Sakhi

Do you know that we have a ballon inbuilt in our body?

It's called the bladder which sits in our pelvis.

As the bladder gets filled with all the liquid wastes, the sphincter muscles will hold it tight and prevent us from leaking it all over. But when the bladder reaches its capacity, the nerves in them send a signal out to the brain that they need to urinate and the signal gets stronger as the bladder exceeds its capacity.

And I am talking about this because all the people around me are suffering from controlling their urge to urinate as someone blocked the women's restroom from the last 20 mins in the cafe.

"There is some girl in the bathroom from the last 25 min and she is not coming out." A coworker of mine grunted looking at the people waiting out in line.

I left the counter and walked to the bathroom to relieve all these people from the pressure their brains put them on.

I passed through all the people and knocked on the door.

"Is everything okay dear? Do you need some help?" I asked her.

I pressed my ear to the bathroom to hear the person speak it to listen to any sound if she is making some.

But there was zilch! Is there a person in there?

I wanted to look for ways to get inside the bathroom, Not wanting to break the door from outside and cost us thousands of rupees in expense, I turned around to find a solution and found the men's and the unisex bathrooms empty, so I  redirected the flow towards them clearing the queue.

While I was doing that, I saw a man go into the woman's bathroom scaring me and thinking of all the weird things people do in public bathrooms.

I knocked on the door to get them out, but there was no reply which lead me to knock on it again.

"Can you wait for 10 min? We will come out." Said the male voice which was utterly calm for the situation we are in.

The human in me had to know what was going on. What if the girl was in trouble and I ignored her, please?

So I stayed there to listen to what was happening inside, waiting to a barge at any sign of trouble.

All I could hear were some muffled voices, so I had to press myself to the door and listen with concentration.

"Are you sure that I don't have cancer?" The girl who sounded meek asked.

He chuckled at her answer and replied

"I am absolutely sure, and My name is Arjun and I am a doctor too."

"Look kiddo! Don't be scared, you are not suffering from any disease. Sadly, every woman in the world goes through this. I'm sorry that no one in your life told you about menstruation." He said in an American accent that was familiar to me from my job.

I was shocked to listen to a man speak freely about a topic everyone else feels ashamed to talk about.

"Put this sanitary napkin on your inner garment like this, and throw away your clothes which are stained and wear these new ones." He continued while I could hear the ruffling of a bag.

Is he really explaining how to put on a sanitary napkin?

"What is menstruation? And will it kill me?" She asked him quietly, making me laugh at the education system we have in our country.

"You know that women have the superpower to make babies right? For that, your bodies are designed to make a lining around the uterus to protect the baby every month. And if there is no baby to make, then there is no use for the lining, so you automatically shed the lining and some blood nutrients along with it. It's nothing to worry about."

"Every month?" The girl asked with shock evident in her voice.

"Sakhi..get to the kitchen, we have orders piling up." The manager Jeeva called me out making me walk away from the most understanding man I've ever heard in my life.

I sighed at my manager's voice and started making the orders.

After finishing a few of them, I went behind the counter to take some more orders, when I saw a young girl around 13 on the other side waiting for someone to take her order.

She looks like she cried a lot making me think if she was the girl in the bathroom if she is there was the man with her around her, with that thought I started to look around for him but was not able to recognize any of them trying to match with the voice I heard previously.

"Hi! Can I get a hot chocolate with a side of your carrot cake?" She asked licking her lips at the display.

"Sure honey! Can I get your name for the order? And it's 443 rupees for both." I politely asked her punching in her request.

"It's Nithya! And I am sorry about hogging up the bathroom for so long." She said hanging her head low feeling ashamed.

"That's alright! And I hope you are all better now." I said to her while she handed me a crisp 2000 rupee note.

"Yeah, I am. I was so scared and didn't know what to do, but thankfully he came and helped me." She said feeling thankful with a warm smile on her face thinking about the man who helped her.

"Don't mind me asking? But is he your brother?" I questioned her out of my curiosity while getting the carrot cake out from the display box.

"No, I was walking by the cafe to my home and had this horrible stomach ache and was about to fall down when he caught me. He asked me to stay in the bathroom and not open it till he comes back." She explained the whole scenario while I was left baffled.

I thought it could be a brother of hers or someone related but it's a complete stranger. Heck! That was a taboo topic in this world and he made it sound normal.

Is humanity headed in the right direction?

I always wondered about this looking at the incidents of my life, but today I can proudly say that we are.

How bad we try to be and do, in a world with people like him, we are moving definitely in the right direction.

Oscar Wilde once said, "It takes a great deal of courage to see the world in all its tainted glory, and still love it."

And people like him, make that tainted glory disappear for me, they make me believe in this world.

