The Day The State Split Asunder - 43

'Madam!' A young nurse draped in a blue nylon saree approached Sanjana, carrying a mobile in one hand and a wallet in another. 'These are the belongings of the patient. Can you please keep it with you?'

'Sure,' Sanjana took those things from her. She glanced at the old keypad mobile and tried to turn it on by pressing her thumb finger firmly against the power switch. But the phone failed to start.

'Looks like the battery is down,' She whispered to herself and then opened the wallet hoping to find any clue about the person they have admitted. There are four hundred and three fifty rupee notes in the first row and a voter id card in the second. She took out the card and read the name 'Satyanarayana Goswami'. 

'Sanjana!' Karthik came running and sat beside her on the wooden bench. Looking at the old keypad mobile in her hand, he asked her in surprise, 'I think you have a smartphone? Do you also use this old mobile keypad?'

'This is not mine. These are the belongings of that uncle. The nurse gave it to me. And I found this id proof in the wallet,' she put forward the voter identity card in front of him, 'his name is Satyanarayana Goswami. And can we get a charger for this mobile from anyone present over here?'

'Come on, who is using this kind of piece nowadays! The only place where we can get a charger for this mobile is at the museum. This piece is out of the market.'

Sanjana fell silent for a moment and stared hard at Karthik. 'Karthik, we are in the hospital and we should never make fun of old things, remember, even the new becomes old.'

'Sorry, Sanjana!' Karthik said apologetically. 'I was just trying to say that we cannot get a charger for this mobile.'

'Never mind! Is your mobile single sim or dual?'

'Its dual sim only.'

'Good! Do one thing, you put this uncle's sim in your mobile,' Sanjana opened the case, took out the sim and gave it to Karthik. Karthik inserted the sim into his mobile and restarted it.

'There are no contacts saved in his sim. It's empty. We need to wait until he regains his consciousness. If anyone calls this mobile meanwhile maybe we can inform them,' Karthik said.

'Don't worry, at least, we got an idea about his name. And how much was the bill amount?' 

'Thirty thousand,' he folded the receipt and put it inside his pocket.

'Karthik, let us split the bill amount. I will transfer fifteen thousand into your bank account. Give me your account number.'

'Sanjana! No need for it!' 

'You and I together admitted him to the hospital. I am going to transfer and you are going to take it. Let's not extend this topic further! Give me your account number,' she said in a peremptory tone.

'No need Sanjana-'

'Please! Allow me to be a part of this good work that you have done,' she pleaded him.

'I don't remember my account number. I will give you as soon as I reach home,' Karthik agreed to her request.

She smiled. 'Please send without fail!'

'But Sanjana one thing I have to admit. You are so caring and compassionate by heart. There are many people in the temple, but not a single person cared about that old uncle just as you did. People around the world are waiting for someone like you to hold them and be there if they require help. A wonderful act of kindness worthy of admiration!'

'We both did it together! And one of my teachers once said - "you don't need to be a friend or relative to help someone, you just need to be a human and the help should be rendered without expecting anything in return". The position that uncle is in today, tomorrow you or I could be in his position.'

'I agree and Adarsh always used to say - 'When you give you will always receive more. I strongly believe in it.'

'The most important thing to remember is that you should not give because you want to receive. It needs to be unconditional. But not everyone can experience the happiness behind the joy of giving.'

'Yes, it takes courage to give something from your life to others. It is also difficult to give a space in your heart to someone you love. But Aarti never understood how much Adarsh loved her.'

'Wait! Who is this Aarti?'

'Oh, I am sorry! You are not aware of Aarti right! She is the ex-girlfriend of Adarsh.'

'What! Are you serious? Then how come he is in a relationship with Roshni?'

'That's a big story! And it is no less than a roller coaster ride, full of twists and turns.'

'Excuse me!' The doctor came out of the ICU room and approached them while they were discussing. Karthik and Sanjana stopped for a moment and stood up. 

'There is nothing to worry about, just a mild heart stroke,' said the doctor. 'He gained his consciousness. But the sugar and blood pressure levels are fluctuating. Looks like he has been under intense stress for a long time. We need to put him on observation for one day, and if everything comes to normal, we will discharge him by tomorrow. I also suggest it is better to take an MRI scan as he has been feeling an excruciating headache for seven days but the technician is not available today, you can take it tomorrow?'

'Ok sir, can we talk to him now?' Karthik asked the doctor.

'Yes, you can. But only after we shift him to the normal room. We will move him in an hour. Meanwhile, I have other patients to attend to. In case there's any problem please do approach me, my cabin is there,' he said pointing to a small room beside the staircase.

'Thank you, Sir!' Karthik said, and the doctor walked towards his cabin. 

'Finally, with the blessings of Lord Balaji, everything went well,' Sanjana said. The doctor's consoling statement delighted her, 'Now that we have one hour, can you tell me about Adarsh and Aarti's love story? I love listening to love stories.' Her excitement became apparent.

'You love listening to love stories, but I wish to have a story with you,' Karthik thought, and he started narrating the entire sequence of events beginning with Adarsh's childhood and the day till his breakup.

'So sad!' Sanjana said, expressing her sympathy for Adarsh after listening to the entire narration of how his love for Aarti turned out to be tragic. 'Aarti will one day repent for her actions. What hurts the most is when you trust someone blindly, and that person proves you're blind.'

