Short Thriller Stories

3. Her Reflection

As the last bell rings, Riley Quinn, a sophomore at Woodvale High, runs out of the classroom and sprints down the crowded hallway, pushing and shoving past people just to get to the door. She's nervous and breathing heavily as she tries not to look back. Her only wish was to get home, the only place where she felt safe. She's near the exit and is about to push open the doors when she hears a vaguely familiar voice calling her. 

"Hey Freak. Leaving so soon?" 

Riley turns around and sees Camie Hayler, a spoiled rich girl, blonde with pale blue eyes. She always got everything she wanted and no one said no to her. Camie's best friend, Kimberly, also a sophomore, said 

"Wait. Where did you get those hideous clothes? Did you find them in a garbage dump?" 

Riley doesn't respond. 

"Freak, I asked you a question. What's wrong? Cat got your tongue? Say something!" 

Riley can feel the tears start to swell up in her eyes. Ever since she transferred to Woodvale High, everyone hated her. They hated how quiet and shy she was and how she looked. She always wore glasses, had short, coffee colored hair, and red freckles on her face. Although she was at a prestigious school, she never fit in. So without saying anything, she pushed the door open and ran straight home.

She gets home and sees her mom, Melissa Quinn waiting for her in the kitchen. 

"Hey Riley. How was school?" she asked. 

"Fine." 

Riley lied as she went up the stairs, still crying, to her room. She did her homework and went downstairs. She had dinner with her mother who told her that she should dress differently and have more confidence in herself. Riley just said "Whatever," and then went to bed. 

She couldn't sleep. She was tossing and turning, with flashbacks of terrible memories from earlier. Everything they would do to her, laugh at her, call her names, send her death threats constantly. 

"Freak. No one likes you, Freak. Do us all a favor and jump off a bridge." 

She woke up in the middle of the night, hyperventilating. "I need to calm down." Riley goes quietly into the bathroom to wash her face. "Relax, Riley. You're letting this affect you." She tells herself. Riley looks down for a second, trying to catch her breath. She puts her hands on her face and looks back closely into the mirror. But this time, she noticed something...different. Her reflection was smiling back at her.

She quickly jumps back in shock. "I'm probably just imagining things. It's nothing." She's about to go back to her room, when her reflection starts talking to her. 

"Wait Riley. Don't go. I only want to help you."

"Who are you?" Riley asked.

"Oh come on. You know how I am. I'm you," Alyssa replied.

"What's your name?" Riley asked.

"Alyssa. Alyssa Quinn." Riley was shocked. Her middle name was Alyssa.

"If you're really me...do you know everything I'm going through? Everything that's happening to me?" 

Alyssa smiled, and in a low voice, she said 

"I know everything about you. You need to learn to stand up for yourself. Don't let them hurt you. Don't let them tear you down."

"But...how? Everyone at school hates me."

"Trust me on this. I know what I'm doing. Listen. The next time someone does anything bad to you, don't be scared to fight back."

"I can't. It's just not me. It's not who I am."