I looked at the long road in front of me, illuminated by the faint yellow headlights of my cousin’s bug. My phone buzzed again and again. But I couldn’t look at it. Otherwise, I’d see it. A shiver ran down my spine just from the thought of it. I couldn’t stop driving. Couldn’t look back. My bloodied knuckles and broken mirrors were proof of that. The rain was pouring like bullets, and the horizon had lightning dancing along the edge. Each thunderstrike making me jumpier than the last.
The radio clock told me it was almost midnight, and I turned up whatever noise was on the radio. I tossed back an energy drink, and enjoyed the buzz it gave. I could almost relax, if not for what hung above my head.
My phone rang again, and I turned my head to check on reflex. That’s when I saw it in the phone’s reflection. Its face was grotesque, covered in warts, with a greenish tint to its skin. Its eyes were cat shaped and glowed red. It had horns protruding around its head like some kind of demented crown. Its smile was a shit eating grin made of rotting, yellowed fangs.
“Hello Eddy.” Its voice was like nails on a chalkboard. Sending shivers down my spine once more. “What, you’re giving me the silent treatment?” Thunder boomed again, snapping me out of the trance and I focused once more on the empty road, my foot pushing the accelerator to make this damn car go as fast as it could. Thunder struck again, and I nearly wrapped the bug around a tree. I rubbed my eyes, and kept driving. It was all I could do, keep moving forward.
I wasn’t a religious guy. I didn’t think there was a god, or angels, or… demons. Until I started seeing it.
I looked at my watch, plenty of time to catch the bus. I sipped from my coffee, and rounded the corner. It was overcast overhead, and there was that classic mid autumn nip in the air, that made me glad to live in Chicago. I saw Ole Blue, sitting right in front of the coffee shop. I reached into my wallet and pulled out a ten, dropping it in his blue cap.
“You’re a saint Ed.”
“See ya tomorrow Blue.” I said with a wave.
A ball rolled in front of me, I stopped, picked it up and saw some kids with catcher’s mitts over in the park. Checking my watch again, I still had plenty of time. I walked over and tossed it to one of the kids.
“Thanks!” She said, and I smiled, then it quickly faded. I remembered when I used to play in that park with my cousin. Me and Johnny, god we were inseparable at that age. He went missing about a month ago. His fiancee said he’d been acting oddly for a couple of days, but thought it was just stress from wedding planning. None of us had heard from him in months.
“No problem.” I said, the rest of my walk to the bus reminiscing about the shit me and Johnny had gotten up to. Boarding it without a word, and taking a seat alone.
I smiled at the girl across from me at the bus, and she smiled back. She had strawberry blonde hair, partially covered by a red knit cap. Her eyes were a dark brown, almost black, covered by thick black glasses. She looked familiar, but I couldn’t quite place where I’d seen her before. The bus stopped, I got up, and so did she. The rain had begun pouring, so I opened my umbrella, and started walking along the crowded sidewalk. I turned around and saw that girl was getting soaked, so I slowed and held my umbrella over her.
“Thank you!” She said with a bigger smile than before.
“Of course. You wouldn’t be heading to the physics lab would you?” I asked, and she nodded.
“Yeah, I’m actually on my way to O’Rourke’s lecture.”
“That’s where I knew you from!” I said. I knew I’d seen her before.
“Oh, you’re Eric!” Not quite right though.
“I’m Ed, actually. Ed Burns.”
“Sasha Parker.” She said.
“So, what do you think of O’Rourke?”
“I think he’s drier than the Sahara.” She said, and I laughed. “Oh, come on, like you enjoy his bullshit?” I shook my head.
“God no, I agree hands down. Very boring guy.” She smiled at that, as someone ran past me, pushing me to the ground. He screamed “It’s everywhere! Everywhere!”
Sasha helped me up, as the disheveled man ran into the street. Right into the path of a speeding bus with no intention of stopping. My legs moved without thinking as I tackled the man out of the way. I was on top of him and winced as his odor hit my nose. His hair was greasy and knotted, clothes were muddied and torn. His eyes were bloodshot, and beard ragged, but there was a scar on his forehead. In the shape of a triangle just above his right eyebrow.
Oh shit. I knew that scar. Because I’d caused it, nearly fifteen years ago. This was my cousin, Johnny Burns.
“Johnny?” I said, and a glimmer of recognition shone in his eyes.
“Eddie?” His hoarse voice asked.
A car’s horn brought us back to reality. I pulled myself off the pavement, and helped him up.
“Jesus Christ man, where’ve you been?” Johnny looked at me, his eyes darting back forth. When he saw our reflection in the restaurant window, they widened like dinner plates. He pushed me back and ran like crazy.
