Through The Door

The following was first published on Reddit by the_unknown-01.

It started with a text from Mia, my best friend since middle school: "Have you heard of the 'Through the Door' game? Supposed to grant wishes your deepest wishes. Wanna try it?"

At first, I brushed it off. Mia was always into weird stuff like that, scouring urban legends and creepy rituals online. It's why I was like her only friend. But then she disappeared.

She didn’t show up to school. Her phone went straight to voicemail. Her parents didn’t even seem concerned, just repeating, “Mia’s not here right now,” in flat, mechanical voices every time I called.

A week passed, and out of desperation I went through her locker. I didn’t even know she kept a journal. I knew it was wrong reading it but it was my last resort. Flipping through the pages, I found detailed notes about the ritual. Her last entry read: "If this works, I'll finally have what I want. No more loneliness. No more dread through the door."

I had to try it. If it was connected to her disappearance, maybe playing the game could bring her back.

I followed the instructions to the letter. With my family out of town for the weekend I knew it was my only chance. Every door and window in the house was opened except the ones leading outside. The mirror was set up in my dimly lit bedroom, the three white candles flickering on the edges of its frame, the red one glowing directly in front of me. I tied a red string around a stuffed rabbit, a gift from Mia from years ago and shoved it into my hoodie pocket.

Sitting in front of the mirror, I stared at my reflection. “Through the door,” I chanted. Over and over. At first, nothing happened. I was losing hope. I started to feel ridiculous. Then, the reflection… changed ever so slightly.

My eyes in the mirror weren’t right. They looked uneven and my pupils were bigger. My lips slightly curled into a smile, though my face remained frozen.

When I noticed I yanked the sheet over the mirror, my hands trembling, and blew out the candles, one by one. I didn’t even change out of my clothes, just crawled into bed, pulling the covers over my head.

The bang woke me. It was deafening, like thunder, but localized, as if it came from within the walls of my house. I shot upright, every nerve on edge. The air was heavy, suffocating.

All the windows and doors were shut, except one: my baby sister's room.

Upon entering the room. I noticed the walls were wrong. It was my sister's wall paper but the color was faded and peeling like it had aged fifty years and the room smelt of mildew and a sorta metallic smell.

In the middle of the room where my sister crib would be was a table, exactly as described in Mia’s journal. The red candle sat in the center of the table, its flame steady despite the oppressive air. A plate and chair waited for me. Across was the mirror perched up on its own chair.

I sat down and placed the stuffed rabbit on the plate, hands shaking as I picked up the knife. As I cut through the rabbit’s head, I heard a faint giggle, my own reflection watching me, my eyes were unnaturally wide and I was grinning ear to ear, sharp and menacing.. I was starting to question whether I should go through with this. After all these things usually came at a price, didn't they?

When I placed the severed head in the flame of the candle, it screamed. Not a high-pitched shriek, but a guttural, inhuman wail that made my stomach churn. I closed my eyes and made my wish: “Bring Mia back.”

The candle went out.

When I opened my eyes it was morning, I was back in my bedroom. For a moment, I thought it was all some twisted dream charged by my grief. Then it hit me with a smell so disgusting I couldn't tell what it was at first. The smell was so nauseating I wanted to pass out.

I got up searching for the smell.

The source was coming from under my bed when i looked i saw her. Well It looked like her sorta but… wrong. Her skin hung loose, gray and patchy. Her eyes were black pits, and her mouth stretched unnaturally wide, revealing rows of jagged broken teeth.

White Foaming substance was dripping from her mouth when I went to poke her. She started flailing like she was having some sorta seizure gurgling and choking on that white foam. She sounded like something else, layered and distorted.

I screamed, running out of my room slamming my bedroom door shut. She pounded on the floor from the other side, her nails clawing splintering the wood. I ran down the hallway into my attic looking for the mirror trembling, I looked in the mirror and I begged for her to leave then the pounding stopped. I thought it was over.

It’s been a week now. The scratching hasn't stopped. Shadows move even when there’s no light. Where are my parents? Why haven't my friends called…

Sometimes I hear her voice, just inside my bedroom door, whispering, “Through the door…”

I can't bring myself to continue this suffering. I can't get the strength to leave my house. I miss my friends.. my family..

I'm so lonely.

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