The two sat huddled on the bench. The tiny yellow bulb on the other end of the long corridor swung precariously from the stringy naked wire. Eerie shadows danced up and down the wall on the far-side. The young woman, little more than a girl, shuddered. With fright, pain and yes, a wee bit of excitement. The contractions had almost stopped now and the dull pain that radiated from her middle was almost soothing. She cast a sidelong glance at the man beside her. The tiny quiver at the corner of his mouth belied the nervousness that the set lines of his profile tried to mask.
It had been raining furiously for the past five or six hours. The first rains of the monsoon had brought in its wake a near deluge. The occasional lightning and thunderclap were muffled by the steady sound of the falling rain. The giant wall clock on the near wall said ten minutes to one. Now who knew whether that was the correct time? It didn’t seem as if the clock had been wound in a hundred years. The girl shifted on the bench trying to balance the weight of her enormous belly and sighed. When would the doctor come? It had been more than an hour since she and her husband had been perched on that rickety bench at one end of the obstetrics ward.
Not a soul stirred not a mouse squeaked. The stillness inside the corridor was deafening. She could hear her own erratic heart beats. On an impulse she put out her hand and touched her husband’s heart- was it beating as fast too? Startled he looked around and his stern face softened instantly. “Chaye piyegi?” he asked. She merely shook her head and smiled wanly. Just moving around to face him was too much effort and she let out a soft groan “O Maa!” He sprang up like a wound spring and cursed under his breath. “Tu zarah baithi rah, mein dekh kar aata hoon,” saying this he disappeared into the darkness round the corner.
She sat wondering at her fate. What was to become of her? She winced at the thought of the pain she had suffered all through the day. What would it be- Laxmi or Kanhaiyya? Would her mother-in-law give her a golden bichwa or tana? She shut her eyes tightly. She wouldn’t think about that yet. She wouldn’t. He would be there to deal with it when the time came.
Right now her mind was on more immediate concerns. The doctor sahib had said she needed “bada oprayshun”- what would it be like to have this big operation? What if she never regained consciousness? Would Dukhiya Bai be able to raise the baby like she would have? Dukhiya Bai was good with babies. Hadn’t she just seen the way she handled Sharma Bhabi’s son? Very good with babies, very good. That was a comfort. And what would happen to him? Her blood ran cold. How would he take it if she died leaving her hapless baby for him to raise? Would he marry again? Like all those men in the village? They didn’t even wait for the funeral to be over before donning the sehra again. Thoo!
She had arranged everything nicely before embarking on her journey from the village in the wee hours of the morning. All her jewelry would go to her baby save the diamond nose stud. If he married again his wife could have that, else she wanted that to go to Natthu’s bride when he was old enough to be married. Dear Natthu, how handsome he looked when he wore the pagri and set off for the market with the elders.
Natthu’s mother Urmila, was her sister-in-law and her only friend in the entire extended family. Urmila’s husband had a small shop in the neighborhood and she often got nail polish and colored bindis for her. The rest had always discriminated against her because he had chosen her himself and because she had been raised in the city and had passed her matriculation. Well, what of that? She didn’t care, she didn’t care at all. At least she would be able to teach her child ABC and to spell CAT, RAT!
Ding dong ding dong! She almost jumped off the bench. The clock seemed to have suddenly come alive. One o’clock! Where was he? How long was it going to take? She needed to stretch her cramped legs and relieve herself. She felt an unreasonable urge to cry. Was there was no one, no one, who could be by her side? How she longed for her mother’s soothing voice and gentle touch. But her mother was dead. And his mother had asked to be given the “good news” when the baby arrived. Ah! What a wretch! She had hobbled about and said that her gout was killing her and she wouldn’t be able to stand the bus ride from the village. “Gout? My foot! Just a lame excuse!” she thought angrily. No! She wouldn’t get angry now, she wouldn’t. The doctor had told her to be calm. She took a few deep breaths and yawned.
She turned her head and looked at the clock again. The minute hand seemed to be stuck and time stood still. She waited patiently for how long she didn’t know. Her eyelids started to droop gently over her tired eyes. “Arrey, so gayi kya? Utho daktar saab aagaye hein.” She woke up with a start. His hand fell gently on her head. “Chalo utho ab.” She sat there staring dumbly at his face. So this was it, the final moment had arrived. She wanted to cry and cling to him, tell him that she was terrified. But she slowly got up instead and smiled shyly at the nurse who had come to escort her to the operation theatre. The nurse carried a green colored gown for her to wear.
Things happened quickly after that. The doctor’s gruff voice could be heard giving instructions to the junior doctors and nurses outside. He walked into the room where she lay on the table uneasily not knowing what to do. One look at his huge face and her fear seemed to melt away. There was something strong and reassuring about his pock marked face. Then he was engulfed in his surgical gown and mask and she could only hear a mumble of voices. The doctor told her how brave she had been the whole day and now all her pain would be eased. He would take care of everything, she needed to relax now. She could feel the tight coil at the pit of her stomach unwinding and a warm and happy glow spread over her.
“There! You are the proud father of a daughter now!” crowed the nurses in unison. He nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden clamor. “Come take look at her, how beautiful she is!” He trembled as he approached the little bundle that the nurse held out for him. Ten little fingers and ten little toes…curly black hair, blue eyes and a dimpled chin! Tears ran down his cheeks as he touched the baby gingerly with his index finger. This little angel is mine he thought, mine to love and cuddle and hold. What had she said? We’ll call her Laxmi if it is a girl- so we will, so we will, he beamed. And then the silence inside the operation room sliced through him like the cold blade of a knife. And she? How was she?
The doctor came out slowly from the caverns of the huge operating theatre still wiping his hands. He lurched up to the doctor and almost yelled at him “How is my wife? How is she?” The doctor looked haggard in the faint light of the yellow bulb. “Steady, young man, steady. Your wife is sleeping-let her sleep now. She needs rest.” It continued to rain torrentially. The rain had a new melody now.
Beautiful. The minute details, the atmosphere make it absolutely enchanting.
ReplyDelete<3 Loved it.