Light In The Net

"Miss, I will be removing your bandages."

The doctor's calm and assuring voice scared Diya further. She is still scared. After all that dispair, she had finally seen hope, her Light has given her the dream of living an ordinary life. If it is a dream and she has to wake up in reality, she will really lose the last shred of her will to live.

As the doctor unwrapped the bandage slowly, she felt her life was being ripped alongside it. Light has been around her more than usual in the past days and now that he has exhausted all his being, he had to go on a complete shutdown. Though he had still left his chilling warmth with her, but it is nothing compared to the actual him. She is panicking yet she had to force herself to calm down. Her sorrow or discomfort pains him more, she had understood it recently. Even one of her "Ah!" sound can make him extremely scared and Diya's miracle becomes a sobbing mess.

'Calm down,Diyu. You can do it. You have long seen the worst. What more can happen? Calm yourself, if not for you then at least for your dearest crybaby.'

Her words slowly toned down her anxiety and as finally the last piece of bandage was taken of and doctor's "Now slowly try to open your eyes " almost made her faint. Despite the turmoil of her heart, she gathered all the courage she had to open her eyes.

The dream is over. It was time to wake up whether she wanted or not.

A Few Days Later,

Diya looked outside. Some kids are playing in the small park. Their guardians are waiting in the nearby benches under the huge trees.

'What a sight!' Diya sighed. It's been a few days since she regained her vision. She thought she would be over the moon but surprisingly enough, her newly gained vision didn't interest her much. Rather all her thoughts were centered around a single entity.

Light! It's been a while since she heard from him. She had never saw him once. She didn't know why it was taking so long for him to come back. She feared deep down that he has already left, that she has been abandoned by the only one she cared for. But still she would console herself by saying that her Light would never do that. Other than that, she has also found something else. It was about the people around her. Before she had only heard their overly caring voice and couldn't pinpoint what was odd. But now that she can see their faces, their expressions, she can finally understand her unease. Despite the caring voice and expression, each of their eyes is imbued with deep fear. Her father especially seems traumatised. As he comes to her to play the role of a loving father, all Diya sees is his tension and fear. But who does they fear? It is one foolish question with an obvious answer. Light, he must have done something to scare them. 'So what?' Diya thinks. As much as their situation surprised her, it never bothered her. She wasn't pained to to know that their seemingly love is all a forced act, for she never craved it. Not after she had met Light. And even when she knew in guts that all the workers who disappeared might be dead and the alive ones are too have their life hanging on a thread, she wasn't much bothered. They hurt her directly or indirectly and if Light has punished them for he couldn't bear to see her suffer, it was only something they deserved. To Diya, they, even her father, wasn't worthy of her sympathy or care. Her logic was simple: You reap what you sow.

But her main concern was Light. How to make him come? She was sure he has some way to keep tabs on her. She had no evidence to support the claim and in every fibre of hers, she knew.

"How much longer do you plan to ghost me?" She shouted at the air. Salma who has come to take the laundry flinched. Who was her mistress talking to?

Her shaking form was clearly seen by Diya but she didn't bother.

'At worst, she'll take me for either a psychopath or a witch.' She thought as she shouted again. Her mind was racing with trains of thoughts. One way, that was all she needed. An effective way to get him here.

"After all this craze, now you want me to think you were but an illusion of mine? No way in hell!" She gritted her teeth. And then she suddenly stood up and raced towards the kitchen. The chefs were terrified to see her there. Had they made any mistakes? But Diya wasn't exactly in the mood to explain.

"Get out," her voice was calm as she ordered.

Diya closed all the doors and windows making the kitchen room dark and stuffy. She saw the gas stove, a pot was placed on it. She carefully removed the pot and fetched some water and poured it on the stove. As a result, there was no fire and the leaked gas was filling the room. When she was satisfied with the preparation, she pondered about her choices. Should she light a match stick or should she turn on one of the light's switch. Both should be able to accomplish her desired outcome, a good blast. After thinking for a while, she decided to go with the match stick. It would make things look more splendid. She took the matches and took out a stick. It would be a lie to say she wasn't scared. Her hands were visibly shaking but she fortified her resolve.

'Do not forget, Diyu. This is all to give that moron a grand show."

Taking a deep breath, she lit the stick. Like a flare, everything went on fire in a moment. Strangely enough, Diya didn't feel the heat. She had long closed her eyes and now that she opened them, all she could see is a lump of darkness. Even in midst of the fire, it is dark and cold. It is shielding her from the fire. Instinctively she knew, this was what she was waiting for. For the first time,she hugged back.

"Got you, you rat," she whispered. Finally, peace was back to her.