The community government hospital was always crowded with patients. But that day, something terrible had happened which was brutal and had gripped the city; a short circuit which had resulted in a massive fire at Shanti colony.

There were few deaths, especially the people living on the ground floor. Some bodies were retrieved back to the family members whereas the other bodies which were charred and beyond recognition were brought into the mortuary for identification.

There were few survivors recovering from the aftermath, some critical and in the intensive care unit and several others admitted in the general ward.
Most of the casualty were women as they were on their houses when the fire erupted.

The duty doctors were busy running around in the children's ward as they were tending to the wounded. One such boy had just regained consciousness and had opened his eyes to find himself in a strange place.

Dhruv rubbed his eyes vigorously, coughing a lot of smoke he had inhaled. He could hear noises and the smell of the room was nauseating him. He was tired, not to mention hungry.

"Hi" a sweet voice asked. He looked up from the bed and saw a lady doctor smiling brightly at him "how are you?"

He stared at her blankly "what's your name sweetheart?"she smiled. He coughed again "Dhrubo"he answered. "Oh you're a Bengali, how sweet!"she squealed "what's your full name?"she had a sheet in her hand and he glanced at it.

"Dhrubo" he repeated again. "Come on Radhika" another doctor joined her "you think he would know his surname?" She shrugged "I wanted to know for identification purposes".

He looked at the boy "do you know your mother's name?"he asked in a relaxed tone. Dhruv nodded obediently "Aruna".

"And your father's?"

"Arbind".

The doctor stared at the boy "we don't have those names on the survivors list" he told his colleague Radhika who looked sympathetic "does that mean.. they're..?" Dhruv was staring at them back and forth, unable to understand what they were talking.

"Does he remember anything?"

"No, he was unconscious when they were brought along with the other kids. I don't think he knows what happened".

"We can't keep him here, we need more beds" Dr Radhika whispered in his ears. He nodded and looked at the little boy "let's get you out of here".

Dhruv couldn't have been happier and jumped out of the bed, glad to be rid of this smelly place. He wanted to go home, to his parents, to his mother who was waiting for him with hot pooris ready on the plate. And his father who always brought him sweets.

He walked with the doctor into another room "Dhrubo! Why don't you wait here with the others? I'll get you something" the doctor said and left.

Dhruv looked around for his parents and couldn't find them. Instead, he recognised Partho and his elder brother Binoy.

"Dada!" Dhruv called him, happy to see a familiar face. Twelve year old Binoy turned to see him and rushed to him "Dhru..? Where were you?"he asked, concerned with Partho trailing behind him.

"I was sleeping, why are we here? Have you seen maa and baba?" Dhruv asked desperately. Binoy shook his head "I didn't see them, but I think they're in the ward".

"Where is it? Take me please" Dhruv pleaded innocently. Partho held his hand "we're looking for our mother and father too, I think they're together. Don't worry, dada will look for them".

Binoy stared at both of them, not knowing what to do "okay..you guys wait here..I'll find out what happened..let me ask the doctors". The boys nodded and stood together while Binoy walked out.

"What happened to us? Why did we come here?" Dhruv asked as they sat on the floor. "Our colony caught fire" Partho said simply "it was very big, like too big" he showed in his hands "and everyone yelled, dada told me".

"Where was I?" Dhruv asked, wondering. "You were in the market, buying milk, I was with you remember?" Dhruv shook his head "why was I buying milk?"

"Don't know" Partho shrugged. Dhruv looked confused "oh" he muttered, scratching his head "I hate hospitals, I never want to come back here". "Me too" agreed Partho.

They sat together, watching the other patients who were waiting just like them. It was almost an hour and Dhruv was hungry "I want to go home, I want my maa!"he groaned "let's go Partho, come with me!"

Partho looked at him "don't you know? We don't have a house, it's burned". Dhruv didn't understand, how can his house burn like that?

He was confused and scared "I'm going to find baba, he'll take me home" he got up when two uniformed policemen came upto them, followed by a woman who smiled at them "are you boys from Shanthi colony?"

The boys looked at each other and nodded. "Come with us" one of the policemen said and the two boys followed them, oblivious to the unknown reality which lay ahead of them.

◇◇◇◇◇

"I like this place" Preeth said, helping onto more dessert "the food is great". Dhruv gave one of his ever charming smiles "I like it too".

