— One Year Later —
The wind was blowing hard. The sky was clear, but there was a faint chill in the air. On the edge of a deserted field—where Shrey and Anay often used to stop their car—a gunshot echoed through the surroundings.
"Anay!" — Shrey's voice sliced through the wind.
Anay turned around and said without moving an inch,
"What is it, man...? Why are you yelling your lungs out?"
He scratched his eyebrow with the barrel of his gun.
"Have you lost it? Your head hurts from gunshots, right? Then why are you firing?" — Shrey asked, annoyed.
"So should I just sit here wearing bangles?" — Anay replied sarcastically.
"Asshole..." — Shrey muttered under his breath but couldn't help smiling.
Anay patted his shoulder. "Come on, I feel like eating something nice today."
Tears welled up in Shrey's eyes. Exactly a year ago, at this very time, in the white walls of a hospital, he had seen the fear of losing Anay.
After being in a coma for ten months, Anay finally regained consciousness — but he had lost the memories of the past five years.
They ate at a roadside dhaba.
After eating, Anay leaned back against the car's bonnet, eyes lost somewhere in the sky.
"Anay..." — Shrey called softly.
"Hmm..." — Anay murmured.
"Are you really going back to London?"
Anay looked at him,
"Why wouldn't I?"
"How will I live without you..." — Shrey's voice faded.
"Are you my friend or my wife...? Or should I di—"
"Anay!" — Shrey cut him off, shouting.
"Why are you shouting again?" — Anay stuck a finger in his ear.
"My heart lives in you, you idiot... Don't ever say that again..." — Shrey's eyes welled up. He had already lived once through the fear of losing Anay. He couldn't even imagine going through that again.
"Okay, okay... I won't say it." — Anay got down from the bonnet, tossed the car keys to Shrey, and sat in the passenger seat.
He rested his feet on the dashboard, hands behind his head, and closed his eyes.
As Shrey got in and started the car, he asked —
"Home? Or do you still want to wander around?"
"Home, or Amma will throw me out today..." — Anay replied without opening his eyes.
The car drove ahead.
Back at home...
It was evening. A faint chill had crept into the wind. In their room, Anay was lying down while Shrey brought him his medicines.
"Here, take your meds..." — Shrey placed the pills in front of him.
Anay asked,
"Sarpanch ji...?"
"Yeah... Aunty gave him his medicine... He's resting now." — Shrey replied.
"Hmm..." — Anay took the medicine, his face looked tired.
After a pause, Shrey spoke —
"Anay..."
"Hmm..."
"The MLA from Banaras has summoned you..."
"Why...?" — Anay opened his eyes, showing no real curiosity.
"What do you mean why... You're the new MLA of Thakurpur now. This village is your responsibility."
"I never asked them to make me MLA... I can't even get proper sleep in this political circus..." — Anay turned his face away and lay on his side.
"Lazy bum!" — Shrey punched him playfully.
"Don't hit me! If I hit back, you won't be able to get up." — Anay warned him.
"You'll hit me?" — Shrey climbed on top of him.
Anay wasn't going to stay quiet — they started wrestling like kids.
Just then...
"What's going on here?" — Thakurain's sharp voice startled both of them.
"Nothing Aunty... just playing around..." — Shrey smiled and glared at Anay.
"Amma... he's gone mad... find him a good asylum..." — Anay complained.
"If I go, I'll take you with me..." — Shrey threatened, pointing a finger.
Anay laughed and pulled the blanket over his head.
Shrey in the Sarpanch's Room...
It was night. The whole house was quiet, except for the distant chirping of crickets. Before heading to his own room, Shrey quietly walked towards the Sarpanch's room. As he opened the door, a strange stillness hung in the air.
The Sarpanch was lying on the bed. His body below the waist was completely paralyzed.
Shrey sat on the chair in front of him. For a while, silence lingered between them. Then Shrey said in a cold tone—
"I wish... you hadn't tried to kill Anay that day..."
The Sarpanch was fast asleep.
"Maybe... I would've made sure you got proper treatment." — he added with a faint, sarcastic smile.
Shrey's mind drifted back to that day — when Anay was brought to the hospital, soaked in blood and on the verge of death. Even the doctors were stunned by his condition.
A little later, the Sarpanch was brought in. After being shot and falling down, he had severely injured his spine.
The doctors had said —
"If proper therapy is given on time, he can walk again..."
But that same night, Shrey refused the therapy. Thakurain had known everything.
She hadn't said a single word against it.
For the husband who pointed a gun at her son, her heart had no space left. Only hatred.
Even seeing him disgusted her now.
Shrey glanced at the medicines — just enough to keep the Sarpanch alive — and then walked out with a small smile.
Next Morning – Thakurpur Mansion
"Get up, you sleeping giant!" — Shrey's shout echoed through the room.
Anay, wrapped in the quilt, replied with closed eyes —
"What is it, man... Why are you acting like an alarm clock this early...?"
Shrey yanked the quilt off, "Because you've got to go to Banaras today, remember?"
Anay turned to the side and mumbled,
"I'm not going... I feel sleepy... a very deep sleep..."
Shrey glanced at the medicine strip beside the bed — they were high doses. The doctor had done that deliberately, so Anay would sleep more and heal faster from his internal wounds.
But now those same medicines were becoming a wall between him and his responsibilities as an MLA.
Shrey gently stroked his head, "Anay... you have to go... This isn't how MLAs work..."
With a deep sigh, Anay sat up tiredly, "Fine, fine... I'm going... make me some tea... I'll bathe meanwhile..."
Shrey's eyes went red for a moment —
"Tea...?"
Anay, heading to the bathroom, said —
"Yeah, tea... Make it strong... add more ginger... and hey, bring some biscuits too..."
Shrey watched him walk off, then smacked his forehead —
"Being his MLA-friend is a curse... Am I his buddy or his servant...? Sometimes I'm the driver, sometimes a house-help, and if not that — a laundryman or a damn tea-seller..."
Too be Continuted....