The Stolen Reflection
1636 Words
The hallway still felt heavy after Andrew’s words.
“He was the killer.”
The sentence had dropped into the silence like a stone into still water. Students whispered to one another, confused and unsettled. Some stared at Andrew as if trying to understand what had just happened, while others simply watched quietly.
Andrew sat on the cold floor, breathing unevenly.
Sophie knelt beside him.
“Hey… breathe,” she said softly. “You’re okay.”
Andrew rubbed his eyes with trembling hands. “I didn’t mean to say that. I don’t even know why I said it.”
“That’s alright,” Sophie replied gently. “Sometimes our minds move faster than we understand.”
Andrew looked at her uncertainly.
“You’re not… scared of me?”
Sophie tilted her head slightly.
“Should I be?”
Andrew let out a weak laugh.
“I don’t know what’s happening to me,” he whispered.
Sophie paused for a moment before speaking again.
“Whatever it is… you don’t have to deal with it alone.”
Those words stayed with him longer than he expected.
Andrew suddenly stood.
“I need to go home.”
Before Sophie could respond, he had already begun walking down the hallway.
Andrew reached home quickly, barely remembering the walk. His grandmother’s voice came from the kitchen the moment he stepped inside.
“Andrew? Is that you?”
But he didn’t answer.
He walked straight to his room and shut the door behind him. The room felt strangely silent.
Slowly he turned toward the mirror on the wall.
For a moment everything looked normal.
Andrew stared at his reflection and took a slow breath.
“Okay… you’re fine,” he whispered.
But something felt wrong.
His reflection seemed slightly distorted.
Andrew leaned closer.
His heart froze.
The face staring back at him was not his.
It was the missing student.
The same face from the news.
The same face from the vision.
Andrew stumbled backward.
“No… no… no!” he shouted, grabbing the edge of the table.
The mirror still showed that unfamiliar face staring directly at him.
Andrew closed his eyes tightly.
When he forced himself to look again—
It was gone.
Only his reflection remained.
Slowly, Andrew stepped closer again.
Carefully, he raised his hand and touched the mirror.
Cold.
Solid.
Normal.
Nothing unusual.
But the fear inside him remained.
Andrew slid down to the floor, burying his face in his hands as tears escaped despite his efforts to stop them.
The door opened a moment later.
His grandmother stepped inside and immediately noticed him sitting on the floor.
“What happened?” she asked calmly.
Andrew quickly wiped his face.
“Nothing… I’m fine.”
She gave him the quiet look that clearly said she didn’t believe him.
She sat beside him.
“Andrew… your ‘fine’ face has tears on it.”
For a moment he stayed silent.
Then he whispered, “I saw something again.”
“What kind of something?”
“The missing student.”
His voice lowered.
“In the mirror.”
His grandmother frowned slightly.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“I know!” Andrew said suddenly, frustration rising. “That’s the problem. None of this makes sense.”
He stood and began pacing.
“I see things before they happen. I say things I don’t understand. Now I’m seeing faces that shouldn’t even be there.”
His grandmother watched quietly before placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.
“Sit.”
Andrew slowly sat again.
“Fear grows when you fight it alone,” she said softly.
Andrew stared at the floor.
“But sometimes life shows us strange things first… and explanations later.”
He sighed.
“That’s not very comforting.”
She smiled gently.
“I’m not trying to comfort you. I’m reminding you that you’re stronger than you think.”
Andrew didn’t respond.
“And whatever this is,” she added, “we’ll face it together.”
She gently squeezed his shoulder before standing up.
At the doorway she glanced back at him once — a silent promise — before leaving the room.
Later that night Andrew sat on the floor of his room.
In front of him were two drawings.
His parents.
The paper edges were slightly worn with time.
Andrew stared at them quietly before speaking.
“Hey… it’s me again.”
The room remained silent.
“You’d probably laugh if you saw me right now.”
He looked at the drawing of his father.
“You used to say I panic too much.”
A faint smile appeared.
“Yeah… you were probably right.”
His voice softened when he looked at the drawing of his mother.
“But things are strange lately. I don’t know what’s real anymore.”
His fingers traced the edge of the paper.
“I wish you were here. You always knew what to say.”
Silence filled the room.
“Everyone thinks I’m strong,” Andrew whispered. “But honestly… I’m scared.”
He leaned back against the wall.
“I just want things to make sense.”
