Audrey Jeffrey Kah Tsin Winnie

With her big brown eyes, she stared at the mirror. Her tiny palms against it, trying to grasp unto the girl in front of her. The girl in the mirror smiled, amused by such curiosity. Her fascination towards her reflection made her oblivious to her surroundings. Oblivious to the fact the her mother was now right behind her. Mother smiled at the sight of Leah and scooped her toddler into her arms gently. "Yes,Leah" She whispered to her. "The girl in the mirror, she's beautiful isn't she?"

Right,left and over. Mother pleated Leah's mousy hair. She sat still and quiet, holding on tightly to a hand mirror in her right palm. Mother's hands swayed with such grace as she intertwined her daughter's hair. She was careful not to pull on it too tightly in fear that her daughter might feel the slightest pinch. Mother then pat Leah's head as a sign that she was done. Leah lifted the mirror to her face, her lips still straight across her square face. Mother looked at her and said

"The girl in the mirror, she's beautiful isn't she?" The girl in the mirror looked back and said nothing.

She sat on her bed quietly, brushing her long mousy hair over and over again. Knock Knock. It was her mother. "Baby, Kirk's waiting downstairs" Leah nodded and made her way to the vanity table. She felt for a tube of lipgloss and quickly smeared it on her lips. Kirk smiled at the sight of his beautiful fiancée. He kissed her gently on the forehead and let out a gentle chuckle. With his thumb, he wiped off the excess lipgloss on the side of her lips. In the car, he noticed Leah staring at the rear view mirror. A pair of brown eyes looked back at him. He then mouthed to the girl in the mirror. "You're beautiful". She kept staring. There was no response.

Her make up was done and her hair was beautifully twirled into curls. She felt like a princess. She looked like one. Mother reached for her daughter's veil and placed it gently down her face. She placed her palms onto her daughter cheeks and smiled at her. Looking into the mirror in front of them, Mother said " The girl in the mirror, she's beautiful isn't she?" Teardrops started to cascade down her cheeks. The girl in the mirror started to cry.

After hours of waiting, the door of the operating theater finally burst open. Kirk stood up and saw the hospital staff pushing both his mother-in-law and wife into opposite directions. The doctor gave Kirk a thumbs up to ensure him that the operation was a success. As Leah opened her eyes, she was greeted by a smiling Kirk. This time, she smiled back. Her lips were no longer straight. Her eyes smiled brightly. "I want to see my mother" she said. In a wheelchair, Kirk pushed his wife down the hospital hall way. Room 209. Leah gently pushed the door open and there, she saw her mother sitting up right on a hospital bed. She looked the same as always.

Mother smiled at the sound of her ward door creaking. She knew it was her daughter. Her Leah."The girl in the mirror. She's beautiful, isn't she?" Leah sat on the bed with her mother. She threw her arms around her mother's neck and started to cry. She looked at the hand mirror her mother was holding up to her face and nodded. Her mother's lips curved into a smile as she felt the nod. " I'm glad you finally get to see it with my eyes".

Jess x.