Lina's Desperate Search for Light

Short Story II

Lina wakes up with a pain in her stomach and knows she has to go to the toilet. Her room is very dark, so she tries to turn on the light, but she can't find the switch. Her hand is on the wall as she slowly moves, hoping she will randomly touch the button and see where she is walking. She remembers there is a triple socket on the ground where a couple of cables are connected, but she can't recall in which corner of the room that is. As she keeps walking, her right foot stumbles on one of the cables. With a fast reflex, she swings her foot, but something falls to the ground. She is sure she just broke a glass of water that she had placed in front of her air fryer, which she probably moved when she swung her foot. How stupid of her not to take it away, even though the triple socket is turned off. How can she move now when she doesn’t know where the broken pieces are scattered on the ground? After the noise of the falling glass fades into complete silence, she hears something swing, as if it is about to fall. A few seconds later, everything is completely still. She thinks it must be her nightlight because it usually stays on top of her counter, which is also connected to the triple socket. Luckily, it has stopped moving, so she won’t have an old vintage nightlight, which she bought from a second-hand shop and weighs at least two kilos, fall on her head. Suddenly, Lina feels the pain in her stomach again, this time accompanied by a strong bowel movement. She has to find a way to move, so she decides to secure the nightlight by trying to find its cable. She needs to use a light source that is closer to her and that she might be able to find. Lina lifts both of her hands and slowly stretches her arms toward where she remembers the nightlight being. It is further away than she thought, just one more step to the right, and she will be able to catch it, she thinks. There is a big risk of stepping on broken glass, but she still tries to take the chance by lifting her right foot and slowly touching the ground. Finally, she takes a confident step to the right but suddenly loses her balance. Her back is close to the wall, and her upper body falls backwards, but the coldness of the wall startles her. With a fast reflex, she bends forward and falls onto her knees. A sudden cold and burning sensation spreads through her body as she lands on broken glass. Lina screams, but it is useless because she lives alone. She can only use her hands, but she has no patience, so she starts swinging her arms left and right, up and down while crying with a fast-beating heart and a trembling body. Her fingers touch a cable in the air, and without thinking, she pulls it toward herself. Lina's desperate search for light resulted in the nightlight slamming onto her skull, and the impact sent her body forward. Before she can react, her face crashes onto the shattered glass below. A sharp, stinging pain spreads across her cheeks, forehead and lips. Her whole body starts to feel cold. Her breathing slows and dizziness kicks in. Lina tries to move, but something else moves around her. Like living things, the cables move across the floor, curling around her legs, wrists, and neck, tightening against her ankles. The pressure around her throat increases and she suffocates. She loses vision and just when she thinks this is how it's going to end, she wakes up. Her heart races and she grips her throat. A cable. Her phone’s charging cable was loosely tangled around her. She had it next to her pillow while sleeping. Both in her dreams and in reality, more than they connect and make life easier, it looks like technology is closer to disrupting her personal space, quietly, in ways that she both sees and doesn't see.