If you've stopped looking for the monsters under your bed, and find them in your head – When you look in the mirror what do you see?

-X-x-X-x-X-

"Mark!" Charlotte said, walking through his apartment. "Mark!? Are you here?" She called out, she sighed and shook her head.

"Charlie..." She heard suddenly and whipped around to see a very disheveled Mark. "Mark, holy hell... What happened to you?"

"I'm... I don't know. I – I was fine yesterday, but then..." He trailed off, his brows furrowed as he tried to figure out what had happened. "How did you get in?" He asked Charlie, switching topics quickly.

"You gave me a key, remember? Mark, what happened? 'But then' what?" Charlie questioned, reaching for his arm but he pulled it away. "Mark, are you okay?"

"I don't know." Mark muttered, shaking his head. He made a strange noise, one that sounded like he'd just been punched and he lurched over. "Leave." Mark told Charlie, as he began to sweat. He seemed to limp to his bathroom with Charlie in tow, but slammed the door and locked it before she could get in.

"Mark, open the door!" Charlie shouted, slamming her hand against it. "Leave!" Mark shouted back to his girlfriend, he almost collapsed against the ground as he had his back to the door. Charlie stopped pounding on the door as Mark ran his hands up his neck then over his face and through his hair, linking them together behind his neck.

He looked into the mirror and turned on the water, washing his face with the coldest water he could get. "Wake up..." He whispered to himself. "This is just a dream." Mark said, and as he looked in the mirror again he didn't see himself, not really. Mark saw him.

"Aw, Mark, this isn't a dream. You wish it was!" His reflection laughed. Mark smacked his hands onto each side of his head. "Leave!" He screamed.

"Mark, I'm not leaving!" Charlie said through the door and Mark looked weak, he felt like crying as he leaned against the door and whispered. "Not you..." He traced his fingers against the door and looked into the mirror to see, well, Dark walking around, pacing.

"Mark, c'mon. Let's have a little fun, shall we?"

"No, no – No!" Mark replied, shaking his head. "I kept you under wraps for so long... I – I don't understand."

"That doesn't matter right now, because I'm taking over." Dark told him with a wicked smile. "We're gonna do things the old fashioned way, buddy!" Dark laughed, pressing his hand to the mirror as if it where a window.

"Think of this as a window, Markimoo - " Dark began. "You know the drill, just put your hand on mine and pull me out. Set me free, I'll make all your worries disappear."

"You'll only kill people, that's how you make problems disappear." Mark countered, shaking his head. Dark rolled his eyes. "I've been with you your whole life, Marcus... C'mon, just put your hand up – There, that's it!" Dark encouraged. "Just put your hand to mine and I'll make you happy, you'll enjoy my stay. I'll make you feel right at home." Dark told him with a chuckle. Mark held his hand up slightly and looked at it. "Please, don't make me do this..." Mark muttered, tears pricking his eyes as he thought of Charlie outside. If she had said anything to him, Mark had tuned her out.

"Just pull me out and it'll all be okay." Dark whispered, his hand against the mirror. Mark closed his eyes and breathed deeply. "Promise me you'll leave her, Charlie, alone – Promise me that." Mark said.

Dark tilted his head. "Fine."

"Say it, promise me!" Mark shouted. Dark crossed his arms. "I promise." Mark nodded uneasily and put his hand up, slowly bringing it to the mirror where Dark laid his hand. Dark laughed as the mirror cracked where their hands were, Mark began pulling him out until Dark was stood in front of him. "Oh, Mark, you've fucked up big!" He laughed as Mark furrowed his eyebrows before Dark wrapped his hands around his neck.

He slammed him against the wall and laughed darkly. "I pulled you out!" Mark choked. "I can throw you right back in!" Mark threatened. Dark shook his head and smiled. "Not this time, buddy – This time, I get to shine. I get to have fun. And it'll be your face all over it, I hate to do that but if I go on a mass killing spree it comes in handy." Dark said, shrugging. Mark was thrown to the ground before Dark pulled him up by his collar and outstretched Mark's right arm.

"In you go!" Dark cackled, shoving Mark's hand into the glass. "This isn't what we agreed!" Mark cried out. Dark rolled his eyes and pushed Mark in all the way. Mark screamed inside the mirror and slammed his fists against it.

"I told you, I would take over... And with this cracked mirror, buddy, you can't leave." Dark told him. Normally when Mark let Dark out, Dark would appear as a shadow behind him and stay like that till Mark shoved him back.

"Hey, Charlie!" Dark said, unlocking the door quickly. "No, leave her alone!" Mark screamed, beating his fists against the mirror as his heart raced. He felt so helpless, so...weak as he watched Dark help his girlfriend up from sitting on the floor. Mark was crying at this point, slamming himself into the mirror it did nothing.

"Charlie!" Mark screamed, but she didn't hear anything as Dark tucked some hair behind her ear. "Are you okay?" Charlie asked Dark.

"Perfect, but at the same time... I don't feel quite like myself." Dark said, shaking his head slightly.

"I've been having... strange dreams lately." Dark told Charlie. "But now you're here!" Dark said happily, his tone slightly ominous. "And I'll make you feel right at home – Welcome..." He said quietly. "Enjoy your stay."

"Uh, Mark? Are you sure you're okay?" She asked him, well at least she thought he was Mark. "I told you, I'm perfect, Charlotte."

"Charlotte? Mark, you know I prefer Charlie."

"Right, sorry." Dark replied, laughing as Mark was leaning against the mirror watching them. "Let me out!" He screamed, the mirror crack getting bigger with every punch he made to it. "Give me a second." Dark said quietly, walking into the bathroom. He shut the door and looked at Mark.

"The bigger you make this, the more likely you'll never be able to get out – And because Charlie doesn't know about me, she doesn't believe in me. So she can't see this crack here, buddy! Scream all you want, no one can hear you and no one can see you."

"Dark! You've turned into a monster!" Mark screamed as Dark reached for the door handle. Dark glanced over his shoulder with black eyes, nodding. "And I keep on getting stronger... Enjoy your stay."

Mark watched Dark leave the bathroom and join Charlie, walking from the hallway. Mark shook his head and screamed again, he turned to the door's reflection in the mirror and sighed. "I doubt this will work." He muttered as he set his hand on the handle. In the actual world, the doorknob only turned slightly, but it didn't turn at all in the reflection and appeared closed even though it wasn't.

"Out, let me out!" Mark screamed, pounding against the door. The sound was heard through the house but Mark didn't know. Mark inhaled deeply as he sank to his knees and shook his head. "I'm stuck."

"I've let the monster out... Into my world, to be with my friends and family..." He groaned. "With strangers... With Charlie."