“I’m so sorry. I didn’t know you were doing home visits today. Look at the mess of this home.” The middle-aged woman was very polite. She was no different from the other parents Teacher Liu had visited. However, she kept facing away from Teacher Liu. It was strange.
“Xiao Guo’s mom… Are you alright?” Teacher Liu studied the woman’s back. Her dishevelled, black hair reached her shoulders. The woman was at home, but she was well-dressed. She wore a dress that was very expensive but not very fitting.
“It’s indeed not that convenient for me at the moment. Did Xiao Guo give you any trouble? This damn kid. I’ll be sure to teach her a lesson tonight.” The woman walked backwards out of the bedroom.
Teacher Liu’s breathing caught in her throat. However, she instantly shielded Xiao Guo behind her. “It has nothing to do with the child. If anything, I have concerns about your teaching methods. Meaningless beatings and scares will affect the normal growth of a child…” Teacher Liu shut up instantly because the middle-aged woman was already one meter away from her face. There was silence inside the living room. Due to the immense pressure, Teacher Liu had to take a step back.
The middle-aged woman didn’t turn around, but she appeared to be able to see from the back of her head. She didn’t bump into anything.
“Xiao Guo’s mom, if you’re not feeling well today, I can come back another day.” Teacher Liu felt that the woman was mentally ill. She held Xiao Guo’s wrist and planned to leave. However, as she turned around, she noticed a man standing facing away from her outside the living room door. He appeared to be Xiao Guo’s father.
“When did he arrive?”
Teacher Liu felt a chill run down her spine. She held Xiao Guo’s hand, and her palm started to sweat.
“Teacher Liu, since you’re here, you should stay for a meal.” The middle-aged man’s voice was welcoming and gentle. “We brought something delicious for you.”
“Xiao Guo was like me when I was young. She must have been very naughty. I apologise.” The man spoke as he moved backwards. He looked normal, but when he approached, Teacher Liu instantly shivered with goosebumps. Every cell in her being was telling her to run.
“Xiao Guo, come over here!” The middle-aged woman shouted. Xiao Guo shivered. She let go of Teacher Liu’s hand unwillingly.
“How can you call yourselves parents?” Teacher Liu pulled out her phone to call the emergency number. “The police are coming! I have to save Xiao Guo from you!”
“Is your phone working?” The man’s voice echoed from his body. He placed the food on the table. With his wife, they approached Teacher Liu from both sides. “Teacher Liu, I know you’re a responsible person. Your students love you. We love you too. Since you’re here, why don’t we make a few dishes for you?”
Liu Jiaru just wanted to leave. She didn’t think about staying. However, the couple didn’t give her a choice. She was scared, but she tried to calm down. “Okay. You can go cook. Then, we can talk over a meal.” Teacher Liu’s plan was to wait for Xiao Guo’s parents to enter the kitchen and then leave the place with Xiao Guo.
“Thank you for coming over. We are normally so busy. Incidentally, we have so many things to discuss with you. Thank you for choosing our home…” Xiao Guo’s dad was not making sense. He kept thanking Teacher Liu. The couple didn’t move to the kitchen. Something moved under their skin. Their joints twitched unnaturally. The middle-aged woman’s arm snapped back as she grabbed Teacher Liu’s wrist.
“What are you doing?” Teacher Liu reacted instantly.
“Showing you the food.” The couple forcibly pulled Teacher Liu into the bedroom and placed her before the make-up table. Before Teacher Liu could react, she saw herself in the mirror. Her eyes widened. An indescribable fear filled her body. Her reflection was sitting upright in the mirror. She wore the same clothes and had the same hair, but her reflection had no face!
The face was just a blob. However, upon closer inspection, there was a light silhouette.
“It’s not me inside the mirror!”
“Teacher Liu, thank you for coming! Now, there’s one more in my home!” The middle-aged man placed the plastic bag of food on the make-up table. The thing inside the mirror started to look like Teacher Liu.
“What are you doing?” Teacher Liu wanted to avert her eyes, but her head was held in place by the couple. As they pushed her head closer to the mirror, the thing in the mirror started to take her features. RÃ𐌽Ɵ𝔟Ěꞩ
Rapid footsteps sounded. A small figure appeared at the door.
“Look away from the mirror!” The young voice said. Then, Teacher Liu heard a crack. Xiao Guo threw the knife that was used to chop meat at the mirror. The smooth mirror had a few splinters.
Teacher Liu’s reflection grimaced. Xiao Guo’s parents paused for a moment.
Teacher Liu used this chance to escape. She grabbed Xiao Guo’s hand and ran towards the door. She shoved through the door. Xiao Guo’s parents chased after them.
“Teacher, you should go.” Xiao Guo let go of Teacher Liu to hug her mother’s legs. She also lifted her head to look at her mother. When she saw her mother’s face, Xiao Guo’s face started to blur.
At that moment, Teacher Liu finally understood why Xiao Guo always kept her face down. This discovery frightened Teacher Liu. She ignored everything and ran downstairs.
The sky outside was dark. She had no idea what time it was. It felt like she had spent a long time at Xiao Guo’s home. Tracing her memory, she ran to the residential gate. The place where the gate should be had turned into a wall.
Footsteps came from behind her. Teacher Liu ran with all her might, but she was still too slow. Soon, a hand pressed on her shoulder.
“I just want to ask for directions. Do you need to react ?” The man said between breaths. After he caught up to Teacher Liu, a few others came over. They were dressed differently, but they shared one similarity. Their phones had received a mission update from Dead Water Forum.