My wife and I finally had date night, but I don't think we'll be going out again anytime soon

My wife Monica and I had been trying to get out of the house and spend some time together without our kids for weeks now, but something always came up.
Of course, we love our children, but every parent needs some time away from them once in a while. If Jordan didn?t have soccer practice, Vicky had a wrestling match. If everything seemed to be going fine, Vicky suddenly caught something and gave it to Jordan, who gave it to Monica, who gave it to me.
I was starting to accept the fact that we would never have a date night that didn?t include the kids ever again when suddenly it happened.
?What are you doing this Friday?? Monica asked me one morning as we watched the kids get on the school bus.
?Uhhh, nothing.? I replied, surprised.
?Yeah...I?ve got nothing going on Friday.?
Monica grinned. ?Me neither.?
?Maybe we can make a reservation at that place we like?? I asked.
Monica clasped her hands together and nodded.
?Oh, I?ve been dying to go there!? She exclaimed.
As the school bus rolled across the front of our house, I felt the excitement drift off my face.
?The kids have Fall break.? I replied.
?That?s perfect!? She said.
I looked over at her.
?You want to do date night with the kids?? I asked, hoping I didn?t sound too selfish.
?No, silly. I meant they?ll probably be begging to go to sleepovers, which works out great for us!? She said.
And she was right; when the kids came home that Friday, they were begging us to let them sleepover and their friend's places.
It took less convincing than other times, and a few hours later, Monica and I had dropped Jordan and Vicky off at their friends' houses, and we were on our way to our date.
Monica kept looking over at me and grinning, the excitement radiating off of her face. She rolled the car window down and closed her eyes as the cool wind rippled through her hair.
I looked up, and I could finally see the restaurant. I reached over and tapped Monica?s thigh.
I turned into the parking lot and slowed down, gently rolling the car across the lot.
?Miroirs?? Monica asked as I drove down the lot, looking for an empty spot.
I ducked my head so I could see the sign through the windshield. The wooden sign that used to say Date Night had been replaced with a huge, neon, reflective sign that read Miroirs in a font that reminded me of Comic Sans.
I parked in front of the building and turned the car off, but neither one of us got out.
?Did you know they had changed it?? She asked finally.
I shook my head.
?When I called for the reservation, they answered as they always do. Date Night Cafe, how may I help you?? I said, repeating the line that we knew all too well.
?They don?t even serve French food, why is the name in French?? Monica asked.
I shook my head and looked over at her.
She was still staring at the sign.
It was ugly; the bright, color-changing lights ruined the entire mood of the place. What was once a cozy, warm restaurant now resembled a cheap club advertisement.
?Well, I mean, we?re here. And we already made a reservation. Besides, how long have we been trying to get out, just the two of us??
?You?re right. Besides, how bad can it be? Maybe they just changed the name.? She finally said.
We finally got out of the car and walked into the restaurant. It looked almost the same on the inside; wooden floors and furniture, the brick fireplace over to the left, the small chandeliers casting a warm glow over the place. The only different thing was the mirrors hung up on the walls.
They were small circular mirrors, about the size of a dinner plate, all spaced within a few feet of one another, all the way around the room.
Monica and I exchanged a look as we stepped up to the hostess.
?Good evening!? She chimed.
I smiled at her, my eyes darting around the room, distracted by the unfamiliarity.
?Hi, we have a reservation.? Monica said.
?Names??
?Monica Lopez and Elena Calver.? I replied.
She looked down at the podium under her.
?Of course! Right this way, Brandon will seat you.? She motioned off to the side where Brandon stood.
We followed him to a table near the corner of the room, which Monica and I preferred.
We sat down, and he handed us each a menu, while another waiter gave us water, telling us that he would be back in a few minutes to take our orders.
I looked down at the menu.
?They changed it.? I replied.
I looked up at Monica, who was taking a sip of her water.
?Hmm??
?The food. They changed it.? I repeated, scanning the menu again.
Monica opened hers and scanned it.
?Crystal smoke? Bloody Image? Opposite? Is any of this even food? There aren?t any descriptions.? I said, reading down the list of appetizers.
The rest of the menu was just as confusing.
Jittery hands, Hypnotic Meal, The Anxious Tarte.
It just kept going.
I was distracted by the weirdness of the food and didn?t notice that the waiter was back to take our orders.
?Have you decided what you?ll be having?? He asked.
?Why did you change everything?? I asked.
