Chapter Text
The day was cloudy, threatening to rain - a rare sight for the perpetually sunny city of Los Angeles. Traffic was hell as usual, though, and Chloe Decker slammed her hand on the steering wheel in frustration at the huge line of stopped cars. At this rate, she would never reach her office in time.
She looked at her phone, checking her emails for the hundredth time that morning. Nothing new had come in and, sighing, she closed her eyes, letting her head rest against the cushion of her seat. Work had been stagnant for the past couple of weeks, and she had to take a dip into her savings to make sure that her bills were paid on time. She always managed to replenish them, thanks to the high-profile jobs she got, but Chloe always hated doing that.
She glanced at the silver badge she placed on the cup holder. Becoming a private investigator hadn’t really been her first career choice, but it worked to satisfy her ever working brain. Sometimes, she thought, it worked too much. All the late nights had certainly taken a toll on her recently.
“You should take more breaks.” Dan had advised her repeatedly.
“I’ll do that when I finish this case.” She always replied.
Chloe never did follow his advice, in the end.
Opening her eyes, she looked at her rear-view mirror, and caught a glimpse of something - no, someone. Black hair, piercing eyes. She turned around, but no one was there. She blinked and looked back at the mirror again.
Nothing.
“I may need a second cup of coffee sooner than I thought.” She said out loud, right before the car behind her started blaring their horn because the one in front of her had moved forward two inches.
-
Chloe greeted the security guard as she entered the building where she rented her office at.
“Anything for me?” She asked her. The security guard, Maze, was certainly a character sometimes, but she did her job very efficiently.
Maze nodded, before giving her some scattered letters. “One of them is quite bulky.”
She thanked her and smiled, scrolling through the contents. Rent letter, bills, shipments that she had to pick up at the post office and, finally, the one she was waiting for. Chloe waited until she was alone in the elevator to open the contents of it.
“Yes!” She shouted to herself, as she held the newest version of a bug she’d ordered. “Oh, God bless you, Ella.”
She swore she heard a scoff at that, but ignored the sound and walked towards her office. Unlocking the door, she slammed into it to make sure the door would open. It was quite worn, and sometimes it wouldn’t budge with the usual movements.
Walking inside, she opened the blinds and let the light in through the room, casting rays of light onto her desk. Her place wasn’t exactly the biggest, but it had everything that she needed, especially with the bulky safe she’d bought off of a flea market and put underneath her table, capable of fitting every single kind of technology she wanted, and then more. Well, except her camera. She always took that home with her. Sometimes, she even liked to print out the pictures she took and put them on the board she had in the office, hanging on the wall. It made it seem like she always had some work to do, which gave her clients a good impression – busy meant highly requested, which meant she was good at her job.
Flipping the sign at the door from “Sorry, We’re Closed!” to “Come In, We’re Open” (which she’d also bought at a flea market), she stared at the city from above, peaking over the window. She saw the bustling streets, and even a faint glimpse of the sea in the distance. Chloe was quite entranced with the view for a moment before noticing some movement in the corner of her eye. She turned around, only to find no one was there.
This was getting weird. Chloe blinked, and saw a familiar shape standing at the door, getting ready to knock. She opened it up before he could, finding Dan standing there with two cups of coffee, his hand resting in mid-air. He was surprised at the movement (and the fact that the door had opened so smoothly), which gave Chloe an opportunity to ask him something first.
“Did someone pass by you just now?”
Dan looked around, and she looked over his shoulder. There was no one in the hall. “Uh… I don’t think so.” He looked at her and gave her one of the cups. “You look like shit.”
She took the cup and sipped on it. “Yeah, well, I feel like it.”
He stepped in and struggled to push the door closed behind him. “Late night?”
“Well, not really.” Chloe made her way to her desk, sitting on top of it. “You know that it’s been quiet around here lately. No cheating spouses for me to spy on or background checks to confirm.” Chloe shrugged. “Maybe the elite finally got tired of all the games and communicated.”