After giving Nithya her hot chocolate, I gave her a booklet, I had on menstruation and informed her to talk to her parents about it. She nodded happily sipping the hot chocolate.

After finishing up my shift at the coffee shop, I went to my apartment as I didn't have to work the customer service job today.

It was almost 11 by the time I reached and tomorrow was going to be my first day at the AMG hospital as a part-time clinical resident in the cardiology department, it means that I get to work with real people.

The experience of doing things firsthand always beats all the other things in the world. And in just 2 more months I can go as a full-time clinical resident and stop all these jobs.

How fun and empty would my days be after that?

With those thoughts, I was about to sleep when my phone buzzed with a message from an unknown number.

Xsvxp-rm gln zg 0700

A glance at this message and I knew how to figure it out, being an agent, The first course we learned was encryption and decryption of messages.

Am I getting some new work, did the threat end? All these thoughts bounced off my mind. With the happiness of hope, I jumped out of the bed and got a paper and decoded it to be

Check-in at 0700

My handler wants me to meet him at 07 in the morning, and I know the location as it's our constant. It's the park nearby filled with people running, doing yoga, and doing some other form of workout.

I was too excited to sleep, what if I get a new assignment and might have to quit this residency? It's been almost 2 years since I stopped working, am I still good at it?

I increased the TV volume to block the negative voices in my head and dozed off after a lot of effort and some melatonin gummies.

I woke up to the noise of a blaring alarm, freshened up a bit, and changed into my workout clothes to not make it look suspicious. It was just 6:30 but the time I reached, so I ran a few miles around the park and made myself aware of the surroundings just to make sure that this is not a trap.

I saw my handler, who's the General of the Indian Army Mr.Prithvi Raj Kumar. He looks the exact opposite of what anyone would imagine an Army General would look like, his looks never make him stand out from the crowd, he is not well built but his ideas and his work style are just amazing to anyone, which got him from a solider like me to General, the highest title for an Indian army official.

Being a middle-class family we had to live from my dad's paycheck to paycheck, when he got sick there was no source of income and we were broke leading me to start working.

When I was lost in looking for jobs after my father got sick, I saw this poster of the army recruiting young soldiers, and the benefits were government-provided housing and a monthly income of 15,000 which was more than enough for me at that time. I was in dire need of money, so I sent an email and fulfilled the required training for it and provided a roof for my family.

He was the head of that operation back then and has been my handler ever since. I am glad that I got him in my life. I walked to him after observing my surroundings once again and settled on the other end of the bench.

"Good Morning General!" I said to him looking into my phone not raising suspicion.

"Quit the formalities Sakhi, We've known each other for the last 10 years." He said with a smile on his face.

"How are you? How's your college going on?" He asked me before I could refuse him about the formalities.

"It's going great, I am starting my clinical training today. Do we have any new mission?" I asked him with a pinch of disappointment flowing through my body.

He sat still for a while with his head on the paper, so I wouldn't be able to guess his emotions.

"I wanted to check in with you because someone recently hacked into my home and stole my laptop and I have a gut feeling that it's related to you. So just be on the lookout for any disturbances or changes around you." He warned me.

A chill pass through my spine as I heard him but I put on a neutral face not wanting to leave the college and my education here, If that someone could break into his safe haven and not get caught, then my life is definitely in danger.

I looked around in panic once again to double-check any suspicious activity around me.

"I can get some security assigned to you if you don't feel safe anymore." He mumbled and I knew the expenses and paperwork behind it but at the same time, I am glad that he is choosing to protect me.

There are 100's people like me whose lives are in danger because of the assignments we did in the past, but that doesn't mean the government can provide a battalion to save every one of us, they have bigger fish to fry, rather than waste money on us and that's the hard fact.

We chose that path and now we are reaping on the seeds we sowed.

"I can take care of myself and thank you for the heads up," I said to him while we sat there and talked for a while, before leaving he gave me new tools to protect myself from danger.

"I am sorry that we are not able to eradicate the threat from the last 2 years." He said and I could feel the shame in his voice.

"That's fine sir, it gave me an opportunity to study and I am on the verge of being a doctor," I replied to ease him from the guilt.

"I am so happy to hear that."  He mumbled and I knew he was feeling sad for me and my situation.

The thought that someone is out there to kill you doesn't sit well in anyone's mind, but I've been living with it for the last 2 years, that's the reason I don't make any friends and maintain any emotional relationships which might end in pain.

With more attention to my surroundings, I walked back to my home and got ready for my first day.

I just wish to die after being a cardiologist for a day of my life, with that one wish I got ready for the hospital wearing my white coat feeling proud of my achievement so far.

"Hi! I am Sakhi, reporting as the new resident in the cardiology department." I said to the receptionist as I entered the AMG cardiology ward.