?Pardon??
?The food, the name, the mirrors. Why did you change it?? I asked.
He laughed uncomfortably.
?I?m sorry ma?am, I don?t understand what you?re asking me. Are you ready to order, or should I just come back??
I looked over at Monica. Surely she could see how weird this was, right?
?We?ll have two Hypnotic Meals, please.? She smiled.
?Wonderful, anything else?? He asked.
?Nope, that will be all.? She replied.
?Wait!? I asked as the waiter started to talk away.
Yes?? He asked.
?What?s in the meal?? I asked.
He pushed his eyebrows together as if confused as he looked at me but walked away without answering my question.
The Hypnotic Meal turned out to be two steak medallions, mashed potatoes, and broccoli. I stared at is as they put the steaming hot plate down in front of me. I caught a whiff of the food, and my stomach grumbled.
I looked up at Monica, but she had already started eating and chewing with her eyes closed. I figured I was being paranoid about the changes to the place. Maybe they were being creepy for Halloween? It was still a few days away, but it made sense and eased my nerves.
I picked up my steak knife and cut into one of the medallions. The outside looked nice and caramelized, so I was thrown off when the inside was completely raw as if it hadn?t even been cooked at all.
It was still steaming, but when I put my finger into the middle of it, it was only room temperature at best.
I looked around for a waiter, but didn?t see any. I moved on to the mashed potatoes, but as I tried to scoop some up onto my spoon, I realized that an entire chunk came out. I put it back down on the plate and used my fork to pierce into it. When I took it out, red liquid poured out of the small holes. It was blood.
?What the-?
I looked up at Monica and almost screamed.
She was almost inhaling her food as if she hadn?t eaten in weeks. She was grabbing the steak with her bare hands and shoving it into her mouth like an animal.
?Mon???
She looked up at me, her eyes wide and crazy, while she bit into her food. Her teeth were outlined in blood, and it was running out of her mouth and down her chin.
?What?s wrong, aren?t you hungry?? She asked.
I sat there, my mouth agape.
I looked around for a waiter again, only to realize that the entire restaurant was staring at us. No, they were staring at me.
?I-I think we should leave.? I said.
I backed up my chair and attempted to stand up, but a hand pushed down hard on my shoulder, pushing me back down into my seat.
?Leaving so soon??
I looked up to see the waiter was back.
?I-?
I didn?t know what to say. Everyone continued to stare at me.
?What?s wrong? Aren?t you hungry??
My eyes darted around the room; every single person was staring at me. I looked across the table at Monica, who was also looking at me.
?Aren?t you hungry, Elena?? She asked me, giving me what was supposed to be a warm smile, but due to the dried blood on her chin and her blood-stained teeth were having an opposite effect.
The waiter's hand felt hot on my shoulder like it was burning a hole straight to my bone.
?I just ...I have to use the restroom first.? I replied.
The waiter took his hand off of me.
?Why, of course! Right down the hall!? He chirped.
As I walked towards the hall, I noticed that everyone had gone back to their own activities and were no longer paying any attention to me.
I pushed open the bathroom door and stopped as soon as I stepped inside.
There were no mirrors on the wall. I stood there for a minute, looking at the frames where the mirrors used to be. Finally, I snapped out of it, took a few deep breaths, and walked back out. I had decided that it was time to go.
I sped over to the table, where Monica was now eating my food. I gagged.
?Hey, Mon? We have to leave; I just got a call from Vicky and?? I trailed off as the restaurant became silent.
I looked around, and once again, everyone was staring at me.
?Leaving so soon??
I jumped as I looked to my right, where the waiter had suddenly appeared.
?Yeah, it?s just that our daughter??
?But, you can?t leave Miroirs!?
?I?m really sorry; It?s just that we really have to go pick up our daughter she isn?t feeling well and-?
As I looked at the waiter, my eyes glanced over to one of the small mirrors hung up on the wall. I could see the reflection of the restaurant in it, including myself, but there was something very off.
The waiter's back was there, the people behind me were there, the other wall was there, and I was there. But as I squinted to get a better look, I noticed that my reflection wasn?t a reflection. I was wearing the same clothes, and I looked the same, but the version of me that I was looking at was staring back at me, smiling wide, her mouth full of blood.
I pushed past the waiter and got closer to the mirror.
Behind her, all of the rest of the diners were slumped over their plates, dead; the entire restaurant stained with their blood.


Source.