Dan laughed at that. “I think that’s the funniest thing you’ve ever said.”
Chloe shrugged. “I didn’t think it was that funny.”
“Oh, I uh…” he scratched the back of his neck, clearly nervous about something. “Sorry.”
Chloe shook her head and sat on her desk, tapping the safe with her foot, hearing the short and full sound of metal, a habit of hers.
“No, it’s fine, I just…” She was about to mention how she thought she’d seen someone in her car to him, but she really didn’t want to take neither his pity stares nor his judgements, so she went to the lamest possible excuse. “I’m just in a really bad mood. Anyway, sit down.”
He did as she ordered, and sat down in one of the two chairs in front of her.
“What do you need my services for?” Chloe was always ready to get down to business. Lately, Dan came around only with the explicit purpose to give her some sort of job, which was fine by her, really. The time of lunch dates or breakfast meet-ups between them was mostly over, only the memory of a bygone era remaining.
Dan took a picture from his back pocket and handed it to her. She examined it, taking in her subject. Dan’s perps were usually harmless, and Chloe was more used as a bounty hunter than something else, but she was never allowed to take the picture of the person she was tracking. She suspected that it was because Dan didn’t want to make the LAPD look bad, seeing as he was supposed to be a righteous and well-meaning detective. It didn’t bother her much, though – names, addresses, and other kinds of information sometimes proved to be more valuable.
“Name?” She asked, taking in the man’s face. He looked completely ordinary.
Dan shuffled uncomfortably in his seat. Chloe stared at him and sighed. “Are you asking me to tail another person in the mafia?”
He seemed suddenly flabbergasted. “No! That was one time and it was really dangerous. I’m never doing something like that again.”
“Please. The only person that nearly got shot was you .” She pointed a finger at him.
Dan sighed, and averted his gaze from her. “Okay look, he’s not some criminal in high places or whatever, he’s supposedly a regular guy.” Chloe had gathered as much just from the picture, but people could surprise you. “But he knows some important people, and we want to find out why.”
Chloe bit her thumb. “Important as in?”
“Let’s just say…” Dan struggled to find the right words. “…very well connected to all the wrong people.”
Her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t add anything else.
Chloe and Dan had made a deal ever since he was a detective and she was a PI: sometimes he’d bring someone he couldn’t track to her and rewarded her efforts for it, as long as she never took any credit for it. She obliged, since she didn’t really do the job for the thrill or the fame – she did it because she was good at it, and she knew it.
Lately, however, there had been a trend when it came to the people she was tracking down. Dan didn’t think she’d noticed, but that’s what had made her stay awake so late the previous night, trying to find a pattern between all of them.
She was close to finding the link, she was almost sure of it. The guy in her hand was bound to be the thing that would crack the whole thing wide open. What could Dan be investigating that was so secretive she couldn’t even understand what it was?
Dan was studying her reaction, and snapped her out of her reverie. “What are you thinking?”
Chloe thought about telling him about how she was looking for a connection. About how she could tell what he was planning, but she didn’t want to cause a bigger rift between them - one already existed as is. She wanted to fix things between them, she really did, but lately she felt so sour and barely communicated with anyone, spending most of her time focused on work. She shook those thoughts from her head and took another sip from the coffee. “Just… a lot on my mind.”
She seemed to detect some suspicion in his eyes, but it went by so fast she wasn’t really sure it was her imagination. The disadvantages of being alone for so many hours at the time is that she sometimes struggled to read her friends as well as she used to.
“Right. So, usual fee?” Dan crossed his legs, leaning on the back of the chair. She had to admit, interior design wasn’t her strong suit – she had two chairs for clients, and they were both old and with worn green cushions. Still, it was the best chairs her money could buy, being deceptively comfortable. She would never say that to anyone, but she actually had fallen asleep in them a couple of times.
