The Cracks In The Reflection

The Cracks In The Reflection

The mirror showed a reflection that wasn't my own.

She had been haunting my thoughts for months.

Her cold, dead eyes seemed to follow me everywhere I went - while I worked, while I hung out with my friends and family, and while I slept.

Each moment I thought of her, I could feel her frigid fingers around my neck and see her wide grin spread across her face.

"It's okay," she whispered. ''I can make it all go away."

I couldn't escape her.

I tried not to think about her, but she was always there, lurking in the back of my mind.

And I knew that she was waiting for me to let her take control.

One day, while I was in a rush to leave my apartment, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror that hung by the hallway. I had been meaning to throw out the damn thing but I couldn't get myself to.

Even with the cracks that spread from the corners like a silver spider web, I couldn't throw it away since the mirror had been handed down for generations.

It was my fault for breaking it.

If I wasn't so inept in everything that a normal person could do, I would have secured the mirror properly.

My heart thudded against my chest as my throat closed in, preventing oxygen from entering the airways. I was used to this. My brain had anticipated the onset of my panic attacks and it always confused it with exhilaration.

If I opened my eyes, I knew that I would see her. Her sallow skin, sunken cheeks, greasy hair that stuck flat on her scalp, and chapped bleeding lips. However, when I finally gained the courage to look, I didn't see her in the mirror - I didn't see mine either.

I stepped back, shaking my head. How could have this happened? Was I going insane? Was I having another episode?

Afraid to step out of my apartment and receive more ridicule, I rushed to the kitchen. My eyes blurred with tears as my breaths came out shallow. My hands shook as I tore apart my cupboards to search for something. Something that would make everything go away again.

When I couldn't find anything that would help me, my hands fumbled for the phone. Maybe a friend could help me. Maybe they would know what I needed.

That was what friends were for, right? To help a friend in need.

On the first ring, someone answered. I couldn't recall whose voice it belonged to or why they were shouting. I couldn't comprehend what was being said but I also couldn't stop begging them to help me.

To help me with what? I did not understand either as my ribs shook uncontrollably and my mouth started foaming.

It was the woman in the mirror. I just knew it! She finally came to take her price. She finally had taken control of me and that was why I didn't see her in the mirror.

That had to be it. Not because of those white unknown bitter candies I found in the cupboards.

"I can make it all go away," I heard her whisper. "I can make all the pain go away."

I squeezed my eyes shut as I convulsed and prayed the pain to go away. The knife in my gut happily slashed me from the inside as my basic instinct to hold all my bowels and important contents loosened.

I was afraid. I was so afraid. I have never been in this much pain. I have never felt this way. It was supposed to be happy. Those bitter candies had always made me happy and numb.

But I guess, all good things would eventually come to an end.

As if the universe had a sick sense of humour, I saw her - no, myself, on the reflection of my cracked phone screen. I was smiling despite the sickening contents spilling down from my mouth.

Why was I smiling? Everything hurt.

Shadows started moving at the corner of my eyes as I heard that same whisper in my head.

"I can make everything all go away."

And it kept its promise as I resigned to its tight embrace.

***End***

Word count: 707 words.

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Hi, I'm CyCy!

Thank you for reading. I truly appreciate it!

This short story came out darker than I intended to. It was inspired by my nightmare last night and I hope it was not triggering for you.

I saw the Broken Mirror prompt on the Challenges Page and I thought I should write what happened in my nightmare since I also made a prompt similar to this in my Horror Writing Prompts Pt. 1: The Mirror.

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