4 The consequence of Giving up (1/2)
'What's with this fog. Hasn't it gotten a bit too dense. I can barely see my own hands now.' I thought as I looked at my hand which was barely visible at this point.
The Black fog had become denser and denser in the last few hours.
I opened the smartphone and checked the time.
11:49 pm.
'Big bro said that something 'very' bad will happen at midnight. I wonder what he meant by that.' I thought to myself.
After that initial interrogation, I asked him to give me more information about the 'very' bad thing.
Initially, he ignored my questions but I after I pestered him again and again, he finally said 'You would only understand when you experience it yourself.' After that he completely ignored my questions.
'What the hell. Does he think this is some kind of horror movie of something. Keeping me in suspense for so long. What a shitty elder brother.' I complained in my heart.
'And why is it getting so cold. Is it also because of the black fog or it usually so cold out in the farmland at night. This is summer goddammit.
Shit! I should have taken those clothes when Big bro offered me. Now I'm too embarrassed to ask for them.' I thought and held the thin blanket even tighter.
I looked at the darkness creeping around me and was a bit afraid to put down the smartphone.
I had a thought that the black fog would eat me if I closed the smart phone so I had kept it on for the past half an hour.
'Even though it doesn't provide a lot of light. It's something.' I felt the black fog 'moving' in my surrounding and felt that someone or something was watching me from within the fog. It was a really creepy feeling.
”Oi Big bro. You alive there.” I asked in a causal tone as I tried to hide the fear and panic in my voice.
”Yeah. Why? Are your scared.”
”Of course not. I was just making sure that you were not scared that's all.” I said with voice full of confidence.
”Is that so.” He said with a chuckle. Then his voice became warm as he continued. ”You know it's not a sign of cowardice to accept that you're afraid. We all feel fear sometimes in our lives. It's better to accept that you're afraid then hide it from everyone else.”
”You feel fear too brother?”
”Of course I do. Who do you think I am.” He laughed in a self deprecating manner.
”Then do you fear this darkness.”
”Not really. Do you?”
”Yeah. Just a little bit though.” I said in a casual manner. 'I hope he doesn't realize how scared I'm right now.'
'Sigh. I hope little Neha was here right now. At least I could have talked to her. Big bro is no fun as he's the silent type. Haah! what a waste.' I opened a game in my smartphone and started playing it in order to distract myself.
”Ashok.”
”Hmm.”
”What you know what the most important thing in life?”
”Umm… Money?” I guessed.
”Why so?”
”You can buy everything with money.”
”Hah…” he chuckled. ”There are a lot of things you can't buy with money.”
”Then what do you think is the most important thing in life?” I asked back.
”Family.” He replied in a firm manner without even needing any time to think.
”Hmm. Now that I think about it Family does seem more important than Money but you can't raise a family without money either you know.”
He remained silent and refused to make any further comments.
”Brother earlier you…” before I could say anything, I noticed intense movements in the black fog around me.
It felt as if, the black fog was, going up?
I felt strange since all my senses were suggesting that something bad would happen because of the black fog. But in the end, it just went up in sky.
'That was it?'
I watched intensely as the black fog slowly went up in the sky and after going up for about fifty metres, it dispersed.
A bright half moon could be seen in the horizon and twinkling stars filled the whole sky.
'Wait! Isn't the sky a bit too clear? And this air. Why does it seem so pure. It feels as if all the air pollution in the world went away along with the black fog.'
I looked at the bright sky up above and was mesmerised by it's beauty. I wondered if I was wrong and if the black fog was actually a good thing instead.
But then I remembered the words said by Big bro earlier. Something 'very' bad is going to happen.
Well, nothing bad had happened to anyone so far. But if he said something bad will happen then something bad will definitely happen.
I looked at Rahul and realized that he was looking back at me.
”What's the time.” He asked.
I looked at my smartphone and replied ”11:55 pm”.
”Call little Neha.” He said with a sigh. Looking at his expression, I could feel that he was not really happy about whatever had just happened.
