Chocolate & Silence

The house was silent, except for the faint clinking of glass as Zain Singh poured himself water. The evening sun lit the old walls in gold, casting long shadows of a man who had never learned how to be a father.

Poornima stood at the door, her nurse bag slung over her shoulder.

Zain didn't look up as he spoke.

> "A proposal has come for you."

Poornima blinked, surprised.

> "Appa... I thought I’m not made for marriage."

Zain’s voice remained calm, but a hint of vulnerability cracked through.

> "You’ve lived your life your way, Poornima. I never stopped you. Never pulled you into the shadows I live in.

Just once… fulfill your father’s wish."

She didn’t respond right away. Her eyes softened.

> “Okay, Appa.”

He looked at her for the first time in years.

> “I’m sorry…” she whispered, eyes shimmering. “For not fitting into your world.”

Zain’s lips moved slightly — maybe a smile, maybe regret.

> “No. You’re good, Poornima.

That’s why I kept you away.”

She stepped forward and, for the first time in over a decade, hugged him — gently, briefly.

He didn’t hug back… but his fingers trembled at his sides.

---

Later that Night – Shivaji Nagar Clinic

A busy night.

Poornima tied her apron and wore her gloves. A little girl had a fever. An old man came with a cough. And then…

The door creaked again.

A tall man entered — rugged, eyes hidden beneath a cap and mask. Holding a limping boy.

> “Cut on the leg,” he said in a low voice.

Poornima didn’t even look at the man. Her attention was on the child.

> “You’re a brave boy,” she smiled, disinfecting the wound, stitching it gently.

Veeresh watched her — her hands skilled, eyes kind. Not a trace of judgment, fear, or hurry.

She pressed a cotton bandage, looked at the boy, then reached into her drawer.

> “Here,” she said, handing him a Cadbury chocolate. “Chocolate always helps.”

Veeresh raised a brow under his mask.

> “Why chocolate?” he asked, his voice slightly rough.

Poornima smiled as she cleaned her tools.

> “Because when you’re in pain… a little sweetness reminds you you’ll be okay.

Even for a moment.”

Veeresh stared at her, something unsettling twisting in his chest. The kind of emotion he had long buried under gunpowder and smoke.

She looked up at him briefly and smiled — not knowing who he was.

> “Next,” she called out to the waiting patients.

Veeresh quietly turned away.

As he stepped out into the night, the air sharp with rain and distant sirens, a strange thought haunted him.

> “Will she still be smiling… in my world?”

Because my world isn’t stitched with thread and sweetness.

It’s lead, blood, and betrayal.

And this girl…

This girl with chocolates and laughter…

She’s walking into it.