Vineet looked at her through the glass window of the emergency ward. She was lying on the hospital bed, and doctors were treating her. His eyes filled with tears as he watched her, his heart sinking in the guilt of his actions. He hadn’t known that a simple joke would bring her to this hospital bed. As he traipsed down memory lane to a few hours earlier, he felt a pang of regret.

They had been sitting in the Rosewood Cafe, across from each other. She had smiled at him as he sat across from her. Yes, he was ten minutes late, but she hadn’t complained.

"Ruhana, you came early?" he asked.

"Yeah, Vineet. I went to D-Mart to get a few essentials, so I stopped by. Otherwise, I would have had to come back again," she said, her lips curving into a smile.

"Oh nice, so, are you going to treat me to some delicacy?" he asked, his tone laced with mischief.

Ruhana looked at him, amused. She chuckled, "Um, I haven’t thought of it, but you can tell me what you would like to have. I’d love to cook for you," she said, her face instantly lighting up.

Vineet looked at her, half-smiling, half-smirking. "Okay, so, I’ll let you know. For now, let’s order some coffee," he said.

She nodded, and he went to order two espressos. When he came back, she glanced at him.

"What did you need to talk about, Vineet?" she asked.

He looked at her, his demeanour changing in that moment. She looked at him hopefully, as if they were going to talk about something significant. However, she didn’t notice the mischievous smirk on his lips, overshadowed by his serious demeanour. He reached out to hold her hands; however, this time, they were cold against her warm skin.

"Ruhana, I wanted to talk to you," he said, reading the changing expressions on her face.

"Yeah, tell me; I hope things are fine with you," she asked, her tone gentle as ever.

"Yeah, everything is fine. I just wanted to talk about us. It’s something I’ve been wanting to say for many days, Ruhana, but didn’t get the chance," he said, his tone gentle but his demeanour no-nonsense.

Ruhana looked at him, her heart beating faster than she had expected. She could feel something amiss in his gentle tone, and though she tried to map his expressions, she couldn’t understand his inner turmoil. As she waited for him to speak, he looked into her eyes, and the words fell from his mouth, his tone casual.

"I don’t think it’s working out, Ruhana. I need a breakup."

As she heard the words, she froze in her place, staring at him wide-eyed. She gazed at him as if it were a bad dream; however, when he repeated his words, she came back to reality.

"I need time; let’s break up, Ruhana."

Though she was staring at him, she didn’t say a word. Her heartbeat was racing—he could even hear it—but nothing happened as he had expected. She just stood there staring at him and then suddenly collapsed over the table. Panic surged through him as soon as he saw her falling, and within no time, he rushed her to the hospital.

His reverie was broken by the doctor, who approached him and looked at him, his expression grim. Vineet looked at the doctor, asking about Ruhana.

“Are you her relative?” the doctor asked.

“I am her fiancé,” he said, his tone low.

“Mr. Vineet, you should have taken care of her. What happened that led her here?” Dr. Vikram Shah asked, his tone firm.

Vineet looked around; he had no answer to the question. He was against the idea of telling the doctor about their conversation; instead, he made up a story. “We were at a café, Doctor, where she collapsed suddenly,” he said. Well, it was a half-truth.

The doctor sighed deeply as he gazed at Vineet. The latter looked worried, tension lines etched on his face; his teary eyes told a different story. He asked Vineet to follow him into his cabin. As they settled into the chairs, Vineet looked up at Vikram, posing his first question.

“Dr. Vikram, what happened to her?” he asked, his voice tender.

“Mr. Vineet, your fiancée—Ms. Ruhana—has been detected with a congenital heart abnormality. In short, it’s Long QT Syndrome,” Vikram said slowly.

Vineet looked at him, taken aback. He sighed as he processed the new information given to him. He felt his heart thudding in his chest, sweat beads trickling down his forehead.

“And what is that?” he asked in a shaky voice.

“She must have been through some trauma or grief, which affected the electrical system of her heart. This problem was always there, but maybe she didn’t realise it. It could have led to cardiac arrest as well. You see, her heart is weak, and maybe something struck her, causing her to faint,” Dr. Vikram explained.

Vineet felt as if he was holding his heart on his sleeve, carefully listening to the doctor, stunned.

“You mean, she had this problem before as well?” he asked, wanting to confirm.

“Yes, Mr. Vineet, it’s been there. I have done the tests. Maybe it never bothered her before. You mentioned you two were talking, so maybe something you said might have hurt her, you know,” Dr. Vikram said, reminding him of his last words.

“Well, we’ve treated her. You need to take care of her, Mr. Vineet. If you want, we can continue her treatment. At least we can try to manage it before the problem becomes serious,” Dr. Vikram said, his tone compassionate.

“I’ll let you know, doctor. Well, can I take her home?” he asked, hopeful to get an affirmation.

“In some time, Mr. Vineet. Until then, you can sit next to her. She might regain consciousness anytime,” the doctor said.

Vineet thanked him and walked out of the cabin as Dr. Vikram got busy with a call. The ward boy directed him to the room where Ruhana was, and Vineet trailed down memory lane.

The game had changed for him before he could say that he was joking.

Yep, a joke! Though he knew she hated such jokes, he tried his luck. He just wanted her to break her cage, to show emotions. She had always been a shy, silent girl who only spoke freely around him. And in the temptation of squeezing emotions out of her, he decided to joke, to fake a breakup. However, the aftermath was heartbreaking.

Such an imperfect moment! — he thought.

***

Vineet sat next to Ruhana, holding her hand. She was sleeping under the effect of the medicine. He held her hand and kissed her knuckles, silently apologising for his mistake.  

“I’m sorry, Ruhana. I didn’t know my baseless joke would bring you here. I am really sorry,” he murmured, his voice barely a whisper.  

