Sharon's eyes opened in darkness, like she'd been submerged in black water. She gasped, lungs burning. The boy's face floated above hers, his black eyes sucking the light.
"Welcome back," he whispered.
She tried to scream, but her voice was gone. The darkness pressed in, like it was alive.
The boy's lips touched hers, cold as stone. "You're mine now," he said.
Sharon's mind fought, but her body felt heavy, like it was sinking. The shadows seemed to wrap around her, pulling her down.
She saw flashes—Emilia's smile, the mirror's scream, the knife's bite. The boy's laughter echoed, like he'd won.
_You're mine_, he whispered in her mind.
Sharon's thoughts blurred, like she was dissolving into the dark.
***
She woke in the mansion's hall, mirror reflecting her face. Her eyes were black now, like the boy's.
He stood behind her, smiling. "You're like me now."
Sharon's voice was barely a whisper. "What have you done?"
The boy's eyes gleamed. "I showed you love."
The word _love_ felt like a lie. She remembered pain, not love.
The mirror rippled, like water disturbed. The boy's face appeared in the glass.
"You're trapped," he whispered. "In me."
Sharon's mind snapped. She lunged at the mirror, shards cutting her hands.
The boy's laughter echoed as she fell.
***
The pain was a loop—mansion, mirror, boy, knife. Each time, the pain was sharper. Each time, she was weaker.
The boy's voice came from everywhere. "You'll forget. You'll stay."
Sharon's memories blurred—Emilia, the ritual, the love, the pain. She didn't know what was real.
The loop tightened, like a noose.
***
In the mirror, she saw it—the symbol on her chest, carved like a brand.
_Mine_, the boy whispered.
Sharon's mind screamed. She was losing herself.
The mirror shattered.
***
She woke gasping, on the floor. The mansion was silent. The mirror lay broken, shards everywhere.
Sharon stumbled up, vision blurring. She had to get out.
The front door swung open, like she'd been expected.
She ran into night air, heart pounding. The boy stood on the lawn, smiling.
"You can't escape," he said.
Sharon's breath caught. "I broke the mirror."
He tilted his head. "You broke the glass. Not me."
The shadows around him seemed to move, like they were alive.
The boy reached for her. "Come back."
Sharon remembered something—Emilia's words, scribbled in a book. _Love is the mirror's curse. Break it with love._
She looked at the boy, his black eyes empty. "I don't love you," she said.
The words hung in the air. The shadows around him twisted, like they'd been cut.
The boy's face contorted, like he'd been hurt. "No," he whispered.
Sharon stepped back, hands shaking. "I break the curse. With my love for myself."
The boy screamed, his body dissolving into shadows. The darkness swallowed him.
The mansion's lights flickered, like they'd been held. The mirror's shards on the ground seemed to melt, like ice in sun.
Sharon felt it—the shadow within her, gone. Her eyes were brown again.
She turned to leave, but the mansion's door was locked. The windows were black, like they'd been painted shut.
A whisper came, from inside her. _It's not over_.
Sharon's heart pounded. She looked at her hands, like they belonged to someone else.
The shadows around her seemed to move, like they were waiting.
***
She woke in a hospital, bandages on her hands. The nurse smiled.
"You're okay," she said. "You were found in the mansion."
Sharon's memories rushed back—the boy, the mirror, the curse. She looked at her hands, like they'd betrayed her.
The nurse frowned. "You need to rest."
Sharon nodded, but her mind was racing. The shadows in the room seemed to move, like they were watching.
She slept, but the dreams came—boy, mirror, knife.