The shadow lingered by the doorway for a second longer. ‘Happy 8th birthday sweetheart,’ she whispered as the pink Barbie clock struck midnight. For a moment, she held her breath as she watched her little girl shift in bed. There was a soft thud on the ground as the girl’s toy penguin slipped from her tiny hands and landed on the floor. 

A cold hand with long slender fingers gripped the mother’s shoulder. ‘There’s no more time Nicole,’ said a harsh voice. Nicole blinked back her tears; she made a motion to her daughter’s toy penguin. Nails dug into her skin. She understood. It was too risky. Her little girl must not see. Nicole blew her daughter a kiss before she closed the bedroom door.

‘Do you have everything?’ said a large, balding man with equally large bags under his eyes. Nicole managed to nod before the woman pushed her towards the ladder at the centre of the hall.

‘Climb,’ she ordered. Nicole did as she was told. The others followed her up, carrying her belongings with them. Soon she reached the loft, a dark, dusty place with a slanted roof. As she approached the end, she saw the full-length mirror that provided only a reflection of the room, and not her – it was as if she wasn’t there.

Nicole finally spoke, ‘Do I have to leave?’

Someone sniggered. ‘Or you can choose to die,’ said the young woman. ‘It’s your choice; I know you humans have weird ways of thinking.’
A moment of silence passed. Then heavy footsteps approached the mirror, the plump, middle-aged man, hoisted up a suitcase and threw it at the mirror. Nicole braced herself for shards of glass to spray everywhere, but she never even heard a crack. The next thing she knew, the suitcase appeared on the other side of the mirror, as if it had gone through and entered the reflection.

‘I’ve sealed the hatch so nobody can get in here anymore,’ said the woman. ‘Or out,’ she added darkly, flashing her grey eyes at Nicole. The man entered the mirror first. Then so did Nicole as she felt a hard push on her back that made her stumble forward. The woman followed, but when they reached the door in the reflection, the man turned back. ‘You are to stay here Ara, watch over this mirror. Make sure no one else discovers its true identity. We do not want to repeat this situation,’ he instructed.

‘B-but what about the team?’ she protested.

‘We’ll manage,’ he growled. ‘You have your instructions, I expect you to follow them,’ and with that he led Nicole through the door, leaving Ara behind. She watched them leave, and then angrily swept her black hair from her face. Then she turned around and forced her arms through the mirror. She grabbed a frayed white sheet from the floor and threw it over the mirror. Then she sat cross-legged on the floor and sighed.

Meanwhile, Maya slept soundly, waking only in the middle of the night to fetch her toy penguin.

Nine years later, the toy penguin sat upon a desk amidst swimming trophies and medals and a family picture of a smiling young girl with brown hair and her parents. As the digital clock indicated six a.m., the alarm beeped. Someone flung their covers off and hurried to turn the alarm off. She brushed her teeth, picked up her sports bag, slipped on her slippers and rushed out the door. As carefully as she could, she crept along the corridor. A few loud snores came from behind the other doors, no one was awake yet.

‘Maya,’ she stopped in her tracks at the sound of her name, ‘what are you doing?’ Maya spun round and smiled at her best friend Zoe who stretched out her arms and yawned. ‘Why are you sneaking around this early, and why are you sneaking around without me?’ Zoe folded her arms across her chest and leaned against the door frame.

‘Geez, you have good hearing,’ said Maya. ‘I wanted to get more practice before the real thing and I didn’t want to disturb you, I know you came back late last night,’ she winked at the girl with reddened cheeks.

‘Not that late,’ Zoe said unconsciously touching her lips. She realised after a moment and snapped her attention back to Maya, ‘Anyway, good luck with practice; I’ll be there to watch the real thing, just need to persuade Mr. Biggleroy to let me out of History early. It’s not like we’ll be doing any work on the last day of term.’ Zoe hugged her best friend and added, ‘Swim like crazy Maya, and beat Zadonsky! Oh and I’ll see you at breakfast.’ 

Maya headed down two sets of stairs and made her way to the girl’s changing room. She pushed open the burgundy door with the school’s logo of a flaming torch plastered on it and quickly changed into her black swimsuit. Her hair was bundled up into her burgundy swimming cap with the letters Mirabile emblazoned across it, and her goggles were placed over her brown eyes. A small passageway linked the changing room to the indoor pool; Maya went through before diving into the pool.