"So..tell me about yourself" she said, not returning the smile. He stared at her "I'm a surgeon, a good one like your father says" he winked.

"I know that" she grimaced "tell me about your family". He leaned back lazily "for someone who's into a casual relationship, you're asking too much". She kept the bowl aside "I was just curious".

He gave a long hard glance at her; she was pretty, with dark chocolaty eyes and dusky skin, a perfect combination. She was intelligent and certainly not a snob, he could tell. "Scared of the questionnaire Dhruv?" she teased.

He found himself smiling "not at all" he leaned closer "okay...my real parents are dead and I was adopted by a foster family when I was seven..my adopted mother left my father when I was fifteen" he explained "and I've a brother and a step sister.."

"Wow! That's really..lengthy" she said and he laughed "lengthy wasn't the word I was expecting, trust me. Imagine having to do a family tree!"

She looked at him intently "so you stay with your family?" He nodded "yeah sometimes ..I've got an apartment of my own..it's near to my hospital and I can come soon in case of emergencies" he stated "are you done or is there anything else you left out?"

She gave a small nod "so your complicated family is the reason you.. don't want to take any relationships to the next level?" He stopped smiling "not at all! I just don't want to get entangled in the drama of this forever and happily ever after crap. I like my freedom".

"Wrong answer" she shrugged "you're afraid of something, or you're hiding a secret, pretending to laugh and have fun and feel like you're the most happiest man on this planet but in reality, you're..lonely.."

He didn't comment, he looked into her eyes and found her sharp gaze. "You done twisting my brains..miss Sigmund Freud?"he retorted. She burst out laughing "chill! I'm a lawyer, that's what I do. I bring out the worst in people".

He found himself relaxing "you didn't come this close" he gestured with his fingers. "Yeah, you're way too complex, I can feel it" she mused. He shook his head "see this is why I don't date intelligent girls, they're always curious". She laughed.

He took her hand across the table "so how's your arm? Still giving problems?" She felt his touch "nah, I've a great doctor". He turned her hand and made circular patterns around her palm "you're..stunning" he whispered.

She looked at him "and you're a pro at this". His grin was back "imagine your father catching us like this, he would slaughter me". She giggled "yeah..never mix business with pleasure. I hate whoever said that".

He was saved from replying as his phone kept ringing continuously. He saw the screen and ignored but it rang again. "You should take that" she said, concerned.

"No it's not" he sighed "I've to take this, or else she wouldn't let me live in peace" he moved away from her and received "what's up Likhi?"he asked in annoyance "you couldn't have chosen a better time".

"Dhruvi!"came a squeal from the other end and he groaned "you almost damaged my middle ear". She giggled "were you busy? Did I disturb you?" He rolled his eyes "of course you did!"

"Wow, mission accomplished!"she cheered "are you with a girl? Did I burst your charming bubble?"

"Besides annoying me, why did you really call?"he asked, a little impatient. "Well..there was something I had to announce to you guys" she said and he could imagine her excited face.

"That you're engaged? I already know" he said coolly. "What?"she yelled. He laughed "Payal told me, but relax, I haven't told anyone".

"Oh thank God, but that girl is a tattle tale" Lekha remarked. He scoffed "so what does your Mr Hugo Boss do other than sell cars for a living?"he decide to annoy her more.

"Automobiles" she corrected him "you haven't even met him but you already have a nickname!" she complained "anyway, he's into formula one racing!"

"Wow! A racer huh? That's so.. original" he quipped "but I'm really happy for you".

"Yeah, so we've decided to keep a small party to celebrate our engagement, for friends and family...since Vedaanth is extremely busy to have an actual ceremony" she explained breathlessly while he listened to her ramblings "and I called to invite you. It's tomorrow night and I called in advance because I want you to cancel all the appointments whatever you have".

"I can't Likhi, I'm sorry.. I'm working late and I've this surgery which I can't postpone and.." she cut him short "that's bull! You're chickening out because of maamu isn't it?"

He raised an eyebrow "what...of course not...hey how do you know about..dad.?"

"Payal" she said simply. "She really is a big mouth isn't she?"he said, irritated. A loud laugh erupted on the other end "you should listen to him and settle down you know..you're like..forty already.." she teased.

