Chapter 36

Mohit's POV



Srusti came back, holding a broom, dustpan and a garbage bag.



" Oh, please don't bother, I would do it. " I started going towards her.



" Stop right there !!! Go and sit on the bed with your feet. " She said in a firm voice and started collecting all the tiny pieces with the broom.



" But I created this mess... "



" It's ok... I would clean this mess. I can do at least that much for my only friend here. Right?? "



" I... You don't have to. Please, it's not your work. " I said as I was feeling guilty.



" Oh, c'mon what are friends for?? You might just call me your friend but don't think of me as one, but I do. "



" Why are you saying that?? I consider you my friend... "



" No... You don't. Or you would have shared your problem with me. Don't say that there is nothing. I can see that you are tense. You are in a strange mood since we met those people. "



" They are not important... It's just that I am having a headache. I must have eaten something, so I got it. "



" Ok, if you say so... I trust you," she said and went out.



Oh shit !! She said she trusted me... But I was not worth it.



She came back with a mop. It was too much. She was making me feel guilty, I had to stop her.



" Enough Srusti... Please don't do it. You know that the maid would come in the morning, she would clean it. "



" No, what if some very small piece is still there on the floor, you might get hurt. It would only take 5 minutes. " She said and mopped the whole room and went out.



What kind of a girl was she?? She knew I was hiding something, still, she was so calm.



Was I wrong in hiding things from her?? Maybe but I could not take the risk. She was oblivious to the kind of relationship I was involved in. She would not understand the complexity of my relationship with Robin.



Sometimes I feel that I should tell her but the very next moment my over-cautious mind tells me not to do that.



I like her... She is a good girl, very caring. She is my friend, I can't let her go. She might refuse to help me with my parents. I wanted her near me, she had a soothing effect on me.



I was so confused about my feelings and contradictory through, that I started having shooting pain in my head. I think I was going to have one of the Migraine attacks. I was lying on my bed pressing my head tightly.



The door opened and she came back. I was having a severe headache. So I was lying on my bed. She started going back.



" What is it? " I asked.



" Please have this ginger tea and medicine. It will cure your headache."



" No, I am having a severe headache now. Can't get up. I think I am having a migraine. " I said with difficulty, pressing my head.



Srusti's POV



He said that he was having a headache, so I left him alone. I knew he was hiding something. I was feeling bad that he didn't trust me with his problem. I was helping him with one of his problems, I would have understood what was wrong and would have supported him. But he didn't trust me.



It was about half an hour when I thought that if he is having a headache, I must make some tea for him. He should also have medicine.



So I prepared tea and took it to his room along with medicine. I saw that he was sleeping so I started to turn around.



" What is it? " He asked.



His voice was slurred and painfully exhausted. His eyes were closed and his face had a feverish flush.



" Please have this ginger tea and medicine. It will cure your headache."



" No, I am having a severe headache now. Can't get up. I think I am having a migraine. " He said with difficulty, pressing his head.



He said that he was having a migraine and he could not get up. My mother had suffered from excruciating migraine attacks some so severe that they had physically paralyzed her.



I would never forget the trauma of getting home from school one afternoon and finding my mother's car parked in the drive with my mother inside it, totally unable to move a single muscle.



I could see that he was in pain. His eyes were a bit dilated.



My mother hand always found ginger tea very relaxing and helpful when taking her medication. She had also found relief having her neck and shoulder muscles massaged.



I didn't know if I should give it to him or not. He was already tense. Mohit seemed to be a man who would not like to be seen in his most vulnerable condition.



I closed all his curtains to block out the afternoon sunlight. Although the room was dim, it was still light enough for me to see. I could see that he was lying on his front-breathing heavily, his eyes were closed and he was pressing his head.



His shirt was lying on the recliner and he was sweating profusely. It was a hot day. I was not sure if He would like if I on the AC. He looked feverish.



" But you need to take the medicine, let me help you. Take the medicine, my mother used to suffer from migraine and she found it helped her system to absorb her medication when taken with hot tea. I will press your head. " I said and helped him in a sitting position and gave him medicine.



I looked at him and found that this time his eyes were open. They were dark and hazed with pain. Something twisted uncomfortably inside me.



Oh God!!! He was suffering.



Mohit's POV



I was feeling that my head was burning.



I swallowed the medicine and had water. She gave me the tea and touched my forehead with her soft cold hands. I felt much better instantly.



" Please have some tea. "



" I don't feel like it. "



" Have some. " She insisted.



I took a few sips of it. She touched my forehead tentatively first and then started pressing my forehead. I felt the feel of her cold soft hands on my forehead. It was relaxing. I drank only half a cup of tea and then I laid down on the bed.



" What else did your mom find helpful? " I asked her. The question surprised her.



" She wanted me to massage her head, neck and shoulders. " She said hesitantly. She was still pressing my forehead.



Oh God!! I wanted the same. But I couldn't tell her that.



" Thanks for pressing my forehead, it was giving me relief but I can't sit a more, I will be fine, now that I have taken the medicine and tea .



" No, you just sleep I will press your head till the medicine starts working."

She said and sat down near me and kept massaging my forehead. It was a good feeling.



Srusti's POV



I was sitting beside him massaging his head when he groaned a bit.



" Do you think it might help me??" He asked me in a low voice.



" What?? "



" The massage you used to give to your mom... " He said hesitantly.



It might... But... How could I...



But he was suffering... Just like my mom used to. I could not let him suffer.



But... I... How??



I looked at him he was in pain. I had to help him.



" Umm... I suppose it depends, whether your migraine is induced because of tension or from some food or change in weather. "



" It is primarily because of tension. " All of a sudden he moved so restlessly and closed his eyes again.



" Oh, God !! I feel that my head is going to explode anytime soon. " His voice was like a tiny thread of sound. I could not see him in so much pain.