Chloe set her drink down on the table and tangled her hands together. “I think I have to raise it a bit, Dan. Business has been a bit dry lately and, if you kindly recall, you owe me a big one.”
He tapped his foot on the floor, and she waited for his answer.
“Fine. How much of a raise are we talking about here?”
He always said yes. “Thirty percent.”
“Thirty?” Dan exclaimed. “You’re insane. Ten percent.”
“Thirty.” Chloe didn’t budge. He had to give her what she wanted, since he was clearly desperate. The photo was worn not from age, but from use – the marks in them made it obvious that he had folded it and unfolded it several times to look at the man,
Dan sighed. “Fine.” He outstretched his hand. “Thirty percent extra. But you’ll owe me one.”
She shook his hand. “I highly doubt that.”
-
Dan left after giving all the details, which she wrote down on a piece of paper. She was supposed to burn it after finding the person she was looking for, leaving no trace, as per Dan’s request, but she had a detailed collection of files of every single person he’d sent her to track down back at home, just in case. You never knew when a person like that would come back around to mess things around, so having names and faces memorized usually helped.
She spent the next few hours researching the person she was supposed to be tracking down. Dan hadn’t given her a lot of details, but even in the worst cases she was able to find the person. He always insisted on how good of a police detective she would’ve been, even if she always shut down that line of inquiry.
As the sun rose to its highest point, signalling noon, Chloe realised she needed to eat something, or she’d pass out. Skipping breakfast was one of the new bad habits she’d picked up, and that day had been no different. She flipped the sign around and put a leaflet on the inside detailing she was on lunch and would be back soon, and made her way back to the foyer of the building.
She approached Maze before leaving, wanting something from her.
“How is LUX going to be tonight?”
She raised her head, a curious look on her face. “Are you finally going to let loose, Decker?”
Chloe waved off that notion. ‘Letting loose’ wasn’t part of her vocabulary. “No, I need to talk to Linda.”
Maze rolled her eyes. “Of course you do. Don’t you ever stop working, Decker?”
“Stopping doesn’t pay the bills, Maze.” Chloe was long used to her commentaries of relaxing – in fact, she was done with everyone’s talk about how she needed to unwind. “But make sure you can get me in tonight alright?” She winked. “And add a plus one.”
Maze knew better than to ask her who were/weren’t her partners (mostly because she didn’t care), but she always seemed to find it intriguing when Chloe brought someone up. “Alright. I’ll make the call. Who’s the guy you want to know info on?”
Chloe gave Maze the bare minimum amount of details. It was usually enough, since the owner of LUX was the best at giving her background info. Maze (also) wrote everything down on a piece of paper. “I’ll let her know what you’re looking for.” She pointed at her with a pen, in a threatening gesture. “But you better drink tonight!”
“I’ll try!” Chloe said, and waved goodbye, going off to quench her aching stomach.
-
The afternoon was more of the same for her. Chloe didn’t have a lot of active cases, and Dan’s certainly was going to take priority, but she took some hours to put everything in order. Sometimes, she’d hear some blabbering coming from the door, or the window, but it was usually over as soon as it had begun, and she always shrugged it off. If going a bit insane was part of the job, so be it. Maybe the voices would help her out.
Just as she was about to get up and investigate another mysterious chatter, a knock came from the door the second time that day. Chloe opened it with a small struggle, thinking about how she really needed to replace the hinges (or the entire door) as soon as possible, only to be tackled by a fierce, if brief, hug.
“Decker! Did you get my package?” Ella said, making her way into the office.
“I did!” Chloe had inspected the bug her friend had sent her after Dan had left, testing it out to make sure it worked fine. “Honestly, the improvement on the live feed is a miracle.”
“It’s my magic fingers.” Ella wiggling them in front of her face. “Honestly, working with you is always a pleasure. You challenge me to reach new heights.”
