Aiko

N-no...please, no, please... Please... Dont leave me alone
I cant stand this loneliness.

Her eyes fluttered open; she scratched her head. The same dream...

She glanced at the mirror. His frantic screams...and my dead body.

The sunlight streamed past the curtains and painted her room bright yellow. It was already past noon. She swung her legs out of the bed, her feet pressing against the floor.

"Awake?"

Her heart skipped, and she slowly walked closer to the mirror. He mirrored her motion as the two reached the boundary between them.

"Yes...d-did you sleep too?"

He blinked and chuckled softly. "Maybe...I am not sure."

I never thought about it...but he never knows what he is doing when I am not around him. 

I never asked his name... I was so used to his presence... he felt natural... like air.

She tugged her skirt; her knuckles whitened. Her face heated up. "Hey! What's your name?"

The boy's eyes widened. He gasped and turned completely red, tugging his shirt. His knuckles whitened. "W-wow... I thought you would never ask.... I-I am R-Riku."

"Huh?"

She blinked, lowering her gaze. Her fingers twisted her hair. She looked back at him and was presented with a bright smile.

"And what's your name?" The boy asked with an eerie smile. 

"I-It's A-aiko..."

"Isn't your name also Riku..."

"NO!" Her voice was hoarser than intended. “I-I am g-going….”

“Wait!?”

She dashed out of the room, slamming the door behind her. As she walked down the hallway, she noticed him in the glass of the framed paintings. She clenched her fists.

His voice echoed from every reflection.

"Riku...why are you lying..."

"I am not!"

"Riku...you aren't Aiko."

"Of course I am! How would you know...you are stuck in a mirror?"

"I have been around you forever."

“Stop it…”

“Riku…no, you should sto—”

She grabbed the portrait and crashed it onto the floor. The glass shattered; shreds glistened, scattering all around. She gasped, panting heavily.

“Riku?

Her father’s voice called out from a nearby room. She looked at the door, her vision blurring. She clasped her hand over her mouth as nauseous nostalgia filled her senses.

“Riku…come in please…”

She turned to leave.

“Riku, help me get on my wheelchair.”

She pressed her lips and sighed. With trembling hands she turned the doorknob and walked in. 

The room was small like hers, with white walls and a small window. Her father sat on the bed, his wheelchair next to him.

A computer table was next to the bed, with many tangled cables, a headphone, game controllers, a stack of mangas, and a lot of other stuff. 

She scoffed and slowly wobbled to her father. An urge to run back out arose in her as she tried suppressing nausea, but she noticed her father’s hand beckoned her closer.

“Dad, let’s get you out of here.” 

She reached out to him, briefly glancing at the mirror in front of them. In the reflection the boy reached out to her father in her place. Their eyes met, but he remained silent.

“Why don’t you sit with me for a while?” Her father smiled.

“N-no, it’s fine…. Let’s go.” She glanced at the door when suddenly her hand was grabbed. Before she could react, she was pulled into a hug.

“Dad?” She tried to push him away, but his grip tightened.

“Riku, Let me tell you a story…. A story you are already familiar with.” 

She struggled and glanced at the mirror – at the boy sitting in her father’s embrace.