Shattered

Chapter 11

"I'm sorry. I didn't wake her up I?" I smile sympathetically and shake my head. "She's unbelievably a heavy sleeper. It's probably genetic." I managed to get Harmony to laugh and I feel myself smile with a tiny sense of pride. "Well, now that we know each other more and hopefully feel more comfortable around each other, I think we should start with our plans." Harmony nods, standing up with determination sparking around in her eyes. "Okay, let's do this." I follow her out of the office and into the store. I was taken by surprise when she hands me a bat seemingly out of nowhere. "What's this for?" Harmony closes the door behind us and grips her bat with both hands. "To let out frustrations with hopes of ending this thing." Then she swings with full force.

I jumped away in surprise as a shattering sound fills the room. Chunks of reflective glass sprinkle the ground, tinging aloud as each piece falls and makes tinier pieces after slamming into the ground. Harmony turns to me with an expression I can closest relate to as relief. "That feels better. Try it." My eyes flash to the bat resting in my right hand and flicker to a nearby mirror. I grip the bat with both hands, raising it by my head in preparation. I stare at the mirror, expecting to see Emma staring at me, but there's nothing. I can't see myself at all. It's as if the room in empty. I take a deep breath and close my eyes. My body seemingly takes over in place of my mind and I swing. I put my force behind that swing. I feel the bat makes contact with the mirror as the same sounds bounce around the room. The bat rattles with the impact and bounces back.

I open my eyes to see the mirror pieces falling. They shatter again upon impact with the ground. Harmony was right. I feel lighter after that. "Feels better, right?" I nod with a dazed smile. Harmony giggles and starts to smash another mirror. I follow her actions and we just destroy any mirror in our sights. After a while, we tire ourselves out and agree to take a break. "That felt good!" I laugh, feeling a sense of lightness. "Oh! It's later than I thought it was. You should probably go home." I pull out my phone and check the time to see she's right. "Time went by quick." I stand up, opening the door to the room Willow is sleeping in. I walk in to find she has kicked the blanket off from her body. Her foot is hanging off from the couch. I smile and grab her jacket from the back of the couch. I lift the top half of her body to maneuver her jacket on. "Need help?" I nod and Harmony kneels down and helps me pull Willow's arms through the sleeves. I zip up her jacket as her head lands on my shoulder. "I'm sorry for keeping you here for so long."

"No, I'm glad I came. We got one of the things off the list." Harmony nods and I wrap Willow's arms around my neck. "Can I be honest?" I nod, wrapping Willow's legs around my waist and pick her up. "I don't think this is gonna work. I'm sure we aren't the first to try this too." I stop in my tracks and turn to her. "I was thinking the same thing too. I'm glad we still tried though. It may not work but I feel a lot better."

"Same. Let's hope for the best." I nod. Harmony walks me out, bidding me goodbye for now. We agreed to meet again tomorrow night. Although she said to hope for the best, I found I couldn't put as much hope into this idea as much as I'd like to. Maybe it was for the best that I don't. The drive home was quiet as Willow slept. I kept looking in the rearview mirror as if to check on her, even though I can't see her.

***

When I parked the car, I carefully carry Willow out from the car and inside. I carry her to her room, laying her on her bed. She twists her body to lie on her side instead of her back. I find one of her favorite pj's for her to wear instead. They're soft and warm for her to wear. They're covered in cute cats playing or drinking or simply smiling. Gently, I change her into her pajamas so she'll be more comfortable. I pull out her comforter from under her and tuck her in to stay warm. "I'll figure this out, baby. I want you to be happy. I want you to live the way you want. I'll figure this out." I lean over, softly planting a kiss on her forehead. "I love you, honey." I pull back to see Willow smiling before she turns her back to me. I turn around and walk out, quietly closing the door behind me. I go into my room and change before lying in bed.

Today felt longer than usual. I don't know if it's because we stayed out longer or everything that happened. I felt heartbroken from Connor being in jail as the police investigate him but I'm relieved that I was able to let out my anger. Now, I'm left feeling confused, trying to find more ways to attempt breaking this stupid "bond" we have with mirrors and the reflected world. I was unfortunately unlucky and couldn't come up with anything creative or new. Something that no one probably tried before.

***

Days passed and we came up with a few things. Some dumber than others like a ritual or seance even. We didn't do anything truly drastic though which I was thankful for. We felt like we hit a brick wall after some time. "There has to be something else we can do? We tried the dumbest things possible. What can be worse?" I stare up at the ceiling with my head leaned back against the wall as I sit against the wall on the floor. "I don't know, Connor. Maybe there really is an item we need to find or something."

"And how do we find it, let alone know what it even is. There's not even a rumor or story or anything about an item. Nothing!" I lift my head and watch as Connor starts to grow frustrated and his patience thins. Harmony grows impatient with his impatience. "We just have to keep looking!" Connor jumps up from his chair so suddenly, I almost flinch in surprise. "We've tried everything on that stupid list! We're trying to think of more but how much more can we do?" He's shouting now and I'm taken by surprise by his attitude now. I've never seen him this mad before.

"Connor." He stops and turns to me. "It's only been a week or so." He frowns and sits back down. "And it only takes a night to ruin someone else's life." He pauses. "Or end it," he mutters. I sigh, raising my hand to my face. "Connor's right, we're running out of ideas. There's only so much we can do, but now isn't the time to do this. We need to look somewhere else. We need to broaden our vision." I stand up. "We tried smashing the mirrors but when we came back, they were all fixed, correct?" Harmony nods when I turned to her. "This thing we're going through isn't scientific. I mean, we literally teleport for no reason other than the Reflected can see us at that moment. Smashing a mirror seems like the most logical thing to do for this. The bond is shared through a mirror after all."

"But it didn't work."

"Yes, so what else can we do? Maybe the problem isn't the mirror. Maybe there's something else being played here." Harmony's gaze turns from me to the floor as she thinks over my words. "That's a good way to look at it, but we still don't know where to look." I nod, turning around to face Connor. "But we need to think of it from a different perspective." Connor crosses his arms and the room immediately goes silent with processing thoughts. "Brooke, I know where you're coming from and I think there's a possibility you're right, but that doesn't help us very much." I nod, figuring it would end like this. "Maybe we just need a break. We're all tense and we've been trying all sorts of things." We all nod.

It's as if we can feel our shared tiredness in the air. Connor and I turn to each other and our expressions soften as if in relief to get a break. I turn to Harmony and she grins at me as well. "Who's hungry?" My face lights up with a smile. Knowing my answer from my expression, she doesn't even wait for an answer. She turns to Connor and he nods with a slight smile. I suddenly feel like an excited kid who's parents said yes to take out while being out rather than saying we have food at home. "Oh! Is it okay if I bring Willow?" Harmony's smile brightens, something I didn't think was possible at this moment. "You don't even need to ask!" I turn to Connor and he gives me this look as if I'm crazy. "Why are you even asking me?" He laughs at me. I take his hand and start to lead him out. I hear Harmony giggle before she follows us out as well.

We make sure everything is locked and turned off before leaving. "Call me when you get Willow and we'll choose a place to eat." I nod as Connor and I get into my car and drive off to pick up Willow.