Chapter 1

At a family gathering, my mother suddenly announced a strange rule.

"Don't look in the mirror on the first day of the year," she said.

Everyone just laughed it off, thinking it was a joke.

That was until the first person who broke the rule vanished without a trace...

*****

Ten minutes ago, my uncle Derek Ford's wife, Luna Ford, said she was going to her room to touch up her lipstick.

When she came out, she had undergone a dramatic transformation.

She went from a 200-pound woman to a stunning 110-pound beauty.

She looked like she'd shed twenty years overnight.

I was stunned. "Who are you? Why are you in my house? Where's Luna?"

Everyone at the table stared at me like I was crazy.

"What nonsense are you talking about, sweetie? This is Luna."

"Derek, you really lucked out marrying such a beautiful wife."

Luna sat down with a big smile, flirting with Uncle Derek like they were newlyweds.

I was totally confused, rubbing my eyes in disbelief.

Was I still half-asleep?

But I was positive Luna was a middle-aged woman in her forties.

A few minutes later, my dad suddenly clutched his stomach, looking like he was in agony.

"I can't take it anymore," he said. "I've got diarrhea. I need to use the bathroom."

I stared at the door, not blinking.

This time, it was even more absurd.

To my utter disbelief, an old man in his eighties suddenly walked out of the bathroom.

I was so shocked that my eyes nearly popped out of my head.

Where did my dad go?

I dashed into the bathroom to look for him, but there was no one there.

What was going on?

I said anxiously, "Dad's missing!"

Everyone at the table looked at me strangely and pointed at the odd old man who had just walked out.

"That's your dad."

I stared in disbelief. "This old guy... is my dad?"

Were they playing a prank on me?

"Your dad cared for you so much, yet you went out to work and came back not even recognizing your own father?" one of my relatives asked.

I looked at my mom for help.

But even my mom looked at me with a bit of blame in her eyes.

"Stop talking nonsense and apologize to your dad right now!" she said.

The old man waved his hand and took a sip of his whiskey.

Then, he said, "Maybe I didn't give her enough money. That's why she's upset and messing with me."

He turned to me and added, "Here, I'll make it up to you with some extra cash."

He grabbed my hand with his wrinkled fingers, pulled me back to the table, and stuffed a thick stack of cash into my arms.

I stared at all this in disbelief, rubbing my eyes again and again.

This guy was straight-up terrifying. How could he possibly be my dad?

But everyone else at the table acted like nothing was out of the ordinary. Nobody seemed to notice anything off.

One by one, they lined up to toast this unfamiliar old man, laughing and chatting about family stuff as if he'd always been there.

A chill ran down my spine, and I broke out in goosebumps.

The heartwarming family scene before me suddenly twisted into something bizarre and unsettling.

I sat through the whole meal with my nerves shot, barely able to swallow a bite.

I was constantly on edge, terrified someone else might suddenly change right before my eyes.

After dinner, the guys went off to play cards, while the women headed to the kitchen to do the dishes or settled in the living room to watch TV.

I gave my head a hard knock, still completely at a loss for what was happening.

Was I dreaming?

Or were they all messing with me?

Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw my cousin Olivia Ford pull a compact mirror out of her bag.

A flash of inspiration struck me, and the two incidents clicked together.

Right before dinner, my mom had suddenly announced a rule. No looking in the mirror on the first day of the year.

At the time, I didn't think much of it.

Now, it suddenly hit me that there were mirrors in both the bedroom and the bathroom.

Could it be that because Luna and Dad had looked into the mirrors, they had changed into completely different people?

The realization sent chills down my spine, and I rushed over, slapping the mirror right out of Olivia's hand.

"Don't look in the mirror!" I urged.

With a sharp snap, the mirror crashed to the floor and shattered.

Olivia jumped, patting her chest to calm herself.

"Why did you rush over like that? You freaked me out! Why can't I look in the mirror?" she asked in confusion.

My grandma frowned and chided me.

"Joyce, what are you doing? That's so rude! Apologize to her right now."

I ignored her and hurried to explain to Olivia that Luna and my dad had suddenly transformed, becoming people I didn't even recognize.

A mischievous glint appeared in Olivia's eyes, her shock fading into playful curiosity.

She let out a laugh. "Seriously? That's amazing! I wish I could wake up skinny and gorgeous, too."

"No! She literally turned into someone else, a stranger!" I blurted out.

My dad overheard from the card table and asked, "Still not happy with the money I gave you? I'll sneak you some more tonight. Stop bothering Olivia."

No one believed me. They all thought I was being dramatic for no reason.

I dashed into the kitchen, nearly tripping over my own feet, and found my mom at the sink, washing dishes.

"Mom, didn't you say we're not supposed to look in the mirror on the first day of the year?" I asked.

Mom's hands froze mid-wash. "Yeah, why?"

I felt like I was grabbing onto the last lifeline.

I said, "Dad and Luna looked in the mirror, and suddenly they became totally different people! No, it's like they got replaced by strangers. It's hard to explain, but they disappeared, and now there are strangers in their place!

"Mom, we have to get them back!"

But my mom's next words made my heart sink straight to the bottom.

She said, "When did they even look in the mirror?"

It was like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over my head.