9:00 AM
ICU Recovery Ward

The 10-year-old boy was now awake. His name was Aarav. He had only a few minor injuries, but lay curled up on the hospital bed, deep in thought. Every so often, he whispered to his paternal aunt sitting beside him:

– “It’s been too long… There are only two options now, aren’t there, Auntie? Either they’re alive… or they’re… dead. I think… they’re all probably gone…”

Hearing such heartbreaking words from a child so young, the woman’s heart ached beyond measure.

“I stayed silent. I had no idea how to respond… How could I find the courage to tell this little boy that the people he loved the most were never coming back?”

Just the morning before, the sea near Goa had worn its most serene and enchanting face. Aarav’s family — his father, mother, older sister, and Aarav himself — had left the jetty around 10:15 AM, excited like any other family setting out on a rare vacation.
It was their first trip together.

Back then, no one could have imagined how quickly the ocean would turn.
1:00 PM.
The sky darkened without warning.
Thick black clouds gathered on the horizon, like a giant curtain slowly covering the sky.

Winds howled. Waves crashed violently against the sides of the small tourist boat. Panic broke out among the passengers. People shouted each other’s names, scrambled for life jackets, and clung to their loved ones in silence — a silent, desperate instinct.

Aarav was pulled tightly into his mother’s arms, his small hands clinging to her waist, his heartbeat pounding like a drum. His father — a former naval officer — remained calm amid the chaos. He rushed around distributing life jackets, shouting:
“Don’t panic! Put on your vests! Stay together!”

Aarav’s sister Diya, only 14 years old, was crying but still managed to slip a vest over Aarav’s head and hold him close. Their mother trembled, but still had the presence of mind to press a soggy stuffed elephant — Aarav’s favorite toy — into his hand.

1:20 PM.
A monstrous wave struck the boat, lifting it high before crashing it down. Screams echoed across the sea. Aarav’s entire family was thrown into the water.
In that moment between life and death, his father remained astonishingly clear-headed. He pulled his wife and daughter toward him and shouted over the roar of the water to Aarav, who was flailing nearby:

“Remember what Papa said: Try to keep your breath steady, hold on to anything that floats… I’ll rescue your mother and sister first, then swim back for you…”

Then he disappeared beneath the waves.

Aarav remembered it clearly — his father’s final glance: calm, strong, and warm. But after that, there was only the salty sting of seawater and a blurry figure who never resurfaced.

9:30 AM – ICU

Aarav refused to eat. He sat motionless on the hospital bed, his eyes distant, as if staring into another world.
The doctor entered, sighed, and handed the boy’s aunt a small plastic bag. Inside were a soaking wet stuffed elephant… and a scratched wedding ring.

The aunt’s hands trembled as she took it.
“This is all we recovered so far… the rescue team is still searching for the rest…”

Aarav caught sight of the ring. His expression darkened.
He didn’t cry. He didn’t scream.
He simply lay down, turned his face toward the wall, and whispered:

“I don’t have a family anymore… do I, Auntie?”

The woman broke down, pulling the boy into her arms as tears flowed freely.
“You have me. I’m still here… you still have family, sweetheart… just a little different now.”

That afternoon, the skies cleared. The sea glistened.
But for Aarav, the light would never be the same again.

That 10-year-old boy — from this day forward — would carry memories that time could never wash away, and one final message that would echo in his heart forever:

“Try to keep your breath steady…”