Armaan-Abhimanyu Part 5

Pred – part 5

Riddhima enters the house – Anjy is surprised to see her coming from outside.
Anj: Kahan thi, Ridzi?
Rid (awkwardly): voh … Di, Dr. Abhimanyu ko bahar tak chhodne gayi thi …
Anj: Lekin voh to kab ke chale gaye … voh Rahul Muskaan ke saath hi nikle the …
Rid: Haan, phir voh bahar thodi der baat kar rahe the … aur … phir … I was taking a walk …
Armaan enters, he hears the last part of the conversation.

Ar: Kaun bahar baat kar rahe the?
Anj : Ridz aur Dr. Abhimanyu … voh dinner ke liye aaye the … you must have just missed him. Lekin why are you so late? Tumne dinner bhi miss kar diya …
Ar (not looking at Riddhima, trying to hide his smile): kuch kaam tha hospital mein …
Rid (blushing again): Main tumhare liye kuch khaane ko laati hun …

She slips out to the kitchen. Armaan looks at Anjali, remembering his suspicions.
Ar: So you entertained the enemy tonight …
Anjali smiles slightly.
Anj: well, he behaved better today … voh dad ke saath kaafi polite the … aur hum sab ke saath bhi … he was quite friendly … so I don't know …
Riddhima comes back carrying a plate for Armaan, just in time to hear this. She looks doubtful.
Rid: Di, mujhe to nahin laga that he was friendly … I mean, voh baat to achche se kar rahe the … but voh baar baar new rules, new regulations ki kaise baat kar rahe the … jaise ki Papa ke saare purane rules bikul galat hain …
Anjali sighs and looks at Riddhima.

Anj: Ridzi, don't take it so personally … he has a job to do …
Rid (stubbornly): I didn't like the way he was talking to papa … and to Atul … mujhe to Atul ke liye bhi dar lag raha hai …
Anj: Ridzi, theek se to baat kar rahe the … and Atul can be quite funny sometimes …
Rid: Aur voh kya keh rahe the … staff ke baare mein … inefficiencies …
Anj (impatiently): well, he has to look into everything …
Armaan listens to the two sisters arguing, his brow furrowed in a frown. He is thinking hard … he needs to talk to Rahul, but before that, he has to figure out … he abruptly breaks into the conversation …

Ar: Riddhima, tumhare papa ne tumhe Dr. Modi ko bulane ke liye kaha?
Riddhima looks at him in surprise.
Rid: nahin … I think unhe Papa ne phone karke bola … Dr. Modi ne mujhe bataya … kyun?
Ar: kab?
She tries to remember.
Rid: shaam ko … duty ke khatam hone ke kareeb aadha ghanta pehle …

So the phone call that had come just after they replaced the phone was probably Dr. Shashank's … and soon after that, Abhimanyu had spoken to Riddhima to arrange for her to ride home with him, and had taken care to load Armaan with the extra work, Armaan thinks, and his suspicions become stronger. Abhimanyu did not want Armaan to be at dinner with the rest. But why? Why separate Armaan from the rest? Or was it just coincidence? And was he, Armaan, getting too hyper only because he had seen Abhimanyu leave with Riddhima?
Wait and watch, Armaan decides. One thing is for sure. Abhimanyu Modi is not going to be pushed out easily.

Next morning, in the clear light of day, Armaan wonders if he really was creating a mountain out of a molehill. But back in Sanjeevani his suspicions start crystallizing. It is not only Armaan that Abhimanyu is targeting. Abhimanyu is using Shubhankar as his mouthpiece, but he is making sure that the interns have barely any time together. Their breaks are staggered. Their duty hours are increased and their end times are also staggered. So the times they usually got together – for lunch, for coffee breaks – are all at different times, and with the hospital hours increasing – another of Abhimanyu's changes – by the time the interns do get off, they are so tired, they are happy to just go home, except for the two people doing night duty every night. End of all practical tricks, end of all plotting and planning.

Armaan manages to speak to Rahul – Rahul has also noticed exactly the same thing – Abhimanyu is making sure the interns don't get any time together at all. He definitely doesn't want a repeat of the first day's tricks.

And Rahul tells Armaan something else – Niki was not there for dinner that night.
Ar (thoughtfully): So … what do you make of that?
Ra (thinking hard): tu aur Niki … next in line to go?
Ar: shayad … lekin main kuch aur bhi soch raha hun … (at Rahul's enquiring look) … ek to … divide and rule … (Rahul nods in agreement) … and also … voh humein target nahin kar raha … eventually it's Dr. Shashank who will also go … and if he does that, he won't touch Anjali or Riddhima, he can't get rid of the whole family, otherwise Sanjeevani mein to hartal ho jayegi … so he's trying to win them over, and as many of us as he can … ek ek kar ke …
Ra: So … the ones he's not bothering with …
Ar: Niki aur main … hum dono bhi out ho jayenge …
Ra (trying to figure it out): lekin … tum dono …
Ar: maybe … Niki kyunki … voh nayi hai … se he thinks voh jayegi to zyaada hungama nahin hoga … and me because …
Ra: you stood up to him the first day … so he thinks …
Ar (finishing for him): … that I'm the trouble- maker … haan, mujhe bhi aisa lagta hai … mai ne kaha tha na, that we're all one family … he's trying to break that unity.
Ra: or maybe, Armaan … maybe it's Niki, kyunki usse pata chal gaya hai … that you and Niki … you know … so he feels she will be as much a trouble-maker as you …

Armaan looks a little upset.
Ar: shit, that's not fair … meri vajah se … it shouldn't backfire on her … voh to Riddhima aur meri help kar rahi thi ..
Ra: Aur usse agar yeh pata nahin hai ki tu aur Riddhima … Agar voh tujhe nikalega to Riddhima upset ho jayegi … she won't be very cooperative then …
Armaan thinks again.

Ar: I think usse yahan ki sabhi relationships ka poora andaza nahin hua hai … and maybe we'd better keep it that way. Pata nahin uske man mein kya hai … but one thing is sure … he's definitely keeping us all away from each other …
Rahul chuckles.
Ra: Maybe he just doesn't want another black face ….!!!
Armaan chuckles too – 'that was funny,' he agrees, grinning. "right, maybe we're just making too much out of this … but somehow …"
Rahul agrees, 'I don't think so, either, … well … let's wait and watch …