“Stay away!” He screamed, and burst out coughing. “It’s everywhere!” He ducked into an alley, and hid behind a dumpster.
“Johnny, it’s okay. I only wanna help.” I say, walking slowly to the man who’d been like a brother to me once. “Just tell me what’s going on.”
“Eddie, Eddie, it’s everywhere man.” He said, his already weary voice cracking. He closed his eyes and pulled out a wooden rosary from around his neck. “It’s everywhere.”
“What is Johnny?” I ask, taking his grimy hands into mine. His eyes met mine, and I felt a jolt run down my spine.
“Zoroach.” He whispered and thunder boomed. A shiver rolled down my spine, and I saw a shadow flash by the corner of my eyes. He started laughing, no, he started cackling. Laughter had mirth and warmth, this was cruel and cold, it was the kind of sound that set every nerve on edge. A wide grin appeared on his face, contorting his face into one of a madman. Yet his eyes were wide, full of fear, gazing right into mine. He started clawing at his throat. His nails digging, stripping the flesh, as blood began spurting. I wrestled him but he drove a fist into my nose, and I was stunned by the crack, and flash of white hot pain. Johnny had crawled into a corner and started clawing at himself again.
“Johnny! Stop!” I shouted as the scarlet liquid pooled on the concrete. His eyes were hollow, and he just kept scratching like a man possessed. I tried to pin him again, but he kneed my gut and I fell back against the alley wall.
Why was he doing this? He had a great life, a fiancee who loved him, a great paying job, and always had a smile on his face. When I last saw him, he was the happiest he had ever been, because Dana had said yes. What the hell had happened that drove him to this? What was he seeing?
When the scratching had finally stopped, his body was still twitching in the puddle of rainwater and blood he’d created. His throat was literally ripped open, and the look on his face was of pure terror, except for that madman’s smile. I didn’t get the chance to look long, because then I lost all of the contents of my stomach, before stumbling out of the alley.
I dialed 911, and the cops soon came in. I don’t remember much of what happened after that, just faces and questions, and blood. All I could see when I closed my eyes was his body, with the blood, and that haunting smile. I couldn’t forget what he had said either. Zoroach. The absolute hollowness in his voice when he said it.
The next thing I knew, I was back at my apartment, sitting on the couch. I stared at my blood caked hands, and saw the rest of me was covered in deep red stains. Johnny’s blood.
I ran the shower, letting my bloody clothes fall to the floor as the bathroom filled with steam. I let the hot water hit my back and I exhaled, running my hands through my wet hair.
Zoroach. Who, or what was it? Just thinking of it sent shivers down my spine despite the near boiling water heat of the shower. No. I wasn’t thinking of this right now. I need to relax, and just focus on getting clean. I scrubbed and scrubbed with the bar of soap, even when the blood was long gone. When the water inevitably turned lukewarm, I shut off the tap. I dried my eyes, and wiped the steamy mirror so I could see myself.
The lights flickered, and my reflection changed. My pale skin turned almost green. My blue eyes glowed red. My black hair fell off and bony protrusions grew around my head. Horns. My jaw dropped in horror, and I saw my teeth rotting, and bugs crawling out of it. Centipedes, beetles, flies, spiders, swarmed my reflection. One word flashed in my head. ZOROACH.
I shut my eyes, and when I opened them, my reflection was my reflection again. Not… whatever I’d just seen. I needed some coffee. The light flicked again and I jumped. Maybe I needed something stronger than coffee.
“Jesus Ed, are you okay?” I stared at the empty bottles in front of me. Was I okay? My cousin, someone I’d known my whole life, who was one of my best friends, had killed himself in the most savage way possible. In front of me. “Stupid question.”
“Yeah, it is a stupid question Frank.” I said to my old friend. Who winced and stared at his own beer. Okay, maybe that was a little harsh. I sighed, and grabbed his shoulder. “I’m sorry man. I just… holy shit, you know?” He nodded.
“It’s alright man. Let’s just get you home huh?” I nodded and we got up from the bar. We talked about everything from the latest crap action movie to this girl he’d been seeing as of late. By the time we got back to my place we were singing along to Bon Jovi.
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We drunkenly shouted the lyrics as I unlocked my door. I shuffled to my bedroom and jumped into my bed.
“You mind if I crash on your couch Ed?” Frank asked and I gave a thumbs up, before passing out.
I woke up with a pounding headache, and very thirsty. So, I kicked my shoes off, and walked to the bathroom, quietly closing the door behind me so I didn’t wake Frank, who was still sawing logs. I poured a glass of water, and looked at the mirror to see how bad the damage was.
I dropped the cup, glass shattered and the cold water soaked my socks.
It stared at me with hungry red eyes. Its sadistic smile perverted the word.
