I didn't blink.
Because if I blinked…
It might move again.
My reflection in the mirror was still staring at me.
Same face.
Same eyes.
But it wasn't copying me anymore.
My hand trembled slightly as I raised it.
The reflection didn't.
My heart dropped into my stomach.
"What the…"
I stepped back.
The reflection stepped forward.
A cold wave ran down my spine like someone had poured ice inside my veins.
This wasn't possible.
Mirrors don't move on their own.
Reflections don't act independently.
And yet—
It was smiling.
A slow…
Unnatural…
Smile.
My phone buzzed again in my hand.
YOU — 2031:
"Don't look into its eyes."
Too late.
The moment our eyes met—
My head exploded with pain.
Memories.
Not mine.
Flashes of things I had never seen before:
A burning classroom.
Blood on my hands.
A broken phone lying in a puddle.
Sirens screaming in the distance.
And a voice.
My voice.
"This is the third time… and I still failed."
I stumbled back, gasping for air as the pain vanished as suddenly as it came.
The reflection was normal again.
Copying me perfectly.
Like nothing had happened.
Like it had never smiled.
My breathing was uneven as I looked down at my wrist again.
06:21:03:11
It had dropped by more than two hours.
No…
That wasn't possible.
Only a few minutes had passed.
My phone buzzed again.
YOU — 2031:
"Time moves differently after contact."
Contact?
What contact?
"The mirror noticed you."
A loud crack echoed from the bathroom.
I turned toward the sound slowly.
The mirror—
Had a fracture running through the center now.
A thin line.
Like something inside had tried to get out.
Another message came.
"You weren't supposed to make eye contact this early."
My throat felt dry.
What happens now?
For the first time—
There was a delay before the reply.
Three dots appeared.
Disappeared.
Appeared again.
And then:
"Now it knows which version of you this is."
My blood ran cold.
Another crack spread across the mirror.
Then another.
And another.
Until—
A handprint appeared from the inside.
Pressing against the glass.
Trying to push through.