He glanced at her, his own eyes mirroring her vulnerability. His eyes were filled with tears, and his heart soared with hope that she would wake up fine. As he sat there, he realised he needed to help her heal. He quickly placed her hand on the bed and took out his phone to search all about QT Syndrome.  

As he searched about Long QT Syndrome, he learned that it is a congenital condition and can be caused by emotional overload or, at times, psychological torture. It silently brews in the background and surfaces suddenly.  

He also learned that patients with QT Syndrome often collapse or faint, just like Ruhana did today. Moreover, they can also suffer cardiac arrest.  

The last line hit him hard. If he had said something more, she might have succumbed to cardiac arrest. His eyes instantly filled with tears. As he looked at her, he noticed a slight movement in her fingers. He quickly pocketed his phone and held her hand, slowly calling her by her name.  

Ruhana opened her eyes slowly, adjusting her vision to the dim light of the room. His lips curved into a small smile as he saw her regaining consciousness. He quickly called for the doctor and then helped her sit up on the bed.  

As their eyes met, Ruhana looked away, remembering Vineet’s words from earlier. Her lips quivered, but before she could say anything, the doctor entered the ward and began her check-up. Taking a deep breath, the doctor turned to Vineet, his face lighting up with a small smile.  

“Mr. Vineet, you can take her home now. I’ll prescribe some medicines that Ms. Ruhana has to take regularly. Later, we can discuss further treatment,” the doctor said, his tone gentle.  

“Thank you, doctor,” Vineet replied, his tone laced with gratitude.  

He completed the formalities, and after making the payment, he took Ruhana out of the hospital. They headed home, and Ruhana remained silent throughout the journey. Vineet sat at the driver’s seat and stole glances at her now and then, but they didn’t talk much. Even Vineet decided to give her time before asking about the reason behind her emotional burnout.

***

They reached her home, and after what felt like an eternity in the past few hours, Ruhana finally felt at peace. She now gazed at him, and he voiced his first question.

“Are you okay, Ruhana?” he asked.

“Yeah, but why are you here? I mean, you wanted the… the breakup,” she said slowly, her tone distant.

He looked at her, guilt drawn across his face. “Yeah, that was a mistake. I—I really made a mistake,” he said.

Ruhana looked pained, her eyes filled with tears, and at the same time, he asked another question.

“But why did you faint? What is it that you're hiding, Ruhana?” he asked, his tone gentle, yet his gaze demanded answers.

Ruhana sighed deeply. She looked at him. “It's a long story, Vineet,” her tone low, barely above a whisper.

“Yeah, I want to know that, Ruhana. The doctor said that you have QT syndrome. I—I just wanted you to show your emotions. I thought when I mentioned our breakup, you'd yell at me, you'd get angry. But you didn’t do any of that. Instead, you fainted,” Vineet said, his gaze lingering on her for a long time.

Ruhana glanced at him. She could see concern etched on his face and love evident in his eyes. She sat up, holding a cushion in her hand. She seemed to have trailed down memory lane.

“I lost my mother when I was five. And sometime later, even my father left me without any explanation, Vineet. My relatives, especially my grandmother, used to blame me for it. She said I was the reason my parents left home,” she said, pain evident in her eyes.

“I grew up with my uncle, who loved me, but I barely survived there. I learned that—I needed to be good enough so that people wouldn’t leave me. That is why I stay reserved. And you…” she looked at him, paused, her gaze lingering on him.

“I trusted you, Vineet. I thought you wouldn’t leave me…” she said, her tone heavy with unshed tears.

Vineet reached out to her, cupping her face. “I know! I’m guilty of that. I didn’t want to hurt you. I didn’t know you’d collapse and would need assistance. I just wanted you to speak up, to break that cage,” he said, clarifying that he hadn’t done it on purpose.

They sat in silence for some time, holding hands, before Vineet spoke again. “Ruhana, you don’t need to hide anything from me, you know. I’ll make sure everything gets better. We’ll be fine, Ruhana,” he said, assuring her that everything would be okay.

“Are you sure, Vineet? And why would you do it?” she asked.

Vineet looked at Ruhana. He loved her immensely. Just for the sake of fun, he had said he wanted a breakup. But then she collapsed, and now, learning about her medical condition, all he wanted was to cure her and make sure she was fine. He held her hands, his touch warm.

“Ruhana, I have always loved you. Yep, I joked. But I didn’t mean to hurt you. Now, I want to make sure that you get better,” he said, his tone earnest.

“Are you sure? I mean, you wanted…” She trailed off, not wanting to complete the statement. Of course, a part of her heart still believed that he wanted the breakup.

Vineet understood her inner turmoil. He held her by her shoulders, his warm gaze lingering on her face. He quickly wiped away the traces of tears from her cheek. His heart ached for her. He finally cupped her face. “I never wanted a breakup from you, Ruhana. You’re the light and soul of my life. It was such an imperfect thought at an imperfect time. Now I realize the value of the love we shared,” he said, his tone laced with concern.

Ruhana looked at Vineet, her gaze filled with hope. He continued, “I know I love you, and I will do anything to see you smiling and happy. And you know what? We will fight this condition together,” he said, his tone full of affection.

She glanced at him for a while and then asked, “So, you won’t leave me?”

“Never. Not in this lifetime, neither in any other. I love you,” he said and kissed the top of her head.

Ruhana sighed and immediately leaned into him, hugging him, resting her head on his chest. She finally felt at peace. A few minutes later, she smiled at him. “It did start imperfectly, but I’ve got the most perfect gift of my life, Vineet. It’s YOU!” she said, her lips curving into a smile.

Vineet smiled as he embraced her once more. In the warmth of togetherness, they realized that it was just the beginning of their imperfectly perfect life together.