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“Hi, Can I meet Dr. Morgan?” asked Anuj at the hospital’s reception.
“Sure. Please move to the third floor and turn right. You’ll find her chamber at room 321,” answered the receptionist.
“Thanks,” said Anuj and moved towards the lift and punched the “up” button. When the doors opened and Anuj moved in, he jumped out of his skin seeing a weird looking man staring at him.
That’s me. You stupid boy, muttered Anuj to himself. Seeing his own reflection made him realise what Ella went through almost every day of her life. The truth is—most people don’t like their reflection!
He punched the no. 3 button, and the doors closed. He felt his body moving upwards while the lift made a mild screeching noise.
When the lift stopped, Anuj heard an automated voice announce:
“Third floor.”
And then the doors opened. Anuj walked past the corridor and turned right. He was standing right in front of Dr. Morgan’s cabin. Anuj was about to knock when he thought of something.
Dr. Morgan didn’t seem like a very nice person. The last time he’d met, she had refused to “co-operate” point blank. So there was no reason why she would cooperate this time. Anuj needed to find another way to reach Ella.
He suddenly felt someone’s hand on his back. He turned in panic.
“Ssssssssssshhhhhhhhh,” said the girl. She was the same thin blonde girl whom he had met last time. He had forgotten her name.
“You?” whispered Anuj.
“Yes. It’s me. Are you looking for that blonde girl again,” said Sam.
“Yes, I actually needed to give her a letter,” whispered Anuj showing her the envelope.
“I see. Ella is soon going to be shifted to an eating disorder centre along with me. But what are you doing here at Dr. Morgan’s chamber? That woman has terrible emotional problems. Any letter you give her may never get delivered. So just come with me,” whispered Sam.
And she took him to the right room.
“She is sleeping, I think. But you may sneak in. Be careful,” said Sam in a hushed tone.
Anuj tip-toed in to the room. He saw an emaciated looking girl sleeping with a tube thrusted through her nose. Her skin looked so tight, it made her look older and thinner. Anuj moved closer and stood right beside her.
Ella! A whimper escaped Anuj’s mouth.
For a few seconds Anuj was not even able to recognise her. She didn’t look like the girl he once knew—with a glowing skin, twinkling eyes and beautiful blonde hair.
Ella had lost even more weight since the last time he’d seen her. It seemed that a portion of her hair too had fallen off. She looked like she was battling between life and death.
Ella reminded him of his cousin Nisha. He’d seen Nisha too lose a lot of weight when she was suffering from lung cancer. Nisha’s face had become pale, as if it was drained of all blood. She had to wear a hat because her hair had fallen off due to chemotherapy. And she had become so thin, like a butterfly.
Ella too looked like her. Anuj was surprised that anorexia could damage the human body the same way as cancer. The only difference was—anorexia was an emotional cancer—that slowly took control of your personality—and gnawed away at your body, soul and everything till nothing was left.
Anuj took out the envelope and placed it in Ella’s hands underneath her blanket. He then kissed her forehead and whispered, “Get well soon.”
“Sssssssssshhhhhh hurry. Nobody should catch you here,” said Sam.
Anuj nodded and quickly got out.
On the way back to the lift, Anuj casually asked Sam if Ella’s parents could visit her. Surprisingly, Sam started laughing uncontrollably:
“Oh, you should have been here to watch it all. Ella’s step-father was so upset that she was admitted for a disease that was not covered by her student insurance. Looks like, insurance companies don’t pay for ‘self-inflicted injuries’ and so anorexia is excluded straightaway. Ella’s father kept on ranting about how much he has to pay now from his own pocket, for someone who was not his real daughter, how it’s all the fault of Ella’s mother and her indulgent upbringing and so on. It was quite a scene.”
***
Fr. Williams sat on a wooden bench in Netherhall’s Chapel. His eyes were closed and his hands were folded in prayer. The stained glass windowpanes and the stone floors added to the religious energy of the place.
He was praying to God asking Him to give strength to Anuj’s friend so that she could battle her demons. In his mind, he saw a blonde haired girl with light blue eyes playing a violin in the dark auditorium—the same auditorium where he had seen Ella the first time.
His mind was focussed on the girl’s image when someone else’s image appeared in front of him—his beloved Abigail’s. Her face was glowing. Her smile ever so pleasant. She was with God and happy.
“I’m so happy that you can still pray for others,” she whispered.
