Mirror Image part-1

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In the mist-shrouded village of Kallur, nestled between thick forests and forgotten folklore, lived a woman named Gauri with her twin sons — Aarav and Aadi.

They were identical in every way: same crooked smile, same innocent eyes, same mischievous laugh. But villagers whispered behind closed doors, "There's something off about one of them."

You see, Gauri had only given birth to one child.

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Aarav was born screaming under a blood moon night. But minutes later, the midwife gasped. Another boy — cold, lifeless — slid out, stillborn. The mother wailed, the storm outside roared, and as per the village’s old superstition, they buried the second child immediately — without naming him, without rites.

But from that night onwards, Aarav was never alone.

He played with someone, laughed with someone, and always pointed to a corner of the room saying, "Aadi is here."

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Gauri believed he was imagining a friend. But as years passed, the shadow of the second boy grew stronger.

Toys moved on their own.

Doors slammed at night.

Aarav started waking up with scratches on his back.

And in every photo — there were two boys, even when only one stood before the camera.

The village priest was finally summoned.

He watched the twins from afar and muttered:

"What has returned... never left. The dead twin never accepted his death. He’s living through the living — as his reflection, his voice, his shadow..."

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One day, Aarav screamed from the attic. Gauri ran up.

He stood frozen before an antique mirror — not their own — an old relic from the house’s previous owner.

In the reflection, only one boy stared back.

But he wasn’t the one standing in front of the mirror.

The boy in the reflection smiled, eyes black, whispering:

"I waited long enough, Amma... Now it's my turn to live."

Aarav's body collapsed, eyes wide open.

And the other boy stepped out from the mirror — wearing the same face, the same smile.

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From that day on, Aadi lived with Gauri.

He looked the same. Talked the same.

But never blinked.

And never cast a shadow.

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