Chapter 69: The sleeping gem (1). [COMPLETE]
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In a white room with a strong smell of alcohol and rubber, a girl lay asleep.
Even with the gas mask and the IV drip in her arm, her image seemed incredibly peaceful, like that of a person without any worries.
But while she slept, the whole world revolved around her. A different doctor appeared each day with a different diagnosis.
They came with more sophisticated equipment, numerous documents, and heated discussions.
But in the end, no one seemed truly sure of what they were saying.
Words like "It's possible," "probably," or "maybe" accompanied each report. Some did not even try to hide their enthusiasm and curiosity, as if the girl in bed were just a lab rat.
How would Asha react to being placed in this situation? Connie did not have a definite answer to that question.
In fact, these days, she was not sure of anything anymore.
Each day seemed to last an eternity, but she could not even remember where her footsteps landed. Whether on the bus, the subway, or at school, she maintained the same apathetic expression, living on another plane.
She was neither sad nor happy. No thoughts occupied her mind.
She did not care about the bullying at school, the irrational teachers, or the empty atmosphere at home. Nothing mattered.
Only the girl in front of her remained.
Connie took off her backpack and pulled out some flowers wrapped in a pink handkerchief. Then, she picked up the glass jar, changed the water, and replaced the wilted flowers with fresh ones.
Once they were arranged, she sat in the wooden chair and watched Asha with vacant eyes.
Half an hour passed like that.
For three days, Connie spent most of her time in that hospital room with an empty mind.
She did not quite know what to say, but she felt she should not leave Asha alone. Her eyes wandered, checking the rise and fall of her lungs and monitoring her heart rate.
She repeated this behavior more times than she could count. She needed to make sure she was alive.
In that vague state, meaningless thoughts crossed her mind. What should she say to Asha when she wakes up?
Should she apologize for pushing her to her limits? Should she thank her for her earlier comfort and kind words?
It was difficult to think of what to say, and she was not sure how soon she would be able to speak to Asha again.
She thought she knew her well, that she was some kind of magical being in human form.
But in the end, all of that was just an illusion of her mind. A form of escapism from her painful reality.
Her days gradually became more vivid as she formed hypotheses about Asha's trivial behavior. When she had an interesting thought, she would be in the middle. When she had a bad day, Asha would rest in her arms. Or even when she wanted to relax, Connie would watch her drawing.
They had been living together for some months, but for Connie it felt like years.
When had Asha become such an important part of her life?
Seeing Asha in that state was like watching her own mental state deteriorate.
Just like the doctors focused on selling books and studying this case, Connie didn't see Asha in such a human way.
Her mother had a sense of responsibility and lived for her work; her father rarely interacted with Asha and was a source of trauma. Connie only approached her out of curiosity and her own selfish interests.
Asha lived in this environment daily, waking up on the same day, watching the same things, drawing alone, reading, and studying. Living in her own world.
She never initiated conversations unless she had something essential she needed. In the end, Connie seemed to develop jealousy towards this girl, but looking at her actions alone, Asha had never done anything that could cause resentment in anyone.
Her mother's behavior in focusing on Asha now seemed surprisingly coherent upon seeing her in a coma in the hospital.
Asha's introverted and erratic behavior could be explained by her past traumas and insecurities.
The fear of her father could also originate from the same source.
This girl, more broken than anyone, noticed her loneliness and offered a helping hand.
And, without a second thought, Connie sank into the warm arms that reached out to her and vented her emotions in tears.
She remembered sleeping so soundly, as if she were on cloud nine, without worries.
She thought all the problems had been solved, that she could finally begin to be happy, too. But the next day, Asha's body was cold, on the verge of death.
At that moment, Connie couldn't think much, but after three days, she began to replay the previous day of this event in her mind.
Asha's unstable mood, the way she clung to her, the scribbled drawing of a muscular man's figure in her notebook... she showed signs of mental instability all day.