“Yeah, yeah, we get it, kiss-ass.” Chloe mocked, but smiled at her energy. Sometimes, she was jealous of Ella, but that feeling didn’t bother her anymore. People were different, and her friend was just like that.
Ella made her way to her safe and tried to crack it open. It was a ritual at that point – Chloe changed the combination every week and, sometimes, Ella guessed it right. That day wasn’t one of her lucky days, though, and she huffed as the door refused to open. “Well, I’m done with this safe. However,” She got up and pointed at Chloe. “I’m not done with you.”
“What did I do?” Chloe put her hand on her heart.
“Nothing. And that’s the problem! You skipped out on the neon party last week, but you’re not getting away from me this time!” She pulled out two tickets from her back pocket. “I have tickets to a magic show!”
Chloe rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. Of course Ella loved magic. “What if I had a better proposition for you?”
“Oh, hell yeah to whatever it is.” To make her point, Ella pulled open the window (which turned out to be quite a task, since it was jammed) and threw the tickets out into the streets. “Your propositions are always a riot.”
“You know that’s considered a crime, right?” Chloe smiled, pointing at the fluttering tickets, as they made their way to the ground. Ella gestured for her to move on, choosing to ignore her comment. “How about we go to LUX tonight? I’ve got some…” she almost said work , but if she did that, Ella would most certainly not shut up about the spa weekend she sorely needed. “…dire relaxing to do.”
“LUX?” Ella sounded incredulous. “How the hell are we getting in? That place is exclusive as hell!”
Chloe shot her a knowing grin. “I know people.”
-
Ella stuck around until Chloe finished her work for the day (or, more accurately, talked to her until she couldn’t focus anymore) and then dragged Chloe to her place, where they spent a few hours getting ready, Ella throwing all kinds of clothes on her friend to see what would fit best for a night at such an exclusive place. Chloe wasn’t exactly fashion savvy, but knew a thing or two about what fit her better. Ella, however, was on another level altogether – her day to day outfits were certainly very simple, but that simplicity hid some complex fashion issues. One time, Chloe heard about a feud between two fashion brands for two hours, with YouTube videos as sources on the public fight. It was enthralling, and Ella sure knew how to tell a tale.
At the end, Chloe was wearing a black dress dotted with white stars that fit her body just right, with a pair of heels to match, and a small purse, whose depth deceived its size. Ella had a black dress as well, only dotted with gold lines instead of Chloe’s small stars, and the rest was essentially the same. It was imperative that they matched, Ella had said, since nights like these were rare even for her.
As they were driving to enter the most prestigious club in LA, Ella noticed that the line to get inside reached almost two blocks in size.
“Are you sure about this?” Ella had been asking the same question for about ten minutes. “Look, I know you’ve already said yes like, a million times, but I really need to make sure. I know you’re smart and all, but brains don’t get you into exclusive nightclubs.”
“I’m really well connected. Trust me.” Chloe gripped the steering wheel and looked at the rear-view mirror once again. The shadows of the backseat of the car seemed off, for some reason, so she kept glancing at it now and again. It was as if someone kept moving around, sitting there, and it was bothering her. She tried shrugging off the feeling, but the small pit on her stomach remained.
“Okay, but the last time you said that we got rejected so hard that I still think about it.” Ella messed with one of the rings on her finger. “I really don’t want to bring up The Incident but, like… you know.”
Chloe sighed. “That was literally four years ago. When are you letting it go?”
Ella laughed loudly. “When you do something better! God, we were so wasted that night. I still have no idea how we got home.”
“I think we took a cab?” Chloe wanted to be mad, but Ella’s energy was contagious, so she couldn’t stay mad at her for long. “Look, Lopez, I know that line scares you,” She pointed to the gigantic line filing in from the tall building as she was parking. “But I’ve got good inside contacts.”