An hour passed quickly, Maya pushed herself out of the pool and made her way to the changing rooms but stopped when she heard voices coming from it. ‘She’s such a weirdo,’ said a nasally voice followed by a strong bout of laughter, ‘How does that Zoe think she even has a chance with Liam? I mean, what does he even see in her? She’s not even that pretty.’

Maya clenched her fists together; she wouldn’t let them get away with insulting her best friend. She readied herself to enter the room before another voice spoke, ‘It’s because she hangs out with Maya, thinks she can do whatever she wants to, stupid teacher’s pet, thinks she can go after whoever she wants to, and don’t worry Roxanne, you’re so much prettier than Zoe.’

The other girl gave a huge sigh, ‘If only I looked like you Vanessa, then Liam would have chosen me over that witch any day.’ Both girls turned their heads when they heard someone storm into the changing rooms. Maya opened her mouth to say something but Vanessa beat her to it, ‘Maya, how lovely to see you,’ she sauntered over swaying her hips and flipping her long golden hair. ‘I can’t believe I have to swim against you today,’ she said in an overly sweet voice before she glared down at Maya who was quite a few inches shorter, ‘I don’t understand why George doesn’t just pick me as captain, I’m obviously better.’ Then she pushed past Maya, and strolled out of the changing room, her friend Roxanne trailed behind; clutching Vanessa’s swimming cap and towel.

Maya paused, considering whether she should follow them both and just yank their hair out. Completely unladylike, she knew that, and her dad would definitely not approve, but maybe it would teach them a lesson. Or really, it would just be nice to wipe their wicked smiles off their faces.

But she breathed in deeply and changed back into her clothes. ‘They’re not worth it,’ she told herself, remembering her best friend’s words from last week when Vanessa had purposefully tripped her over in the dining hall.

A few people had made their way down for breakfast, but at 7:30 many were still in bed. Her best friend however, was sat with an old book opened in front of her entitled Literature and Religion at Rome: cultures, contexts and beliefs, two honey covered waffles remained untouched by her side, and her hair had been scrunched up into a bun. She pushed the waffles over to Maya when she came to sit down, ‘I got your breakfast for you, thought I’d buy them early in case there’d be none left when you came,’ said Zoe, putting her book down.

‘Thanks, what’s with the reading?’ said Maya.

‘Liam gave me the heads up,’ a small smile crept across her lips when she said his name but faded when she added, ‘I have a ‘surprise’ classics test today.’

Maya finished her waffles then said, ‘It’s really useful that he’s teacher’s assistant. But what are you guys…’

‘He said that he can make this work, he said he’ll video chat and call me, that he can make time for me when he’s at uni, but I don’t know. I’m not sure our relationship is strong enough to handle the distance, and I’m not applying to his university. London is just too busy for me.’ Zoe placed her head on the long table. ‘I think I need to break up with him, it’ll save him from feeling guilty if he does meet someone else down there.’ Maya patted her friend’s back soothingly until she noticed two people approaching her.

The couple placed their breakfast trays on the table. ‘Hey Abbie, Trevor,’ she said as they kissed each other before sitting down. Abbie, smiled, her rosy cheeks even rosier from the kiss, her Afro Caribbean hair bobbed up and down slightly. ‘It’s the big day Maya,’ she said in her sing-song voice, ‘Are you ready?’

Maya nodded. She really hoped so. Meanwhile, Trevor poked Zoe’s arm, ‘Is she dead?’ Her head remained rested on the table, but her chest still moved up and down. ‘Oh no, she’s breathing, never mind,’ he said.

‘Are you sure you guys don’t want to compete, I mean it’s just me and Vanessa. Plus you get the day free of lessons,’ said Maya. Abbie clutched Trevor’s hand, ‘Nah I couldn’t compete against my T-Rex. We couldn’t do that to each other, isn’t that right honey?’ He kissed the top of her head, but whispered, ‘I’d totally win though…OUCH, what was that for?’ Trevor rubbed the back of his head where Abbie had just wacked him.

‘You most certainly wouldn’t,’ she retorted, punching his arm to emphasise her point. ‘Besides Maya, we want you to be the new team captain, everybody does. God forbid what would happen if vindictive Vanessa took over; it’d be some evil dictatorship! And she’d probably make us all wear blue nail polish to match her eyes.’ They both laughed.

