Chapter Text
He could only reflect, it was the base of his existence, the mirror hung in the wall so eager to please everyone around him. Reflecting their feelings made him forget about his own, because did he even have his own?
He adored to watch how the light reflected on his corporeal body, warm orange rays, warming up the rooms. But it didn’t shine on him, it bounced back, to others. Always others.
There were some times he wished he didn’t reflect, for someone to cover him with a sheet. Times where the reflections he gave hurt others, it was his fault after all, he was the one to show them what they didn’t want to see. Encouraging this hurtful behaviour against his will, he didn’t do it on purpose, tried his best to compliment every aspect. But when the darkness of the night creeped on, and the shadows enveloped his body he could only think. Sometimes, on the worst days he felt shallow, why would his mouth not say what he wanted, where his thoughts even his own? Who truly was he?
When the homeowner moved into the house Amir was excited of course, they were beautiful! They treated everything around them with kindness, even when unaware of the object’s lives. Making sure everything stayed more or less clean, fixing any crack or scratch in anyone with gentle care. In Amir’s eyes they were nothing short of perfect. All the little habits, mannerisms, how adorable they looked when they just woke up.
He would be happy to reflect them diligently, after all, he was always cleaned so thoroughly. But the human, they didn’t stare much at him. Days were their eyes lingered on their reflection, as if trying to recognise who they were. And then Reggie appeared. An annoying presence next to Amir because the other man loved to express just how much they seemed to hate themselves. -They are their own thorn, all in their head baby, all this rejection, a walking gold mine of negativity you see? And I didn’t even have to do anything. One long look at themselves and they start to cry, how pitiful…-
And Amir, in an attempt to not reflect, would not reply. Silent and almost still as a statue, until the human left or Reggie disappeared. It was his fault. His fault the human cried, his fault other objects got hurt because he couldn’t help but reflect their insecurities, their mistakes. No matter how much he tried focusing on the good part others would only see what they wanted, the rejection of who they were.
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It was a Saturday afternoon not long after the human arrived, boxes still littered the rooms, spread around the floor like a maze. Only the important things had been unpacked, new objects; new faces to meet. He would go to meet them after a bit. His focus was on the human. They sat on the bed, Betty and the others had gone to meet the recent arrivals, even Dorian was facing the other way, Amir could hear the muffled sounds of chatting and the ever so present tick of the clock over in the other room.
They had a sketchbook in had, he watched as they carefully went through the pages until they found a blank one, taking out a mechanical pencil and clicking it till the mine was long enough for their craft.
He didn’t move, focused on their hands, delicate, with some old healed scars. He watched as they stopped in place, and his eyes trailed up their body, wrapped up in a worn hoodie until their stare met his. He was sure they couldn’t see him, but a small part of him wished they could. And then they started to draw. A self portrait, nothing too detailed, a work of art in Amir’s eyes.
He made his surface as shiny as possible, let it reflect everything, every part of them. It was what he did best after all. And Reggie didn’t appear, not this time. The human took the drawing off the sketchbook and tucked it on the corner of the mirror, appearing on Amir’s right hand, on display for their eyes to see.
Amir held the piece of paper with care, it depicted the human yes, the version of themselves they saw, with some parts erased and remade time and time again, the top left corner bent slightly. Small doodles littering the sides. This drawing, now so dear to him, remained on the small end table next to his bed, framed and safe from the environment.
It was something precious, an unintended gift, but it meant something. In his brain, a small voice soothed his thoughts, the human didn’t hate themselves, not as much as Reggie said. He had not messed up, not fully.
Amir spent the last minutes of his day staring at their sleeping form, curled up on Betty and looking just so lovely with moonlight brushing their face. He stepped into his small apartment, giving the drawing a last glance before laying down. And for once, no thoughts plagued his mind when the silence fell onto him.