The hospital corridor felt colder than usual.
Priya walked beside Mina and Rohan, her mind filled with questions.
Jay was here.
The man she had been searching for.
The man whose sketches had covered an entire room.
And now he was lying somewhere inside this hospital.
When they reached his room, Priya immediately turned toward the doctor.
"How is he?"
The doctor looked at her sympathetically.
"His condition is stable. He suffered a serious accident."
"Will he be okay?"
"He should be physically fine with time."
Priya's eyes filled with hope.
"Then why isn't he awake?"
The doctor paused.
"He's in a coma."
Priya's expression fell.
"How long?"
"We don't know."
"How long until he wakes up?"
"There is no way to say. It could be days, months... or longer."
Priya stared through the glass at Jay.
He looked peaceful.
Almost as if he were sleeping.
But he wasn't waking up.
She turned toward Rohan.
"You said you knew everything."
Rohan remained silent.
"Tell me."
"Priya—"
"Tell me everything."
Her voice trembled.
"I deserve to know."
Rohan looked toward Jay's room.
Then he took a deep breath.
"It started about a year ago."
Priya listened.
"Jay first saw you at a fair. You were there with some friends. He noticed you immediately."
Priya's heart began beating faster.
"He didn't know your name. He didn't know who you were. But he couldn't stop thinking about you."
Rohan continued.
"After that, he started seeing you whenever he could. Sometimes at the market. Sometimes around the city. He never approached you."
Priya frowned.
"Why?"
"Because he was afraid."
Rohan smiled sadly.
"Jay was never good at expressing what he felt. So instead, he drew you."
Priya thought of the room.
Hundreds of sketches.
"So he followed me?"
Rohan nodded.
"Not to harm you. He just wanted to see you from a distance. He admired you. He liked watching you smile. He liked seeing you cook. Eventually..."
Rohan paused.
"He fell in love with you."
Priya's eyes filled with tears.
"He loved me?"
"He did."
Rohan looked down.
"And one day, he decided he couldn't keep it inside anymore."
Priya held her breath.
"He was finally going to tell you."
"When?"
"That night."
Priya froze.
"The night I met him?"
Rohan nodded.
"Jay left his house that evening. He was on his way to your house."
Priya's face went pale.
"But then something happened."
Rohan's voice became quieter.
"A girl was crossing the road. She wasn't paying attention. A car was coming."
"Jay tried to save her."
Priya's heart stopped.
"He swerved to avoid her. His car crashed into a pole."
She stared at him.
"The girl..."
Rohan looked directly at her.
"It was you."
Priya couldn't breathe.
The memories came rushing back.
The party.
Her mother's words.
Her frustration.
Walking aimlessly through the streets.
The darkness.
The ocean.
The thought of ending her life.
And then...
Jay.
That mysterious stranger sitting on the bench.
The man who had spoken to her.
The man who had convinced her to go home.
The man who had saved her.
Her eyes filled with tears.
"That was me..."
Her voice barely escaped.
"I caused his accident."
Rohan shook his head.
"No. Jay chose to save you."
But Priya couldn't hear him.
She looked through the glass at Jay.
A year of drawings.
A year of silent love.
And an accident she never even knew had happened.
She pressed a trembling hand against her chest.
"If I hadn't been walking there..."
Her voice broke.
"None of this would've happened."
Then suddenly, another thought struck her.
She turned toward Rohan.
"Wait."
Rohan looked at her.
Priya's face had gone pale.
"You said Jay had the accident before he reached my house."
"Yes."
"And you said the accident happened that night."
"Yes."
Priya stared at him.
Her mind raced.
If Jay had the accident before she reached the shore...
Then how—
She remembered the bench.
His voice.
His words.
The way he had looked at her.
The way he had known she wanted to disappear.
Her breathing became uneven.
She whispered,
"Then how did Jay meet me at the shore?"
Rohan said nothing.
Priya looked at Jay through the glass.
The question echoed inside her mind.
**If Jay was already in an accident before she reached the shore...**
**Who was the man sitting beside her that night?**