Short story- The whisper in the dark
Whenever I think of watching horror movies it reminds me of an incident that happened to me when I watched a horror movie alone in my room alone. I know it’s all in my mind, but probably my mind is not mature enough to understand this fact that it is all its imagination and there is nothing reality in it.
I was not a horror movie lover at all. There was a time when I couldn’t see any gruesome scenes from the movies. Though I love thriller movies, still I couldn’t stand watching bloodshed, dreadful murders, and other related things.
My eyes used to be closed without putting any effort and my hands did the job of my closing ears. It was in my system’s default setting and it never came into my mind to force myself and change it.
People evolve with time and so did I. I left college and changed the city for a job and made some new friends. I was a movie lover by then and used to ask my friends about the movies they had. One of my friends asked me to watch ‘Mirror’. He told me it is a very nice horror movie and I should watch it.
It was a long time since I watched a horror movie and so I thought of giving it a chance. I was staying in a PG with my two roommates. I watched the movie in their presence. At least I was not alone in the room. And if the wicked soul from the movie would try to haunt me I would have people around to protect me from him.
I watched the movie and I must say though I was petrified the entire time I couldn’t switch it off. It was intriguing and captivating. My default system of eye closing and hands closing my ears still worked but I completed the movie. That feeling was great. I was indeed afraid of looking at myself in the mirror for almost a week but that doesn’t count I guess.
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After watching Mirror, I watched many horror movies, and slowly my fear of watching them started fading and now there was no fast-forwarding of scenes, closing of eyes and ears. I enjoyed watching them and now I could see them alone without having anyone around.
It was Sunday and after doing all my Sunday chores I laid down on the bed thinking about what should I do next. I thought of watching ‘Insidious’ the movie that I got from one of my friends a month ago, but didn’t get time to watch that. There were two parts of the movie and I planned to watch both of them on that very day.
It was around 4:00 pm when I started watching the movie. The movie was great I must say. I was alone in the room and my other two roomies were enjoying Sunday with their friends. I finished the first part of the movie feeling incredible how I overcame my fear and started watching the second part after making tea.
It was winter and so the sun slept early. Soon the darkness sprawled all around the place. And I was still enjoying the movie. It was scary. Some scenes blew my mind and gave me goosebumps.
Short story- The whisper in the dark
It was around 8:30 pm when the electricity took off. Well, I was brave to watch the movie alone but not brave enough to watch without any light. I was the only one in the room and the door was closed. I got scared for a while thinking about the weird faces I saw but shrugged it off and looked at my cell phone to see if there were any notifications.
I have never been a cell phone lover so its always being ignored and its battery is about to die most of the time. It happened on that day as well. My laptop battery was already corrupted and was not going to last for more than 15 minutes I knew. Above all, I did not have any candles.
The situation was not good. All the hideous scenes from the movie dominated my mind and I was scared of thinking that I was stuck in a room with no lights and with no one around except the evil soul. I have heard this from someone that if you watch horror movies, you are likely surrounded by some of them. That reminder was spine-chilling.
I took my cell phone and called one of my roommates to ask when was she returning. But she didn’t receive my call and my cell phone died in between. In the dim light of the laptop, I opened the main door hoping some light would enter the room but got disappointed seeing there wasn’t any much difference.
Soon the laptop battery died and the only source of light was gone. I left the room because it was dark there and stood on the balcony waiting for the electricity. It was around 9:30 pm and there was still no light. I was sitting on the balcony looking at the road which was not dark like my room. My mind was diverted and after some time I was thinking about something else.
I sat on the chair and closed my eyes for some time and soon I was lost in my dreams. Now here is the thing. There was a time when I could sleep anywhere anytime any place if I had to. I used to sleep on my college bus most of the time in my 5 years of Architecture course. So I was well-trained.
Sleeping is such a wonderful and relaxing thing. It streamlines your thoughts and relaxes your mind. Shows you some dreams that you can’t even imagine. I don’t remember what I was dreaming but I was totally unaware of my surroundings.
Suddenly I heard a whisper very very close to my ears. I still clearly remember those words. It was, “Are you sleeping, Naseema”. Those words freaked me out and my eyes were wide open within a fraction of a second. I felt someone behind me holding both the arms of the chair leaning towards my ears. I turned around swiftly but couldn’t see anything.
It was still dark with no one around. I won’t deny I was shaking with fear. I get scared easily and that was too much for me to handle. Probably that was a bad dream influenced by the movies that I watched in the evening. But I couldn’t think of anything. Fear dominated my thoughts.
I ran down the staircase without looking here and there and landed on the road within a few seconds.
It took me a lot of time to calm myself down. Those appalling words were still echoing in my ears and I was having no one around with whom I could discuss that horrifying incident.
After some time I saw one of my roommates returning and that gave me a little relief. She saw me and asked me what I was doing outside. I told her about the electricity and also about the whisper I heard and that made her laugh.
I was happy that I was not alone. After some time electricity came, and we returned to the room. I couldn’t sleep properly that night. But after that day I never dared to watch horror movies. Thinking about that whisper still creeps me out. I know it’s all in my mind and I should face it. But I still have a lot of things to face and there is no room to add some more to it.
I stay most of the time alone in my room. What if at midnight I open my eyes and see someone standing next to me, staring at me smilingly and offering me water saying I knew you were thirsty!
What if I am watching a horror movie alone and someone whispers in my ear, “Do you want my company? I can show you the real show”! My God! That will kill me…
What if I am writing this story and someone is watching from my back and I see his reflection on the screen? I think I should stop here…
The funny part is that I prefer to write most of my articles and poems in the night time but for this post, I preferred the daytime. Even thinking about that incident scares me.
Horror movies are fun to watch but I can’t watch them having no one around. I have accepted the fact, that I am not brave enough to handle them alone. People watch movies for entertainment. But these movies give me a headache and stress my mind. I would rather like to repeat a few episodes of ‘Friends’ than watch a new horror movie.
SHORT STORY- THE WHISPER IN THE DARK: FACING THE FEAR ALONE!
