EPISODE 9
THE REFLECTION THAT STAYED
The footsteps upstairs stopped directly above Elizabeth’s head.
Silence followed.
Complete.
Heavy.
She stared toward the ceiling without moving.
Every instinct told her to run.
But another feeling held her in place.
The same feeling that had kept her staring into the mirror for far too long.
The house no longer felt familiar.
It felt aware.
Slowly, Elizabeth stepped backward from the hallway mirror.
The reflection did not move.
Her blood turned cold instantly.
Inside the glass, the smiling figure still stood exactly where she had been moments earlier.
Watching her.
Without blinking.
Elizabeth’s breathing became uneven.
No.. she whispered.
The reflection tilted its head slightly.
Almost curious.
Then
A loud creaking sound echoed from upstairs.
A door opening.
Elizabeth forced herself to look away from the mirror and toward the staircase at the end of the hallway.
Darkness waited above.
The second floor looked deeper somehow.
Longer than before.
As though the house itself had stretched during the last few minutes.
Another creak.
Slow footsteps began descending the stairs.
One step at a time.
Elizabeth could hear them clearly now.
Bare feet against old wood.
But no figure appeared.
Only the sound.
Closer.
Closer.
Her phone vibrated violently in her hand.
DO NOT LET IT SEE YOU AFRAID.
The unknown sender again.
Elizabeth typed with shaking fingers.
WHAT IS IN MY HOUSE?
The typing bubble appeared instantly.
Then stopped.
Appeared again.
Finally, the message arrived.
Not in your house.
In yours.
Elizabeth frowned in confusion.
And then the mirror behind her cracked loudly.
She turned instinctively.
The reflection was now closer to the glass.
Far closer than before.
Its pale face almost touched the surface from the other side.
And behind it
Elizabeth saw another hallway.
Not her own.
A darker version of the house stretched endlessly behind the smiling figure.
The walls looked damaged.
Rotting.
And dozens of shadow-like silhouettes stood motionless inside the distant rooms.
Watching.
Waiting.
The figure slowly lifted one hand.
This time, its fingers pressed fully through the cracked mirror surface.
Elizabeth stumbled backward in horror.
The hand emerging from the glass looked almost human.
Almost.
Its skin moved strangely beneath the surface, shifting slightly as though something underneath was trying to imitate human form correctly.
The footsteps on the stairs suddenly stopped.
Right behind her.
Elizabeth froze.
She felt warm breath touch the back of her neck.
But when she turned around
No one was there.
Her phone buzzed one final time.
It has finally found the right version of you.
Then every light inside the house went out at once.