Her movements became rarer. Her embrace was colder. Her touch seemed fragile. Her blinking was slower. Her breathing was more discreet. And her eyes... even they shone differently.
Asha was on the verge of exhaustion, both physically and mentally.
And Connie, the only one who could somehow change the situation, was the only one who pushed her to her limits.
"It's all my fault..." Moist words escaped her dry lips.
The clock ticked mechanically in the drab space as Connie watched Asha through her thick, blurry lenses, which she had not even bothered to clean.
Through those lenses, Asha appeared increasingly blurred and distant. Her previous clarity faded, leaving only a silhouette of what she had been.
"I knew nothing about you."
In her mind, Asha was not so different from how she appeared through those lenses.
Blurred and difficult to recognize.
Through a nurse, she learned many new things she had never imagined.
It was not the first time Asha had suffered from heart problems. She had once been found outside the hospital, nearly dead, and survived only thanks to the doctors' first aid.
She used to be lifeless, and her speech had been even more vague and brief than it was now.
Some information was so shocking that Connie could barely process it.
There were sand and nail marks on her skin, her senses were impaired, and she drew bizarre shapes in her notebook.
Images of abandoned places, strange machinery, and unrecognizable black figures in various forms.
Connie did not know much about Asha's previous family, but she had always thought she had simply gone through difficult circumstances. In reality, Asha did not even have a citizenship record.
No one knew her parents, her whereabouts, or even her exact age. She was a great enigma who seemed to have appeared out of thin air, broken and traumatized.
Although Connie was a child, she was not so innocent that she did not understand how the world worked. She knew that Asha's condition was not normal and that the doctors seemed to have no idea what to do.
In fact, perhaps she knew more than she wanted to know.
In the worst-case scenario, Asha may never open her eyes again.
Connie's hands gripped her thighs tightly as her head remained down, staring monotonously at the floor.
"What right do I have to be your friend?"
Friends cared for each other; they were loyal, spent time together, and talked about things even their families didn't know. It's a relationship of mutual trust.
Consequently, both parties benefit.
However, Connie's one-sided relationship with Asha puts her in a position where only one party benefits.
How bad was Asha feeling on the Ferris wheel, but refused to share it with her? Instead of complaining about the pain, she was comforting her.
When was the last time she asked how Asha truly felt? When was the last time she asked about her outside of the observations she made from a distance?
Perhaps Asha, more than anyone, needed a friend. Even without using direct words, she was crying out for help. But Connie only thought of herself until the end.
While she slept peacefully, Asha's breath was cut short every second she lay beside her.
That wasn't a friend, but a parasite.
Her blurry vision became even more blurred, and a dampness permeated the edges of her eyes.
"I'm a terrible friend..." Tears streamed from her eyes and from her lenses down to her hands, which were tightly clasped together.
"Someone like me doesn't deserve to be happy."
Her throat felt constricted by her own words, and it was difficult to breathe.
No matter what anyone said, Connie was convinced that the situation before her was the result of her careless actions.
She had a responsibility, and she had been negligent.
Her mind kept demanding an explanation or an excuse for what had happened, but she had no words. She could only cry, swallowing any sound in her throat to avoid attracting attention.
While Connie was immersed in her sorrow, something strange began to happen with Asha before her. Her toes, which had been motionless until moments ago, suddenly twitched.
It was a subtle movement, easy to miss, and in her tear-filled state, it would have been understandable if it had gone unnoticed. But that was not the case.
Connie saw the movement clearly and was so shocked that the tears in her eyes seemed to pause, as if deciding whether to fall or stay.
"Asha…?"
She asked in a raspy voice, unsure whether she was experiencing another hallucination. As she remained frozen in her chair, Asha's feet began to tremble more intensely.
Her toes clearly contracted.
Connie felt a surge of strength in her legs, making her stand up and run to Asha in a single breath.
Pens and notebooks fell to the floor, and her backpack was left lying there. However, she couldn't care less about small details.
"Asha!"
She touched Asha's face and looked at her vital signs. The monitor screen showed no changes; her heartbeat remained low but constant, and her breathing was stable.