‘I’ll try my best guys. You know she tried to intimidate me this morning?’

Zoe shot up. ‘What she threatened you?’

‘Not quite, just complained why your brother didn’t just pick her as captain, said she’s clearly the better swimmer.’

‘Uhh,’ Trevor made a disgusted face, ‘pay no attention to that she-devil Maya. Just beat her today and we’ll all live happily ever after.’ Then he put his arm around his girlfriend and whispered something into her ear, she giggled.

‘Sorry Maya, we’ll be leaving now, good luck for this afternoon. We’ll be there to support you.’ Abbie stood up and handed Trevor her tray, then they walked away, hand-in-hand.

Zoe glanced at the clock and jumped, she had ten minutes left before Latin started, ‘I’ll be going too then,’ she leant down to hug Maya, ‘I’ll see you later.’

*

The whistle blew and the splashes began. Two burgundy swimming caps bobbed up and down in the water. Both of them were travelling almost in synch. Almost. Spectators watched on the edge of their seat to see who would win because this wasn’t just a swimming competition. Not to them.

Maya stretched out her arm as far as it would go. From the corner of her eye, she knew her opponent was doing the same thing. Almost there. The wall was in her reach. Maya kicked even harder creating just enough force to take her to the end. Then she heard a scream. A loud, frustrated, girly scream as her opponent splashed the water repeatedly.

‘That’s not fair,’ she squealed, ‘we didn’t start at the same time. She cheated Mrs Finkley; she must have started earlier….’

Maya didn’t care what the other girl said, she’d won, and the crowd was applauding her.

‘You lost fair and square Vanessa, there’s nothing I can do,’ said Mrs Finkley, amused by the girl’s reaction. Even Maya couldn’t help but smile. Vanessa’s jaw dropped.

Once she had composed herself she directed her best withering glare at Maya. Her crystal blue eyes drilled into the back of Maya’s head. A group of girls came to the poolside to help Vanessa out.

‘Not too close to the edge girls,’ warned Mrs Finkley. The girls shot evil glares in her direction which then drifted upon Maya and stayed there – as if they had magical powers that could make Maya disappear forever.

Suddenly, their hands shot to their hair. Their faces lit up as George, the team captain stood up from the judging panel. He waited for the girls to get out of the pool and sit on the benches by the pool side before he spoke.

‘I have loved being Mirabile’s swimming captain for the past year. I am so proud of the team for what we have accomplished, winning the Regional cup, getting to the national finals in each age category,’ he looked around at his members scattered around the pool. ‘I want to thank the team members that sit beside me today, Kazumi, James, and Cormac for their incredible contribution throughout their high school life and I wish them every success as they begin a new chapter in their lives,’ there was a series of whoops and cheers, ‘and thank you Mrs Finkley for all of her training and support.’ George paused as he signalled for the youngest team members to bring flowers and chocolates to the judging panel. Mrs Finkley’s eyes twinkled in the light as she bent down to collect the flowers from the small year 7 boy, and then proceeded to give him a peck on the cheek.

‘And now on my last day at this school, I have the great pleasure to pass on the torch to the newest Mirabile swimming captain,’ George turned towards Maya, ‘Maya Evans.’ His warm chocolate eyes met hers as he gestured for her to come up and receive a golden badge. The crowd applauded except for the corner where girls were comforting Vanessa. Zoe, who had rushed in just in time to see the last event whooped at the top of her lungs along with Abbie and Trevor.

When she reached the judging panel, George stood more than a head taller than Maya. ‘Congratulations captain,’ he said as he shook her hand.

‘Thanks.’ A small sweet smile flashed upon his face, along with his dimples before he asked her to give a small speech.

‘Erm…thank you for the support everyone. I hope that I won’t disappoint you as captain and I will do my best to be as good a captain as George,’ she said, holding up her badge in the air.

‘You’ll be better,’ shouted Zoe. George shot her a look; she simply stuck her tongue out at him. After the speech Zoe rushed over to Maya and squeezed all the air out of her lungs with a super tight hug. ‘Zoe…too tight…can’t breathe,’ she managed to say.

