Encounter

Darin’s reflection suspiciously disappeared as if he had wiped his reflection from the mirror. Instead of his reflection, a feminine figure appeared in the vast distance. 

Her silky, night-black hair stretched down to its feet. She wore a torn "seifuku" style school uniform, primarily white with navy blue accents. The mysterious figure hesitantly strolled towards the mirror, barefooted. The mirror served as a wall to view the other side.

He rubbed his eyes several times, and Darin assumed he had seen a hallucination due to his drowsiness. After he rubbed his eyes, the figure approached the mirror like a portrait. Her soft, delicate face, as smooth as a white cloud mirroring her complexion, sagged with sorrow.

The sheer surprise of the figure facing him out of nowhere startled Darin.

“Ahh!!” He screamed at the top of his lungs and dropped to the dark ground, shivering at the sight of the mysterious figure.

The boys looked back at Darin, teasing him.

“What are you doing, Darin?” Hirato curiously asked the worried Darin. “C’mon man, hurry up! It’s time to go!”

Darin slowly turned his head towards Hirato, his hand shaking slightly as he pointed at the mirror. Once again, his voice quivered with fear and uncertainty. “Th…There’s so…me…thing in the mi…ror!”

Hirato quickly glances at the mark mirror. “Dude! What are you talking about? There’s nothing there.”

“Huh? But… there’s clearly something staring at me in the mirror!” The figure’s eyes widened by Darin’s reaction. Her lips gently open. She pointed at herself, and a voice asked, “Y-You… can see me?”

Her rough, hesitant voice sent chills down Darin’s spine. “Ahh, she can talk?! Oh, no! This is bad! Is this what happened to the missing people? Am I gonna end up like them!? Nooooo!!!”

Darin hastily turned his head to Hirato to prove he did not see things. However, Hirato and the boys continued walking towards the door as if they had never heard her voice.

“C’mon, hurry up Darin!” Hirato urged Darin to finish erasing the mirror.

“They can’t hear me. You’re the only one who can hear my voice.” The girl’s voice spoke to Darin again.

Darin turned back to the mirror like a wrench cranking a screw. The girl’s face blushed with joy. Her rough voice turned cheerful by Darin. “You can see me! Finally, after all this time, someone noticed me.” Her mood flipped completely as if she regained life. She couldn’t control her emotions. She instinctively reached her hand through the mirror.

“Ahh!!! Her hand came out the mirror!” Darin was overcome with fear, his body seizing up and rendering him completely paralyzed as he watched the girl crawl out of the mirror.

Her hand slowly escaped the mirror and grabbed into the sink. She pulled herself forward, crawling out of the mirror like a spider. While she tried to escape the mirror, Hirato focused his attention on Darin.

Hirato could not see the girl crawling and thought Darin was hallucinating. He sighed with disappointment. Maybe bringing Darin was a bad idea if he acted this scared.

“C’mon man. How long does it take to erase this.” He took matters into his own hands and rushed to the mirror. He grabbed the toilet paper and wiped off the marks on the mirror.

However, as he finished wiping the mirror clean, the girl successfully crawled out of the mirror and stood above Darin.

“Eeee!! Please don’t kill me!” Darin shouted in desperation.

The boys felt sorry for the poor kid. One of them commented, “Damn, maybe we should not have invited him. I kinda feel bad.”

“C’mon man. I’m not gonna kill you,” reassured Hirato, reaching his hand out. “Get up. We’re leaving.”

The cheerful girl giggled as Darin took Hirato’s hand. Up close, her beauty and her slim body resembled a high-school girl. Her black-painted nails contrasted her pale skin as she stood above the cold ground. She had no scent, but her torn uniform exposed her hygiene. “Haha. You’re a funny guy, Darin. I can’t kill you. I’m a spirit, not a devil.”

“Spirit? Then that means-”

“Yeah, I’m the fortune-telling spirit, Savita.” The spirit explained, standing proudly. She quickly started stretching her body since that had been the first time since she entered the real world. “Woo, I haven’t… been here in forever. I wonder… what era we are in?”

“Sa… sa… savi… Savita!?” The very spirit that the boys communicated with and summoned to the mirror stood before him, face to face. How could Darin only see her? What does she want to do?

Darin's thoughts swirled with a jumble of questions and theories, creating a chaotic storm in his mind. The sudden appearance of Savita jolted him, sending him spiraling unconscious. His body crashed to the floor.

“I’m sorry, Darin. I didn’t think you were this scared. C’mon, I’ll take you home.” Hirato used his raw strength and picked up Darin, giving him a piggyback ride.

After cleaning their mess, the boys exited the bathroom.

“Hey, Darin. Wait for me!” Savita paced towards the unconscious Darin. Her steps and voice were invisible to the boys, but Darin would hear them clearly.

The group returned home with an unexpected spirit as the upcoming exams approached. Little did Darin know that his entire life would soon change.