I double-clicked the file.
No hesitation.
Just… curiosity soaked in dread.
The screen turned black.
Then, static.
Then—
Footage.
Blurry.
Someone breathing hard. Running. Trees rushing past.
It looked like… me.
---
The camera dropped.
Spinning.
Landing on the ground.
Boots.
Two pairs. Standing next to my fallen body.
A third figure knelt down.
Face not shown.
But their hand touched my chest—
And the screen glitched violently.
Then—
> "You're not supposed to remember."
The voice echoed through my room,
even though I was wearing headphones.
---
Next clip.
Same forest.
But different angle.
A mirror stood in the middle of the trees.
Yes. A full-length mirror.
In the woods.
I saw my reflection.
Except… it wasn't copying me.
It smiled.
Then it moved—
Before I did.
---
I paused the video.
But the reflection in the video didn't freeze.
It kept watching me.
I slammed the laptop shut.
---
My phone vibrated.
> Unknown Number:
"Don't trust the mirror. It's how he watches."
---
My heart stopped.
I looked up.
The mirror on my wall—
Cracked.
A fine line down the center, like something had pushed from the inside.
---
I stumbled backward, heart racing.
Then I saw it:
In the reflection…
Eli.
Standing behind me.
But when I turned around—
Nothing.
---
I locked my door.
Turned on the lights.
Tried to breathe.
I pulled out the flash drive again.
It had renamed itself.
Now it said:
> REMEMBER WHO YOU WERE.
---
I opened it.
A single file remained.
An image.
Three people.
Eli.
Nathan.
And a child.
A small boy standing between them.
His face… was mine.
But younger.
Six or seven, maybe.
Caption below:
> "October 17 – The beginning."
---
I couldn't breathe.
Not because I was scared—
But because something inside me knew this wasn't just a file.
This was a message.
From before I existed here.
From… somewhere else.
---
I checked the time.
3:47 AM.
Same time as before.
Same glitch.
Same feeling.
Then—
A knock on my door.
Soft.
Three times.
Nothing else.
I didn't move.
I couldn't.
Then a voice:
> "Qu… it's time to wake up."
---
I looked through the peephole.
No one.
Just a hallway.
Empty.
But on the floor—
A small object.
I opened the door slowly.
A coin.
Same one.
Heads up.
But this time…
The face was mine.
---
To be continued