‘I’m not letting go of you.’ Zoe hugged her even tighter, ‘I’m so proud of you. Vanessa’s reaction was just priceless.’ Maya only escaped from her best friend’s strong grip when Mrs Finkley came to the rescue, ‘Zoe Holland, I have a message from Mr. Biggleroy, he says if you do not return to History this instant you will not be continuing with the course in September.’

Instantly Zoe let go and ran to history. ‘No running at the poolside,’ exclaimed Mrs Finkley, but Zoe was long gone by then. She patted Maya of the back as she was leaving, ‘Congratulations kid.’

The girls entered the changing room. Snide giggles came from the corner. Vanessa’s entourage sat huddled together as they pointed and stared at Maya. At first she didn’t understand exactly why.

Then she saw her sports bag which was completely empty. Her clothes were missing. Maya walked over to Vanessa.

‘Are you really that immature? Just because you lost, you—’

The blonde girl pouted her lips. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ Then she studied her bright pink nails, one of which had chipped.

‘Yeah, go away Evans, we don’t know what you’re talking about,’ said Roxanne, ‘You’re just lucky you won anyway, Vanessa should have been captain.’ The girls all nodded as they formed a protective barrier around Vanessa.

Maya went in search of her clothes which she eventually found was dumped in one of the toilets.

Taking a breath to brace herself, she picked them up and noticed a shard of bright pink nail caught onto her shirt. The same bright pink that Vanessa’s nails were. Maya walked out of the toilets and back to the changing rooms, the soaked clothes dripped toilet water along the floor.

‘Ew, that is so gross,’ said Vanessa with a scrunched up nose. Her entourage laughed but squealed when Maya walked towards them. The girls backed away from her as much as possible.

‘Stay away from me,’ warned Vanessa. Maya didn’t say anything; instead she wrenched her clothes dry in front of the other girl who now had a green complexion. Then Maya walked away and out of the changing rooms, still in her bathing suit.

‘Oh my goodness, there’s something wrong with her,’ said Vanessa, loud enough for her to hear through the door.

 ‘OMG, maybe that’s why her mum left her,’ added Roxanne. ‘Nine years ago right?’

Maya stopped in her tracks.

‘Yeah, probably couldn’t take the weirdness. Even as a child, she must have been like some psychopath. I mean who picks things out of a toilet, that’s so gross. Her mum made the right decision if you ask me.’

Her eyes stung..

‘Who could live with such a horrible person?’ Hyena-like laughing erupted from the changing room.

She pressed her lips into a thin line and dug her nails into the palm of her hands. Maya was not going to cry…

‘…try my best to be as good a captain as George…’ mocked Vanessa, ‘who is she kidding? She couldn’t even hang on to her mum, like she can hang on to this position of responsibility.’

A tear fell. Followed by another and then another as Maya forced her legs to move.

‘Maya, what’s up?’ said a soft voice in front of her. Quickly, she wiped her tears away with the back of her hand, and tightened the towel she had wrapped around herself. ‘I-It’s—hic--n-nothing—hic--G-George,’ she hiccupped, refusing to look up at his face. Her eyes were probably all puffy, and her face all red. She was a mess.

George took her hand and led her to a desk in an empty English classroom. ‘I’ll be right back,’ he told her before he left. He returned moments after with a cup of water, ‘Let’s get rid of those hiccups.’

‘Thanks,’ she said taking a sip and staring down at the desk. He took a seat beside her and asked, ‘Do you want me to get Zoe? She’s probably better company for you than me.’

Maya shook her head. ‘Mr Biggleroy will kill her if she leaves History.’  Her eyes still glistened with the touch of tears. George shifted in his seat, ‘I hate to see you so upset.’ The statement hung in the air for a while until she spoke, ‘Maybe they’re right, maybe my mum left me because I was some disgusting, horrible child. Maybe that’s why she left…maybe…it’s all my f-fault,’ fresh tears spilled downwards. She covered her face with her hands, ashamed that she was so weak, ashamed that she couldn’t stop herself from crying in front of this boy.

‘No,’ he almost growled. Maya jumped at his ferocity. He pulled her hands away from her face and held them tightly, ‘Maya, whatever, whoever made you think that, they’re wrong. It’s not your fault, your mum never wanted to leave you—’

She pushed his hands away, ‘then why did she? If not because of me, why did she? Didn’t she love me enough to stay?’

