The savory smell of the sizzling bacon filled the house with a sense of comfort on a crisp, autumn day. The ground was lightly dusted with fresh snow from the night before. What a feeling of nostalgia this scene could bring to anyone in this town. This is exactly the feeling Sarina experienced as she stepped into the safety of her quaint, little house. Sarina slowly took off her jacket and scarf, still stiff from the numbing effect the chilling air had brought on her. She walked into the kitchen and found a lovely surprise; her husband, Michael, had prepared them breakfast. She sat down before a stack of hot pancakes and crispy pieces of bacon. This was the perfect remedy for the chill that still hung over her.
“How was work?” Michael asked.
“Oh, it was fine. Just the same old drama with the other employees. All they do is complain about their inferior issues,” Sarina replied.
“That’s too bad. At least the breakfast I made you will brighten your mood. Or at least I hope so.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“But I worked so hard on this!”
“Sounds like you wasted your time.”
“Sarina, I put a lot of time into making this breakfast for you. Can’t you at least show some appreciation for what I do? I make you breakfast, I take care of the house... I put just as much effort into what I do as you do.”
“Oh yeah, like laying around the house all day is work. I am the one who makes all of our money, not you. I am the important one in this household. I actually do something for a living, while you sit around on your ass all day and do nothing.”
“Excuse me? I have been trying to find myself a job too! You are so self-centered! You act like you are the only person in the world that means anything!!!”
“Me? Self-centered? How could you say that Michael?!”
“You know it’s true! You don’t even care about me or what I do; it’s all about you.”
“And why should anyone care about you, with your hateful words?” Sarina retorted.
“Sarina, that’s it! I have had it with you and your attitude! I think we need to be done for a little while, maybe think about our actions and words.”
“Oh yeah? What do you want me to do, leave?”
“Yes! Right now! Go find someone else that will tell you how great you are all the time without any appreciation for themselves!” Michael ordered.
And with that, Sarina was banished from her house. Infuriated, she stormed out of the kitchen to go gather the things she thought she might need in the days to come. She then walked up to the door and turned around to take one last look at her husband.
“I hope you are forever alone!” she screamed at him.
And with that, she slammed the door shut and began to run. Sarina was enraged. Her brain was a whirlwind of emotions, and she was sobbing. She ran, faster and faster, trying to escape the hands of her emotions. A park soon came into view. This park was one of Sarina’s favorite places because it brought such a sense of peace to anyone who walked in it. The park was filled with large willow trees, swaying in the wind. On this day, however, the willow trees looked as though they were sagging just a little bit more than usual, and the wind was howling just a bit more mournfully than usual. Today, the park carried a very gloomy feeling. Sarina found a park bench to sit down on so she could collect herself. The bench was beginning to rust over. The roots of nearby trees reached out for its feet. Wisps of fog slithered along the ground. This scenery was much drearier than usual, and it brought Sarina back to her sobbing state. She buried her face in her scarf, partially to protect her from the nip of the wind and partially to prevent passersby from seeing her. Her shield did not work as well as she had planned. Out of the fog came a small, somewhat undefined figure. This mysterious figure walked right up to the bench and sat next to Sarina. Sarina peeked up from her scarf at the person and concluded that it was an older woman. She was wearing a cloak-like jacket three sizes too big for her.
“My dear, what is troubling you?” asked the woman.
“Nothing... What do you want from me? I can’t help you right now.”
“I saw you crying, so I thought I better see if I could be of any assistance. If you would like me to leave, I will. But I believe I can help you more than you think.”
“I just split up with my husband, and now I don’t know what I will do. But why should I tell you my story? I don’t even know who you are,” Sarina said with skepticism.
“Because I am here to listen. Tell me about your husband. What happened?” the woman questioned.
“Well it seemed as though my life was going great until this morning...” Sarina went on to tell the rest of the story about what had happened that morning. “...My husband told me that he did not want to be with me anymore because I am too ‘self-centered’,” she ended.
“Ahhhhh I see. You know, I have a friend who experienced the exact same thing as you did. But he claims that he discovered the secret to finding your true love, and he is now the happiest man I know. If you would like, I can tell you how to find this man. He might be able to give you some advice,” the woman offered.
“Nothing can repair a broken heart so quickly. Why on earth should I believe anything you are telling me?” asked Sarina.
“Darling, I have been in a similar position as well. This man was definitely able to change my life for the better. What other choice do you have? You have no other place to go to, so why not try to mend that broken heart of yours?”
These words were quite persuasive to Sarina, especially when her heart was in such a delicate state. Whether it was because of the woman’s words or the overwhelming heartbroken emotions, Sarina requested that the woman tell her how to find the man she had described.
“Alright. The directions are quite simple. Do you know the mansion at the top of the hill just north of here? My friend lives there. He will help you find your true love. Now how can you have a tragic love life when you are with a person who you know is your true love?”