”Alright.” I said and realized that the 'No Signal' sign went away along with the black fog.
After four rings Neha picked up the phone and shouted excitedly. ”Hey brother did you look at the sky. It's so bright and beautiful. If you've not seen it then you need to see it right now.” He voice was filled with excitement.
'It seems like the black fog lifted up from our home town as well.'
”Neha, Big bro wants to talk with you.” I said and passed the phone to Rahul.
”Neha where are you?” Rahul said in a voice filled with warmth and love.
”Yeah I saw it. Neha now listen to me.”
”Go back to your room and do what I told you to do earlier.”
”Yeah. Go inside and close the door and windows tightly.”
”Done. Good. Now listen to what I'm about to tell you now. I won't repeat myself.” At this point his tone became grave.
”At 12:00am, at midnight, you'll feel an immense amount of pain.”
”Don't interrupt me. And listen carefully.”
”At midnight, you'll feel an immense amount of pain throughout your whole body. It'll be so bad that you'll feel like just giving up. But you cannot give up no matter what.”
”It might seem like that pain will go on for eternity but in truth, the pain will only last for ten seconds.”
”Think about Ashok and me when the pain hits. You have to live for us even if don't feel like living for yourself.”
”Remember, the pain will only last for 10 seconds and not one second more. You must hold on until then.”
”After the pain subsides, I'll call you once again and give you further instructions on what to do.”
”Yeah. Close the door properly. If possible use a heavy table or Almira to block it off as well.”
”Now go on and lay down on the bed.”
”Good girl. Remember, I'll call you after the pain subsides. It'll only last for 10 seconds. And you must survive.”
'The fact that he was repeating the thing over and over again despite saying that he won't repeat it twice meant that it must be something very serious.' I thought to myself.
'I wonder what pain he's talking about. And what happens to people who give up.'
”The people who give up, die.” Rahul told Neha in the phone but he was also looking in my direction as if telling me the answer to my questions.
”Remember Neha. You must live on. Alright.”
”Now put phone in vibration and when you talk to me again, do so in a very low voice. Understand.”
”Good. I believe in you.”
”Yeah. Brother loves you as well.” Rahul finally kept the phone down but I could see that his face was filled with worry.
”Is what you said just now the truth big brother.” I asked at looked at the time. It showed 11:59 pm.
”Yes. Every word of what I said just now was the truth.” He said in a grave tone.
I didn't believe him. Maybe I just didn't wanted to believe in such a ridiculous thing.
'How can anyone feel so much pain that they'd die from it.' I was really sceptical this time.
But before I could say anything, he shook his head.
”You might not trust me but that alright.” He brought his hand forward and held my hand closely.
”You just need to remember that the pain will only last a short while. And if you feel like giving up, then remember me and Neha. Remember our family. Alright.”
”Alright.” I said as I clasped his hand tightly and we both laid down side by side.
We laid down for a few second and waited but nothing really happened.
'I hope he won't just stand up all of a sudden and laugh at me saying that all of this was just a joke. That would be to embarrassing.'
I looked at the the sky to distract myself from unnecessary thoughts. Suddenly I saw a bright light growing slightly bigger with each second.
”Hey brother, don't you think that star is…” Before I could finish, the light suddenly enlarged in size and went through my body. My words stopped at my throat and for a second, I felt as if the whole world had stopped moving.
Then the pain arrived.
”AAaaaraghhhh.” I screamed in agony as I felt my whole body being burned from inside out.
Every single muscle in my body went through an excruciating amount of pain.
If I had felt so much pain during normal times, my heart would have went into a seizure and stopped beating. Or at the very least, I would have instantly passed out.
But this time, I felt everything going in my body clearer than ever before. Clearer in the sense that I felt every single part of my body go through that excruciating amount of pain.
I gasped for air and scratched at my throat as my body bent at an extremely unnatural angle because of the pain.
But the amount of pain I felt only kept on increasing.
At that point, I felt a deep voice from inside my mind calling to me as a mother would call her child.