Dusky Moonlight

Chapter- 20(2)

A day has passed since her father in law returned home after that fruitless search for Aadhiyan. Rathi is tired of her life and increasingly started to fear what's going to happen after this but she didn't lose that small hope that maybe Aadhiyan will miraculously come back.

The heavy rain has stopped but it still drizzles. Sitting beside the door and looking at the endless rain deeply saddens her. She can hardly able to breathe in this atmosphere. It's suffocating her like she wants to end her life in order to end everything.

She looked at the necklace and reminded her about what the ghost has said to her, 'Your husband is dead.'

How can he die when he was protected by the Gods? She thought but then she felt it doesn't seem like the ghost is lying. Even sometimes God can fail too, they have left Aadhiyan when he was in danger so that he didn't make it to the shore? She questioned but she nodded in disapproval. She's battling with her brain and heart which is constantly confusing her about Aadhiyan's existence. She's unable to accept that he's dead yet she knew that his chance of survival is lesser.

Placing the necklace back in her saree folding Rathi continued to stare at the greying sky, she doesn't want to wear that necklace as she couldn't trust anything in this place anymore and she strongly think that ghost's presence won't save her as it says.

While she's longingly looking at the sky, Aadhavan's coughing sound got her attention, he slowly got up from his nap.

"How's your fever, are you alright now?" Rathi questioned turning her attention to him.

"I am fine, even if I die I am ready to accept it," he told feeling vexed and Rathi looked down.

After that day-long search in the rain, everyone who went to search Aadhiyan got fever and body aches and were resting in their home. It set her to believe that, if you leave when this land doesn't want you to then you'll meet its ruthless consequences. Rathi wondered what will happen if she leaves from here with this child? Surely she will die at the end.

"I don't know what I should do now; there's nothing we can do to change his fate," he remarked having tears in her eyes. "It's all in the hands of our God," he told getting up from his bed and walked to the bathroom.

Rathi no longer trusts this God, even in this rain everyone went to the temple to pray for Aadhiyan, which is the last hope they had. Stuck in between life and death, she couldn't wish more than for her peaceful death, and hope is nowhere here.

When she was in her thoughts, she felt someone's presence close to her, the breath of a person against her ears. Instantly she turned and tethering her eyebrows she looked around whether it's her father in law but she's the only person sitting in the room. For someone who is terrified, everything dark will be a ghost, Rathi presumed and stood up to go outside. The entire place is now dark and cold. She leaned on the pillar before the house and watched the spider struggling to make get away from its damp web on the rose plant.

It's just like her, she doesn't want to leave yet she has no way to escape. At least she thought, helping it can make her happy. Her legs couldn't stay still so she went near the web and place her hand near the spider. It found out that she's trying to help so the spider came on her fingers. She had a small smile and soon the spider flew away to the dry area.

Rathi was always afraid of spiders, lizards, and every creature that looks weird but after facing the betrayal, death, and cruelty of humans she thinks these creatures are so fragile and innocent.