The sterile white walls of the hospital room remained unchanged, but the tension had shiftedâsubtle, like the first breath after a storm.
Shubman sat in the same chair, his fingers still loosely wrapped around Ishan's hand, though exhaustion had dulled his grief into something quieter, something fragile.
The room was dim, early morning light creeping through the blinds, casting faint stripes across Ishan's face. Shubman's eyes, heavy with sleepless nights, fluttered shut for just a moment.
Thenâa twitch.
At first, it was so small he thought he'd imagined it. But then it happened againâIshan's fingers, a faint, almost imperceptible movement.
Shubman shot up, heart thundering in his chest.
"Ishan?" His voice was a hoarse whisper, thick with disbelief and hope.
Ishan's eyelids fluttered weakly, his face scrunching slightly as if waking from a long, restless sleep. And thenâslowly, hazilyâhis eyes opened, unfocused at first, pupils adjusting to the light.
Shubman leaned in closer, tears already pooling again, "Ishan... Hey. It's me. I'm right here."
Ishan's lips parted slightly, dry and cracked. His voice was barely a breath, but it was there, "Shub..... man?"
It was enough to break him. Shubman let out a shaky laugh, tears falling freely now, "Yeah. Yeah, it's me. You're okay. You're okay, Ishan."
The door burst open, nurses rushing in, followed closely by Hardik, Rohit, and the others.
Hardik's face lit up with a mixture of relief and disbelief as he saw Ishan awake, blinking groggily at the commotion.
"I told you, you're too stubborn to leave us," Hardik choked out, brushing a hand over Ishan's hair with a mix of affection and frustration.
But even amidst the chaos, Ishan's eyes kept drifting back to Shubmanâconfused, searching, as if there was something left unsaid, something lingering between them.
The next few days blurred with recoveryâcheck-ups, soft conversations, the slow return of color to Ishan's cheeks. Shubman stayed by his side whenever he could, though a quiet tension hung between them.
Ishan noticed it too.
"Why do you look like you've seen a ghost every time you look at me?" he teased one evening, his voice still soft but carrying that familiar playful edge.
Shubman forced a smile,"Just.... glad you're okay."
But that wasn't the truth, and they both knew it.
Later that night, when the others had left, and the hospital was wrapped in quiet shadows, Ishan turned to him, more serious this time,"You said something when I was out, didn't you?"
Shubman froze. His heart felt like it had stopped mid-beat,"What... what do you mean?"
Ishan's gaze was steady, sharp despite his exhaustion,"I don't remember much. Just.... fragments. Your voice. You sounded like you were breaking. Like you were saying goodbye."
Shubman swallowed hard, looking down at his hands. The confession he'd poured out when Ishan was unconscious felt exposed now, raw and vulnerable,"I thought I'd lost you," he whispered. "And there were things I never said. Things I should've said a long time ago."
Silence. Heavy. Uncomfortable.
Then Ishan reached out, weak but determined, his fingers brushing against Shubman's hand, "Say them now."
Shubman's breath trembled as he looked at Ishan, really looked at himâthe crinkles at the corners of his eyes, the curve of his lips, the warmth that had always been there, even when Shubman pretended it wasn't.
"I love you," he said finally, his voice breaking but steady enough to carry the weight of the words. "Not like a friend. Not like a brother. I love you in all the ways I was too afraid to admit."
Ishan didn't say anything at first. He just stared, eyes dark and unreadable. Shubman's heart felt like it was tearing apart in the silence that followed.
Thenâsoftly, a breath of a laugh, "You idiot," Ishan whispered, his fingers tightening around Shubman's hand. "You think I didn't know?"
Shubman's heart stopped againâbut this time, for a different reason, "What?"
Ishan smiled, small but real, "I've been waiting for you to figure it out. Took you long enough."
Shubman let out a breath that felt like he'd been holding it for years. A laugh bubbled up, shaky with relief and disbelief, "You could've said something too, you know."
Ishan squeezed his hand weakly, "Yeah, well..... guess we're both idiots."
They sat there, in the quiet glow of the hospital room, hands intertwined, hearts finally unburdened. No more missed calls. No more unsaid words.
Just them.
The End.
.
.
.
What do you think??ð