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Murali
Murali sat straight up on the hospital bed and took a cup of milk from Prakash. “Thank you.” He sipped the drink and looked up at his friend.
Prakash had been helping him and caring for him like a mother. Murali blamed himself for attempting to end his life and giving everyone so much trouble. Had he acted responsibly and controlled his negative emotions, he wouldn’t have been lying there.
But Pratibha also contributed to his current situation. Isn't she responsible? Had she accepted my proposal, I wouldn't have suffered.
“What are you thinking about?” Prakash placed the cup on a coffee table.
“Well-” he stumbled for words. He tried to compose himself. “I’m thinking of Pratibha. Why hasn't she visited the hospital for two days?”
“Don’t expect her to take care of you. She is already staying alone away from her parents. She did talk to me and said she would meet you on the coming weekend.”
“She should’ve at least visited me after office hours, right?”
“You may be correct, but,” Prakash said, “her job is demanding and she is working hard to please her manager. She is determined to go back to her place.”
Murali’s heart sank. He needed her in his life. “Prakash," he said, looking into his eyes. "I have a question for you.”
Prakash took the cup. “What's it?”
“Should I continue seeing her?”
“Firstly, you must recover. Pratibha will continue to be your friend.”
“That didn’t answer my question.”
“Well.” Prakash raised his voice. "You can see her as long as it won't hurt you.”
Murali was hurt and no doubt Pratibha's refusal to his proposal forced him to attempt to end his life. He liked what Prakash suggested. But what if his togetherness with Pratibha continued to hurt him? Should I better stop seeing her?
He cleared his throat. “What do you think of her?”
Prakash looked at him with a questioning expression.
“Is she a good person to hang out with?”
“You know her better than me," said Prakash. "You’ve been seeing her for more than two months.”
Murali did enjoy her company until their trip to Mysore. Why didn’t Pratibha tell m that she loved Rahul during our first meeting?
“Don’t you think Pratibha has hurt me?” he asked.
Prakash swallowed. He waited for a few moments, seemingly contemplating. “It’s good that she told you the truth. What if she had falsely accepted your proposal and exploited you before returning to her place? It's good that Pratibha is not that kind of a woman.”
Murali's belief that she cheated him was incorrect. In fact, she agreed to join him at Starbucks and a movie because she wanted him to come out of his depression.
“What do you think I should do now, Prakash?”
Prakash paused for a moment and then said, "I suggest you move to your mother’s home and live with your loved ones instead of staying alone in your flat.”
Murali’s pulse quickened. He was ashamed to go back to his former house as he had argued with Payal about her 'date'.
“Do you think my mother will welcome me back? You’re talking about the impossible, you know.”
“Well, I will convince them; you don’t worry. Your mother and Vasu should be here any time soon.”
“But-”
“I know,” said Prakash. "I know you’ll feel ashamed. But you don’t need to feel so as you’re going to stay with your loved ones. It'll also improve your mental health.
"And your assumption that your work performance will come down is wrong. You see what has happened now. Your irresponsible act had almost put your life in danger and cost you two weeks of time off.”
Murali also thought Prakash was correct and his decision to stay alone had backfired on him. He would miss Pratibha, but he would go to her and meet whenever he felt like seeing her.
She had been a bitter thing to swallow. But there was no harm in seeing her at her apartment. They had shared some interesting topics – software technologies, movies and entertainment, literature – with each other whenever they sat at Starbucks.
The door screeched. Who might it be? Vasudev had said he would visit that morning. Murali shifted his glance towards the entrance.
Payal, in her pink and blue sari, entered, smiling. “Good morning.” She darted her gaze between Murali and Prakash.
They greeted her back. Vasudev, holding a cotton bag, entered. He placed the bag on the table and returned the greetings. Both Payal and Vasudev sat on an empty cot, placed beside the bed.
“Murali has improved.” Prakash broke the silence.
“I agree,” Payal said, looking up at Murali. “Thank God, he has recovered.” She shifted her gaze back to Prakash. “Your timely intervention saved his life.”
Vasudev nodded. “You’re like a godsend for him.”
Prakash told them he had guessed Murali would behave erratically after meeting him at his house on that night. He praised Pratibha for making a quick decision to find out if Murali was there in his flat.
Payal turned to Murali. “What drove you to make such an extreme decision?” she said, her voice raised. “You moved away from us to stay comfortable, right? And I wonder how come you ended up like this.”
Is Payal chiding? But she was correct in saying so as she and Vasudev were not aware of Murali’s friendship with Pratibha. Murali had told Prakash not to tell them about Pratibha. Payal’s questions confirmed to Murali that Prakash had been tight-lipped about the matter.