Once the car stopped on a parking lot on the other side of the club (which was considerably cheaper service than the valet service LUX offered), they both got out, crossed the street and, at the entrance, the bouncers blocked their entrance. Chloe tried talking to them, but they just ignored her and tried to redirect her to the back of the line. The look Ella gave her almost made her laugh, since it seemed like she didn’t have things covered.
One short phone call later, and the red velvet tape was removed from one of the pillars that held it, allowing them to go inside - followed by many angry stares of the people watching them. Inside, Chloe and Ella took in the ambiance, the flashing lights, the hues of blues and purples. The club surely did deserve its name - Chloe had to google that LUX meant Light in latin, but she wasn’t about to tell anyone that - it was lit up like a disco ball and yet seemed to be dark at the same time. Dancers were up on platforms doing their best impression of Cabaret , and a woman was singing her heart out while playing the piano. Nothing about LUX was normal, and certainly the occasional power ballads on the instrument in the corner of the dance floor was one of the standout things about it.
Chloe motioned Ella to move to the bar, and they descended the stairs. Reaching the counter, Ella ordered two shots of tequila, handing one of them to Chloe. She was about to say no, when her friend’s look made her shake her head, and they downed the contents of the tiny glass, biting a slice of lemon quickly to savour the aftertaste.
LUX wasn’t unfamiliar to Chloe, but she only knew how it worked during its downtime. Seeing it like this, music blasting, people dancing and kissing and celebrating, gave it a different ambiance than the casual strut of employees cleaning the floor or teaching themselves how to do several kinds of drinks. Her contact (a valuable one, at that) always wanted to meet her while “it was light outside”. The last time she went there, however, the contact made Chloe promise to visit during working hours, just to see the club at its full splendour.
Just as her second drink arrived (a martini) and her thoughts vanished like a flowing river, she glanced towards the mirror that covered the wall in front of her, where rows of drinks stood. She watched through it as her friend was engaging in friendly conversation with the bartender, and smiled at the sight. She also noticed someone standing on the bench next to her, spinning his fingers in a circle in one of the many empty glasses that were dumped on the bar. He seemed familiar, but she couldn’t quite place why.
Chloe turned her head to the side to ask him who he was, but there was no one there. She blinked, and glanced at the mirror again. He was there, in the reflection, she was sure of it.
But he wasn’t next to her.
She suddenly realised where she knew him. She’d only seen glimpses of him during the morning and the car drive over, but Chloe recognized the face. A man… no, the man she had seen in her rear-view mirror was there, in the mirror. She tried to grasp more details about him, but the mirror was too far away and the light too dim and sporadic to make anything of it.
Her mind was suddenly racing in a million different directions all at once. She stared at the mirror and at the empty place next to her again and again, but the reflection and reality weren’t matching. She was about to ask Ella if she saw someone next to her when a hand on her shoulder snapped her out of her daze.
She turned around to see her contact staring at her, with a smile that quickly vanished into a worried look.
“Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Linda asked.
Chloe tried to take her look off her face. Linda could read people like they were informational sheets, so trying to hide anything from her was nearly useless.
Nearly.
“Yeah, I just haven’t been sleeping well!” Chloe shouted over all the noise of the club.
Linda tutted. “I’ve told you time and time again to make sure you get your 8 hours of sleep!”
The owner of LUX was as intriguing as she was fierce. No one dared opposed her, because those who did struggled to tell how it was like confronting her. One thing was certain, though, the club wasn’t hers first to begin with. Chloe tried to dig for the person who owned it before her, but all the records were expunged. It was one of the biggest mysteries of her life, and no matter how much she tried to talk Linda into saying who they were, she never did.
One time, they were drunk on the job, and slipped that it was due to “doctor-patient confidentiality”, which made Chloe even more confused, since she thought she wasn’t a doctor.
“I’ve been trying!” Linda rolled her eyes, clearly showing her disapproval of her lying, but Chloe ignored it and dodged the subject. “Where’s Maze?”
Linda pointed towards the dance floor. “Somewhere over there! Don’t worry, she’ll be here soon enough. She promised to taste the new shots we’ve been promoting.”