“Hello Eddie.” Its voice sounded like Johnny’s, except it had something else to it. Like someone had bass boosted it.
I stood there petrified, sweat forming on my forehead. Its grin grew wider at my reaction. All I could do was stare. It seemed like eternity had passed before I gathered the strength to speak.
“Wh-what are you?” My voice was shaky and dry, and it seemed like a whisper even though I said it as loudly as I could. ZOROACH. Flashed through my head again.
“Now, where’s the fun in telling you?” It asked and cackled. Like Johnny had last night, it was the exact same cold and cruel noise. I fell to my knees from the volume grasping my ears, trying desperately to block out the hellish sound.
“Ed, you okay in there?” Frank asked and the cackling stopped. I looked at the mirror, and my sweat soaked reflection stared back.
“Uh, yeah. Just dropped a glass.” I said, hands shaking. I rinsed my face, and rubbed my eyes, it was still me. I left the bathroom, and grabbed lunch with Frank, ignoring the lingering thought of what I had just seen.
I’m fine. I’m fine. I’m just stressed. Okay? I’d been through some traumatic shit in the past twenty-four hours. Anyone would be fucked up after seeing what I had. I was fine, really I was.
I looked in the mirror again, and it was still me looking back. I was fine, see?
“No, I’m afraid I don’t see Eddie.” I heard its voice , and my reflection slowly morphed into it again. “You’re not fine. If you were, you wouldn’t be seeing me. Or hearing me. You little shit. Do you have any brain cells?”
I was paralyzed again, I couldn’t even open my mouth, I just stood there in horror.
“Careful Eddie, don’t want you pissing your pants now do we?” It cackled. “Now, how about you put a smile on.” I didn’t move. Its smile turned into a sneer, and it slammed its hands against the mirror, showing me its gnarled talons and wart covered hands. “I said, SMILE.” I couldn’t. “Maybe you just need something to make you smile.” The lights flickered again, and my head began spinning. The mirror changed again, and I saw myself standing above Frank. A bloody knife in hand, I saw the hell I had wreaked upon him. One of his eyes had been carved out, and hanging from the bloody socket. His nose had been cut off, leaving him with two gaping triangular holes. Strips of flesh were missing from his arms, and an inverted cross carved into his chest. He looked away from me in horror, trying to crawl away, when I crushed his hand with my foot, breaking the bones. He tried to scream, but no sound came out. I raised the knife and sank into his throat, the scarlet liquid spewing like I’d cut a juice box. It appeared, and proudly put a hand on my shoulder. It smiled.
“Now doesn’t that bring a smile to your face?”
I kept trying to tell myself that I was okay. But I kept seeing it in my reflection. It wasn’t just the bathroom mirror anymore, it was my phone, glass, water, if it reflected it was there. Taunting me, filling my head with poison. It was growing stronger, it wasn’t just the mirror world it could change anymore. It was starting to alter the real one too.
I was on the bus, staring at my feet. I couldn’t look up. I couldn’t see the windows. If I did, it would take over. How hard could it be to not look up?
The answer was very, because the second the bus took a sharp turn, I was knocked forward, and the second I got up, it was waiting for me.
“You see that girl over there?” It asked, with its trademark grin. I did, it was Sasha, she was wearing that red hat again. “She wants you.” Sasha was suddenly in frilly red lingerie, matching her hat. She smiled and bit her lip. She walked over, and placed her hand on my shoulder and I shivered. She leaned close to my ear and bit the lobe. I blinked and she was fully clothed, on her phone, and still in her seat. Cool, so now it wasn’t just making me see me violently murder my friends, but also giving me sex daydreams.
“Hey Ed!” Sasha said with a smile. All I could picture was her in the lingerie. “Scoot over.” I did, and she sat next to me. She was wearing a low cut blouse, and a pair of black tights.
“Guess what?” She asked.
“What?” I had no clue what she was talking about.
“I have an extra ticket to the Killers, and I was wondering if you had any plans tonight?”
“Uh, sure. That’d be fun.” She grabbed my hand and slipped something in it, before planting a kiss on my cheek.
“It’s a date.” She said, leaving me dumbstruck as she got off the bus. I looked at my hand and saw it was a phone number, and an address.
I was walking down the street, psyching myself up to tell Sasha that I was sorry, but something had come up. The truth was I didn’t trust myself to go anywhere for too long. I would have called her, but I didn’t want to risk the reflective surface. I knocked on her door, and waited. I heard a car rush by, turned around, only to be soaked by a puddle.
Great, now I was wet, cold and waiting to tell a cute girl I couldn’t go out with her because I was possessed by a demon.
Sasha answered, and I was dumbstruck by how great she looked. Her hair had been pulled into a ponytail, she had on a blue v-neck, a black leather jacket, and a pair of ripped gray jeans.
