The Girl in the Mirror

In the outskirts of a quiet town, hidden between dense woods and forgotten roads, stood an old house with peeling walls and broken windows. Everyone in the town whispered about it—they called it The Mirror House. No one had lived there for decades, not since the Malik family disappeared one stormy night. But the stories never stopped.

Sixteen-year-old Aanya had just moved to the town with her father. Her mother had passed away a year ago, and her father believed a quieter place would help them both heal. Their new home? Just a few blocks from The Mirror House.

“Stay away from that place,” their neighbor warned the first day. “No matter what you hear... don’t go near it.”

Of course, that only made Aanya more curious.

One evening, while exploring the woods behind her backyard, she stumbled upon a rusted gate. Vines wrapped around the iron bars like claws. She stepped through and found herself facing The Mirror House.

Drawn by something she couldn’t explain, she pushed the creaky door open.

Dust danced in the air like tiny ghosts. Furniture lay broken and covered in white sheets. But what caught her eye was the large, antique mirror standing tall in the hallway. Its frame was blackened and cracked, and the glass shimmered unnaturally.

She walked up to it.

At first, she saw only herself.

But then... the reflection blinked—and she hadn’t.

Aanya gasped and stumbled back. Her reflection smiled, slowly—cruelly. A second later, it returned to normal. She ran out of the house, heart pounding.

That night, she couldn’t sleep.

And then the scratching began.

It came from her closet mirror—soft at first, like nails on wood. She turned on the light. Nothing.

But when she looked in the mirror, she saw the girl again—the one from the Mirror House.

Her.

But... not her.

The girl’s eyes were completely black. She mouthed something silently.

"Let me in."

Aanya screamed. Her father rushed in, but the mirror showed only her reflection.

“It was just a nightmare,” he said, though worry filled his eyes.

But it wasn’t just a nightmare.

The next day at school, Aanya couldn’t focus. During art class, she accidentally drew a picture of the mirror house. She didn’t remember doing it. Her hands moved on their own.

Later that evening, her phone buzzed.

No number.

Just a message.

"You left me behind."

She dropped the phone.

Suddenly, all the mirrors in her room cracked—at once.

And then, a voice whispered through the broken glass:

“Now I’ll come to you.”

That night, Aanya covered every mirror in her house with cloth. But one—she forgot the small one in the hallway.

At 3:33 AM, the mirror whistled.

Yes, whistled.

Like a child calling out.

She stepped closer.

And the cloth slowly slipped off on its own.

In the glass, she saw herself again—but this time, the reflection didn’t move.

Only stared.

Then, without warning, the reflection stepped out of the mirror.

It had no shadow.

Its mouth opened unnaturally wide, revealing rows of black, jagged teeth.

Aanya tried to scream but no sound came.

The reflection grabbed her arm and whispered:

“You took my place. Now I take yours.”

The next morning, her father found her asleep in bed. Or so he thought.

She looked normal. Calm. Quiet.

But something was off.

Her voice was slightly deeper.

Her smile lingered too long.

And when he left the room... the mirror beside her flickered—and showed two girls in the reflection.

A week passed.

Aanya went to school, spoke like normal, laughed more even. People said she was finally adjusting.

But one day, her best friend saw something strange.

While taking a selfie with Aanya, she noticed that in the photo, Aanya wasn’t there.

Only the background—and a faint outline, like a smudge.

Scared, she zoomed in.

And saw another face behind the glass.

A face screaming silently from inside.

Legend says:

If you stare into an old mirror too long, sometimes what looks back…

is not you.

And sometimes, it wants out.

And the real you?

Stays behind.