Vihaan's POV
The archives always smelled like rain that never fell.
Vihaan pushed open the cabinet labeled Board Communications – 15 Years Archive, the old metal groaning like it resented being disturbed. He didn't care. Some rot had to be unearthed.
He was looking for inconsistencies in board appointments, hoping his hunch was wrong. A quiet part of him already knew it wouldn't be.
The year 2017 sat heavy in his hands.
The year Saif Mirza died. The year the hospital began to feel hollow in ways no chart or audit could explain.
A flash of pink highlighter on a dull gray folder made him pause.
"Emergency Interim Appointment – Dr. Aleena Mirza"
Filed: January 2017
He froze. Aleena?
He opened it slowly, carefully. The paper was brittle, corners curling like wilted petals.
"Appointment granted under clause 3D: Emergency authorization post-retirement or death of primary board authority.
Signature of Dr. Vikram Rathore: Waived due to death.
Endorsed by: Shabana Mirza, Dr. Kaushik Mehra, Dr. J.K. Shah..."
Vihaan stared, blood ringing in his ears.
Vikram had died in 2010. This was filed after.
So why hadn't Aleena's appointment ever been made public? No announcements. No records in the minutes. Just this dusty corner file.
It was quiet—too quiet.
And suddenly, Aleena's return made more sense.
His fingers tightened around the page as something bitter coiled in his stomach. She always knew how to slip in, dressed in concern and restraint, but her timing never failed to align with opportunity.
His jaw set. He should've questioned it more back then. Her charm. Her closeness to Aryav.
But Vihaan hadn't. Maybe because part of him had wanted to believe her sincerity too.
He turned the paper over absently, frowning at his own distraction.
Why does it still bother me?
Maybe it wasn't just the hospital. Maybe it was Aleena. And Aryav. Together. Always together.
The way Aryav used to fall silent around her. The way he'd listen even when her words bled control. And Aleena... she never pushed. She let Aryav orbit her like a sun that was too tired to burn.
Vihaan let out a breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"It's none of my business."
But it was.
Maybe Aleena had gotten under his skin more than he realized.
Maybe that's what this was. Unresolved tension. Resentment.
Or maybe it was just the growing knowledge that something was deeply wrong.
He slipped the file into a folder, sealed it, and walked down the dim hallway toward his office, mind still caught in a whirl of questions and half-finished emotions.
⸻
In his office, Vihaan set the folder down like it was fragile. His screen lit up with cold hospital white as he pulled up board records. He searched for mention of Aleena's name between 2016 and 2018.
Nothing. Sanitized. Scrubbed clean.
Just this hidden folder in a drawer no one touched.
He leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling.
Aleena had been on the board before anyone realized, possibly even before Saif Mirza's death. It raised questions—dangerous ones.
He exhaled through his nose, sharp and slow.
"What the hell were you doing back then, Aleena?"
And more importantly, "Why did no one stop you?"
A quiet voice inside him whispered another question. One he didn't want to entertain.
Why are you still so affected by her?
He stood and moved to the window. The hospital courtyard lay in shadow, and somewhere down there, Aryav was probably finishing up a consult or isolating in one of the labs.
Always so composed. Always slipping further away.
Vihaan's hand clenched at his side before he even realized it.
Was he angry at Aleena for what she'd done to this hospital?
Or because of what she'd done to Aryav?
He swallowed hard.
The lines between logic and emotion were getting too blurry.
He turned back to the folder. For now, he had proof. And he'd use it.
"I'll protect this place, whether you like it or not, Aleena."
His voice was low. Measured.
But even he didn't quite know who he meant it for.
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For clarification:- Vihaan is aaryan's friend/classmate in med school/ now colleague.
Aryav is aaryan's younger brother. Who is also a friend of vihaan.
ARYAV (29) AND AARYAN (34) ARE BROTHERS.
VIHAAN(34) IS THIER FRIEND!!!
ALEENA (29) is of same age as ARYAV. THEY WERE CLASSMATES IN MED SCHOOL/ COLLEAGUE NOW..
Aaryan and Vihaan were seniors of Aryav and Aleena.