Spectrophobia

8: The Mirror Twin

Raymond lay stiffly in bed. Unmoving, yet aware of everything around him. Gerald lay beside him, watching his brother's back with concern.

The candle had once again been ignited. Gerald saw the comfort it gave to Ray, though it was dangerous to leave it on. He ignored it - for him.

He loved his brother - he hated to see him like this.

Although it had indeed been one hell of a day, Gerald was completely exhausted. The sharp tendrils of fatigue clenched over his mind and sticking its roots into the flesh. He was ready for sleep to take over.

He knew his brother was awake - he wasn't sure if he had really slept at all in days. Judging by how God awful he looked - it was quite obvious.

He tucked himself closer to his brother, a simple act of comfort for the two, and he shut his eyes. Giving sleep permission to take over his body.

...

...

...

Gerald suddenly awoke.

His body randomly forcing him to awaken from his deep and relaxing slumber. He sighed - annoyed. Perhaps he was struggling to sleep in an unfamiliar bed.

He turned over in bed.

2:07 am

Fucking hell. He hadn't woken this early in a while.

He rolled over, shutting his eyes to attempt to sleep again.

That's when he noticed something was off.

He felt the dent of his brother's laying body - but not him. He was gone. He must have left to perhaps grab a drink.

Gerald sat up.

The candle was out, but it looked as if it had barely been used in the first place.

He knew he would have to chase after his brother to stop him from drowning his mind in that yellow liquid.

He stood up out of bed and looked through the drawers, trying to find any matches to light the candle. He soon found the box swimming along the other dusty contents of the drawer. He ignited a matchstick and set the wick alight, bringing forth a comforting light to banish the darkness.

He opened the bedroom door and walked into the hallway.

"Raymond..?"

He asked quietly, though he wasn't really expecting a reply.

"I'm here, brother."

An equally quiet voice rung in the darkness. The voice of Raymond. Gerald could not see him at all, no silhouette at all. He walked forward, skipping over random objects that lay as an obstacle for him.

The mirror.

He pointed the candle at it. A towel lay on the floor under the mirror. He saw his blurry reflection waver in the surface. This mirror that terrorised his poor brother. Balancing the candle in one hand, he bent over to pick the scared towel off the floor.

His gaze moved to his odd reflection again.

There was another person in the mirror.

Gerald spun around in fright.

No-one was there. Not even a shadow. Nothing.

He looked back at the mirror and found it empty again. Just him. His startled expression.

He frowned. This must have been a cheap joke mirror that came along with the house, or some shit like that. Though it did spook him.

Gerald replaced the towel over the surface of the mirror, blocking his own reflection from staring back at him. He turned to return to the search of his brother.