"I'm twenty nine!"he gritted his teeth "and I'm not bending my rules for anyone". She laughed again "don't worry, there are no elders, it's only us and his close friends" she said "come on Dhruvi! It's no fun without you!"

"Alright, I'll try" he said finally. "Okay, I'm done wasting time with you, I've to get back to work, see you around loser!" The call went disconnected.

Smirking, he occupied his vacant seat. "who was that? You were long gone" Preeth enquired. "That's my moronic cousin!"he said simply, moving the chair closer to her.

She stirred her mocktail "sounds like you guys are pretty close". He shook his head "yeah we are..although sometimes she annoys me a lot" he laughed "we weren't close before ...there was this incident where I was.." he stared at her "why am I telling you all this?"

She looked at him "I don't know. I thought you didn't want to get personal".

"You're right..I didnt.." he stammered "but I do want to get personal..with you" his words sounded strange to his own ears. Something about her appealed to him, in a different way.

She gave a bright smile "me too". He sighed "what do we do huh?" She patted his hand "we'll worry about it later, shall we?".

◇◇◇◇◇

The fashion show was only hours away but to Lekha, it felt like an eternity. Having running around and getting the models ready wasn't am easy job like she had anticipated. She secretly wondered if Sonia had deliberately given her that job.

With the fresh summer bridal collections in her hand, she rushed to the make up room "Grace?"she called out and the nearest girl who was having her hair done paused and looked at her "here's your dress" Lekha handed out to her and kept it on the hanging stand.

"You a model?" Grace asked, as the stylist was braiding her hair. Lekha sat next to her "oh no, I'm one of Sonia's interns".

Grace gave a thin smile "wow! You have an amazing figure". Lekha beamed at been given such a huge compliment "thanks, and you're gorgeous too"she added.

Grace acknowledged her with a nod "will you help me with this?"she asked, holding the dress. Lekha smiled "what am I here for?"

After a long while, Grace came out of the closet and Lekha gasped. Wearing a golden brown lehenga with a cream veil, Grace looked like a bride. "Wow, this dress is amazing!" Lekha squealed.

"Do I look ready to tie the knot?" Grace joked. "Totally" Lekha giggled "so.. how long have you been working..in this business?"she asked as she helped her with the veil.

"Since three effing years" Grace explained "my parents migrated from Colombo when I was two, and I've settled here ever since although they've gone back to our native country".

"I've been to Colombo on a cruise, it's beautiful" Lekha said, pinning the veil "I love the beaches there, but I had to carry tons of suntan lotion, my skin gets freckled fast". Grace turned "you really are something! I like you". Lekha gave a serious nod "yeah I'm pretty likeable". Grace laughed "wish I had your confidence".

Danny interrupted them "guys!are you all ready?"he didn't wait for an answer and turned to Lekha "gosh! You're still here, did you check on the other models?"

"Yes I did" answered Lekha. "Fine, get them ready, it's about to start any minute". Lekha nodded and turned to Grace "I'll see you later" she waved and walked towards the dressing room.

All the models were ready. Sonia entered the room, looking gorgeous as ever "okay girls" she didn't smile "I want you all to rock this show, be a great bride and show them the wonders". A few models meekly nodded while the others were too busy in their phones.

Back stage, there was a lot of hustle going on. The showstopper's veil wasn't even done properly and Lekha rushed towards her. After a while, everything was set.

As the announcement started on the runway, Lekha and her fellow interns watched excitedly backstage. "Wow! This is so cool!" Anjum gasped with enthusiasm "I want to own a bridal couture one day".

"You will sweetheart" Lekha said dreamily "we will have own clothing line and someday we'll be fashion rivals". Anjum laughed and patted her back "I don't want to get into the dark side!"

Just then, Danny appeared with a look of shock written on his face. "What's wrong Dan? Kritika asked in concern.

He looked menacingly at Lekha "you.. were given one single job..to lead the models to the runway...but you.." he looked ready to strangle her.

Lekha stared at him in disbelief "wh..what's wrong?" He gritted his teeth in anger "one model is missing, with the dress!"

Lekha gasped in horror "tha..that's not possible..I personally checked them myself..I monitored everything..I.." she wiped her face "which one is it?" He gave a cold stare in her direction "Grace".

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