Dark Mirror and Twisted Truth

Sick?....

SELENE

That week, everything felt like it was finally falling into place. He had smiled at me differently that night by the lake—brighter, certain, like he had made a decision he would not take back. Yuji held my hand beneath the quiet glow of the stars and told me he didn’t want to hide anymore. He wanted the world to know, to introduce me properly, to stand beside me without hesitation. The words stayed with me long after I left him, echoing in my chest, fragile and bright, like something I was afraid to believe too much. For once, I let myself hope, even if it felt unfamiliar, even if it felt dangerous.

The next morning, that hope didn’t last.

My head hurt and felt like it was spinning.

“Selene! Why did you ruin my dress?!” Akiya’s voice cut sharply through the house, pulling me out of my thoughts. My chest tightened as I rushed downstairs, a sense of dread already settling deep inside me. When I reached the bottom, I saw them all waiting. My father stood in the center of the room with a dark expression, her mother beside him, and Akiya just behind them, trembling as if she had been wronged beyond repair. At her feet lay a beautiful pink dress, now torn beyond saving, and right beside it were my scissors.

My breath caught as I stared at the scene. “I didn’t do anythi—” I tried to say, but before I could finish, my father’s hand struck my cheek. The force of it sent my head to the side, the sting spreading instantly across my skin. My ears rang, and for a moment, everything blurred.

“Are you that desperate to steal my daughter’s man?!” he shouted, his voice filled with anger that felt heavier than the pain on my face. His words cut deeper than anything, sharper than the blade I had once turned against myself. I slowly looked back at him, my cheek still burning, my voice trembling as I forced the words out.

“I was your daughter too, Dad.”

For a brief moment, I saw something shift in his eyes. There was guilt there, faint but unmistakable, as if a part of him remembered who I was to him. But it didn’t last. Akiya reached for him, clinging to his arm as she cried, her soft sobs filling the space between us. The moment she touched him, the guilt disappeared, replaced by something colder, something far more familiar.

“I saw you with him yesterday! And he said that you're begging for him to love you!” she cried, burying her face against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her without hesitation, holding her close in a way that felt painfully familiar. I stood there, frozen, staring at them as the realization began to settle in.

“Who are you talking about?” I asked, though deep down I already knew.

“She’s lying,” I said quickly, desperation creeping into my voice. “I didn’t ruin anything, and I didn’t—”

“Enough! You're sick, Selene!” my father interrupted, his tone final and unyielding. I flinched at the sound, my hands trembling at my sides as I tried once more to make him listen.

“Please… just listen to me,” I whispered, but no one responded. No one ever did.

Akiya’s quiet sobs continued, soft and convincing, while her mother stepped forward to comfort her, casting me a look filled with quiet judgment. It was already decided. I could see it in their faces. I was guilty, no matter what I said.

“I didn’t do it,” I murmured, though the words felt empty the moment they left my lips. My gaze fell to the torn dress, then to the scissors placed beside it, positioned too perfectly to be anything but deliberate. Slowly, I looked back at Akiya.

For a brief second, through her tears, she smiled.

It was small, almost unnoticeable, but it was there.

Victorious.

My stomach dropped as the truth settled heavily inside me. This wasn’t an accident. It was never an accident. And as I stood there, alone in a room full of people who had already chosen against me, I felt something fragile inside me begin to break again. This time, it wasn’t just about the past or the pain I had learned to endure. It was about the one thing I had finally found, the one thing that made me believe I could still be happy.

And now, they are taking that too.