"Hey madam! Can't you see? Can't you walk carefully? Who walks like that?"
"Hello… madam! I'm talking to you!"
But when Nikhil looks into the eyes of the girl he just bumped into, he is stunned. All he sees in her eyes is pure innocence. He finds himself lost in her face. Her eyes seem to be filled with deep pain. Her face begins to silently tell him her story.
Composing himself, Nikhil says,
"I'm sorry, madam… but why do you look so frightened? I was just saying that if you had walked a little more carefully, maybe this accident could've been avoided. Anyway… come, I'll take you to the hospital."
Nikhil helps the girl into his car and takes her to the hospital. But the girl still hasn't uttered a single word. Nikhil keeps glancing at her through the rear-view mirror, while she stares silently at the wound on her hand.
At the hospital, Nikhil calls out to a nurse for help,
"Excuse me, nurse, could you please take her inside and treat her wounds? And let me know the total bill—I'll pay for everything."
The nurse looks at the wound and says,
"Please wait a moment, sir. I'll take care of her and prepare the bill."
A little while later...
"So madam, what's your name? I mean... I was just saying that… I could drop you home, if you don't mind!" Nikhil changes the topic quickly as the girl suddenly looks at him.
"Samaira… my name is Samaira," she replies. "Don't worry, I can go home on my own. And thank you for the treatment."
With just that, she walks away.
Nikhil just stands there watching her. He wants to speak, but his words get stuck, and he can't say anything… He simply watches her walk away… until she disappears from sight.
---
Nikhil's home…
Since the moment he met that girl, Nikhil had been thinking only about her. He was at home, but his mind was still stuck at that place where he had met Samaira. He couldn't believe that she had actually told him her name.
But… why was she so scared? And why did she leave in such a hurry?
It all felt like a dream to Nikhil. He had met many girls in life, but never anyone like Samaira. Somewhere deep inside, he decided that he would find her and meet her again.
Maybe he didn't say it out loud, but in his heart, he made a promise to himself — "Tomorrow morning, I'll find her."
And with that hope, he fell asleep.
---
The next morning…
For the first time in days, Nikhil slept peacefully. After finishing his morning routine, he left early for office. He couldn't get yesterday's incident out of his mind.
He went back to the same place where the accident had happened. But Samaira wasn't there. Realizing he was getting late for office, he decided to leave.
Just as he turned his car toward the office… he stopped.
He saw Samaira—with a child.
It shocked him. But he had made a promise to himself, so he stopped the car.
Seeing Nikhil, Samaira said,
"You? Here?"
Nikhil hesitated,
"Yeah… I was on my way to office. I mean, this road leads to my office, so…"
Samaira smiled slightly and replied,
"Alright then."
Nikhil's mind kept replaying the previous day. He couldn't forget those eyes—so full of pain and untold stories. Now, seeing her with a child, countless questions began to rise in his heart.
Is Samaira married? Is this her child?
His voice trembled slightly, but he gathered courage and asked,
"Are you… married?"
Samaira gave a faint smile. It was a strange smile—not a yes, not a no.
Nikhil couldn't understand what it meant.
"What does that mean?" he asked again, confused.
Samaira looked into his eyes, then lowered her gaze.
She replied,
"Why do you want to know whether I'm married or not?"
Nikhil was startled by her counter-question. Trying to explain himself, he said,
"Look… don't misunderstand. I don't have any bad intentions. I just saw you with a child, so I asked."
Samaira suddenly realized she was still holding the child.
"Oh! No… this isn't my child. I'm not married," she clarified.
Nikhil, silently delighted, said,
"Oh, is that so?"
Samaira replied simply,
"Yes."
Nikhil wasn't talking much now. He was just staring at Samaira.
Something happened to him whenever he was near her.
He would get lost in her eyes. When she spoke, it felt like music playing.
Cool breezes would start flowing inside him, and he would lose himself in her completely.
So lost, that he became unaware of everything around him…
And maybe—he didn't even want to come back to reality.