His heart broke at the sight of her being so upset, and he wanted more than anything to hold her in his arms and tell her that everything was alright. But he couldn’t do that; he wouldn’t take advantage of her when she was vulnerable. So all he did was lower his head so that he found her face and told her, ‘You are more amazing than you know, and I know she loved you Maya, it’s hard not you love you, because you,’ he felt the blood rush to his cheeks, ‘are a great, kind, beautiful person in every sense.’ Maya blinked and stared at him and they shared a moment of silence before she realised what was happening.

She hadn’t noticed that she had been doing it, but she was edging closer towards him. He reached up and removed a strand of her stray hair. All of a sudden, she was all too aware of the sound of his heartbeat, of the heat that radiated from his body, of his smoky cologne. She looked up to meet his soft gaze and she felt the pull towards him. But she couldn’t do this, even if she wanted too, this was her best friend’s brother. It’d just be weird. It wasn’t right.

Maya found herself transfixed on his lips, they came closer and closer until they were only and inch apart and then she did what she thought was the only logical action: she punched him.

The school bell rang, the classroom door opened.

Zoe’s head popped inside, but she froze temporarily before saying, ‘What happened in here? Maya, are you alright?’ Zoe ran over to her best friend but her older brother without giving the girl a chance to talk, clutched her wrist and dragged her outside, his hand covering his nose.

Maya clasped her right fist as she tried to process what had just happened.

‘No, I have English now and I need to talk to Maya,’ said Zoe struggling to get out of his grip. George didn’t say a word; he just dragged her along the corridor. He never looked back. From outside, Maya heard Zoe’s amused voice, ‘Do you have a nose bleed?’

People started to file into the classroom. Maya ran out of the classroom before people could start asking questions. Two staircases up and she was back in her bedroom.

‘Fudge, I just lost my ride home,’ she realised. ‘Why can’t I be seventeen and get my driver’s licence already?’ She only had one day left. Maya grabbed her mobile and rang her dad; she went straight to voice mail.

‘..please leave a message after the beep…’ That meant he was busy at work.

Maya let out a heavy sigh. Maybe she could walk home; it would only take a whole day without breaks. That seemed like a much better option than what Maya knew had to happen.

She had managed to pack up everything into her room into two suitcases. It was half three and she still didn’t know how she was getting home. Knock. Knock.

The door opened, two large almond-shaped eyes scanned the room before the person announced, ‘George is putting the stuff in the car, are you ready to go Maya?’

‘Zoe, thank you for the offer but I won’t be going with you guys,’ said Maya as she looked down at her feet. The door opened wider and Zoe strode over to her best friend, ‘Don’t be silly, it’s no trouble taking you, I know how much you hate going with Miss Lane.’

‘No, really,’ insisted Maya, ‘I—’

Zoe gasped as comprehension hit her, ‘It’s something to do with that nosebleed isn’t it, did you punch him? Is that why he was so moody? What happened?’ Maya made a face that her best friend knew meant she didn’t want to talk about it. Zoe wouldn’t press her if she didn’t want to say, so she hugged her best friend and said goodbye.

Once she had left, Maya dragged her suitcases out the door and made it to the ground floor. Dread filled her insides, but she trudged over to the headmistress’ office and knocked. ‘Come in,’ said a tired voice. ‘Oh, Maya, nice to see you,’ her headmistress gestured towards a seat and beamed at her through round spectacles. ‘What can I do for you?’ she said, straightening her purple suit.

Maya fidgeted with her hands but forced herself to stop it. ‘Miss Lane, please can you give me a ride home? Dad’s at work,’ explained Maya. For a second, the older woman looked stunned. But her lips slowly formed a smile and she removed her glasses to rub them against her shirt.

‘I’d be delighted to Maya,’ then she checked her watch, ‘and it’s after school time now, call me Julie, no need to be formal.’

Maya smiled awkwardly, ‘Thank you, I’ll go wait outside.’

‘That’s right, I’ll be ready in a few minutes dear.’

Maya closed the office door and breathed. That had gone a lot less painfully than she had expected which was a good thing. She leant against the wall and waited. An annoying nasal voice interrupted her thoughts, ‘Look at the teacher’s pet, getting another ride home from the head are we?’ Roxanne smirked and sat on the edge of Maya’s suitcase.

‘That’s none of your business,’ she replied coldly.