But if that was the case, what explained this phenomenon?
Asha's feet and hands trembled intermittently, as if she were having a bad dream.
"W-What's happening?"
Connie was confused, and her arms didn't know exactly where to go. Even checking her pulse and vital signs yielded no results different from the equipment.
"Mom... I need to call Mom...!"
After a senseless agitation, she finally arrived at a rational answer. Her mother might be able to resolve this situation; she always had an answer for cases like this.
Normally, doctors would react at the first sign of an anomaly, but Asha's case showed no alarming signs. She had to run and call for help herself.
Connie prepared to run, but a force stopped her. She quickly looked down and saw a hand gripping her shirt.
Her heart pounded rapidly as she processed the situation, and her eyes returned to Asha's face. The moment the image appeared before her, she stopped breathing.
Drops of water leaked from the sleeping girl's closed eyes.
Tears slowly trickled down her cheeks and touched the white blankets covering the bed where she slept.
The girl's pale lips trembled against each other, and her eyebrows furrowed in terrible pain.
In this environment, where only the two of them remained, the sleeping Asha slowly parted her lips.
"It hurts..."
An innocent, muffled voice could be heard in the terribly silent hospital.
Connie had never heard Asha's voice before, and she didn't think she ever would because of her condition. But the moment she did, she wasn't even in the right frame of mind to process what had happened.
If she were to hear her voice, she would have wanted it to be in a happy and calm environment. But the first words she spoke were a manifestation of pain, probably a pain so terrible that it could make even the silent Asha complain.
Her breathing became labored, and her vision blurred as she looked at Asha. Unable to leave or understand the situation, Connie simply acted instinctively.
She turned to Asha and embraced her body tenderly, like an adult easing a child's pain.
"It... hurts..."
Again, muffled words could be heard from beneath her. Connie felt her heart freeze, but her hands remained steady on Asha's back, giving her light pats.
"It's okay... The pain will go away quickly."
Connie said, tears streaming down her face as if she were the only one feeling the pain.
But even in this devastated state, her free hand reached down to the hospital bed and pressed a button located at the bottom.
The moment she pressed the button, an alarm blared through the room, followed by a loud bang on the door. Then her mother burst in with disheveled clothes, as if she hadn't even had time to notice her own state.
When she saw her hugging Asha, who was crying in the hospital bed, she quickly approached, preparing to administer an anesthetic.
Connie was inevitably separated from Asha as her mother continued the procedure. Moments later, Asha's condition finally stabilized, and tears stopped streaming down her face.
Her mother sighed with relief at the sight of everything stable, then looked at Connie with her dark, sleep-deprived eyes.
"What happened?"
Connie tried to choose her words carefully to calm her mother and justify herself, but the only thing that came to her mind was the image of Asha sobbing and forcing out words.
"...She said it hurt."
"She said?"
Hearing her mother's doubt, she simply nodded. Priyanka seemed to go into shock for a moment and then turned her eyes to Asha.
Connie couldn't see her expression, and her mother didn't seem to intend to show it.
"Take your things and leave with your father. I'll take over from here."
Under her mother's authoritative words, she nodded and began to gather the materials she had dropped earlier.
These materials were simple pencils and pens, along with her still-incomplete homework. But something peculiar could also be found among these belongings.
A worn notebook full of drawings and notes.
Asha's notebook.
Connie always brought it along, imagining that she would wake up and feel insecure without it nearby.
To respect her privacy, she had never even peeked at its contents.
However, at that moment, her eyes lingered on that notebook more than usual.
Her hands tucked the notebook into her backpack, and then she left the room.
Until the very last second, her eyes remained on Asha, but her thoughts were elsewhere.
"What could be inside?"
Perhaps she could find the answers she sought there.
Her hands gripped the straps of her backpack tightly, while her throat tightened with tension.
A door that shouldn't be opened was, unfortunately, about to open.
