The auto-rickshaw groaned to a halt outside the small, clean clinic. Sweat trickled down Ananya’s spine, not just from the humid Dum Dum afternoon, but from the weight of the thin file in her hand. For eighteen months, that file had contained only hope and heartbreak. Today, it held their final decision.
Ananya didn’t understand the numbers. But she understood the word written in blue ink at the bottom: . iui centre in dum dum
The waiting room was full of other stories. A woman in a green saree was knitting a tiny yellow bootie, not out of celebration, but out of trying to manifest joy. A young couple sat apart, not speaking, the husband scrolling endlessly on his phone while the wife stared at a poster about ovulation cycles. The auto-rickshaw groaned to a halt outside the
The sound that came out of her was not a cry or a laugh. It was a release—a long, shaky exhale that carried eighteen months of injections, temperature charts, and silent tears in the bathroom. Today, it held their final decision
Dr. Sen turned the report around.
Dr. Sen quietly slid a box of tissues between them. “The beta is 240. That’s strong. We’ll repeat it in 48 hours, but for now… congratulations.”