'Sanjana, the saddest part about betrayal is, it never comes from your enemies. And bouncing back from a major betrayal of trust is never easy. Getting our hearts broken can be the start of a beautiful thing, but it takes courage and hard work to see that.'

'I completely agree with you,' she said, crossing her legs and smiling with perfect composure, 'once we've accepted the world and our circumstances for what they are, we will experience a substantial shift in perspective and attitude, which can be a good thing or a bad thing. Adarsh sir's story is really inspiring. Everyone should learn from him.'

'No need to call him sir, you can call him Adarsh. He already told you many times.'

'For some people respect comes out naturally.'

'It's your wish! Call him with whatever name you want, except Arnold. Because I have copyright over it!'

Sanjana let out a low laugh. Karthik locked his eyes at her for a few seconds without blinking.

'Sanjana, now that you came to know about the love story of Adarsh? What is your opinion about love?'

A slow, seductive smile spread across her crimson lips. 'See, I am not a philosopher to speak anything about love. And the definition of love can often vary from relationship to relationship. When you look at someone and they just get into you, they know your needs and your wants and both of you put each other's happiness above your own. A person who truly loves you will never let you go, no matter how hard the situation is.' 

The medical staff wheeled Swamiji out of ICU and took him down to the lab to take an MRI scan and then admitted him to the normal room, which has a single bed and two plastic chairs with a window facing east. There was a small LED television fixed on the wall opposite the patient's bed.

'They have shifted uncle into the normal room. Let's talk to him,' Sanjana said, and Karthik nodded his head in agreement. 

Sanjana and Karthik walked into the room. The nurse was injecting a fluid into the saline solution and besides the bed, there were few medical devices with display monitors flashing the heartbeat and blood pressure levels. 

'Uncle, how are you feeling?' said Sanjana, approaching near the end of the bed.

'These people admitted you to the hospital,' the nurse told Swamiji and walked out of the room.

Swamiji rolled his eyes slowly towards Karthik and Sanjana. But Sanjana's blue eyes caught his attention. He stared at her face again. He was firm in his point of view that had seen her before. The picture of his friend Raghavendra's daughter flashed in his mind. Even his friend has the same set of blue eyes.

'Could she be Raghavendra's daughter?' A suspicion arose in his mind.

'Uncle! How are you feeling now?' Karthik asked him as he didn't respond to Sanjana's question.

'Good… Thank you so much to both of you. The doctor told me everything. May God bless you both,' Swamiji said in a tired tone as he was unconscious for almost two hours. The physical stress is still lingering in his body.

'Thank God! With the blessings of Chilukuru Balaji, everything went on well. But uncle, you know that making 108 rounds consumes a lot of time. You should've eaten something before you've started.'

'I now remember, I completed only 107 rounds,' he stopped, took two quick breaths and continued, 'I wish I collapsed after completing 108. Now again I need to do it from the beginning,' he was upset.

'Don't worry, uncle! Next time we both will do it together,' Karthik said.

'What is your name?' Swamiji asked Karthik.

'My name is Karthik, uncle!'

'Nice name,' Swamiji said to Karthik, and he then turned his eyes towards Sanjana and asked, 'What is your name?'

'My name is Sanjana uncle.'

Swamiji's curiosity increased. He looked at her eyes again and thought, 'Same eyes and the same name. Let me ask about her father.'

'What does your father do?' Swamiji asked her.

'Uncle, I don't have a father,' Sanjana said, 'He died when I was just six years.'

'I am so sorry for your loss! And what is the name of your father?'

'His name is Raghavendra,' Sanjana said.

'And what is your full name? Is it only Sanjana?' he asked this question purposefully, to know her surname.

'My full name is Akella Sanjana!'

Swamiji's eyes moistened with joy and happiness. Sanjana is none other than the daughter of his best friend, Akella Raghavendra. He became ecstatic and was in seventh heaven. Not a single day passed without thinking about her. He thought about telling everything about her father and his relationship with him but later rolled it back as the signs are not positive in his life as of now. He voted to inform her on an auspicious day once he is out of the hospital. In his mind, he conveyed his heartfelt thanks to God for sending Sanjana.

'Uncle, do you have a family?' Karthik asked, interrupting his thoughts.

'No! I don't have anyone. I live alone.'

Sanjana's mobile sounded. She answered and throughout the call, she was giving monosyllabic answers 'ok, yes and ha'.

'Karthik!' she said, nearing him, ''

'It's ok Sanjana, No worries. But take care of yourself.'

'I am sorry for leaving you like this. Please call me if you need anything. Don't hesitate.'

'It's Ok!' Karthik said, feeling unhappy inside. He thought of making the day memorable with her after completing the darshan at the temple. 

'There should not be any thanks and sorry between friends,' she said, shooting an enigmatic smile at him. 'I am leaving now! Call me if you need anything,' and turning towards Swamiji, she said, 'Uncle Karthik will be here. If you need anything, ask him. He is a nice guy!'

'Sanjana, thank you so much for saving my life!' Swamiji said.

'Bye, Karthik! Take care, Uncle!' She waved goodbye to both of them and left the room.