Chapter 20: Light
1538 Words
Fahd stared at himself in the mirror and took out his pocket knife. He started cutting the dyed black part of his hair until only white hair remained, and it was still long. After that, Fahd bowed down and started washing his face. His black lipstick and foundation were washed away by the water, and he closed the tap. He remained down for a few more minutes before straightening and facing Zain, whose eyes widened.
The brown-haired man stared at the deep scar extending along Fahd's face and lip in shock. "F-Fahd…"
The white-haired smiled. He grabbed Zain’s collar and grew closer to his face. He hugged him tightly and whispered.
"I too… have a story to tell."
Shadi sat in silence in front of the giant rock and rolled his head to watch the boring cyan sky. He blinked, hearing a guitar playing and glanced behind. He saw Shahd come out of a small room, carrying a guitar and playing it skilfully. Shahd smiled happily and sat on a bench, playing. Everyone in the room glanced at her as she played, not minding their attention. Jassem smiled weakly and glanced down at his wife, who was busy playing with her child. His gaze softened as he stood up and walked towards his brother, who was listening to the music from the lower seats, alone. He sat next to him. "Your hair had grown a lot in… two years?!"
Shadi's hand reached for his hair as he closed his eyes and snorted. "I only trimmed my beard. I hardly have time for anything else."
Jassem's gaze saddened as he lowered his gaze to the floor. "I'm worried about you."
Shadi eyed him. "I'm fine."
"You… broke a promise you made to yourself."
"I had to," Shadi smiled, "And I don't regret it."
Jassem glanced back at Shahd. "She's… strange."
"Ah… Her masochist tendencies." Shadi shrugged. "Each one of us has got a story in here. She probably had her own reasons that we can't understand even if she tells us. In a way, it's better not to ask and accept certain things as they are. The answers might not concern us, or we might regret knowing at all."
"You've changed so much." Jassem glanced back at him. "I can hardly recognize you."
Shadi's smile weakened. "We have been locked down here for six months. The killing is going on even now. The only difference is that now, the remaining killers are the ones who are the toughest to crack. We almost have no chance to finish them off as we are now. We are no professional killers. No average person is. We never know when we will leave. We still can't climb this rock to see what's above us. Any sane person would change his behaviour after going through these specific events."
"You're right and wrong." Jassem patted his brother's head. "You've always been this way, probably. You just rarely show it. I said you changed because I… haven't seen this side of you ever since you were... you know."
Shadi nodded. "Maybe you're right. It doesn't matter anymore."
Zain gawked at Fahd in silence after having listened to his story. He stared at the large scar along his face without moving from his spot, and Fahd smiled. "If you're blaming yourself for bringing death to anyone and asking me to fear you then I must ask you the same. I killed s–"
"No." Zain stood in front of him. "You didn't kill anyone. Forget it."
Fahd frowned and shook his head. "Why aren't you afraid of me? Look at this scar…"
"Never hide it again." Zain slammed his hand against the sink. "Don't you dare…!"
Fahd huffed a laugh and covered the scar with his hand, eyes watering. "It's enough that I'm the only one who is disgusted by it."
"I'm not disgusted by it!" Zain clenched his jaw. "It's beautiful. Let me look at it more."
Fahd smiled weakly and looked away. He hesitatingly removed his hand, and Zain started removing his shirt. Fahd's eyes widened as he took a step backwards. "Wh-What are you d–"
He stopped talking, seeing a giant scar on Zain's back as he turned. Zain lowered his head. "This was the only time I truly knocked death's door. It was back when I was…" he paused. "I was tortured by an old friend I used to work with. He was ready to kill me, but someone called the police after hearing my screams. The person happened to be passing by, and I was saved." He quickly wore his shirt back. "We all have scars, yours is just easy to see." He slapped his bare chest. "The scars that hurt most are those which are inside of us though."
Fahd nodded. "You're… right…"
Zain patted his white hair and slid his fingers down along his scar, using his other hand to wipe his tears. “It might take time, but I’m sure you will learn to love yourself. You’re a strong person.”