“The ones that glow?”
Linda nodded. “The very ones.”
Ella smacked Chloe’s shoulder, reminding her of her existence. “When were you going to introduce me to his person, huh, Decker?”
“I’m so sorry, where are my manners? Ella, this is Linda. Linda, this is Ella.”
Ella gasped. “You’re the Linda? As in, the woman that owns this place?”
Linda nodded, but nothing about it had an air of bragging. Ella did not waste a moment to hug her, only to shoot daggers at Chloe, as if saying why didn’t you tell me you knew her?
Chloe mouthed that she would explain later, and Maze showed up just a few seconds after, who was then trampled by another hug from Ella. Chloe couldn’t help but laugh at the sight – Maze barely let anyone talk to her, much less hug her. Ella just had that effect on people, she guessed.
“When were you going to tell me you were friends with so many interesting people?” Ella said, taking a sip from her second overpriced martini. “If I knew you were friends with the owner of this place, I would’ve hitched you for tons of free passes.”
Chloe shook her head and smiled, but Linda was the one that replied. “Oh, trust me, she likes to keep this friendship as private as her cases.”
Maze shot Chloe a knowing glance, and she rolled her eyes. “Yeah, Decker’s a real stickler for work. Getting her to come here during the night is a pain in the ass.”
Ella sighed and gestured wildly with her hands. “ Thank you! God, finally someone who understands how I feel.”
Chloe looked at Ella, her face twisted in a look of feign offence. “Hey, hey, this isn’t ‘let’s gang up on Chloe’ day, is it?”
Maze smiled and said something to Linda, making her laugh. Chloe would usually feel curious by that, but the alcohol in her bloodstream and the levity she was feeling at finally introducing all her friends distracted her too much to pay attention to it. There was something too, something she’d just discovered. Something important.
Soon enough, though, all four of them made their way to the dance floor and danced for a while. Linda showing up was always expected, sometimes with a person or two, but three people plus the owner of the club really seemed to surprise everyone around them, which gave them ample space to do whatever they wanted. Plus, it helped that Linda said that all their drinks were on the house.
After an hour of partying, Chloe’s mind sharpened enough to finally ask Linda what she wanted in the first place – the information on the guy Dan had ordered her to track. The two of them were sitting on the piano, while Maze was at a corner of the bar, watching people do their thing and occasionally taking sips of her drink, and Ella was going around talking to people.
Linda sighed. “You’re all work, no play, huh?”
Chloe smiled at her. “You know I am.”
Linda rolled her eyes and pointed towards the guarded elevator that led towards the penthouse. “They know who you are. Just tell them I sent you, and they’ll let you in the penthouse. What you want is a brown envelope on top of the bar.”
“Thank you!” Chloe said, and got up from the piano. “Next time you want my services, you get a discount.”
“It better be for free!” Linda shouted, but Chloe didn’t listen to her – she was already halfway to the elevator.
-
The ride up was shorter than she expected, even if she had climbed into the elevator several times to inquire Linda over something or another. Despite calling the other a “professional associate”, they were also friends. Linda was the first to know about her breakup with Dan and helped her through it.
She strolled across the foyer to the bar she knew so well and spotted the aforementioned brown envelope on top of it. Smirking, she went to the package and grabbed it, folded it as small as she could and put it inside her tiny purse. Her job was mostly done for now, since Linda was an expert at background information. Tracking down the man she was looking for was the easiest part of the whole thing.
Wanting to freshen herself up before heading back down to the club, she made her way to the bathroom. Chloe turned on the tap and let the fresh water splash her face, cooling it down from all the body heat from downstairs. She dried her face with a nearby towel, making sure to throw it in the used pile, and stared at the mirror. Fortunately, she had the foresight to put some waterproof makeup on, otherwise her face right now would’ve been a mess of black ink.
