The Mansion's Threshold- written by Ponam Malik

Rain fell softly as the old mansion stood silently like a relic from the past. Lightning briefly lit up the sky, revealing the broken walls and rusted gates. Maheen stepped out of the car and took a deep breath. “This is it… my grandmother’s inheritance,” she whispered. As she opened the gate, a cool gust of wind brushed her face. The moment she stepped inside, time seemed to freeze. The silence of years was embedded in the walls and corridors. “There’s something strange here,” Maheen thought. Room after room, empty hallways, wooden stairs that creaked with every step—everything felt abandoned, yet alert. One particular door remained shut, as if someone had purposely kept it that way. When Maheen tried to open it, the handle turned on its own. The room inside was dark and chilling, as though icy winds had made it their home. “You’ve come… finally,” a low, masculine voice echoed. Maheen’s heart skipped a beat. “W-Who’s there?” she stammered. There was no response—only silence. But the voice had left a strange impact on her soul.

The next day, Maheen tried speaking with the villagers, but they all avoided the topic of the mansion. Only one elderly woman dared to speak. “Child, that mansion… it’s not just bricks and walls. There’s a spirit there, someone whose heart was shattered. He’s still waiting for someone.” Maheen laughed it off, but the voice kept returning, night after night. Slowly, it became her companion in solitude. “Who are you? Why do you visit my dreams?” she once asked. “My name is Ayaan… I once owned this mansion. And you… you are the one I loved.” Maheen thought she was going insane. But then she found an old locket, hidden in a secret drawer. Inside was a picture of Ayaan—and a girl who looked exactly like her.

Ayaan told her he lived in the mansion back in 1947. His fiancée was poisoned to death, and Ayaan had taken his own life. But his soul remained trapped because his love remained unfulfilled. “You are my light… my awaited one. You are Zoya, reborn.” Maheen trembled from within. Yet, somehow, her heart began to believe him. She spent her nights talking to him, listening to his stories. Gradually, fear turned into affection. Maheen fell in love with the unseen spirit.

Rumors spread among the villagers. They warned her to leave the mansion. But she stayed. She felt her life and death were now tied to Ayaan. One night, Ayaan said, “If you want, I can take you with me. To a world where only we exist.” Tears filled Maheen’s eyes. “That world… is it not for the living?” Ayaan remained silent, then softly replied, “You only have to say ‘yes’… then this world will vanish.”

Maheen looked at herself in the mirror—she was thinner, weaker, yet her eyes sparkled with a strange light. Ayaan’s love had broken her… and completed her. One morning, silence enveloped the mansion. Villagers noticed the open gate, but Maheen was nowhere to be found. No trace of her remained. Only the locket lay on the stairs. Inside were two pictures—Ayaan and Maheen’s. And a small folded note: “Love doesn’t end… only the world changes. We are together now… forever.”

Love’s shadows are stories of those who cannot let go, even after death. Sometimes, souls part ways—but love… love never dies.