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    The Reflection Room
    The Reflection Room
    The Reflection Room
    Ebook76 pages1 hour

    The Reflection Room

    By Marc Everhart

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    About this ebook

    In a dazzling near-future world where everyone wears augmented reality glasses that project their ideal selves, perfection is not just an aspiration—it's a way of life. But what happens when the veneer of flawless illusions is ripped away?

    Meet Grace Mitchell: a high-powered executive who has perfected the art of hiding behind a digitally crafted persona. Beneath her pristine exterior lies a woman plagued by self-doubt, haunted by regrets, and terrified of imperfection. Her world comes crashing down when a glitch in her augmented reality glasses leads her to the elusive and forbidden Reflection Room.

    What starts as a desperate search for privacy quickly becomes a journey into the heart of her deepest fears. Inside this enigmatic and eerie space, Grace's augmented reality glasses cease to function, exposing her true self—and more than just her physical appearance. The Reflection Room reveals her hidden regrets, unspoken desires, and the painful truths she's long avoided.

    As Grace navigates through this surreal and shifting labyrinth, she encounters Leo, a disheveled man who has been trapped in the room for years. Leo, once a confident entrepreneur, now serves as both a guide and a cautionary tale, revealing the devastating cost of his own quest for perfection.

    But the room's true mastermind is *The Architect*, a mysterious figure who created this psychological maze with a single purpose: to force its occupants into self-discovery or destroy them in the process. With every challenge Grace faces, she must confront different versions of her life—each one presenting a startling truth about her choices and the person she has become.

    In The Reflection Room, Grace's journey through her subconscious becomes a heart-pounding, emotional rollercoaster, testing the very fabric of her identity. As the room's challenges grow increasingly dangerous and surreal, Grace must decide: will she embrace the raw truth of who she really is, or retreat into the safety of her illusions?

    A gripping exploration of identity, regret, and the quest for authenticity, The Reflection Room is a psychological thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the final page. Prepare to be captivated by a world where the ultimate challenge lies within—and the only way out is through the truth.

    ---

    "A mesmerizing dive into the heart of human vulnerability and self-discovery. The Reflection Room is a must-read for anyone who has ever faced the mirror and wondered what lies beyond the surface."

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherInfinity Ink Publishers
    Release dateSep 22, 2024
    ISBN9798227563538
    The Reflection Room

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      Book preview

      The Reflection Room - Marc Everhart

      1

      The Perfect Illusion

      G

      race Mitchell awoke to the soft hum of her bedroom’s automated systems bringing her apartment to life. Sunlight filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a warm, golden hue over the minimalist decor. The walls, a soothing shade of pale grey, were adorned with an abstract art that pulsed faintly in sync with her mood. It was an illusion of tranquility, a carefully curated environment designed to reinforce the perfection she had painstakingly cultivated.

      She lay in bed for a moment longer, allowing herself to savor the fleeting calm before the day’s demands would inevitably take over. Grace could already feel the familiar tension in her chest, the low hum of anxiety that had become her constant companion. But there was no time to dwell on that. The world expected nothing less than excellence from her, and she had long ago learned to deliver.

      With a practiced motion, Grace reached for the sleek black case on her nightstand and extracted her augmented reality glasses. The device was thin and elegant, as much a fashion statement as it was a piece of cutting-edge technology. She slipped the glasses on, and the world around her sharpened into perfect clarity. Instantly, her reflection in the glass of the wardrobe across the room transformed. The slight puffiness beneath her eyes, the faint lines at the corners of her mouth, the stray hair that had escaped her meticulous bun—all vanished. In their place was the image she had carefully constructed: flawless skin, bright eyes, and an aura of effortless confidence.

      Good morning, Grace, the glasses’ AI chirped in a voice that was both soothing and efficient. You have a full schedule today. Shall I read out your appointments?

      Not yet, Grace replied, her voice still groggy with sleep. She pushed herself out of bed, feeling the cool touch of the polished concrete floor beneath her feet. Just start with the headlines.

      As she made her way to the bathroom, the glasses dutifully began to read out the morning’s news. Each story was accompanied by images and video clips projected seamlessly into her field of vision. It was a flood of information, but Grace had learned to absorb it with the ease of long practice, filtering out what was relevant and discarding the rest. The world’s chaos was neatly packaged and delivered in digestible bites, a curated reality to match the curated image she presented to it.

      In the bathroom, Grace avoided looking directly at the mirror as she went through the motions of her morning routine. Even though the augmented reality glasses would show her only the perfect reflection she had designed, there was something unsettling about seeing herself in the mirror. She kept her focus on the news headlines, distracting herself from the thoughts she didn’t want to confront.

      Once she was dressed in her usual uniform of sharp tailoring—a crisp white blouse, slim black trousers, and a tailored blazer—Grace made her way to the kitchen. There, the automated coffee maker had already prepared her usual morning blend, the aroma of rich, dark coffee filling the air. She took a sip, savoring the bitter warmth as she mentally braced herself for the day ahead.

      Her apartment was perched on the 35th floor of one of the city’s most prestigious residential towers, offering a panoramic view of the skyline. But Grace rarely took the time to appreciate the view. Her life was lived at such a relentless pace that moments of quiet reflection felt like a luxury she could no longer afford. She had come so far, built a career and a life that others envied. Yet beneath the surface, the cracks in her carefully constructed facade were beginning to show.

      The first reminder of her day’s reality came as she stepped into the elevator. The walls of the elevator were polished to a mirror-like sheen, and as the doors closed, Grace was momentarily confronted with her reflection. She knew she should look away, focus on something else, but there was something magnetic about the image staring back at her. For a split second, she saw past the augmented reality projection, glimpsing the faint shadow of the person she had worked so hard to bury. A woman whose eyes were tired, whose expression was haunted by the weight of too many compromises, too many sacrifices.

      Grace blinked, and the image snapped back into place—the perfect, polished version of herself she was accustomed to seeing. The elevator dinged, and she was once again plunged into the fast-paced, high-stakes world of her work.

      The marketing firm where Grace worked was one of the most prestigious in the city, known for its high-profile clients and cutting-edge campaigns. It was a place where only the best and brightest thrived, and where the pressure to succeed was relentless. Grace had carved out a position of power within the firm, her reputation as a brilliant strategist and leader well-established. But the cost of maintaining that position was high.

      As she walked through the sleek, modern office, her augmented reality glasses filled her vision with data overlays—her schedule, upcoming meetings, reminders to respond to emails. Colleagues greeted her with smiles, their own augmented personas just as polished and perfect as hers. But beneath the surface, Grace could sense the tension, the unspoken competition that simmered just below the surface. In this world, appearances were everything, and weakness was a luxury no one could afford.

      Her first meeting of the day was with the creative team, a group of young,

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