The other girl with the long black hair gaped at her, ‘Rude much. It’s no wonder your mum left you.’ This time, Maya had her fist ready and she was inches from making contact with Roxanne’s plastic face with the fake lashes, heavy mascara and bright red lips. One thing saved her and that was the headmistress who appeared from her office. Maya retracted her arm just in time, whilst the other girl trembled and muttered something about being barbaric and scurried off.

‘Are you ready to go Maya?’ Maya nodded, and they made their way towards the car park. Once the engine had started, Maya looked through the back window. The large institution that was a boarding school rose high up into the sky donning burgundy flags with the school logo. It was a huge place, with sporting grounds, swimming pool, seven different buildings and the dining hall, but Maya didn’t need all that. She was finally going home.

The journey was relatively quiet, only Classic FM filled the silence. Miss Lane, or rather Julie had tried to initiate a conversation but there really wasn’t much to say. When Maya arrived home, she was relieved to be out of the car. She said thank you and hurried inside. The house was empty, it was five o’ clock. Her dad wouldn’t be home for another two hours. Maya set to work.

One hour and half hours later, the dining table had been set up and the spaghetti Bolognese and chocolate cake was almost ready. It had been four months since she had been home and eaten a meal with her dad, she thought she would do something special to celebrate end of the school year. The timer went off and, Maya drained the pasta. Then she opened one of the cupboards to find the special cutlery they saved for special occasions.

A small velvet box hid inside one of the cupboards. She took it out and opened it up. Her eyes widened at the sight, but she didn’t smile. Maya held up a ring to the light. Shimmers of light reflected from the half carat diamond which was set upon white gold.

‘Don’t you think it’s a little too soon?’ The words escaped her lips before she could stop herself. The thumping of her heart increased but she calmed down when she remembered he wasn’t home yet.

‘I won’t if you’re not comfortable with it Maya,’ she jumped at the sound of his voice. Then she swivelled around to meet his honey-coloured eyes.

‘I didn’t know you were here, Dad,’ she said, lowering her gaze. ‘How long have you been there?’

‘Long enough to hear your question,’ her dad pulled out a chair and gestured for her to sit. She stayed where she was. He sighed. ‘I do love Julie – we do love each other. I think it’s time.’

A silent pause filled the space between them.

‘Maya, talk to me,’ he said.

‘When are you going to propose to her?’

‘Tonight, we have a date; I’m going to pick her up soon.’

Maya looked at the dining table and the food she had painstakingly prepared for her dad, ‘So I guess you won’t be staying for dinner here?’ At those words, her dad noticed the layout of the table and spaghetti that she had made.

He leant down to kiss her forehead, ‘I am so sorry Maya, this looks beautiful and delicious, but I can’t cancel on Julie now.’ Without a word, Maya placed the ring into his hand and left the kitchen. ‘Have fun on your date dad,’ she said from the corridor.

Maya stayed in her room until she heard the front door close. The house was empty once more. For a moment there was silence as Maya focused on taking deep breaths. She rubbed her temples, her gaze drifted to the photograph that rested by her bedside. Two faces smiled at her, the resemblance was striking. One look and you’d know they were mum and daughter. They had the same hazel eyes, the same soft nose and long brown hair.  ‘I miss you mum. I really do,’ her words lingered in the air before her mobile buzzed against her desk. A text message flashed on the screen, it read: I will be back by 12. Love dad. xx

The pitter patter of raindrops bumped against the rooftops. As Maya looked out the window she saw the car drive quickly away and out of sight. Grey clouds had descended upon the sky, and the rain started to fall harder and soon the rain was pounding against the house. Maya made her way back to the kitchen where she ate dinner alone, and then she entered the living room to watch a film. She wanted more than anything to call and talk to best friend, but she knew that meant she would have to tell her about what happened with George and she really didn’t want to go there.

Love Actually was playing on channel 4, Maya plopped onto the sofa, stared at the TV  and eventually drifted off to a dreamless sleep.

When she woke up again the clock indicated that it was almost midnight. Her dad would be coming home soon. Maya turned off the TV. The rain had finally stopped and the house was very quiet. Climbing up the stairs, Maya changed into her PJs and then brushed her teeth.

On her way back to her bedroom, sounds came from above her. Her head jerked upwards.

