Kal Ho Naa Ho, Part 15

Aman enters his living room and listens to a message from a depressed-sounding Rohit on the answering machine. Naina skips down the street and then pirouettes through the train station. As she walks up to Aman’s house, it starts to rain; Naina smiles happily, because soon she and Aman will be singing and writhing around in the rain, wearing drenched, clingy clothing and almost kissing but not quite. Perhaps there will be erect nipples.

Aman opens the door to see Naina holding the bouquet of roses. They sit down, and Naina tries to make small talk while Aman does that thing where he insults her because he thinks it’s cute even though really it’s just annoying. Naina stammers, trying to figure out how to tell Aman that she wants to writhe around in the rain and almost kiss him, but then she notices the photo from Priya’s wedding lying on the coffee table. She asks Aman who the person in the picture is, and Aman says that it’s Priya, his wife. Thunderclap! Naina turns to look at him in shock. Thunderclap Number 2! Naina looks at him in a wider angle shot. Thunderclap Number 3! Naina’s still looking at him.

Aman explains that he married Priya three years ago, and they had the usual husband-wife arguments, but then one day Aman did that thing where he says something completely rude and pretends that he’s kidding, so Priya left him and went to New York. Now he’s in New York to bring her back. As Aman talks about his secret wife, Naina stares straight ahead, trying not to burst into hysterical sobs. Aman shows her the wedding picture again and talks about how pretty Priya is, then finally notices the look of utter despair on Naina’s face. He tells her not to cry, because everything will work out with him and Priya. Naina says that she should get going before her stoic façade crumbles, but Aman tells her to stay, accidentally calling her Priya. Unsurprisingly, Naina gets up to leave, probably fearful of being crushed under the weight of Aman’s complete obliviousness. Aman asks for the flowers, but Naina says that they’re for Chadda uncle, for introducing her to such nice people, but not their mysterious wives. Finally, Naina goes outside, where she can let the hysterical sobs fly.

Aman’s mother asks Aman if he loves her. Aman says that he doesn’t love Naina, so Aman’s mother is all, “Who said anything about Naina?” Aman insists that he doesn’t love Naina, but his mother holds up his hand, which has two fingers crossed. Busted! She uncrosses his fingers and says that she’s his mother, and that Aman can’t lie to her. Well, not if he’s going to do it that badly, with his fingers crossed and everything. Aman asks her how he can tell Naina the truth, when even his own mother can’t face it. He asks her how he can tell Naina that the love for her in his heart is very strong, but that his heart itself is very weak. He wants to know how he can explain that Priya isn’t his wife, but rather, his friend and doctor, who is fighting day and night to keep him alive for a few more days. She is? By taking walks and eating at pleasant outdoor cafes? Aman says “Dammit!” a few times, fights back tears, and tells his mother that he’s dying. She starts crying and says that it’s not true, and that a transplant is possible, if only Priya can take a few more walks and find the appropriate restaurant. Aman tells his mother that she must stay strong, so she vows that she will hide her tears, but asks him how he will hide his love. He did a pretty good job of acting like a total jerk to Naina just a few minutes ago, so maybe it won't be that hard. Aman says that it’s not his love any more, and that he just has to deliver it to the right destination. Hopefully that won’t involve making some kind of love potion out of a purple flower, because that’s been known to fuck all kinds of shit up.

Naina sobs on a bridge. Rohit stares sadly out a window. Aman stares sadly out a different window. A heart beats. Is it Aman’s crappy one? Intermission.

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