Two people from disparate backgrounds are thrown together by circumstance when new ER physician Dr. Raj Patel and homeless aspiring singer Irina Petrova unexpectedly cross paths.
Fleeing the Russian sex trade, Irina lands in New York with her father. When her brittle health takes a turn for the worse, she is rushed to the hospital where Raj admits her to the intensive care unit. Raj is calm in the face of illness, accustomed to seeing trauma from afar, but he unravels when he sees his parents die in the same ICU after a car crash.
With Irina's health improving, she returns to life on the streets with her father, never expecting to see the doctor again. But after Raj falls into a catastrophic depressive spiral, his promising future crumbles. Rendered homeless, he and Irina find each other once again. Afflicted with the memory of mutual tragedies, they find comfort in each other as they struggle with grief, trauma, and falling from grace. Together they discover the healing power of love in the face of trauma and loss.
Mukund Gnanadesikan is a 1992 graduate of Princeton University. His poems have been featured or are upcoming in the anthology books and literary magazines: For Men Only, Adelaide Literary Magazine, The Ibis Head Review, Tuck Magazine, Junto Magazine, The Bangalore Review, Streelight Press, Poesis Literary Journal, Bloodroot Literary Magazine, Blood and Thunder: Musings on the Art of Medicine, Cathexis Northwest, Dreams Walking, Meniscus Literary Magazine, Praxis, The Cape Rock, Crepe and Penn, and Paper Dragon.
