Your Eyes, My Nemesis

by: Rocel Rosales Illustration by: Jan Clyde Napiri

Mirror is enchanted. Nothing works as mesmerizing as it does every time I see the beauty of my reflection through it. A day feels incomplete if I can't take a glance of myself in it. But remember, mirror is enchanted. One moment it shows your beauty which surely pleases you. But the next moment, it shows all the things you always try to hide and all the implausible things you've been through. It is the reason I cannot look at it as long as I want. It's enchantingly fearsome. Can I ever find something more mesmerizing than the mirror? A little bit less fearsome to look at as long as I want to. One day as I am walking under the rain, I accidentally saw you. No, not you. I saw myself in you. Particularly in your clear, beady eyes.

Those eyes caught me off guard. I had never seen myself as beautiful as the way your eyes reflect my image. Now, I can't live a day without looking at you. The way I see myself in your eyes pleases me so much that I do not want to end this stare anymore. I tried to remain looking good before your eyes. I tried too many things to make myself prettier and better. I don't care if I have to leave my real self behind. I don't care if I have to change everything about me. The only thing I do not want to change is my reflection that I see in your eyes. That is what matters to me. You mattered to me so much because of that enchanting eyes. That is why I love you. I'm becoming too drawn by your eyes. Each day that passes, it's getting harder to resist looking at it. Your eyes made me see things I've never seen in me whenever I look at the mirror. Those eyes showed me that I am worth loving and I am worth the praises for I possess the beauty one can ever have. Looking straight into your eyes, all I can utter is "I love you," Your eyes, my Nemesis is a curse which I do not want to escape from. I won't ever let anyone destroy those eyes. Day till night and even till dawn, let me just look into your eyes. I won't get tired, so I beg you not to grow weary. "You're slowly breaking me," you said. But one day, I saw tears dropping from your eyes. Those clear eyes became the otherwise. I asked and begged you to stop it. I couldn't stand looking at you crying. I couldn't stand looking at those unwell eyes. I waited overnight till it goes clear again. But it never came back. It remained unclear and weary that I can't see any reflection in it. "You are the cursed one, Narcissa," You tried closing your eyes but I did not let you. "No, you are not taking away the love of my life," I aggressively uttered. "Tell me who is it? Who is it that you love?" "It's you, of course!" "No, you don't love me. There is not even a chance you looked at me. You are just merely staring in my eyes but those lovingly looks are for your own reflection. The one that you actually love isn't me. You are a selfish, Narcissa. It wasn't my eyes that is cursed. It was your vanity."