“Yes, tell me, brother.” Vasudev alerted Murali. “Why you acted so reckless?”
Why were they interested to know about it? “Well-” Murali stumbled for words. He needed to concoct a story. “I had a setback at work. I had told you before that my job performance is not up to the mark these days. And that's the reason why I took the pills.”
Murali looked up at Prakash as a sense of guilt filled his mind. He expected Prakash to defend him, but Prakash remained silent. Maybe, he didn’t want to lie further and get him in trouble.
“I know you’re quite a sensitive person,” said Vasudev. “Ups and downs are very common in the IT industries. You need to take everything in a sportive manner. I hope you’re not fired from your job.”
“No.” Murali paused. “But I couldn’t meet my manager’s expectations.”
“And that shouldn’t be a reason to end your life,” Payal said.
He remained silent, staring down. He didn’t want to talk about it anymore.
“It’s all right,” Prakash said, heaving a sigh. “Let’s not live in the past. We need to move on.” He paused. “What have you planned for Murali’s stay?”
“We're taking him home,” Payal said.
Prakash’s face lit with a smile. He looked at Murali. "I too wanted that; living alone is dangerous for him.”
“I agree,” Vasudev added. “I guessed he was making a mistake when he decided to move away from us. It's good for all of us to stay together and live united.”
Murali’s heart raced. He didn’t want to go back to his mother’s home. He still disliked Payal arriving late in the night and continuing her friendship with her 'date'. But everyone, including Prakash, suggested he stay with them. He would fail to convince all of them.
“No, I want to go to my flat.”
“You're not,” Prakash said, his voice raised. ”We're taking you to your mother’s home.”
“But how can I-”
“Murali,” Payal said. “You always think like it’s my way or the highway which will not work in our case.”
“Yes, brother," said Vasu. "Mum is correct. Better you come with us and I’ll promise you’ll not be disturbed. I’m sure you’ll continue doing good work at your office.”
“See, you’ve so much support from your loved ones," Prakash said. "You should feel lucky to have a loving brother and a caring mother.”
Murali should forego Payal’s attitude and stay positive. He needed to get closer to Vasudev and Payal as Pratibha already loved Rahul. Maybe, in the future, he needed to marry a beautiful girl from Payal's relations and settle.
Payal cleared her throat. “I know you’re worried about your marriage. I already told you I can help you with finding a suitable girl.” She shifted her gaze to Vasu and then back to Murali. “I want to see both of you get settled.”
Though Murali realized Payal spoke the truth, he suspected she indeed had her own motive behind saying so. She somehow wanted Murali and Vasu to get married soon so that her way would be cleared. She no doubt wanted to marry her 'date'.
Someone knocked on the door. Prakash opened it. Doctor Harsha smiled.
They all exchanged greetings.
“So, how are you?” Harsha pressed his stethoscope to Murali’s chest.
“I’m doing well, doctor.” Murali breathed heavily.
Harsha turned to Prakash. “He's all right. You can take him home today.” He turned to Payal. “You take care of him well and give him moral support so that he can become mentally fit.”
“Sure, doctor," Vasudev said. "Murali will be staying with us now onwards.”
It took an hour for Prakash to wrap up the discharge formalities. Murali walked with Payal, Vasudev, and Prakash to the parking lot and traveled home.
The afternoon sun was intense and bright. The gentle wind through the windows comforted Murali. A few motorbikes sped fast on the street, racing with the green and red city buses. A couple of pedestrians crossed the road at the zebra crossings.
Vasudev stopped at the intersection with his fingers drumming on the steering wheel. Murali heaved a sigh of relief. The music system played Kishore Kumar’s song, enlightening him.
It was lunchtime when they arrived home. They all sat in the living room and exchanged small talk.
“Prakash, have lunch before you go,” Payal said. She seemed jovial.
“I need to pick up my son from his school,” Prakash said, smiling.
“Prakash,” Murali said. ”I thank you for your help. I know you took a lot of trouble in looking after me at the hospital.”
“It's okay,” he said. “I can give that much help to my friend.”
Murali turned to his mother and brother. “Thank you for being supportive during my difficult time.”
“You don’t need to thank us,” Payal said. "It’s our duty to help you. Now, you promise us that you don’t make the same mistake again.”
“Yes, Murali,” Prakash said. "You must promise."
Murali nodded, smiling. ”Yes, I promise."
But still, Murali's mind wandered in his flat at Majestic Apartment. He really liked to return there, but he needed to accept what his loved ones had been suggesting. He would stay with his mother for a few weeks and then make a proper decision.