Your Love Eyes...

“Get that tool, please,” Vinay called?over?to his colleague. The chassis of the bus has reached the final framework. For the past two days, everyone in his team was busy?in?welding.

Dazzling lights from the welding torch brightened the space. Though Vinay always worked with his protective shield that protected his eyes from the heat evolved from the light,?surprisingly?he felt tiredness setting in his eyes.

For more than two?times?he went to the cooler at the corner of the working shed and washed his eyes with the water. For some time, he felt relieved, but after one hour, he started to feel the tiredness in his eyes.

His eyes became red and started to water. Constantly?he?felt an irritation in the eyes?and?he could not resist his hands to rub the eyes?again and again.?Seeing Vinay’s discomfort, his friend Vikram?took him immediately to the dispensary at the factory.

The workshop in which Vinay worked is at one corner of the factory.?The factory sprawled over a vast land?and took?more than 30 minutes to go from one block to another.?The workers usually ride their bicycles to get to the place.

The administrative block stood at the entrance to the factory. Vikram took his cycle from the shed and asked Vinay to sit in the backseat.

He, then,?rushed him to the dispensary. The medical doctor at the dispensary gave him eye drops as a first-aid and asked Vikram to take Vinay immediately to the eye hospital. The doctor told him that Vinay needed immediate medical attention from the eye doctor?and?things could?become worse?if he delayed.

Vinay,?with his eyes closed, listened to the conversation between Vikram and the doctor.?Vikram informed their Foremen and took Vinay to the eye hospital. The bus building factory?in which?Vinay and Vikram worked took more than one hour to travel. Everyone came to work by the factory bus?and?if anyone missed the factory bus, they always missed half a day?of the work.

The bus shuttled between the city and the factory for more than six trips.?Each trip started at a particular time?and?if?anyone wanted to go home or elsewhere, they must take the bus at the exact time. Until the scheduled time,?the bus never started and?workers had to wait patiently.

Vikram checked the time for the next bus trip. It showed noon, and they had to wait?for?more than one hour. Vinay’s eyes started to water more?and?he could not even close his eyes and rest for a while. Fortunately, Vikram’s uncle also worked at the administrative block. Vikram got the bike from his uncle and took Vinay immediately to the hospital.

It took more than 45 minutes for Vikram to get to the hospital.?As they traveled by bike, the direct sunlight fell on Vinay?and?it made?his eyes water more.?Vinay desperately wished to reach the hospital as soon as possible to escape?from?the strong sunlight.?The roads completely occupied by flowing traffic disrupted their travel?and?at every signal, they stopped for more than ten minutes.

Finally, when they reached the hospital, both eyes of Vinay looked swollen and red. The eyelids looked thick and heavy.?Vikram?after?parking the bike at the vehicle?stand?took Vinay inside the hospital.

For some time, Vikram felt overwhelmed by the procedures at the hospital. Vikram made Vinay sit in the waiting lounge and rushed to the reception to enquire. The girl at the reception desk asked?him?to fill in the registration form and asked?him?to wait.

It took another one hour until Vinay’s turn.?The?attendant at the hospital gave some clean cotton to Vinay?and asked him not to rub his eyes anymore.?Vinay could hardly open his eyes. Even closing his eyes turned out to be a discomfort to him,?and it made?him constantly open and close his eyes. Vikram held Vinay’s hand within his hand and asked him not to feel stressed.

Looking at his discomfort, the attendant took him immediately to the?Foreman.?The?foreman could understand the seriousness of the problem?and asked the nurse to give him some eye drops immediately.?Then, he asked the nurse to take Vinay to the nearby room and asked him to lie down for a while.

The nurse asked Vinay to open his eyes?and?she applied the eye drops. The eye drops did wonders. Vinay felt cool inside the eyes. Vikram helped him to lie down on the bed.

“Vikram, have you informed my mother?”

“No. Why should you unnecessarily make?her?feel worried? I will tell her when I drop you at home. Now, lie down and take a rest. I will go and get your medicines first.” Vikram moved away from the room to get medicines from the nearby medical shop.

Vinay joined on duty after a month. One month ago,?exactly?on the same day, he?got married to?Saranya.?Vinay could not help thinking about Saranya and started?to?worry,?about how she will?take it.

After spending moments of romance and love for?more than?30 days, he reluctantly returned to work. But he could not understand why things took a sudden turn within a few hours after he joined work.

The doctor advised him to?take?rest for another week and told him to resume his welding work after a month. Vikram returned after 15 minutes with the medicine. Dropping Vinay at his home, he informed?both?his mother and wife about the eye problem.

Vikram told Saranya about eye drops and the prescribed medicines. He asked Vinay to?take?rest for a while and return to work after his eyes returned to normal. Saranya helped Vinay to change his uniform and made him take his medicines. Saranya’s soft hands made Vinay feel comfortable.

The cooling effect of eye drops stopped watering?of?eyes?and?Vinay closed his eyes and started to sleep. The discomfort that he felt for more than five hours made him go into a deep sleep within a few minutes.

Dreams accompanied Vinay’s sleep, and his subconscious mind narrated a poem that expressed his love for Saranya.

Gazing far ahead?the?clouds on the hilltops

Widened eyes search for a way to escape

Flapping wings in a uniform rhythm

Cranes fly high to their homes on treetops…

Silently lit sparks of fire on the slopes

Slowly brightens the deep?dark?night.

Reaching for the far-lit star

Dreams wade through a deep sleep.

Faintly lit lamps flicker at?dawn

Letting Cupid flutter their wings

Satisfied breathing lulls my heart

Cozy hugs are really an art….

Vinay rolled on his side?and?his hands searched for Saranya. Usually, Saranya snuggled to him and slept with her head on his shoulder. With some struggle, he opened his eyes and looked for Saranya. Vinay found Saranya at the other end of the bed?and?her?calm;?serene face showed her sound asleep.

That night?Vinay?could not sleep peacefully. He felt a sense of irritation in both eyes and could not resist the feeling of rubbing the eye.?He?kept on tossing in the bed?and?he struggled to get sleep. The eyelids looked swollen?and?he felt as though someone placed heavy weight on his eyelids.

Around 3 am, he called Saranya to give eye drops. Though the redness in both eyes started to subside, he still felt uneasy and disturbed. After taking the prescribed tablet, Vinay felt?somewhat?relieved and?started?to sleep as the first rays of sunlight peeped in through the windows.

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