“Oh, thank you. I now have a small bit of hope to keep me going,” said Sarina.
She began to walk in the direction that the woman had pointed out, when her husband’s words from earlier popped into her head.
“How can I repay you for your kindness...?” she asked as she turned around.
Sarina’s words trailed off when she realized that the mysterious woman was no longer there. The woman had retired into the fog just as she had come. Sarina started on the path, straight in the direction of the mansion. As her journey went on, the fog began to dissipate and the sun started to break through the clouds. Soon she came to the hill on top of which the mansion rested. As she climbed up the hill, the mansion was revealed. Six intricate columns fronted the mansion. The front yard featured a small garden, filled with delicate, yellow narcissus flowers,  which encircled a sparkling pond. In the center of the pond, a grand sculpture of the greek god, Narcissus, stood tall. Sarina approached the door of the mansion, but she was stopped before she could knock. A voice called from one of the windows above her.
“Hello, may I help you?” boomed the voice.
Sarina looked up, and she saw a young man looking out from one of the windows on the second floor.
“Yes,” she answered, “I was told to come here. I heard you might be able to help with relationship troubles”
“Alright, I think I can offer you some help. You must be Sarina.”
“Yes! How did you know that?”
“I have my sources...” he said suspiciously. “To make sure that I am the right man to help you, I am going to need you to let yourself in. This may seem strange, but the door to my mansion is very special. If you are truly in need of my help, you will be able to open the door and come in. However, if you attempt to open the door and it appears to be locked, then I will not be able to help you and we will have to let fate take its course. Please, go ahead and come in, if you are able to.”
Sarina tried the door, and it swung open. She stepped into the foyer. It was quite a stately room, decorated with many striking paintings. Sarina was immediately drawn to them, but she had no time to observe for the man from the window came into the room.
“Welcome. Please, follow me into the kitchen. I would like to prepare you a cup of tea if you don’t mind,” he suggested.
Sarina left the paintings behind. She failed to realize that all of the paintings were portraits, of the strange man nonetheless.
“Please, sit down,” the man offered. “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Narcissus. I understand that you must be having some difficulties with your love life, no? I have the ability to change this. However, it all depends on how you react to what I tell you.”
“What do you mean?” Sarina asked inquisitively.
“Today, I can show you who your true love is. Whether or not you find out who it is, that is up to you. If you choose not to learn who your true love is, then you will most likely be happier. It may not seem so right now, but sometimes just letting fate take its course can bring the best ending. If you choose to find out who your true love is, I must warn you that who you see will not be who you expect. And this person, whoever it may be, will always be your true love, and nothing can change that. Once you discover your secret, there will never be anyone else of importance to you.”
This warning made no difference to Sarina. She stood up and requested to be shown her true love. Narcissus obeyed, and he led her down a winding staircase into the basement. They stepped down into a room full of eyes. Eyes of marble, that is. Sculptures of Narcissus were scattered about the room, each positioned so that wherever Sarina looked, someone was giving her their full attention.
“Narcissus, these are all statues of you...” she observed.
“Oh yes, never mind that. It’s... an art project of mine.”
Sarina, now starting to feel that something was not quite right, turned to him. However, it was too late. She had already come this far.
“Show me the man of my dreams, the one who I am destined to be with,” she demanded.
Narcissus pointed his finger just over Sarina’s right shoulder. She looked where he was aiming. A door was revealed to her that she had not noticed before. It was hidden in a dark corner, guarded by the abandoned traps spiders had once set. Sarina’s palms began to sweat.
“If that door is any foreshadowing of what I’m about to find out, then I am not receiving good news any time soon,” she thought to herself. “And why is this basement filled with statues of Narcissus? The thought of anyone calling me self-centered...”
She looked at Narcissus, and he looked back at her, along with all of his other eyes, encouraging her to open the door. To find out the truth. She would never have to worry about finding the wrong person to be with. Slowly, she reached for the door.
“It is your fate and you can never change it,” Narcissus said gravely, as if he were trying to change Sarina’s mind.
Oh, but the power of curiosity. It can overcome any feelings of doubt. Sarina turned the knob and the door creaked open. Tentatively, she crept into the dark room. Whoosh! Bang! The door slammed shut. Sarina was trapped in a black silence. She whipped around, clawing for the door handle. She gripped it tightly and yanked on it as hard as she could. Throwing her fists at the door, she screamed for help. A sudden beam of light pierced the darkness. Reluctantly, Sarina turned. She stared straight ahead, right back into her own eyes. The entire room was covered in mirrors, all duplicating her decrepit figure. Her heart dropped to the ground and shattered into millions of pieces. Vacancy filled her forsaken body and she fell to her knees.
There, in the Room of Mirrors, Sarina remained, forever the prisoner of the self-loving Narcissus. In the years that followed, the mirrors reflected the dying of her soul, her one true love.