Light and Shadow

Shade and Light 2:37 AM. The village went to bed in complete silence. Ratan lived in an old wooden house on its western edge. The silence was suddenly broken by a faint humming. In the corner of the veranda, an old 800-watt bulb flickered to life.

Ratan froze.

That bulb was dead. was for more than a month. It had been declared beyond repair by the electrician. Yet here it was—glowing. Slowly at first, then with an odd, pulsating rhythm that made it sound like someone was gently flipping the switch. He slowly unlatched the door and stepped onto the veranda. He could swear he saw something move within the bulb's trembling light. A shape, a shadow, gently swaying as if caught in the flicker of the bulb. "Who are they?" Ratan’s voice trembled.

No response. However, an outline was revealed by the light. A figure. Not fully human, not entirely formed, but undeniably there.

He took one step forward—and the bulb went out.

Silence.

Thicker than before. The breeze seemed to have stopped, too. And then—slam!—the door behind him shut tight. He quickly turned around. He grabbed the knob, pulled—it wouldn’t budge. Locked. from within. His breathing became harder. The bulb flared again. However, this time the shadow was closer and the light was brighter—too bright. Much closer.

The silhouette was now more clearly visible to him. It had no face. No eyes. But somehow, it was looking at him.

"You... you returned?" Ratan spoke almost involuntarily, whispering. because he knew in his heart. On this very veranda exactly one year ago, his younger brother Rahul had vanished. Without warning. Without a recollection Only his wristwatch had remained—burnt, twisted—beneath this same bulb. Nobody ever discovered his body. There was never any explanation provided. Since that night, Ratan never turned that light on again.

However, it had now switched on itself. The shadow moved forward.

Ratan backed away until his spine hit the wall. His shirt was soaked through by sweat. He gasped for breath.

"Rahul... who are you?" The head of the shadow was skewed. After that, two glowing eyes slowly appeared where its face ought to be. Eyes Ratan recognized. Rahul's vision. But they weren’t warm. They weren’t angry. They were empty. Empty. Betrayed.

The bulb suddenly went out, and it was so bright that it lit the entire veranda like it was daylight. For one brief second, the shadow’s form became solid. Human.

Then—

CRACK!

A sharp sound. The light bulb broke. Darkness.

Complete and utter darkness. Ratan collapsed. His body hit the wooden floor without a sound.

Villagers discovered the house wide open the following morning. However, Ratan was gone. No indication of struggle. No blood. Just one small piece of paper on the veranda:

"Ratan, you shouldn't have switched on the light." The bulb?

It was shining once more. 800 watts.

Beyond the Mirror”

11:00 PM. a cool, light breeze. Rima was sitting on the rooftop, scrolling through her phone. A notification appeared suddenly: "Saved New Photo." But… she hadn’t taken any photo.

Her gallery was opened. A brand-new image, taken just now from the rooftop, had surfaced. In the photo, Rima was sitting exactly as she was. However, there was a mirror behind her. A mirror?

The rooftop did not have a mirror. A young woman was visible in that mirror. She had deep, well-defined eyes, and her hair fell over her face. She didn't look happy. She was not in tears. She was simply looking at the camera. Rima ran downstairs, her heart beating rapidly. Just as she entered her room, her phone buzzed again:

"Seen a New Mirror." She turned around. The bathroom mirror appeared to be cloudy. Wrong.

Curious and afraid, Rima walked closer and stood in front of it.

In the reflection behind her… the same girl was standing. Still not moving. Still staring.

A hand then slowly extended from the mirror's corner. "Are you planning on taking a picture?" A whispering, soft voice. Rima tried to scream, but nothing came out of her mouth.