Careful What You Wish For

Short Story

If only she could go back in time and stop herself from buying that cursed mirror...

Mesmerised!

That was the right word for what happened to Primrose that Friday afternoon after high school.

Open wounds unhealed, body numb, she laid on the well-kept lawn being soothed by the warmth of the smoke rapidly engulfing her surroundings; her eyes closed as she laid there thinking of the exact moment when her life changed forever... only for the worse!

That afternoon she ran down the street in a hurry. She couldn’t afford to be late for her part time job... not again. She threw a look at her watch. 3:50 PM. She shook her head in disbelief.

Then she saw a narrow road that led to the main road. Funny how she never noticed that shortcut before. The road was deserted but that didn’t stop her from exploring it. At the end of the road, to her surprise, she found herself standing before an old unwelcoming antiques shop called Rare Relic.

It was situated on the old street, where all the flower shops and art stores were, and of course the Rare Relic. All the stores and shops were closed, only the antiques shop's rusty oak door showed the open sign. Out of curiosity, Primrose glanced at the window where a lot of vintage artifacts, weird figurines and jewellery were displayed in a careless style. What caught her attention was the most beautiful vintage item she had ever seen in her life.

A mirror in a handcrafted wood frame in a burst shape resembling the suns rays, painted in bright gold. The surface of the glass, though covered still attracted rays of light hitting the mirror. It illuminated for a moment, then stopped.
Primrose blinked hard. She must be hallucinating, she thought.

Her hazel eyes kept gazing at the mirror longingly which was displayed. Captivated by its beauty, she even forgot the time. She just knew she wanted the mirror. As if under a spell, she pushed the heavy wooden oak door and went inside.

A cold breeze slapped her face. Her worn out long chiffon grey dress swept the black dirty floor as she moved. It was unusually dark inside and she was unpleasantly affected by the reigning cold unwelcoming atmosphere. There was a cluttered counter with an old, dusty cash register and an equally old, equally dusty old lady. The lady was dozing off in a sitting position, her uncombed long grey hair scattered around her face and rested on her severe black dress. Her wrinkled face looked tired. Primrose hesitated whether she should wake the lady or not. After a moment of thought, she decided to go for it. She needed that mirror. If it was expensive, well she’ll just work harder but she’ll have it.

As her arm nervously approached the lady’s shoulder, she retreated in an instant when sharp exhausted black eyes glared at her. She wasn’t happy that her sleep was disturbed.
“Hello madam,” Primrose greeted her with a smile but it soon faded away. “Go away, I’m not selling anything,” she muttered, then closed her eyes again, unbothered of Primrose’s presence.

“I just want to know the price of the mirror please,” she asked. The old lady’s startled black eyes stared at her for a long time.
“What mirror?” she asked, dumbfounded. “That mirror,” Primrose pointed at the display window and the old lady’s gaze followed its direction. Then she stared back at Primrose. “You really see that mirror?” she questioned even when she already knew the answer. Primrose fell silent. Was the lady crazy or something? “After all those years finally, the chosen one,” she muttered to herself.
Primrose carefully stepped back and looked at the door. She was chilled to her bone. She didn’t want to be here anymore. Something wasn’t right.

“Don’t leave,” the old lady hurriedly said. “The mirror chose you and you shall have it now," she informed and smiled at her.

Primrose wasn’t used to the kind treatment towards her. Everyone just treated her like trash because of the way she looked, especially Reina AKA The most popular and prettiest girl of Mirage High School. It bothered her so much that she replayed the earlier incident in her head.
Earlier that afternoon after high school dismissal, Primrose rushed in the school hallway when she spotted Reina, a pretty blue-eyed tall blonde dressed in an expensive outfit, busy flirting with her handsome boyfriend, Ethan, the kind of boy all girls in Mirage High School dreamed to have. Dark slightly long hair, chiseled jawline, deep blue eyes to die for with a tall well-build body...yes Ethan was every girls' dream. Primrose prayed in silence to be unnoticed as she continued to walk the crowded hallway.
Reina threw a disgusted look at her as she passed by. She was stopped involuntary when Reina grabbed her arm and shook her. Next thing she knew was that she was thrown on the ground. Everyone felt silent and looked down at her like she was some sort of garbage. "How do you manage to go outside when you look like this?” Reina questioned. Primrose felt ashamed and became more aware of her appearance. She knew she wasn't pretty. She was short, chubby and had a dull round face with medium oily length black hair that lacked volume.