The corridor of the hospital was dimly lit, bathed in the pale orange hue of the evening sun sneaking in through the windows. A man sat alone on the bench outside the neonatal ward, his eyes misted with emotion. The nurse walked over, cradling a newborn in her arms, and gently handed the baby to him. His fingers trembled as he took the tiny bundle into his arms. The moment their eyes met—man and child—it felt as though time had stilled. His eyes welled up with unshed tears. The baby cooed, completely unaware of the storm of emotions flooding the man's heart.
But the warmth of the moment didn't last. The heavy slam of a door broke the silence. Another man entered, footsteps echoing through the corridor, his eyes sharp with hostility. Without a word, he marched towards the man holding the baby and reached out roughly. "Give it to me," he growled.
"No!" the first man clutched the baby tighter, his voice breaking.
"Give. It. To. Me."
Suddenly, a sharp sound broke the air—a ringtone.
Anaya's eyes flew open.
She lay curled on a narrow hospital bench, a blanket half-fallen from her shoulders. Her breath was uneven, heart pounding against her ribs. Disoriented for a second, she blinked at the white ceiling before realizing—it had all been a dream. But the baby… the man... that man was Sid.
Her phone kept vibrating on the side table. Still dazed, she reached out and saw the caller ID: Tanvi.
Anaya exhaled slowly and picked it up. "Tanvi…"
"Where the hell are you?" came a concerned yet bright voice from the other end.
"I'm at RB Hospital," Anaya replied, her voice low. "A guy fainted at Marine Drive … I brought him here. He's still unconscious."
There was a pause. "What? Anaya, are you okay?"
"Yeah, yeah. Just a little shaken."
"I'm nearby," Tanvi said. "Just two streets away. I'll come get you. You shouldn't be alone."
Anaya smiled faintly. That voice was familiar, like home. Tanvi—her best friend since college. Fierce, outspoken, and incredibly loyal. The kind of woman who'd punch someone for hurting Anaya, and then order ice cream to deal with it. Anaya loved her like a sister.
"You don't have to," Anaya murmured, but Tanvi had already cut the call.
A few minutes later, Tanvi arrived. As usual, she brought her radiant energy with her, her short curls bouncing as she walked, a sling bag lazily hung on her shoulder.
"You're seriously the weirdest person I know," she muttered, hugging Anaya tightly. "Fainting boys, hospitals, mystery men… What's next, you adopting a unicorn?"
Anaya chuckled, but it was a tired laugh.
"Oh—and guess what," Tanvi continued, "my parents are in town. They really want to see you. It's been forever."
Anaya's eyes lit up at that. "Really? Uncle and aunty? I… I'd love to."
"They're leaving for a function in a few hours. So, we gotta move now if you wanna catch them."
Anaya hesitated. "Sid's friend will be here any minute… I said I'd wait."
Tanvi looked at her, softening. "Anu… I get it. But you've done more than enough. Just let the nurse know."
Anaya frowned. "I was also thinking about that, but she hasn't come back yet. Maybe… maybe five more minutes."
"Alright. Five minutes."
They waited. Five minutes. Then six. Still no nurse.
Finally, Tanvi nudged Anaya. "Come on. We'll just drop a message or something."
Anaya picked up Sid's phone. She stared at it for a long second. "I shouldn't take this with me."
Tanvi nodded. "I'll it to the security guy outside ICU. He'll hand it over."
Anaya headed out, walking down the now-busy corridor. Her heart still hadn't calmed from the dream. That moment—Sid with a baby—it didn't feel like just a dream. It felt real. Like a memory misplaced in time.
Tanvi handed the phone to the security guard and turned around to leave. But just as she was rounding the corner—
Bump.
She collided into a man rushing in from the other side.
"Oh! I'm so sorry," the man said quickly, hands out to steady her.
Tanvi blinked, caught off-guard. The man had warm eyes, a hurried energy, and a rather awkward smile.
But before she could respond with a polite nod, his eyes lingered a second too long, and something in his gaze shifted.
"Wait… Have we met before?" he asked, sounding genuinely puzzled.
Tanvi raised an eyebrow. Her sarcasm sharpened on instinct.
"Hospitals were the last place where men didn't try to flirt with women. Guess that's gone too."
She walked away without waiting for his reaction, a smirk tugging at her lips.
Akhil stood frozen for a moment, completely embarrassed. Behind him, Unnati tried hard not to laugh.
"Seriously?" she said, grinning. "We're in a crisis and you're out here trying your luck?"
"I wasn't! I just… I thought I knew her," Akhil mumbled. "Now that I think about it, I feel like burying myself six feet under."
Unnati gave him a dramatic eye-roll. "You're turning into Sid."
"Oh god," Akhil groaned.
Meanwhile, outside, Tanvi slid into the passenger seat of her car where Anaya was waiting. As she buckled her seatbelt, she noticed Anaya clutching her hands, her knuckles white.
"Anu?"
Anaya's lips parted slightly, her breathing uneven. "The man… in the dream. It was him. Sid was holding the baby."
Tanvi's face shifted from teasing to serious in seconds. "Are you okay? You're shaking."
Anaya nodded quickly, but she wasn't. Her vision blurred for a second, and her chest tightened. She couldn't breathe.
It hit her like a wave.
The panic.
The weight of that dream. The man with tears, the warmth of the baby in his arms… and then the pain. She felt it in her bones. Felt as though her soul had seen something it wasn't ready for. A life, maybe. A loss. Something deeply connected to Sid.
Tanvi pulled the car to the side and reached out, gripping Anaya's hands.
"Hey, hey… Breathe with me, alright? Look at me."
Anaya met her eyes.
"Inhale… Exhale. Slowly."
Their fingers clasped tightly.
Anaya did as told. Breath by breath. Slowly, the tremors in her fingers calmed.
Tanvi didn't let go. "You're not alone, okay?"
Tears rolled down Anaya's cheeks silently.
"I don't know why… but it felt like something important," she whispered. "I saw Sid holding that child. And I just… I felt like I had lost something."
Tanvi's heart broke a little. She didn't know what the dream meant, but she could see what it had done to her friend.
"Come home with me," she said softly. "Just for a few hours. Let's talk to mom and dad, eat something warm. You need it."
Anaya nodded faintly. And as the car started moving again, she leaned her head on Tanvi's shoulder.
Neither of them knew how deeply their lives were about to intertwine with the storm slowly rising around Sid.