The Addiction of Love

II

That night, Aayat's mind kept playing the whole incident again and again. She knew that she had done her part, now there was no need to think about him anymore. But she had this uncanny urge to see him again. To make sure that he was okay.

And that is the reason why the next day, after college, Aayat goes back to the hospital to see him.

After asking for Kaif Yousuf's room number, she is now standing in front of it, hesitant to walk in.

Should I go in?
Is he with doctors?
Will his family be inside?
Will he be conscious?

Many thoughts flood her mind, but putting them aside, she raises her hand in a fist to knock on the door. The door opens on its own by the force of her knock.

She slightly peeks in.

Ameera Yousuf, Kaif's mother looks up from the book she was reading, sitting on the couch in the room.

Upon seeing Aayat, her eyes show shock. She was not expecting to see her again.

"Can I come in?" Aayat asks in a small voice.

Ameera nods and raises her body off the couch,"Yes, please."

Aayat walks in and her eyes fall on the bed that is placed in the center of the room. Kaif lays on it, still unconscious. There are several bandages on his head and arms.

She stands in front of Ameera, not knowing what to say.

"What are you doing here?" Ameera asks finally in a curious, but soft voice.

"I, umm, I just couldn't get the whole accident thing out of my head. I just wanted to make sure that he is okay. That's why I couldn't stop myself from coming here." Aayat says with an embarrassed look on her face.

Hearing her makes Ameera smile, "That's fine. You can come here whenever you want."

"Thank you."

At that moment, the young girl, who most probably was the sister, walks in. She also gets a little shocked to see Aayat in the room.

She raises a questioning eyebrow towards her mother, and Ameera answers her, "She's here to check on Kaif."

"Oh, that's so sweet." She says and then extends her arm towards Aayat.

"Hi, I am Sarah, Kaif's sister."

"I am Aayat." She joins their hands.

"I didn't get a chance to say thank you to you yesterday." Sarah points out.

"You don't have to." Aayat smiles at her.

The three ladies take a seat and casually start talking.

Aayat is informed that Kaif has not yet gained consciousness, but doctors are hoping that he will in the next few hours.

Ameera also asks Aayat about her life. She tells them about her father passing away years ago, and that it's just her mother and her.

She also tells them that she is a final year student of MA Economics from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

"Oh wow, I am in the last year of my graduation and I am also planning to apply in JNU." Sarah chirps.

Aayat also comes to know that Kaif is a MBA from IIM Ahmedabad and has been working in a company in Delhi for the past three years.

Later that evening, Aayat bids her farewell to them and promises to visit again the next day.

But unfortunately, the visit next day turns out to be different than before.

This time, there are no casual conversations between them. Instead, there is tension in the air. That is because Dr Jaiswal informs them that Kaif is stable, but is not waking up.

This only means one thing, Kaif has slipped into the coma.

And there is no guarantee of when he'll wake up.

The next few weeks bring stress and fear for the whole Yousuf family and Aayat.

Ameera spends her entire day with Kaif, praying to Almighty to wake up her son. She only leaves his side at night, when Mr Junaid Yousuf, Kaif's father comes back from office to stay the night at the hospital.

Ameera insisted on staying the nights too, but due to her health issues, Sarah takes her home every night.

Aayat visits the hospital daily, after college and spends a few hours with Ameera and Sarah. And on weekends, Aayat visits them in the morning and stays till lunch with them.

Aayat has grown a lot closer to both of them. Ameera has become her second mother; and she has found a friend-cum-sister in Sarah. Aayat also helps Sarah prepare for the JNU entrance exam.

But it is not just Ameera and Sarah that Aayat has grown attached to, but also Kaif. Now it's like Aayat's day is incomplete without seeing him.

And there hasn't been a single day when Aayat has not prayed for his well-being.

It's been three months since the accident and there is no change in Kaif's condition. The only good thing that happened was the guy who had caused the accident was caught and was serving his punishment in jail.

It is Tuesday, and as usual Aayat goes to the hospital after college. Just as she enters the room, she hears Sarah speaking.

"You can't stay in the hospital tonight, dad. You're not well. You need rest."

"I am fine, Sarah. Besides if I don't stay then who will?"

"I will stay with bhai, dad." Sarah answers back.

"You can't, sweety. You've got an exam tomorrow morning. You need a good night's sleep." Ameera points out.

Before Sarah can answer back, her eyes fall on Aayat who is standing on the door.

"Hello, Aayat", She smiles.

"Am I interrupting something? I can wait outside." Aayat states.

"Oh no, honey. Please come in." Ameera says," We were just discussing who'll stay with Kaif tonight. You see, Junaid's blood pressure had dropped today. And Sarah has an exam tomorrow. And they're not letting me stay because apparently I am not in sound health to stay a night in the hospital."

"You are not in sound health to stay here. Mom, you know your heart condition. We're not letting you stay here." Sarah retorts back.

"Well, if anything happens in the night, I'll be in the hospital itself." Ameera rolls her eyes and Junaid chuckles.

Sarah gives her mother a death glare.

"Umm, I can stay the night." Aayat suggests.

But as soon as those words leave her lips, she regrets it immediately.

All three of them look at her with their eyes as wide as saucers.

"I-I mean that I can. It's just that I am free and fit. And of course you don't have to say yes if you don't want to. I a- am just a stranger. It's completely fine if you don't want me to." Aayat rambles in complete nervousness.

Ameera looks at Junaid with a small smile of adoration, which he returns.

"You saved his life, Aayat. Of course we trust you with him. And you're not a stranger to us. You're as dear to me as Sarah and Kaif." Ameera slides her hand over Aayat's hair with love.

"Yes, and if you want to, we absolutely have no problem with you staying the night with Kaif." Junaid adds.

Aayat gives him a heartfelt smile and ensures that she'll stay the night with Kaif.

She calls her mother to inform her about her not returning home tonight.