Maya strained her ears to listen. She heard a soft tap tap coming from the ceiling. A quick glance through the window told her the rain had definitely stopped so it wasn’t making the noise. Next she heard a loud thud followed by a series of footsteps and voices. Her blood ran cold.

Maya knew she had to do something. She would find a phone and call the police, tell them there were intruders in the house and go hide. Creeping as quietly as she could she backed up into her room, but her eyes glanced upwards as bits of dust started to fall from the loft hatch. Someone was yanking the hatch open, and it hadn’t been opened in a very long time. In fact, she had been under the impression the hatch had been sealed to the ceiling so it couldn’t be opened. But she wasn’t going to stay around to find out.

She closed her bedroom door, and pushed her desk in front of it. Next, she looked around for a place to hide and grabbed her mobile. She switched off the lights and clambered inside her wardrobe.

Maya had managed to dial 999 before her door burst open. But she hadn’t had a chance to call. Her desk slammed against the wall with such force there was a loud crack. Not daring to breath, Maya prayed they wouldn’t find her, her heart picked up its pace. Creak. The perpetrator entered her room. Creak.

‘Oh Maya, where are you?’ hissed a deep man’s voice. Instantly, she threw her hand over her mouth to stop a scream from escaping. ‘I know you’re here, there are only so many places you can hide,’ he said in his wicked tone. Maya looked at her mobile screen, there wasn’t time to call the police, but she could save her dad. Creak.

Dad don’t come home stay at Julie’s she texted.

Creak. The perpetrator was standing right in front of the wardrobe now; she could see his large shadow through a gap. Then another voice said, ‘Kai, stop frightening the poor girl, this isn’t a horror movie you idiot.’

‘Don’t spoil the fun Herman,’ he whined, his tone more childish than wicked now. Maya put her phone into her back pocket and then there was a huge crack. In the next moment, Maya had fallen out of her wardrobe. Her clothes had spilled across the floor and she was surrounded by two strangers dressed in black. The wooden base of the wardrobe that separated the clothes from the drawers beneath had cracked; it hadn’t been able to support her weight when she moved. To make things worse, her phone beeped at that moment.

The big burly man that Maya guessed was Kai hoisted her over his shoulders. A skinny, spectacled man, probably Herman, took Maya’s phone which she had stuffed into her pocket and read the message aloud. ‘Happy 17^th birthday Maya! See you seen, Zoe.’ Then her phone beeped again. ‘Don’t be silly, I’ll be home in fifteen minutes. Dad.’ Herman placed Maya’s phone in his shirt pocket. ‘We don’t have much time until the other human arrives. Kai, you bring the girl up to the loft and Clarke will arrive shortly, and then come back down to help me clear up this mess.’

Then Herman spun round to look at the broken wardrobe. To Maya, it seemed that he had flicked his hand and the wardrobe was fixed. Next, he placed his hand above the pile of clothing and in the next moment they all flung themselves back into place. Maya rubbed her eyes; she couldn’t believe what she had seen. Maybe she saw still asleep and just dreaming.

Kai did as he was told, but as soon as he had left her bedroom he mimicked Herman in a squeaky voice, ‘Blah blah blah, do this… do that.. blah blah—’ He shut up quickly when Herman’s voice broke through, ‘I can still hear you.’

A ladder led up towards the hatch, Kai climbed up and brought Maya along with him. Just as he reached the top, a yell came from below, ‘WHY DID YOU CRACK THE WALL?!’ The big, burly man chuckled before throwing Maya into the loft and descending the ladder. ‘I didn’t crack the wall, it’s just a tiny scrape,’ he said which was answered by a frustrated yell.

Maya clutched her knee which had scraped harshly against the floor, but she scrambled up as fast as she could. Too late. The hatch was forced shut and she couldn’t get it open. In the dim of the loft, Maya looked around for an opening where the intruders could have entered the house. But this loft had no windows, it had no other doors, it had…

…a mirror? She squinted her eyes and took a step closer to the back of the room. A full-sized mirror stood in front of her, a mirror that provided her with no reflection. Maya stared at the image of an empty loft. It was as if she was invisible, or a vampire. This can’t be real, this is just my imagination. Maybe she wasn’t getting enough oxygen to her brain; it was possible because she had almost stopped breathing entirely. And yet she didn’t believe that. Things felt too real.

