The Last Room of Shadows🔊

Alec, an only child, spent most of his childhood in his large, rambling family home, Mountberry Manor. The mansion held a myriad of rooms each with its own tales, but at the far end of the third floor, there was an obscure room that had always been locked. An ominous sense of mystery surrounded the room, the 'Room of Shadows' as Alec named it.

One late dusk, while Alec's parents were off on their frequent week-long business trips, curiosity consumed him. Awaiting the cover of darkness, he cautiously picked up an old, rustic key hidden in his father’s antique cupboard. Throwing glances over his shoulder, the young boy ascended the long, winding staircase, his heart pounding with every footfall.

When Alec reached the door, a cold gush of air smacked his face. He hesitated for a moment, but the overwhelming curiosity won over and he slowly inserted the key into the lock. The door creaked, revealing a large room with dusty furniture under white sheets, seemingly frozen in time. A heavy layer of dust clouded the air, indicating the room's lack of visitors for years.

In the center of the room, there was an old ornate mirror, untouched by dust and dirt. Its presence felt out of place amidst the room's eerie abandonment. The mirror seemed to shine brilliantly, despite the haunting darkness that filled the room. Drawn towards it, Alec walked up and stared into the mirror.

To his shock, he noticed the mirror reflecting the room in a cheery light of day, unlike the real room bathed in sinister twilight rays. Even the furniture around the room seemed to be caught in a different realm of the mirror. In the reflection, the furniture was free of sheets, gleaming with polished wood and lush fabrics, vibrant portraits hung on walls, and cheerful crust of fire engulfed the wooden logs in the fireplace. It reflected an alternate world, happier and sunnier.

A sudden sound snapped Alec out of his transfixion. He spun around to find the door slamming shut due to gushing wind from a shattered window. The chilly nightmares he dreaded seemed to be closing in on him. But another look into the mirror revealed the door wide open, and sunbeams filled the room, casting out every shadow. It wasn’t just a mirror, he realized, it was his salvation.

Looking back at the ominous room, then at the cheerful mirror reflection, Alec made a choice. Placing his hand against the surface of the mirror, he pushed. For a moment he felt the cold hard glass under his palm, then it softened and allowed his hand to pass through.

Stepping through, he emerged into the mirror world. An enveloping warmth greeted him, a stark contrast to the eerie Room of Shadows. A soft carpet replaced the hard wooden floor beneath him. A pleasant aroma from the blooming flowers filled the room, rather than the dusty, stale air that had lingered earlier.

The previously lonely child found himself absorbed into the mirror world, seemingly filled with familial love and laughter. Days and then weeks elapsed, but he didn't notice the ticking of the clock. His curiosity had freed a world full of the things he missed in his real life, warmth, joy, and company.

Disregarding the eeriness of the house, and the icy emptiness of the Room of Shadows, the mirror world became Alec's playground, a secret treasure that he held dearly to himself. The story of Alec and the Room of Shadows lived on, residing pleasantly now within cheerful wall paintings in the mirror room.