Fahd smiled a bit and hugged him. “Thanks for… believing in me…”
Zain nodded and hugged him briefly and walked to the door. "Come on. Let's go out. I hear this music suddenly."
They both left the bathroom and found everyone gathered around Shahd as she played. Only Shadi watched the giant rock in silence. Fahd sat in front of him and hugged him, which made Shadi frown and glance at him. "Fahd?!"
He stared at his white hair, surprised. Fahd nodded and smiled. "I heard you saved me. Again."
His gaze saddened. "I… I'm sorry… I always cause you trouble. I'm sorry."
Shadi gently rested a hand against his side. "Does it hurt?"
"No… it's okay."
"Don't lie to me," Shadi smirked, amused, "I can find out."
"Well, yes… A bit. I just didn't want to worry you further."
Shadi blinked as Fahd leaned backwards, and his scar came into view. He then shook his head, pretending not to notice anything. "No. Never mind. It's not that I'm worried. It's just that I can help."
"How?" Fahd frowned. "How were you able to save me?"
"First of all, you must tell me what happened to you."
He saw Fahd's features going from confusion to horror before he lowered his head, shuddering. Zain frowned. "Wh-What happened after I got stabbed? Can you tell us?"
Fahd nodded slowly. "I… tried to take Zain somewhere safe, but there were men there to attack us. I acted as a decoy and took out one of them, but I couldn't get the other one. He tailed me to a small room where I saw a… nailed man. I… The man had an axe, so I thought I was going to die. I threw a rock at him, and he fell unconscious. After that, my sister injected me with some drug, and I knew I had to get back to Zain before I collapse in the middle of nowhere and leave him behind. After I got closer to the main hall, more men showed up, and I couldn't shake them off. The drug was probably kicking in. I… don't remember much about what happened later." He exhaled. "I… don't think I can provide more details. I want to forget what I saw actually."
Zain seriously stared at him. "I'm grateful." He shook Fahd's hand. "It is not that I fear death, but you saved my life. I'm grateful. I owe you one."
"Not at all…" Fahd's gaze saddened. "It was my fault that you got stabbed. I was selfish when I made you stop right in front of my sister. You don't owe me a thing."
"Sister…" Shadi frowned. "Did you two see Rania?"
Zain nodded. "A beautifully-crafted devil in disguise. I'm sorry for insulting her, Fahd, but I'm serious."
Fahd pursed his lips. "Feel free to say whatever you like. I know she deserves it. She did horrible things to you."
"Me?!" Zain raised his eyebrows. "No? She just stabbed me after I tried to kill her. The one who was subjected to her horrors most is you. I was talking about you."
"Sh-She's my sister, though. My mother would do the same."
"That aside," Shadi cut off the potential fight before it started, "We have been looking for her in the past six months, and we can't find her. That's why we're still stuck here. I'm impressed you two were able to find her."
Fahd and Zain exchanged confused glances. The trio was about to resume talking when Rahma stood next to them with a smile. "I see you three are all by yourself in here. Would you care to join us?" She blinked several times, noticing Fahd's scar but didn't say anything. The three males nodded and joined the others.
Shadi stood next to his brother. "By the way, I never asked you…"
Jassem glanced at him. "Yes?"
"The child… What name did you pick for your daughter? I still don't know."
Jassem's eyes widened. "Seriously?! I didn't tell you!"
He grinned. "Her name is Lina."
Shadi narrowed his eyes. "Light."
"Wh-What? You don't like it?" Jassem seemed embarrassed, watching his brother's reaction, and Shadi laughed. "No. It sounds nice, so why not?"
"You… laughed," Jassem blinked, and Shadi moved his gaze to Shahd to watch her play. "Yeah."
Lina started laughing, hands reaching suddenly towards the door. Ahlem frowned, glancing at it. "What's wrong, Lina? What are you doing?"
Lina grinned happily and pointed at the exit door.
They all glanced at the door and frowned, hearing knocks.
- Writer