The wind brushed softly against the window as the night deepened.
Eventually Andrew drifted into sleep.
Outside his window the darkness shifted.
A shadow appeared near the glass.
It wasn’t shaped like a person.
Its outline moved strangely, almost like smoke trying to form a figure.
For several seconds it remained there.
Watching.
Then it disappeared into the darkness.
Andrew woke suddenly.
His chest rose sharply as he gasped for breath.
Slowly he turned toward the window.
Darkness.
Nothing else.
No shadow.
No movement.
The absence of it felt strangely unsettling.
Andrew stared for several seconds before shaking his head.
Maybe it was just a dream.
Then suddenly—
“ANDREW!”
His grandmother’s voice echoed through the house.
“What time is it?” he shouted back.
“College started twenty minutes ago!”
Andrew jumped up instantly.
“WHAT?!”
Within minutes he was running around the house trying to get ready. His hair looked completely messy, his belt wasn’t tightened properly, and two buttons of his shirt were still open.
His grandmother looked at him from the doorway.
“You look like a disaster.”
Andrew grabbed his bag.
“Fashion disaster,” he corrected before running out the door.
The college auditorium was silent as a professor delivered a speech.
Suddenly the main door burst open.
Andrew stood there breathing heavily.
For a moment the entire auditorium stared.
Then Philip spoke loudly.
“Well… looks like someone wrestled a hurricane and lost.”
The room burst into laughter.
Even James struggled to stop laughing.
Andrew sighed quietly.
“Perfect,” he muttered.
The professor raised his hand.
“Silence.”
The laughter faded.
He looked at Andrew.
“You decided to join us?”
“Yes sir… fashionably late,” Andrew replied awkwardly.
The professor pointed toward an empty seat.
“Sit.”
Andrew walked down the aisle and sat beside Sophie.
Sophie leaned slightly toward him.
“Rough morning?” she whispered.
“My alarm clock betrayed me,” Andrew whispered back.
Sophie smiled.
“Your shirt did too.”
Andrew looked down and quickly fixed his buttons.
“You know,” Sophie added, “most people try to look decent before entering a crowded room.”
Andrew shrugged.
“I prefer dramatic entrances.”
Sophie laughed softly.
That warm feeling returned in Andrew’s chest again.
Later in the canteen Andrew sat with his two friends, Jordan and Sam.
Jordan pushed a plate of fries toward him.
“You look like you fought three villains this morning.”
Sam nodded.
“And lost to all of them.”
Andrew rolled his eyes.
“Thank you for the support.”
Jordan leaned back.
“So… we heard something interesting.”
“That sentence worries me,” Andrew replied.
Sam grinned.
“You sat next to Sophie.”
Andrew nearly choked on his drink.
“That means nothing!”
Jordan pointed at him.
“Your face says otherwise.”
Sam laughed.
“Our boy is in love.”
Andrew’s face turned red instantly.
“I am not!”
Jordan and Sam exchanged a brief glance.
Jordan said quietly, “Just… don’t overthink things, okay?”
Andrew frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Sam shrugged.
“Nothing dramatic.”
Then Jordan smirked again.
“But yes… you’re definitely blushing.”
Andrew buried his face in his hands.
“I need better friends.”
At that moment Sophie appeared with her tray.
Jordan and Sam exchanged another glance before silently standing up.
“Mission accomplished,” Sam whispered.
“Good luck,” Jordan added before both walked away laughing softly.
Sophie sat down.
“Did I interrupt something?”
Andrew shook his head quickly.
“No… they just remembered they had very important invisible work.”
Sophie smiled.
They talked casually for a while about movies, classes, and random topics.
Before leaving Sophie stood up.
“Oh, I almost forgot.”
Andrew looked up.
“What?”
She hesitated slightly.
“Tomorrow I want to introduce you to someone.”
Andrew raised an eyebrow.
“Someone important?”
Sophie nodded.
“I wasn’t sure before… but after everything that happened today, I think you should meet them.”
Andrew leaned back in his chair.
“That sounds mysterious.”
“You’ll see tomorrow,” she said.
She picked up her tray and walked away.
Andrew watched her leave.
Then he whispered quietly to himself,
“Okay… now I’m really curious.”
He leaned back slowly.
“One mysterious person tomorrow…”
His eyes drifted toward the hallway.
“Who could that be?”
The question lingered quietly in the air.
And the answer waited for tomorrow
- Writer
