Reflections

Across the street there’s a park with a pond in the center. Well, technically the maps refer to it as a “reservoir” but I like calling it a pond. It’s got a lot of ducks, geese, and squirrels that like to hang out there. My girlfriend and I love going there, especially to clear our heads.

Well, that is to say, I used to love going there.

I’d been fighting with my dad recently. It wasn't anything terribly serious. Just us both being petty, bullheaded, and not raised to have the best communication skills. So after a particularly bad argument over the phone, I decided I needed to head to the park for a bit. I took a short walk and tempted some animals with some food to varying success. I then sat at a bench and stared out onto the waters that reflected the morning sky so beautifully.

I looked over the edge and deeper into the pond to get a good look at my own reflection. The sight of it made me freeze immediately. Directly behind me was a stranger wearing a blue jacket, his hood pulled over his head. In any other instance “fight or flight” would have immediately kicked in. I would have turned around and faced the stranger, or ran like hell. For whatever reason, though, I couldn’t move at all.

That’s when the stranger--in a flash--ran a blade he’d been concealing over my throat. I could feel it; the cold steel, the warm blood, the overwhelming sensation of dying. I reached up to my neck… only to find that none of that had actually happened. Even the reflection in the water had completely returned to normal. I was standing alone, save for a coot skimming across the surface towards an old woman who was throwing bread further down.

My heart was still racing and I suddenly started crying. I’d never felt like that before, nor could I understand what had just happened. Returning to earth, though, I decided to head home. That’s when I spotted him… the stranger in the blue jacket. He was standing further back behind some trees and staring at me intently.

I didn’t wait around after that. I immediately began to leave and called the police. Shortly after he was arrested and it was revealed that he did in fact have a knife on his person. A few days later it was proven he had connections to several other murders that had happened in broad daylight recently. Suddenly I was a hero who had helped aid the capture of a murderer. The sudden vision of my own death didn’t seem so bad after that.

Was that what it was, however? Was it truly some spectacular vision? Or was it simply intuition? I had to know for certain.

Once the first ordeal had ended I returned to the pond to look at my reflection again. Of course, nothing happened right away. However I continued to do this for a few days. Just as I was about to give up, though, it finally happened once more. I took a look at my reflection through the minute ripples and suddenly felt myself freeze up again. Deep below the surface, as the waters got foggier and muddier, I could suddenly see two points of light.

They got larger and brighter the longer I stared. Then suddenly the whole front end of a car became visible, rushing to the surface at an immense speed. Just as I was positive it was about to crash through the surface tension of the water and smash right into me--the vision faded once more. Again I felt overwhelmed to the point of tears. I had to get home as soon as I could.

I was as careful as I could be crossing the street and managed without issue. At least it seemed that the precognitive abilities of the water wasn’t always immediate. In fact, a few days passed and I had pretty much forgotten about what I saw. So much so I even went back to getting a drink from the convenience store in the mornings again. This, of course, was a grave mistake on my part…

As I was making my way to the store, simply getting ready to begin my day, the street beside me couldn’t have been any more dead. There wasn’t a car to be seen for miles off and not even the low rumble of an engine in the distance… at least not at first. Very suddenly I could see a pair of headlights in the distance. Then much like in my vision they grew bigger and clearer almost instantly.

Suddenly remembering what I saw I--perhaps a bit melodramatically in hindsight--leapt out of the way of the car just as the details of its hood became their clearest. It missed me by mere inches before crashing headlong into the telephone pole behind me. Other than a few scrapes and the feeling I was on the precipice of a heart attack, I had once again survived. I had managed to cheat death for a second time.

After that I would go to the pond every day to look into the waters. Two near-death experiences had put me far too on edge. It was like I had become obsessed. Granted, part of it was simply due to the fear of not wanting to die. However, I could not deny that there was a slight thrill to not being able to die. I felt unstoppable, even immortal. So long as I had the future sight of the waters of the pond, I was positive I could live forever.

If only for a short time did I truly believe this.

Weeks passed and the waters had nothing further to show me. I did not give up, though. I didn’t even take a break for a single day. Like clockwork, I’d go to the park and stare at the pond for a few hours before going home again. There was nothing to see though, save for its gentle ripples, the sky above, and the occasional waterfowl floating by on its surface. Even with that I still did not give up that there was still something left for me to see. Then a month later, that came to pass.

I felt the familiar freezing sensation I had the first two times. Looking deep in the water, my girlfriend suddenly appeared behind me. She leaned over and kissed my cheek ever so delicately. My reflection then turned to hers and kissed her fully before the vision disappeared and the pond lost its hold on me.

Same as always, an overwhelming sensation washed over me and tears filled my eyes. It felt different this time, however. I felt warm, and safe. There wasn’t even an ounce of fear within me this time around. The vision had been so comforting and pleasant. Was this simply a way for the pond to tell me I had a long happy life ahead? Perhaps it was my reward for surviving two trials against the face of death? I didn’t know and I didn’t care. All that mattered was I knew this vision was different.

I went back home and kissed my girlfriend as I had done in my reflection. Feeling content, I was positive I wasn’t going to need to go to the pond anymore.

…

That next morning I woke up to find my girlfriend not in her bed. This was bizarre as I had always been an early bird where she was a night owl. Our sleeping schedules hardly overlapped normally and I was always up before her. Exiting the bedroom I saw that the bathroom door was closed. This put me at ease as, although this wasn’t a frequent occurrence, it wasn’t unheard of at least.

So I went about my morning routine as usual, grabbing a drink at the convenience store and then sitting down to work at my desk. When I came home, though, the bathroom door was still closed. I hadn’t been gone for very long but it was still concerning that she wasn’t done yet. I called out to ask if she was okay through the door.

There was no response.

I moved up closer to the door and urgently knocked along to my question.

Still, there was no response.

Panic rose and I wrenched open the door…

… I will not describe what I saw. I’d rather not upset those who have seen similar scenes in their lives. Besides, no words can truly capture the horror and dread of the sight that laid before me. Even the scenes in movies and television have not given the emptiness and lifelessness justice.

I was filled with an abundance of emotions. Pain, confusion, and finally a blanketing numbness. Had the vision been a warning for me? Or had it been a warning for her? Had I done something wrong? Did I put too much stock into my own mortality, was I missing something? Or is life simply that cruel?

… I do not believe I’ll be going to the pond anymore. Anything it has left to show me could not possibly be any worse than the one thing that it didn’t. Perhaps death wouldn’t be so bad after all.