"Awesome and good luck dear! Go to the conference room on the 2nd floor, it's the 3rd room to your right." She said in a chirpy tone and I walked away after thanking her.

I knocked on the room door and no one replied, so I just opened the door only to find the one and only, Viren Varma sitting on a chair with his legs sprawled like he owned everything in there, which he technically does.

"Look who's late on the first day." He smirked at me which I completely ignored.

And I pulled up a chair far away from him, while 2 more people came into the room and introduced themselves as Riya and Mukund from AMG university in another state.

"If the introductions are over, let me tell you that the happy days in your life are over. You are gonna feel elated to treat your first patient today and let me tell you after that moment it's not paradise anymore."

"You will feel depressed, stressed, pressured, and lonely. So, remember to have someone to talk to, and also learn to forgive yourself for the mistakes you make from now on, you are a work in progress, not the final polished product." A woman announced and as I concentrated on the ID card hanging from her neck, it said her name to be Meera Carrick.

She looks more like a Jhansi than a Meera to me.

"And one more thing, ask questions instead of trying to figure them out on your own." She said after clearing her throat at the long speech she gave earlier.

Everyone in the room was baffled at her speech, did she scare us or comfort us with her words? I really don't know where I stand with her speech, I am completely confused.

"You will be following me or Dr.Rane today, and Learn to be kind to your patients and every other staff from now on." She said I felt her eye at Viren who rolled his eyes to the back of his head.

With that, we all walked into the storage/resting room, which has a few lockers and 2 beds.

"Ughh.. the residents are here.." said the voice of a man sleeping on the bed.

"And the would-be Dr.Rohit Rane." Dr.Meera sighed as the man got up from the bed.

"Change into your scrubs and meet me out in 5." She announced and left the room with Dr.Rane.

And it has been hell since that moment started in my life, if reading, practicals, internships, and all the other medical school part was hard, this is the hardest of all.

After the first week, I had to quit my customer service job because the newbies don't have the privilege to pick the schedule, and me being the oldest of all, I am expected to work twice, understand, and do things the most.

It's been 5 weeks since I started and boy, I've already pulled at least 7, 48-hour shifts, and those shifts are hell, sadly today is one of those days too, I am hella tired and I have 8 more hours to complete.

My pager beeped making me groan and walk to Dr.Rane's cabin.

"Pick one, Patient Intake, or tell the Rao's family that the husband needs a pacemaker." He asked us.

We are in groups of 2, me and Mukund in one and Viren and Riya in one because I'd rather die than be in a group with Viren.

"Patient intake over sad news any day!" Viren announced like he won a lottery before me.

"So, it's decided then...Viren and Riya to Rao's family, Mukund and Sakhi to visitors lounge.." Dr.Rane announced the exact opposite of what Viren wanted and left the room without leaving any room to argue.

Viren stomped his foot and I walked to the reception to get my tablet to put on the intake,

"What's your last name?" I heard the nurse ask someone as I was passing through.

"I don't believe in last names.."I heard a man say that in his American accent capturing my attention toward him, something about his voice was pulling me to stop. It felt familiar like I knew him from before.

"Gender?"

"Gender, caste, and religion are all social constructs. Can we stop with this nonsense, get me to your head nurse or a cardio surgeon, instead of wasting our time like this?" He said firmly with authority in his voice.

That's when it clicked like a puzzle, he was the man in the Cafe who helped that little girl, At that particular second all I wanted was to turn around and take a look at him and I did.

I was blown away by his attractive face, with a chiseled jaw line, a sharp nose, and those dark brown eyes which were full of emotions. His hair was bouncing off his head as he kept talking, I couldn't help myself from lowering my eyes to scan him again.

He seems almost 5.11 feet tall, wearing a white short sleeve tee, showing tan lines. I could really see his muscles as he moved his hands explaining something to the nurse.

His face and features scream that he is Indian but the way he talks, and his actions prove that he is really not from here.

"Listen to me Ms.Radha, we are just wasting our time with this paperwork, in a few minutes that boy's lungs are gonna be filled with fluids, which will stop him from breathing. Let me in and help him or call someone who can understand what I say." He said and somehow turned his head and looked at me.

As soon as his eyes met mine, I felt like a kid caught with his hand in a cookie jar, I wanted to run away from his piercing gaze but my foot was stuck to the ground and my eyes were on his face.

What was wrong with me? Why did I do this?

Hello there people!

That's more about Sakhi, a regular girl who has lots of problems in her life.

Let's make them talk in the next chapter.

Who's excited for Arjun? And how do you like the story so far?

I know it's an arranged marriage story but I want them to meet first before they get into marriage.

And guess how I will get them married? bring in all the drama you got.

Don't forget to vote and comment.

Love,

Sneha