“Ed!” She gave me a once over and laughed. “What happened?”
“Uh, there was a car, and a puddle.” She laughed again, it was a really pretty laugh. She motioned for me to come in.
“Oh, I can’t come in. I came over here to tell you that I actually have to drive to Lockport, my mom’s locked out of her house.”
“Why didn’t you just call?” She asked. Lie Burns, lie your possessed ass off.
“I dropped my phone in some water, it’s kinda broke.” She nodded.
“Well, do you at least want to get out of those wet clothes before your drive?” I shouldn’t go in. I don’t know what I would see. But I was really soaked. I nodded, and walked in.
“Follow me.” I followed her up the steps and into her room. “Sit here.” I sat on a bench, while she pulled out a shirt and a pair of sweatpants. “You look like my brother’s size, hopefully it fits.”
“Thanks Sasha.” This was really nice of her.
“I’ll wait outside, while you change.”
“Thanks again.” I said, after she closed the door, I stripped the street water soaked clothing, and put on the dry stuff. It was a white shirt with a Red Hot Chili Peppers logo, and grey sweatpants. I made the mistake of looking in the mirror to check my hair. Surprisingly, nothing had happened. I quickly left the room, where Sasha was waiting.
“You look good.” She said with a smile. I really liked her. Sweet, funny, and beautiful. I really wish I didn’t have to leave. “Who says you do?” She grabbed my head and pulled me in for a kiss. Her lips were soft, and she tasted like cherries and vanilla. She moved her arms to mine, and I felt her nails dig in, drawing blood. I pulled away from the kiss, and saw a crazed look in her eyes. She pushed me to the bed, and climbed on top of me. She started kissing my neck, only to start nibbling, a moan escaped my lips. She then bit me, hard. I screamed, as she chewed the chunk of bloody flesh, she dug her nails in deeper. I pushed her off of me, and she lunged at me, I grabbed the lamp off the table and swung at her. It broke over her head, and she began clawing me, each scratch tearing away another piece of skin. I grabbed one of the shards and drove it into her neck, blood spewing as she clutched her throat. She dropped to the floor gasping. Her eyes looked at me in pure terror. I stumbled back, into the mirror, which showed that I didn’t have a scratch on me. Just blood, Sasha’s blood.
Oh god. What have I done? I heard the faint cackling of it in my head, as Sasha stopped convulsing. I had killed her.
Johnny had a car, one that I had spare keys to. It was a little Volkswagen Beetle that looked like it had seen much better days. But it was all I had. I loaded up a suitcase, smashed the mirrors while blindfolded, and started driving north. The rain kept pouring, and pouring, as the night grew longer.
I looked at the long road in front of me, illuminated by the faint yellow headlights of my cousin’s bug. My phone buzzed again and again. But I couldn’t look at it. Otherwise, I’d see it. A shiver ran down my spine just from the thought of it. I couldn’t stop driving. Couldn’t look back. My bloodied knuckles and broken mirrors were proof of that. The rain was pouring like bullets, and the horizon had lightning dancing along the edge. Each thunderstrike making me jumpier than the last.
The radio clock told me it was almost midnight, and I turned up whatever noise was on the radio. I tossed back an energy drink, and enjoyed the buzz it gave. I could almost relax, if not for what hung above my head.
My phone rang again, and I turned my head to check on reflex. That’s when I saw it in the phone’s reflection. Its face was grotesque, covered in warts, with a greenish tint to its skin. Its eyes were cat shaped and glowed red. It had horns protruding around its head like some kind of demented crown. Its smile was a shit eating grin made of rotting, yellowed fangs.
“Hello Eddy.” Its voice was like nails on a chalkboard. Sending shivers down my spine once more. “What, you’re giving me the silent treatment?” Thunder boomed again, snapping me out of the trance and I focused once more on the empty road, my foot pushing the accelerator to make this damn car go as fast as it could. Thunder struck again, and I nearly wrapped the bug around a tree. I rubbed my eyes, and kept driving. It was all I could do, keep moving forward.
I tried to remember the prayers they taught me in Sunday school.
“Hail Mary, Full of Grace.”
Lightning flashed, and thunder struck.
“Hallowed be thy name.”
I felt a pressure on my chest. My skin started tingling.
“The lord is-” Lightning touched down feet from my car. The flash and sound was deafening. I let go of the wheel, and crashed into a ditch or something.
I felt something warm on my hands, looking down, it was blood. Coming out of my chest. A chunk of windshield embedded itself in me, and now I was bleeding out. My blood dripped from my hands, and mixed with the rainwater pouring in. The last thing I remember is hearing a maddening cackle before it all faded to black.