LIGHTS IN THE DARKNESS

The silence of the darkness was scary.

He could see her struggling to sleep every night, for the floor was rude to her soft body and the cold pulled her legs through the holes in her little blanket. There was a noise somewhere outside, which disturbed her. He looked at her with brimming eyes and encircled her with his arms, pulling her closer. It was past 3 o' clock early morning and the world seemed to be empty. The tiny room he managed to find for both of them inside a warehouse in the outskirts of the town seemed to be harsh in protecting them. Cold winds blew through the broken walls. It was dark, darker than outside, except for the yellow light from the nearby streetlights that trespassed into their privacy.

Everytime he looked at her face, he could see a stream of light dancing over it, making her cheeks look brighter despite the marks of poverty and hunger. He was really tired, with the daily routine of roaming from place to place, from dawn to dusk and returning with just a handful of bread that barely filled both their stomachs. A lot of times he wished to give up, but the little girl, her incomplete chattering and her affectionate touch was always a glowing star for him in the darkest nights. And he had been successfully pushing himself into this daily routine, so that he could somehow manage to feed his little toddler angel. Could a boy of merely 10 years of age do better?

The silence of the night always reminded him of their parents, and how they were taken away by the darkness, to some world the children had no access to. They died of some illness, people used to say. The biggest question that he had been asking himself ever since then was about the reason why they left their hometown and cozy home to live in the streets of a strange city bearing the coldest winds. Never did he get an answer.

 But his parents always used to say: "Ron, take care of your little sister while we are away." 

And since their death, the responsibility of taking care of the much younger one became the sole responsibility of him and he never failed in that, for he loved the toddler more than he loved himself.

He hugged her harder when he found that she was feeling comfortable. How unfortunate she had been, for a mother's chest to be replaced by a hard floor in her early childhood life. Atleast, the immature big brother could provide her some warmth. He touched her empty tummy and as it made creaky sounds, he almost cried. He was in need of some money, desperately in need of some money!

The noise got louder and louder as it approached. It was of people chattering and raving which seemed to be some kind of a celebration rally. The loudness attracted him towards it as if something worthy was calling his soul. He opened the door, covered his eyes with his forearms for the light too bright hit his eyes, and in the darkness that he wrapped himself in, he slowly walked towards the noise as if he was being pulled through the dark street.

The open space in front of the warehouse then turned into a gloomy path with no lights but stray dogs that howled often scaring people. But he wanted to find those people. He was determined, and it was a fight for survival. His legs had never felt more strength or speed before. From far away he saw a group of excited people approaching.

The group was enthusiastic. They stopped in the bright spot to refresh themselves, for that was one of the few areas where restaurants and cool bars were open at that time of the night. There were men, women and little children rejoicing, they sang songs and danced to the beat. Children jumped in joy. He was hiding behind a group of barrels, quietly watching them. Then there he saw a little girl of about 3 years of age who snatched her mother's smartphone and started playing with it. The mother, with at most concern patted her shoulder, touched her cheeks and asked if she was hungry. When the little girl nodded, she sat down on her knees and asked what her little princess wanted to eat, holding both her hands. She murmured something excitedly and the lady kissed her forehead before leaving to place the order. The girl's eyes were glowing, and it seemed brighter than the light that lit the town.

Ron's heart got squeezed, his face grew pale and he wished for his mother's warmth. Some burning sensation arose from his stomach and exploded in his chest. Feeling jealousy for the kid who was lucky enough to have her mother alive, and cursing his own life for being unfortunate, miserable and harder than he deserved, he kept looking at the girl.

"She is rich, she is given plenty of love and toys. And my two year old angel is sleeping on the floor, starving." Ron whispered.

How could a few be given everything in life and how could a few others be given nothing at all? How could children be deprived of love? Ron needed some money, just enough to keep the brother and sister not hungry and cold anymore.

He had once tried to steal some money from a shop, but hadn't been lucky enough to escape. The day gifted him scars on his back which still ached in its memory. He had no other choice but to flee from the streets in the heart of the city. The memory itself frightened him but there comes a point of time in everybody's life when needs weigh more than fears, and this was his. 

The sight of the young girl disturbed Ron. The darkness where he stood crept inside him and resided inside his heart. When he took a step ahead, towards the girl, the light of the crescent moon and the flashing lights of the damaged streetlight nearby gave him a scary appearance of a beast. He headed towards the girl, determined to distract her, take her to the warehouse and take away her valuables.

He took a chocolate rapper out of his pocket to propel the girl to come near him. By the time he got closer to her, she noticed the chocolate packet and kept staring at it. Her little hands rose towards it, little fingers eager to take hold of it. It was a totally favourable situation to Ron, for the crowd was ignorant about what was going around, and the girl's mother was nowhere to be seen. It was his duty to take her away before the lady came out.

As the little girl took small steps towards him, he moved backwards, showcasing the packet. Slowly, her face turned darker and darker, from the moonlit face to the one with flickering lights, and then dark. The glow in her eyes vanished. By the time fear and strangeness took over her curiosity and ecstasy and she started crying, they had reached the warehouse. He covered her mouth with his hands and pulled her into their little room. But the first thing he could see was his sister crying.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and then made the little girl sit. She screamed, "Mom" a lot of times, as the place was so strange and her mother was nowhere around. He noticed an expensive locket she was wearing, and while he was planning to take it away, his sister crawled towards the girl, and touched her face with her little fingers. The girl turned and stared at her for a minute, and then raised her arms too. Both of them smiled and each of their eyes had the same glow. The light that trespassed into their privacy lit the two angels and they really appeared divine. They smiled and talked and started playing. They were finding themselves in each other. Afterall, they were both toddlers with similar hunger for affection as well as for food. One was born lucky but the other was not. 

Ron stood shocked and suddenly a lightning passed through him. He could sense how nervous the little girl's mother would have been. In no time, he carried the girl in his arms and ran towards the bright spot where the crowd stood. The lady was wandering around unstable, searching for her only child. While he handed over the kid to her, his face made a glow for the first time, reflecting the light that touched the teardrops that ceased to roll down. The astonished lady grabbed her kid, kissed all over her face and held her tightly. Ron couldn't hold his tears anymore. He turned back and started to walk away.

Noticing that the kid was perfectly alright and all her valuables were in place, and in gratitude towards Ron, she called him back. His appearance was a clear indication of the miserable life he was living. The lady said nothing, but holded his hand and bought him food, took out some money from her bag and tucked into the pocket of his shirt. Her smile was as pleasing as the crescent moon and the tears in his eyes like a lake that reflected it.

Remembering that the door wasn't closed, he suddenly turned back and started to run towards the warehouse. A voice was heard loud, and it sounded "Thankyou".

The crescent moon was fading away and the first rays of the sun had arrived then. Getting inside their room which was fully lit by the morning sun, he had only one face to look at; his purest lily, who had fallen asleep again.