FF: A Blue Moon Ago - Chapter 10

'Kripa, if there is one more surgery, I'm probably going to pass out,' Kanan said heading towards the cafeteria. Both the doctors were called back because of an emergency that had risen. The case was solved and the patient's health was under control but the two women were exhausted. Two hours of intense surgery drained their energy so they were going to go grab some food. 

'I know. I thought we were done for today and I was planning to have an early night but apparently not. Sometimes I feel I need to get out of here but when we save someone's life, it just feels remarkable and I want to do it all over again.' They spotted seats near the television and got fruits to eat. 

'We have just spotted Angad Khanna in Nainital. It seems like he is having a good time there. Look at this picture of the area in which he is currently residing in. Nainital is a beautiful mountainous area where thousands of tourists go. It seems like the businessman's heart has been stolen by this beauty.' The Zoom news reporter went on and on. Kripa had frozen in her chair with shock. Angad was here. He was in Nainital. Oh God, this can't be happening, she thought. 

The two women were deep in thought and were finishing their light meal when their beeper went off. Kanan groaned, 'Not again. Oh well, we better head to the operation theatre and see what new case awaits us.' They rushed to the operation theatre and saw an old woman bleeding profusely. It looked like she was involved in an accident. Kripa remained inside while Kanan went to the family members outside and explained them the situation. 

Kanan spotted Angad and frowned. He was in the news right now. Was the woman in the operation theatre his mother? Now when she thought about it, she could spot resemblances. She told Angad and Aaliya the details and told them to sign the operation papers. As soon as that was done, Kanan headed back to the theatre. 

Kripa and Kanan worked very seriously in the OT. They could see that the patient's condition was critical and they needed to do something really quickly. They concentrated hard and gave orders to the nurses to give them some surgical instrument or the other. On the other hand, Angad and Aaliya were pacing outside the OT. They were really tensed and Aaliya had joined her hands as if in a prayer. They could not lose their mother. She meant everything to them. After two hours of intense waiting, they saw their mother being taken away. Another doctor they could not quite see was accompanying their mother. The other doctor, Kanan, went towards them and gave them the good news. Their mother was out of danger and would gain consciousness in the morning due to the effects of anesthesia and the accident itself. 

'Thank you. Thank you so much for this! I don't know how I will ever repay you,' Angad said with tears in his eyes. He gave Kanan a rib-cracking hug and kissed her on the cheek. Kanan flushed; he was a charming man. If he decided, he would make any woman happy. She sighed, it would never be her. She was already losing her heart to Nishant. Their act for Dr. Mishra had really made Kanan think about Nishant in that way. She hoped he felt the same way. 

She went to the room where Naina Khanna was being kept. She saw Kripa there fussing with the patient. Kanan smiled. She had not informed Kripa that Naina was Angad's mother. She did not want to upset her friend. Kanan had noticed that whenever Angad was shown on TV, her friend would tense. She did not know the reason for it but she didn't want to see her worked up. 

They started chatting aimlessly. 'Kanan, you know what I'm going to do as soon as I'm out of here for tonight? I'm going straight to bed. Forget the shower and forget everything else. All I want right now is a nice, warm bed and blankets. I want to sleep!' Kripa complained. It was not very often that the friends complained but when things got rough, they couldn't get enough of it. 

'We just have to inform the nurses about what to do at what time and we can be on our way. Kunal must be sleeping right now?' Kanan enquired. 

'Yes, he was dozing off when I was at home so must be sleeping right now. How I wish I was just ten at this moment!' With that, both friends laughed. 

Kanan went outside and Kripa followed her. She stopped dead in her tracks because she saw him. He looked as good as he always did. Even after all this time, just looking at him increased her heart rate. All her senses awakened and she just stood there mesmerized. She gave herself a mental shake. 'He must not see me,' she thought. Desire was on the surface as was pain. He had cheated on her and there was no forgetting that. 

She quickly returned to the room Naina Khanna was in. before she had entered, Aaliya had seen her and had barely stopped herself from calling out her name. They would not appreciate that. They would definitely not appreciate that. 

She told her brother to enter after a few minutes. 

'But why Aaliya? I want to see her too!' he whined. 

Aaliya looked at him very confused. What was she supposed to tell him? Don't go yet because Kripa's in there? She thought of a reason quickly and went to the room. She entered and saw her mother lying down on the bed. She looked really pale. Her mother was usually lively and bright. This form of her mother brought tears to her eyes. 

She kissed Naina's cheek and held her mother's hand. Kripa was hidden behind the green curtain and saw this scene. She understood that Naina was Aaliya's mother. The scene touched her and tears formed in her eyes too. She went to Aaliya and put her hand on her shoulder. Aaliya turned, saw Kripa, and started sobbing in Kripa's shoulder. Kripa was shaken. She had never seen her friend lose control like this before. She comforted her. After her sobbing subsided, Aaliya told Kripa that Angad was outside. The expression on Kripa's face confirmed that she knew. She told Kripa that Angad was looking for her. Kripa stood there dazed. 

Why was he looking for her now? She'd ensure that they never had a confrontation. A new wave of fear clutched her heart. Did Angad find out about Kunal? Was that it? She then looked at Aaliya's face and knew that she would have told her if that was the reason. 

'It's OK Aaliya, I'll make sure that we never meet. Please never tell him about me and Kunal? I know you won't but just telling you just in case.' 

Aaliya nodded. 'Kripa, if you don't want to meet him, you better get out of here quickly or hide right now.' 

'How do I go without him noticing?' she asked. 

'Don't worry, I'll provide a distraction.' With that, Aaliya went to her brother and asked him to bring coffee for her. Angad went to the cafeteria. Kripa thanked her silently and quickly went towards her cabin where Kanan was waiting for her. 

'Where did you get lost Kripa? One moment you were behind me and the next moment you disappeared.' Kanan sounded extremely puzzled. For some incomprehensible reason, Angad reminded her of somebody. She couldn't quite grasp who but she knew that the face was really familiar. 

'Nothing Kanan. I just didn't want to see Angad. I knew him once and we parted in no less than formidable circumstances and I just don't want another confrontation with him. Please understand.' Kanan nodded. She would analyze this another time; she was too exhausted to care right now. 

Kripa and Kanan exited the hospital quickly before another emergency appeared. As Kripa was leaving, Angad was heading towards the room with the coffee. He saw two women in the parking lot. Was that Kripa? That had to be Kripa! He found her! 

'Kripa!' He called out her name.