Mitchell crouched down, basketball in hand as he looked at the basket. His eyes darted back and forth to his opponents, his friend Rob and his ‘cousin’ Nate, both of them fifteen-years-old, just like him. The driveway where they were playing wasn’t all that large, but it was enough for a little playing around.

“You’re not getting past me, dude,” Nate taunted.

“We’ll see about that,” Mitchell told him.

With that, Mitchell made his move, faking to the left, then lunging to the right and throwing the ball. The ball hit the backboard then dropped right through the hoop.

“YES,” Mitchell exclaimed triumphantly.

“Lucky throw,” Nate teased him.

“No luck here,” Mitchell protested. “Just skill.”

Rob chuckled at that. “And by a strange coincidence, whenever you miss the basket, it was just bad luck, not a lack, of skill.”

“You’re just jealous of my talent,” Mitchell bragged.

“What talent?” Nate asked with a grin. Then Nate took the ball and made his own successful throw. “Nothing but net. Now THAT is talent.”

“Ah, damn,” Rob groaned. “I just realized that I’ve got to go. I was supposed to be home an hour ago.”

“I should get going too,” Nate grudgingly added.

Mitchell let out a disappointed sigh but nodded his understanding. “I’ll see you later,” he told Rob.

“Later,” Rob responded before he took off to head home.

“So,” Mitchell told Nate. “You have GOT to come back for a rematch.”

“Yeah,” Nate agreed with a grin. “And I want to try that new video game you bought. I heard that it’s pretty good.”

“It’s awesome,” Mitchell agreed. “You have GOT to try it.”

With that, Mitchell picked up the ball, then the two boys went back into the house. When they reached the living room, Mitchell stopped and waited. Nate continued on, going into the side room which had originally been intended as an office. Once at the door, Nate gave Mitchell a nod before going inside and closing the door behind him.

A minute later, the office door opened and Mitchell’s mom stepped out. She immediately smiled at Mitchell and asked, “So, how was your visit with Nate?”

“It was fun,” Mitchell told her. “Next time, I’m going to show him that new game I’ve been playing.”

“I’m sure he’ll enjoy that,” his mom told him with a smile. “And that reminds me, Mina promised she’d join me for brunch with the girls tomorrow, and I believe Lori is expecting Michelle to visit today.”

“That’s right,” Mitchell responded. “I’d almost forgotten.”

“Well, I have a few things to take care of,” his mom told him before she wandered off towards the kitchen.

Mitchell watched her go, then looked at the door to the office. He shrugged, then went back to his bedroom to drop off the basketball. However, he didn’t remain there for long. His sister, Lori, would be home soon, and he didn’t want to make her wait on him.

Fifteen minutes later, Lori’s car pulled into the driveway. It was an older car which their parents had bought for her the year before, right after she’d gotten her drivers license. Mitchell hoped that his parents would buy him a car too, but he wasn’t going to count on it.

“Hey,” Lori greeted Mitchel once she stepped inside.

“Hey,” he responded with a nod of greeting.

Lori stared at Mitchell for a moment, then said, “Michelle said that she’d go shopping with me today…”

Mitchell nodded at that. “I know.”

Lori let out a faint sigh, then gave him a faint nod before heading back towards the office. She quickly came back out and simply said, “It’s ready.”

“Alright,” Mitchell muttered as he went to the office.

Once Mitchell stepped inside, he closed the door behind him and looked around. The room was lined with clothing racks, making it look more like a walk-in closet than an office. This impression was cemented by the fact that there was a large, full-length mirror on the far wall, one with an ornate silver frame.

Mitchell immediately went to the mirror and came to a stop in front of it. The reflection that stared back from the mirror was not his own, but Lori’s. His own sister stared back at him from the mirror.

“Hey, sis,” Mitchell said with a chuckle as he waved his hand at the reflection, which mimicked the movement just like a reflection should. “This part always gets weird.”

With that, Mitchell reached out and touched the mirror. The moment his fingers touched the glass, he felt a cold tingle that spread over his entire body. Reality seemed to ripple around him, and a second later, his entire body had changed.

Mitchell stared at his reflection in the mirror, which had changed from what he’d seen mere seconds ago. He no longer saw Lori staring back, but a different seventeen-year-old girl. She was a pretty brunette, one with a fashionable outfit that was similar in style to what Lori wore.

“Welcome back, Michelle,” Mitchell said to his reflection.

Michelle carefully checked her hair and makeup, making sure that it was all presentable. After all, a girl had to look her best, especially when she was about to go out with her besties. While she did this, she was careful not to touch the mirror again.

“Damn girl,” Michelle told her reflection. “You look totally hot.”

She giggled, knowing that no matter how many times she went through this, it never got old. Not only had she turned into a cute girl, one who was Lori’s peer in every way, she also got all the knowledge, skills, and personality traits that she’d need to fill that role. And she would remain like this, as Michelle, for six hours or until she touched the mirror again.

Once Michelle was satisfied, she turned around and left the office. She smiled at Lori, who was waiting for her in the living room.

“Hey, cousin,” Michelle greeted her.

“I’m glad you could visit, Michelle,” Lori told her.

“I wouldn’t miss it,” Michelle responded. “You know how much I love shopping with you.”

Lori giggled at that. “I know. It’s strange, isn’t it?”

“Always,” Michelle agreed. “And the strangest part is just how normal this all feels.”

“I know,” Lori added. “Whenever I turn into Lance to spend time with Dad, I always like beer, sports, and ogling hot girls.”

“And I get to be Mina again tomorrow,” Michelle agreed. “Wine, gardening, and gossip.” She giggled. “Well, those will be my favorite things once I change. But for now…”

“Boys and shopping,” Lori announced with a gleeful grin. “It’s just too bad that the mirror can only change one person at a time, otherwise I’d insist that Nadine and Bekka come with us too.”

“That would be fun,” Michelle agreed. “A total girl’s outing. But Mom and Dad…I mean…Aunt Nancy and Uncle Roger are too busy, even if the mirror did work that way”

Lori nodded with a look of disappointment. “True. And if we could all change at once, we’d all be stuck doing Dad’s poker nights, Mom’s wine club meetings, and playing Mitchell’s games all the time.”

Michelle nodded at that, then reminded Lori, “And don’t forget, Logan owes Mitchell a rematch the next time he comes to visit.”

“I…he’s looking forward to it,” Lori agreed. “But right now, it’s time for us girls to have some fun.”

“All right,” Michelle responded with a smile, already looking forward to the shopping trip, and more importantly, the cute boys they might see while out. “This is going to be so much fun.”

The End