The Voice Healer (A Short Fiction Based on #143 Inkwell Prompt)

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Ravi was sitting at his desk with a lump in his throat. An old, small photo was before him. His right hand traced an old photo of his daughter, Adiya. She was 5 years old when Anna, her ex-wife, took her from him, escaped to another state, and changed their identities so Ravi couldn't find them. After his search for Adiya didn’t yield any results, Ravi retreated to his cabin in the woods. He mourned over her daughter, and the only thing he had of her was a doll and an old photo.

Adiya wanted to be a singer and make it big. Ravi helped her come up with new songs, and even though she was a little girl, she had a talent for words. Their favorite song was called “Under the Moonlight, I Heal”. Adiya wrote it herself, and when she showed it to Ravi, he was surprised at her talent at such a young age. Ravi was determined to help Adiya become a world-renowned singer. Adiya had the sweetest voice Ravi had ever heard.

Ravi’s wish to help Adiya crumbled when Anna escaped, never looking back. When Ravi found out Anna had started to use drugs again, he asked for divorce and custody of Adiya. But he didn’t know Anna had a plan to escape with her daughter.

Ravi put on his coat and went outside. It was snowing hard, but that didn’t stop Ravi from walking to his spot, which was beside a frozen river. When he got outside, he saw a letter on the porch. He picked it up and put it in his pocket. When he reached the river, he cried out loud because he wanted to get it all out. It was his daily ritual. There was no other way to cope with losing his daughter.

Suddenly, he felt sleepy and fell to the cold ground. In his dreams, he saw Adiya all grown up and happy. She came closer and extended her hand to take Ravi’s hands. Ravi was excited about seeing Adiya’s. She gave him a black box decorated with a red ribbon.

“Open it,” Adiya said, excited to see Ravi’s reaction to the present.

Ravi quickly opened the box. There was a microphone inside.

“You taught me how to sing, so I wanted you to have something that reminds you of our memories together,” Adiya said. “I have to go now. I will come again."

Ravi took the microphone and put it on his throat. The microphone turned into a ray of light and melted into his skin, going right through his throat chakra. His whole spirit shook, and he felt a fuzzy, warm feeling inside— a feeling he used to feel when it was Christmas, and they sat around the fireplace, telling stories. He woke up to feel the cold weather again; that warmth was gone.

Ravi opened the letter; it was from David, his best friend, who was a police investigator.

Dear Ravi,
I'm writing you this letter because you have no other communication device you can use. I am sorry to be the one to tell you that your daughter got into a car accident and died. I know you might not care, but Anna is alive. You need to come to the morgue to identify your daughter and pay for the burial. Anna is running away from the police. They are looking for her.
Yours truly,
David

Ravi didn't expect this news in the letter. He ran to his cabin as fast as he could while crying. When he arrived at the cabin, he took his luggage with so much speed that even surprised himself. He flew to Los Angeles to identify the corpse.

"After 17 years, I am seeing her pretty face again, my dear Adiya!"

Ravi dreamt about reuniting with his daughter, but he never thought she would be a corpse without any life or joy left in her bones. He finally arrived in Los Angeles. Everything has changed, but his feelings about stuff were still fresh in his mind and heart.

Ravi was about to go to the morgue, where he would see his daughter after so many years. Excitement and sadness devoured him like a savage animal. He wished he was living another reality or a dream that he would wake up from. But the harsh reality was staring at him, and he couldn't deny anything.

A girl was standing right beside him. She was silent. Ravi was too devastated to notice her.

“My baby girl, Adiya!” Ravi whispered to himself as he was crying. The girl came closer. She seemed to want to communicate with Ravi, but she couldn’t because she was mute. She couldn’t talk. Ravi couldn’t understand sign language. So, the girl wrote something on a piece of paper and showed him:

“I am Lakita, Adiya’s best friend. I know her from high school. Our passion, music, brought us together. We became best friends soon after we met. I had no friends, and Adiya helped me a lot. She was a good friend. You must be her father. Anna told me about you. She can’t come here. She is in her hiding place. If she comes, she will be arrested by the police. She told me to tell you that she is sorry to have separated you from Adiya. They moved houses a lot because Anna feared getting caught. We and a bunch of our other friends formed a band, together. Adiya was the lead singer in our little band. I am the guitarist.”

Ravi read what Lakita wrote and suddenly couldn’t breathe. He sat down on a chair. It was too much for him to process. From not knowing what happened to Adiya after they separated, to meeting her best friend. Ravi took some deep breaths and was ready for new information about Adiya.

Lakita sat down beside him. They looked at each other without speaking.

Then, Lakita wrote in her notebook again:

“I know you are sad. I am sad, too. Maybe we can be friends.”

Ravi nodded again, and then he couldn’t stop himself. He hugged her. He thought maybe he could feel Adiya by hugging her best friend. Lakita hugged him back, and they both cried.

Moments later, a man came and gave some papers to Ravi to sign. As Ravi was signing the papers, Lakita wrote in her notebook:

"I am at the NightWhispers bar. I wrote you the address. If you want to see me perform, you can come watch our band. We are performing “Under the Moonlight, I Heal” in Adiya’s honor. It was Adiya’s favorite song. We will perform it at 8 p.m."

“Sure. I will come.” Ravi said that and thanked Lakita. Ravi watched Lakita leave the morgue.

Angry at his fate, Ravi walked through the streets of Los Angeles and thought about the past. He had regrets. Possibly, if he hadn’t confronted Anna for drug use, Adiya would now be a singer instead of dead.

Ravi appeared at that NightWhispers bar and saw Lakita about to perform “Under the Moonlight, I Heal”. The band started playing. At that moment, Ravi wished Adiya was alive to perform her song. Lakita stopped playing and stared at Ravi for a moment. People followed her gaze, and they all noticed Ravi, crying silently in the dark. A ray of light came out of Ravi's throat and went straight to Lakita's throat. The lump in Lakita’s throat broke, and a tear streamed down her cheek. She felt a strange sensation in her throat. She tried to speak the words of the song. She gained newfound confidence and started singing. After the song was finished, people applauded Lakita and clapped for her.

It was an emotional moment for Lakita. Her friends were surprised because she could sing now. She could utter words. It was a miracle.

Without saying goodbye to Lakita, Ravi exited the bar. Lakita searched for him, but she couldn’t find him.

"Mr. Wilson..... Mr. Wilson..... where are you?" Lakita shouted just outside the bar, looking left and right. Lakita was outside without her coat on, and a shiver ran through her spine. She came back inside the bar to join her friends to discuss her new-found voice, but she couldn't think about anything else but Ravi.

Ravi didn't want to face Lakita, because how could he explain the gift Adiya gave her through his dreams? No one would believe what he was capable of. He couldn't believe it himself. But he was happy to have something so precious from his beloved Adiya.

Ravi walked until he reached a shop selling notebooks. He bought a new notebook for his new adventures, healing people’s voices. Ravi had a plan; he wanted to start a new life and fill the notebook with stories of people he healed. He wanted to make people’s dreams come true. He wanted to heal them and help them speak their truth.

Ravi could heal anyone with his gift. He rambled in the streets and watched the moon shine above his head. The light inside his throat, a gift from Adiya, shone brightly under the full moon.