Chapter Eight: The World That Doesn't Know Me
It wasn't the first time she woke up not knowing where she was…
But this time, it was different.
When Noor opened her eyes, she was lying on her bed in the apartment.
The same gray curtains, the same smell of dust, the same cold cup of coffee on the table.
Everything was as it had been.
But there was one thing that wasn't normal: the mirror was gone.
She stood up slowly, her legs trembling, and approached the wall where the mirror had always been.
There was no trace of it. No cracks, no frame, just a smooth wall as if it had never held glass before.
She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself.
"Maybe… I was dreaming. Yes, maybe it was all just a nightmare."
But when she turned to the window, she felt something very strange.
The streets outside were lit as usual,
People walking, cars passing…
Yet the colors were dull,
As if the world had lost a part of its soul.
She put on her coat and went out.
In the elevator, she looked into the small mirror in front of her…
She saw her reflection, but it didn't smile like she did.
Instead, her face remained motionless, staring at her,
Then slowly moved its lips and said something she couldn't hear.
She stepped back, and the elevator stopped on the ground floor.
When the doors opened, a neighbor passed by, a man in his forties.
She forced a faint smile:
– "Good morning."
He looked at her for a moment, then smiled with a strange kindness:
– "Ah… you're the new tenant, right?"
She froze.
– "What? I've lived here for two years."
– "I don't think so. The apartment was empty until last week."
She laughed nervously and hurried out.
The air outside was colder than she remembered.
People walked with familiar faces, yet she didn't recognize any of them.
Even the small café on the corner, which she visited every morning, no longer bore the same name.
The sign read in new handwriting:
"The Last Reflection Café."
She stopped in front of the door, her hands shaking.
"Is this a joke?"
She pushed the door and entered.
The smell was familiar, a mix of burnt coffee and vanilla.
But when she looked up, she saw the waitress — it was her.
Same face, same hair, same eyes.
But this version wore a black apron, her hair tied up, and her smile… was unsettling.
The waitress looked at her calmly and said:
– "Welcome, Noor."
She shivered; the voice was exactly like hers.
– "How… do you know my name?"
The other smiled:
– "I know you more than you know yourself."
She stepped closer slowly.
– "Do you remember what happened when the glass broke?"
Noor stepped back, her heart pounding:
– "You were there… weren't you?"
– "I was there… and I still am."
A short silence, then the waitress looked at her coldly and said:
– "You're in my world now, Noor.
The world you expelled me from years ago."
– "This isn't real!"
– "It's more real than you think."
At that moment, a cup fell from a customer's hand and shattered on the floor,
The sound of the glass breaking froze Noor's heart.
She felt something surge through her veins, as if whispers came from all directions.
The same old whispers she had heard in the white room.
"Choose, Noor… which one will stay?"
She held her head, and the light began to glow in the café,
But when she looked up again…
The waitress had vanished,
And all the customers sat silently, their faces void of features.
She ran out into the street, gasping for air.
It had started to rain, yet she didn't feel wet.
Everything around her looked glassy —
The people, the cars, even the raindrops sparkled like tiny mirrors.
On one of the sidewalks, she saw a man standing under a black umbrella.
It was Niyar.
But his face wasn't as she had seen it before… it was darker, more mysterious.
She approached him fearfully:
– "Is this… the real world?"
He smiled quietly and said in a low voice:
– "The real world? No one knows it, Noor.
But what I do know is that you're not the only one who fell through the glass."
She stepped back, staring at him in horror:
– "What do you mean?"
He came closer and whispered in her ear:
– "The other reflections have started to wake up too."