relation. They all had fear of covid. And sarcastically Poushali and her parents admitted Rahul to a top hospital of Kolkata and they were visiting him each day in hospital but they never got caught by covid.

Where one side a hope was breaking that none had come from his family to meet him, whereas on another side a trust was building more strongly into his eyes. Rahul loved Poushali from the core of his heart and more than that, he trusted her. And this trust perhaps grows furthermore that last day. Poushali was seeing that Rahul had tears in his eyes but had tranquility on his face that there is at least one who loves him the most and she is still there at his death bed. Perhaps this had made Rahul's voyage to the unknown a satisfactory one.

Both were aware of the coming fate, but as usual, Rahul tried to hide that pain from Poushali. He was the only person who pampered her the most and who never wanted to give her any kind of stress. Rather always gave her comfort and care.

Their last meeting was ended soon and the nurses got Poushali out of the ICU cabin. She was waiting outside the ICU and Rahul had gone away with serenity in his heart that his beloved Poushali was still there with him.