A MISTAKE..

It was almost eight in the morning and Sarin had a throbbing headache. Suddenly he saw his cell phone,the date was special for him.It was.He had spent the most agonizing week of his life.He would have been engaged today,if not for his fate.”Ah!”,he exclaimed. Perhaps Shubhra deserved somebody better. Thinking this, he popped in a pill and again went off to sleep. He dreamt of the brighter days of his life .
A banker by profession, he climbed the corporate ladder quite fast. His parents were eager to get him married as soon as possible, lest he would fall prey to some evil person.
Then one day he met Shubhra. First at her house and then at a shopping mall.Three words she loved to hear from him: I AM SORRY.He was always late. She was a doctor in one of the biggest chain of hospitals in the country. They saw each other for sometime and then agreed to spend the whole of their lives together. Everything was going fine, and then came a bolt from the blue. Sarin began to have bouts of headache and nausea. Shubhra advised him some rest and a check-up at her hospital. He did that and checked into Shubhra’s cabin to get his report. An emergency case had just arrived and Shubhra scurried off saying that they would discuss the report over dinner that night.
Sarin took the report and his name was mispelt. He exclaimed,”When will they improve ?” He delved into the details of the report. He couldn’t make out anything of the scan and went into the diagnosis. He was bowled over by those long words. He went to the last page.What he read jilted him.He read it over and over. Kept repeating the words to himself. The prognosis was – malignant tumour in the hind brain with almost zero recovery chances. He got up and went to his neurologist friend, Dr. Zakir.
Dr. Zakir studied the report and told him, ”There is nothing we can do now,Sarin. I musn’t advice chemo, because I know it won’t help.” Sarin spoke desperately,” Doc, can anything be done abroad ?” The doctor replied negatively.And then the famous question rose,”How much time do I have?” “About three months”.
His hopes were shattered.Collecting himself, he went on a thinking spree.First,he sent a message to Shubhra,”Can’t come for dinner tonight.” Then, a tough decision was taken. He sent a message home, ”Call off the wedding. I’m not interested.”He again sent a message to Shubra, ”I’m sorry to say this but we can’t be together anymore.” He changed his SIM card and got a new number. Shubhra at first thought that it was a bad joke but then news from home confirmed this horrid reality. She wanted to see him, but he had gone somewhere. Where ? No soul on earth knew, except him of course. He stayed in a low-budget hotel for
sometime and then came back to his house. He checked all his investments and policies. It was perfect. Meanwhile, he had been shown the door by his employers and he was not too sad about it. He rarely came out of the house and pondered all day. He looked like a recluse. At times he would think about his near and dear ones. He couldn’t bear to see Shubhra pining for him throughout life. A little pain now would ensure her blissful life. His parents will manage somehow.
His deep slumber broke when he heard some noise in his room.
It was Shubhra!! Concealing his smile, he almost shouted,”What the hell are you doing here?” She replied curtly-“Packing your bags. We have to catch the next flight home.”
“What?Are you out of your senses?”
She almost flared up,” Look, I’m furiously angry now.Don’t you dare to meddle with me. And do as I say.”
“How did you enter the flat?”
“I know where you keep your spare key”, her voice somewhat softened.
He acted like a robot and thousand and one questions were brewing in his mind. They checked into the airport lounge .There was nobody there.
Shubhra asked him softly, ” How do you spell your name? ”
He replied,”S-A-R-I-N ”
It was her turn now.”Then what on earth made you think that
I didn’t know that ?”Opening her bag,she almost threw a wad of papers at him.”This is your medical report,you fool.What you have is the report of Sareen. S-A-R-E-E-N. Do you follow that ? ”
He was unable to believe it for a moment.”What’s there in my report?”,he smiled a bit. She couldn’t contain herself anymore and said,”Nothing,it was due to your erratic eating habits. I never knew you were so great a fool.” A medley of cries, happiness and words followed.”How did you come to know it?”,he asked.She replied in broken sentences-“We thought we lost that Sareen’s report and the hospital authorities had to prepare another for him.”
He came close and said,”Not a word more. You are the wife of the greatest fool on earth.”
“By the way,its our engagement tonight.”, they both said together.