She was about to turn around when she noticed some movement on the corner of her eye. Paying more attention to her reflection, she half expected to see Linda, checking in on her, but only saw the bed and part of the balcony, where the curtains were fluttering with the wind.
“I’m being paranoid.” Chloe said out loud, letting out a long sigh and putting her hand on her forehead, trying to check for any signs of a fever, just in case.
However, she heard a scoff, making her freeze in place.
“If only you knew the truth.”
Was that voice even real? She glanced behind her, only to look back at the mirror. Her reflection was standing in it front and centre, and the bathroom light only reached so far, making the edges of the mirror look like voids where all the brightness was being sucked into.
“I would bloody kill for a new suit, to be honest.” The voice came again. Chloe’s mind couldn’t process where it came from. It sounded like it was from behind her, but she could swear that it also came from the mirror. How could that make any sense?
“Of course, if you could hear me, maybe you could open the closet door for me.” The voice had an undistinguishable British accent. “Maybe even let me put a suit on. If I could, that is.”
Chloe backed away from the mirror, the voice growing fainter and stronger at the same time. Her brain was trying to make up all kinds of justifications for this, mostly blaming it on the alcohol, or some kind of sickness she’d developed.
As she kept walking backwards, a view of a man near the closet became clearer and clearer, as her silhouette no longer occupied most of the line of sight of the mirror. As much as Chloe wanted to look away and run, she was transfixed by him. He had his back to her, and she could only make out faint details - he appeared to have some distinguishable smudges on the part of the body she was staring at, though, what they were, she couldn’t distinguish through the mirror.
He seemed to be staring outside, no longer speaking, like he knew she was approaching her. Chloe stopped and looked back once again, but saw that no one was there.
“This is insane.” She said out loud again, staring at the empty place where she swore the man was standing. She paradoxically wanted him to reply to her and also hoped he would leave and never come back. “This is absolutely insane.”
Chloe looked back at the mirror and saw that the man no longer had his back turned and was staring at her, with a curious look in his eye. She was certain that it was the same man from that morning, when she was stuck in traffic, the same one that was at the bar looking lonely and, through a fairly simple thought process, the person responsible for all the random noises she thought she had imagined throughout the day.
“Kind of vain of you to look in the mirror while walking backwards, isn’t it? I mean, you are quite dashing, don’t get me wrong, but humility suits people well.” He smiled at her. “Well, not me, obviously.”
Chloe shivered at his voice. Who was this person? Why could she only see him through the mirror? She walked backwards a bit more, and stopped right next to him. He was still staring at her, and she could only see his profile, blurred by the distance between her and the mirror.
“Well, you’re a curious little creature, aren’t you? Following you around all day was quite boring, but you sure do know how to surprise people sometimes.” The man said, the smile never leaving his face. “I’m sure that this little narcissism of yours lets you have a splendid life.”
Her hand reached out to him before she knew what she was doing. Eyes still glued to the mirror, she expected to feel a fabric of some kind, some skin and muscle, but all she grasped at was air, and then her hand was phasing through him. She gasped loudly, covering her mouth with her hands like it could’ve stopped her from making a sound, and the man’s mouth slanted with amusement at her reaction.
“Well, I don’t know what kind of news got you in such a twist, but you really should stop looking at mirrors like that.” He said, staring at her through the mirror, allowing a close look at his face. Chloe stared back, terrified and unable to move, not seeing a single soul next to her through her peripheral vision. “It’s really creepy.” He paused as he seemed to realise something. “Bloody hell, it feels as if you can see me!”
His face was grimly lit, and she could only make out half of it due to the shadows in the room. Even then, the way he looked at her almost made her want to run away as fast as she could. Instead, she took a deep breath and removed her hands from her mouth.
She tried to remember her dad’s advice for confrontation. She tried putting on a serious face, but all that came out was a mixture between horror and undeniable fascination.
Then, she let out a scream, surprising both people in the room.
“ Who are you? ”