Chapter Ninety-Eight: The Collapse
The morning after Shreya's confession, the mansion was unnaturally quiet.
Jay hadn't slept. Neither had Akshi. They'd stayed with Shreya until dawn, taking turns holding her, crying with her, pretending to be strong.
Shreya had finally fallen asleep around 5 AM.
Jay slipped out to make coffee. Found Akshi already in the kitchen, staring at nothing.
"Heart cancer," Akshi whispered. "How? She's only twenty-three."
Jay had no answer.
---
By 9 AM, Shreya appeared.
Pale. Dark circles. But moving.
She walked to the kitchen. Sat at the table.
"I need to do something normal," she said quietly. "I need to... make something. Cook something. Pretend."
Jay nodded. "Okay. What do you want to make?"
"Breakfast. For everyone. Like old times."
Akshi's eyes filled with tears. "Shreya—"
"Please. Let me have this."
---
They cooked together.
The three sisters.
Moving around the kitchen like nothing was wrong.
Jay chopped vegetables. Akshi stirred something. Shreya seasoned.
It felt almost normal.
Almost.
---
Mithun came down around 10.
He'd been in the garden all night. Again.
He looked terrible. Dark circles. Unshaven. Hollow.
He walked to the kitchen for water.
Shreya saw him.
Froze.
Looked away.
Kept cooking.
---
Mithun stopped in the doorway.
Watching her.
Waiting.
She didn't look up.
Didn't acknowledge him.
Just kept stirring.
---
He took a step forward.
"Shreya—"
She swayed.
The spoon clattered to the floor.
Her hand went to her chest.
"Shreya?"
Her eyes rolled back.
She collapsed.
---
Mithun caught her before she hit the ground.
"SHREYA!"
She was limp in his arms. Pale. Not moving.
"SHREYA!"
Jay dropped the knife. Ran to them.
Akshi screamed.
Chethan appeared. "What happened? WHAT HAPPENED?"
Mithun looked up, face destroyed. "I don't know! She just—she just collapsed!"
---
They laid her on the floor.
Jay checked her pulse. It was there. Weak. But there.
"She's breathing. She's alive."
"What's wrong with her? Why did she—" Mithun's voice broke. "What's happening?"
Jay looked at Akshi.
Akshi looked at Jay.
They couldn't tell him.
They'd promised.
---
An ambulance was called.
Minutes felt like hours.
Mithun held her hand, whispering.
"Please wake up. Please. I don't care if you won't talk to me. I don't care if you hate me. Just wake up."
No response.
---
The ambulance arrived.
Paramedics took over.
Mithun tried to follow. They stopped him.
"Family only in the ambulance."
"I AM family!"
"Sir—"
Jay stepped forward. "I'm her sister. I'll go."
Mithun grabbed her arm. "Jay. What's happening? You know something. I can see it."
She couldn't meet his eyes.
"I don't know anything."
"You're lying."
"I'm not."
"You ARE."
Akshi pulled him back. "Let them go. We'll follow. We'll be there."
---
The ambulance drove away.
Mithun stood in the driveway.
Broken.
"She knows something," he whispered. "They both do."
Chethan put a hand on his shoulder. "We'll find out at the hospital."
"What if it's too late?"
"Don't think like that."
"I can't help it."
---
At the hospital, they waited.
Hours.
Mithun paced. Akshi cried. Chethan held her.
Jay sat apart, staring at nothing.
Keifer arrived with Keiran. Sent Keiran to play in the waiting room with Rex.
Sat beside Jay.
"You know what's wrong."
She didn't answer.
"Jay."
"I can't tell you."
"Why not?"
"I promised."
"Promised who?"
She looked at him. Eyes wet.
"Her."
---
The doctor came out.
"Family of Shreya?"
They all stood.
The doctor looked tired. Concerned.
"She's stable. But we need to talk about her condition."
Mithun stepped forward. "I'm her—I'm—what condition?"
The doctor looked at Jay. "Are you family?"
"I'm her sister."
"And you're aware of her diagnosis?"
Jay's face crumbled. "Yes."
Mithun stared at her. "Diagnosis? What diagnosis?"
The doctor hesitated. "I'm sorry. I thought you knew."
---
Mithun grabbed Jay's arms. "WHAT DIAGNOSIS?"
Jay couldn't speak.
Couldn't breathe.
"JAY!"
Akshi stepped between them. "Stop! She can't—she promised—"
"PROMISED WHAT?"
Chethan pulled Mithun back. "Bro, calm down."
"CALM DOWN? SHE'S HIDING SOMETHING! SHREYA IS IN THERE AND THEY WON'T TELL ME WHAT'S WRONG!"
---
The doctor spoke quietly.
"Sir, I need you to calm down. Shreya is stable. But she has a serious condition. Angiosarcoma of the heart."
The words hung in the air.
Mithun went still.
"What?"
"Heart cancer. It's rare. Aggressive. She's been receiving treatment, but—"
"But what?"
The doctor's eyes were kind. Sad. "It's spreading. There's not much time."
---
Mithun's legs gave out.
Chethan caught him.
"No. No, that's not—she's fine—she was just—" He looked at Jay. "You knew."
Jay was crying. "She made me promise not to tell."
"YOU KNEW AND YOU DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING?"
"She didn't want you to suffer."
"I'M SUFFERING NOW! I'M SUFFERING AND I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO—" His voice broke. "I didn't get to tell her I love her. I didn't get to—"
"She knows."
"KNOWING ISN'T ENOUGH!"
---
He ran.
Toward her room.
Burst through the door.
She was there.
Pale. Wires attached. Eyes closed.
But alive.
He fell to his knees beside her.
Took her hand.
"I'm here," he whispered. "I'm here. And I'm not leaving. Ever."
Her eyes fluttered open.
"Mithun?"
"I'm here."
"You know?"
"I know."
Tears streamed down her face. "I didn't want you to—"
"Doesn't matter what you wanted. I'm here. I'm staying."
"I can't—"
"You can't stop me."
---
She cried.
He held her.
The door stayed open.
Everyone watched.
No one spoke.
What was there to say?
---
End of Chapter Ninety-Eight