A Wicked Episode

The lonely bleak cottage down the hills at the Kodaikanal town in Southern India. The clock ticks 1:50 at night, displaying on the wall opposite the bed. Sara is sleeping on her stomach in a deep dream state. The night was black. That is near the period of the New moon. She left the doors of the window open; the chilly breeze charmed the atmosphere of the room.

She got the text on her phone, kept next to the cushion with the phone light shining in the gloomy room.

Vinu:

    Are you awake?

Sara: [typing....]

Vinu:

   Are you alone in the cottage, honey?

Sara: 

    I was sleeping, just woke up. 

   Yes, I traveled solo here. 

   How about you?

Vinu:

    I am doing great...

   I hope you are enjoying your trip.

                                         

Sara: 

    Yes, I am loving this place, you know

    I have a hell of alone time to write my next book

Vinu:

   great Sara.

   Do you think about me? 

Sara: [typing...] (She widened her eyes and straightened up herself and sit on the bed)

   Wait…!

   Vinu?

   Are you kidding?

   Who are you?

   Whom am I talking to?

   Is this some kinda joke or something?

   ??

Vinu:

   It is Vineet baby, your love

   What happened?

Sara:

   seriously, you are now freaking me out.

   I don't like this. 

  If this is some prank, please stop [typing...]

Vinu:

   Why are you afraid, honey? It's me.

Sara:

   Don't you dare talk like my late boyfriend

   I am damn warning you…

Vinu: [typing...]

Sara - (thinking, What is going on here. She looked around the room, but there was nothing to bother. Besides, she remembers 10 days before she went for Vinu’s funeral in Bangalore at his parents' house).

Sara kept her phone aside and looked at the message. It is showing Vinu - typing...

Vinu:

   I knew, baby, I upset you with our last fight.

  I wanted to say sorry, honey, but...

She recollects the day when she had fought with Vinu that was a month before his death. She wants Vinu to move in with her. She took a fight when Vinu said, “I don't think it's a good idea to move so early. It is only a 2 months old relationship. Please do not dominate and force me to give commitments in the relationships at this stage.” 

She held the cushion next to her and moved right on her bed, avoiding her phone. A sudden knocking at the door. She wriggles the fingers over the sheet and holds it tight and opens her left eye to look at the door. The door is opening slowly and she could hear the crack voice of the door in that silence. 

She wakes up in the bed and screams, help…?

She looks around, nothing to worry, her body is all sweat. She calms herself and wipes her sweat with her arms. She looked at the window closed and curtains down. She realized that was the lousy dream she saw.

She approached her phone. At that minute someone on the door. It terrified her. She looks at the table, having the vase with flowers. She took the flowers out from it and kept aside. She holds the vase hard and moves toward the door. She unlocks the doorknob and opens it steadily. 

She stepped forward and looked around, but no one was there. She closed the door, checked the latch and locked it properly. She gets back to her bed. She takes her quilt on herself carefully. She thinks to check her phone just to confirm she had seen a dream. She picks it up and starts checking the messages.

4 Unread messages from Vinu - 4 mins ago...

She gets shook to see the message from Vinu. She curls up her body inside the quilt. She points her fingers to tap on the phone to see the messages. It frightens her to peek at the text from his dead boyfriend. She closed her eyes and tapped her fingers on the phone. She gently opened her eyes.

Vinu:

    Honey, are you still awake?

   What are you doing at the door?

   Is someone bothering you?

   I would come if you want me...

She gazed at the messages that froze her body and dried out the blood. She abruptly throws her phone far on the floor. 

On the spur of moment, the curtains of windows getting up by themselves. One door of the window opens and starts hitting the wall continuously with the wind. She gets down off the bed and runs to the attached water closet and locks it. She howls, lying on the floor. 

After a few minutes, there was a total quiet. The winds stop. No sounds of window striking. She came out and put her head down, started crawling on the floor, and snooped at the window. She saw some light coming out of the window blinking and then turned off. 

She gets up and takes a water bottle from the table as saviors. She clasps that bottle on hand, heads for the window, and wishes to close it. She reached near the window and sight outside at that moment a spark of light lay into her eyes. Her heart beat faster, when she saw Vinu standing. She spotted his T-shirt he was wearing, same as the last time they met and had fighting. It quotes "PEOPLE SAY I ACT LIKE, I DON'T CARE". He is having a bouquet in his hand with a note ‘Come with me!’. In the flash of light, his hair was fluttering and whipped his eyes. Sara saw his devilish smile at her.

She got horrified and yelled, ‘Save…’. His staring rendered Sara unconscious. She dropped the bottle from her hand. She was not able to utter a word and her arms pointed at Vinu to stop him from coming closer to her. She dazzled and tumbled with her head hitting the window. Soon she noticed Vinu's absence and left solely the bouquet there with the remark. Her eyes gradually closed, and she took her last breath.