"It... hurts"
*
Author's note
The chapter was called "Three Maheswarans and a Sleeping Gem," but I realized the complexity of applying so many POVs in so few words and simply simplified it to "The Sleeping Gem," as this way I can follow a more linear and less confusing narrative. I will explore the mindset of the others in more detail in future chapters and a little in the intermission :3
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PREVIOUS | TOC | NEXTChapter 70: The sleeping gem (2) [PART 1]
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Exactly one night before Asha fell into a coma, Priyanka and Doug had a face-to-face conversation.
It was a quiet, peaceful night. The children slept without a care, and the clock ticked monotonously.
They sat at the round dining table, a small lamp glowing beside them. The atmosphere was calm, almost tranquil, yet an undercurrent of seriousness hung in the air.
In the heavy silence, Priyanka reached for her usual teacup.
She stared into the green tea, its surface reflecting her expressionless face under the lamp's dim yellow light.
As she looked at her reflection, her mind drifted back to a moment that remained painfully vivid.
Doug watched her gather her thoughts. He offered no comfort, simply waiting with his arms crossed.
After a few seconds, Priyanka finally spoke.
"…When I found that girl, she was in such a critical state that it's a miracle she's alive now."
Her eyebrows drew together in quiet sorrow. It felt like years had passed, though in reality it had only been a little over three months.
Compared to her usual composure, she seemed vulnerable, something she rarely showed anyone, even Doug.
Normally, he would have responded with warmth or reassurance. But tonight, he remained serious, listening intently to every word.
"How serious are you talking about?"
"There were minor injuries across her body. She was covered in dust… and her heart had stopped."
Doug's hands tightened as he absorbed the unfiltered details. Still, Priyanka continued, her voice steady despite the weight of her words.
"After first aid and the necessary examinations, the results only became stranger. No matter how many tests we ran, she appeared perfectly healthy."
"Wasn't that a good thing?"
"It should have been. But it doesn't match what we'd expect from someone who had just gone into cardiac arrest. The fact that she recovered completely with only CPR… It's an anomaly. No human body should work like that."
Even now, Priyanka couldn't forget those contradictory results. It was the greatest challenge of her career, one that even the most advanced equipment couldn't explain.
"No anesthetic had any effect on her. Her metabolism didn't respond to the food we gave her or the condition she was in. It was as if her body remained constant, unaffected by anything external."
"But how is that possible…?" Doug asked, stunned.
If this were true, if Asha had such capabilities, then why did she always appear so frail? Her skin was pale, and she barely had the strength to lift anything.
"I don't know. Maybe no one does," Priyanka said, frowning. It was the same question she had asked herself every day since Asha came into her care.
"In all the time she's been with us, she's shown no need to urinate or defecate, even though she physically can. The food she eats seems to convert entirely into energy, though I don't understand how."
At some point, Doug struggled to keep up. Was she describing a human or something else entirely?
"Are you serious?"
"Do you think I'm joking?"
He studied her face, then fell silent. He knew her well enough to trust she wasn't exaggerating, but the more he listened, the less sense reality seemed to make.
"There are no records of her and no footage of how she arrived at the hospital. Her body showed signs of smoke exposure, along with sand and minor injuries that appeared self-inflicted. Given her regenerative abilities, those injuries were likely much worse before."
"Her bone structure resembles that of an adult. Her genitals showed signs of wear unusual for her age… and every blood sample we collected somehow evaporated after being stored."
By now, Doug was beyond shock. But another concern surfaced, heavier than the rest.
"How many people know about this?"
If any of this got out, Asha would almost certainly be taken for experimentation. She would never have a normal life.
"About the blood, only I know," Priyanka replied. "As for everything else, the senior staff and the nurses involved are aware. Her condition is classified, and the government provides generous tax incentives for her care."
*
Author's note
I'm considering making this chapter chapter 69; it makes more sense chronologically. Don't be too surprised if things suddenly change order. Anyway, this was fun to write. Feel free to point out any inconsistencies or plot holes, and I'll revise them.
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