THE HIDDEN REFLECTION

In the village of Eldoria, where the mist slithered through the cobblestone streets and the wind whispered forgotten secrets, there stood a house that everyone avoided.

It was an old structure, with tall windows and curtains always drawn, as if trying to hide something from the outside world.

However, for Helena, this house didn’t symbolize fear, but rather a call. Since childhood, she felt an inexplicable connection to this place, as if her soul recognized something beyond the dusty walls.

One autumn afternoon, driven by a sudden surge of courage, Helena decided to cross the rusted iron gate and enter the house.

The silence was complete, broken only by the creak of the floorboards beneath her feet. In the center of the grand hall, covered by white sheets, a piece of furniture caught her attention.

It was an imposing mirror, its frame intricately worked in golden arabesques, dusted by time. But what truly made her catch her breath was the reflection. It wasn’t hers.

The image in the mirror showed a different version of herself. Her hair was longer, her eyes more intense, and her expression carried a knowledge that Helena didn’t possess.

Alarmed, she took a step back, but the figure in the mirror didn’t follow her. Instead, it smiled.

— “You’ve finally come,” said the voice, echoing in her mind.

Helena tried to flee, but her feet seemed rooted to the ground. The mirror began to glow, and an invisible force pulled her in. She felt the air leaving her lungs, as if being sucked into another world.

When she regained consciousness, she was no longer in the abandoned house. The environment was familiar but different.

The streets of Eldoria were more alive, impossibly colorful. The sky had a deep, almost unreal blue tone, and the air vibrated with an indescribable energy.

People walked past her, yet seemed not to notice her. Or rather, they were looking through her.

— “You don’t belong to this side yet,” said a voice nearby.

Helena turned and saw the same woman from the mirror. Now, she was right in front of her, real and tangible.

— “Who are you?” asked Helena, trying to remain calm.

— “I am you, or rather, the part of you that stayed here when you were born. You’ve always felt that something was missing, haven’t you? Now, you are complete again.”

Helena couldn’t fully understand what that meant, but a sense of belonging began to grow within her. She had always felt out of place, as if she didn’t fully belong to the world she lived in. Now, standing before herself, something began to make sense.

The other Helena extended her hand.

— “Come, there’s something you need to see.”

They walked through alleys that seemed to vibrate with memories, as if every stone had a story to tell. They stopped in front of a large wooden portal, carved with ancient symbols.

The other Helena touched the surface, and the door opened effortlessly, revealing a room lit by floating chandeliers.

At the center, there was a large book, open. The pages turned by themselves, as though an invisible hand was flipping through them.

Helena felt a chill run down her spine as she recognized the name written in golden letters: her own.

— “This book contains everything you could have been and everything you can still become,” explained the other Helena. “But for that, you need to make a decision.”

Helena looked at the pages, seeing images of herself at different moments, some she recognized and others she had never lived. Every choice she made, every path she could have taken, was there.

— “What happens if I stay?” asked Helena.

— “You’ll become whole. Your world will never be the same, and you will have access to all the knowledge and power you’ve always felt was beyond your reach.”

— “And if I go back?”

The other Helena sighed.

— “You’ll continue your life as before, but you’ll always feel that something is missing. The choice is yours.”

Helena hesitated. The desire to stay was strong, but something inside her told her it wasn’t yet her time. She needed to return, to live her life knowing that one day, perhaps, she would come back to complete her destiny.

— “I choose to go back,” she said, her voice firm.

The other Helena smiled, not with disappointment, but with understanding.

— “Then, we will meet again.”

Before she could react, Helena felt the world spin around her. She was sucked back, feeling the same vertigo as before. When she opened her eyes, she was back in the abandoned house, the mirror before her. But this time, her reflection was only hers.

The wind blew through the broken windows, and Helena felt something different. She was no longer just the young woman who had entered that house.

Now, she carried with her the knowledge that there was something beyond what the eyes could see. And one day, she would be ready to cross that portal again.