She edged closer to the mirror before halting suddenly. She had blinked but could have sworn she saw a woman dressed in black walk past the mirror. Maya blinked again and then in front of her she saw Maya, brown hair, pale skin, and small figure. Reaching outwards to touch the mirror, her reflection did the same. She watched as their hands came closer, her reflection rippled as she touched it and then she jumped back as it did something quite unexpected.

It was stepping through the mirror and Maya couldn’t get further away from it fast enough. Soon she was back against the hatch door, her hands frantically pulling the handle until it snapped off from the hatch. The reflection stood for a moment watching her. Maya rubbed her eyes just to make sure she was really awake.

Was it a ghost?

No it couldn’t be. Ghosts didn’t change shape.  Their bodies didn’t twist and turn and morph into another one. Maya watched her face melt away, her limbs elongate into another’s, her hair darkening to an unnatural black with a streak of blond running across its side like a flash of lightning. This was the woman she thought she had seen earlier with the face of a beautiful China doll and a crazed look in the woman’s grey eyes.

Maya’s breathing picked up its pace; she needed to get out of there. Maya tried kicking the hatch, to break it open. It wouldn’t budge. In desperation she knocked on the wood until her knuckles were raw white, ‘Dad, are you home? Can you hear me?’

Her knuckles started to bleed. ‘Dad! Dad!’ Tears formed in her eyes, but she blinked them away. She daren’t turn around to face the creature behind her.

‘I have waited enough,’ the woman’s voice cut sharp through Maya’s cries. In three graceful strides the woman had her fingers gripped tightly around Maya’s neck.

‘Who are you?’ she said.

Maya strained her eyes upwards to look at the tall woman. It was difficult to breathe; no words could come out of her mouth. ‘Why won’t you answer me?’ she demanded, pinning Maya harder against the wall with her strong arms. 

‘You are definitely not part of the Unity.  How did you find this mirror?’ Even though Maya wanted to reply, her mind was working too slowly to understand what she was being asked. The lack of oxygen would soon kill her. Maya stared hopelessly up into the woman’s fierce glare. She paused for a moment. ‘You are a spy aren’t you?’ Maya couldn’t find her voice. ‘Who sent you?’

Her silence was not taken too kindly. ‘Well then, if you won’t give me any answers now, I’ll find them out myself.’ She flashed Maya a quick grin which caught her off guard. It was almost a friendly smile. Then the woman picked up the girl and threw her over her shoulders. Maya felt light-headed, but at least she could breathe. Bruises were forming around her neck; in a daze she took one last look at the loft. This must be a dream she thought, shape-shifters, magic mirrors, they were all parts of her imagination right?

‘What do you think you’re doing? Put her down this instant,’ bellowed an angry voice. The woman did as she was told. Maya turned around to see a large man, with a green sweater pulled over his pot belly. The man must have been in his late fifties, his last remnants of hair were all grey and as were his eyebrows which seemed to droop down to his eyes. He was red in the face as he glared at the woman and then he stepped outside of the mirror into the loft. ‘Didn’t Kai or Herman brief you about the mission Ara?’ he asked.

She didn’t reply at first but looked down at her feet. ‘I wasn’t here sir, I didn’t know about the mission.’ His eyes seemed to bulge and want to pop out of his head, but he composed himself and said, ‘I’ll deal with you later.’

All heads turned as the hatch opened and the two men, Kai and Herman entered. ‘The dad’s outside, we need to leave,’ said Herman as and Kai pulled the ladder up into the loft.

The balding man looked to Ara, ‘You know what to do.’ She nodded and immediately her body contracted into a shorter person, into a look-a-like of Maya. Someone clapped their hands around the real Maya’s mouth and started to drag her towards the mirror.

Maya squealed but the sound was muffled by a giant meaty hand.

The door opened and closed and she could hear her dad’s footsteps as he climbed up the stairs. Herman handed Ara, who looked like Maya, Maya’s phone, before she jumped from the loft and the hatch was closed.

Maya tried to scream for her dad but she hardly made a sound.

‘Maya,’ she heard her dad say, ‘Julie said yes, she said yes.’ And he hadn’t sounded so happy in a long time. She heard the shape-shifter reply in her voice, ‘I’m so happy for you dad.’

‘I’m so happy to hear you say that sweetie.’

Maya closed her eyes and then re-opened them again. They widened as she realised she was being carried through the mirror.