Chapter 9

WARNING: This chapter contains triggering content.

ADAM'S POV

"I'm sorry I scared you. I didn't mean to," I squeeze Scarlet's hand as I say this. She stares at me with big frightened eyes. They become glossy and I notice tears creep at the corner of her eyes.

'No no! Please don't cry!'

"Y-you're not... him?" She trembles as she says the word 'him'.

"I'm not who you think I am. It's me, Adam. Your friend." She looks like she's coming back to her senses. She hangs her head down and trembles even more.

"I-I'm sorry. I-I thought you we're someone else." Her face turns red.

"You don't have to apologise. By the way, who did you think I was?" She rapidly shakes her head no. I decide not to insist.

"I-I need to s-step out-outside." She begins to stand up.

"I'll go with you." She keeps her head down as we walk out of the cafeteria.

"Feel better?" I ask as we sit down on a bench on campus. She timidly nods her head yes. She's still shaking, staring intensely at the floor. She seems terrified, upset and disorientated. A look of hatred and fear cloud her eyes. She jumps at the littlest sounds and curses herself for it. She takes deep breaths non-stop.

I move closer to her and wrap my arm around her shoulder. She jumps, pushes me away then shields herself.

"Please, don't hurt me! I'm sorry for going against your orders!"

"Hey, I'm not trying to hurt you. I'm gonna help you," I try to soothe her. She looks at me in fear and disbelief. I hold my hand up and hesitate, waiting for a reaction. She stays still so I gently caress her cheek with the back of my hand.

"It's alright. No one is trying to hurt you." Her eyes widen.

I thankfully see she's starting to calm down. Her breathing is slower. However, she's still nervous and jittery. I wrap my arm around her shoulder again and pull her to me in a hug.

"You're gonna be alright. Nothing can hurt you," I whisper to her in a gentle voice.

SCARLET'S POV

I don't know what to do with myself. I just sit there awkwardly, confused and disorientated. Am I really letting some random person hug me right now?! What's wrong with me?!

I don't know what pushes me to act. I guess it's because I'm really grateful. I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my head against his chest. I take advantage of how relaxed I'm feeling to calm myself down. I tell myself Silas isn't here. He can't do anything anymore. I shut my eyes and move even closer to Adam. His kindness is incredibly touching. Even though he's a dumbass, I've noticed he can be quite attentive when it comes to my emotions. He can somehow tell when something is wrong. It's like he's got a sixth sense. And what makes it even better is that he doesn't bother me with questions. He just helps me get a hold of myself.

I timidly look up at him. He gives me a warm smile. His smile reassures me. My face flushes red. And this time, not because of anxiety. He notices my red cheeks and giggles. I frown and whip my head down.

"I take it you're feeling better?" He asks.

"Dunno," I shrug. I have the feeling that this nice, quiet moment between us will be replaced with fear, sadness, pain.

I don't want to move. I'm too comfortable. The feeling of being safe, secure, comforted has overwhelmed me. It feels as if the pain is being washed away by the actions of a kind stranger - someone who doesn't even know what's going on with me. It makes me feel all the more grateful towards him.

I see a shadow pass over us. I instantly stand up and look around the place, bearing my fists. However, there's nothing there. I jog a couple of steps and take a look around the area. Nothing. I look back at the bench we were sitting on. Nothing.

'That must've been my imagination.' I cautiously sit back down on the bench.

"What was that about?" Adam asks, concerned.

"It's alright. It's nothing,"

"I think we should head back inside now." I stand up and wait for Adam. He looks a little sad. However, he doesn't protest. He stands up and we both make our way into the building. I try to forget about that weird thing earlier. I'm positive it was my imagination. After all, I was still in a panicky mindset. I am prone to hallucinations like that.

"What class you got now?" Adam asks as he pulls out his timetable. I look at his.

'Tch! When I don't want him to be, we're in the same class. But, when I want him to be, we're not in the same class. Wait, did I just say I wanted a class with him. Get a grip, damnit!' We say our goodbyes and go our separate ways. For some reason, I feel a little saddened. I guess I've gotten used to him annoying me in class.

***

I end up zoning out. I have my pen poised over my notebook but I don't write anything. I rest my head on my hand. The teacher's words don't matter to me. What matters is that a human actually cares about my well being. He doesn't think bad of me like the others do. He doesn't fear me, talk shit about me.

I feel a kind of... relief. Relief that he sees me as an actual person, not as a famous person. He treats me like I'm a normal girl. And that I appreciate.

I feel the corners of my lips creep up just a tiny bit. I am surprised - I never smile out of happiness. It's very rare. I suppress the urge to let out a little laugh. I hide my face as I feel it turn slightly pink.

'Oh come on! Just because someone showed you a little bit of attention means you fall in love with them?' The demon's voice rings in my ears. Oh no, she's here again.

'I haven't fallen in love with anyone!'

'Tch!'

'Just leave me alone,'

'You know, instead of daydreaming, you should be preparing for the time Adam hurts you,'

'He won't do that!'

'How would you know?'

'Because! He's my friend!'

'How can you be so sure? Your old friends hurt you. What makes you think Adam won't do it?'

'Just go away! I'm in the middle of class!'

'You never learn, do you?'

'I don't care what you have to say!'

'Oh, but you should. You can't deny I'm wrong,'

'Shut it!'

'You're acting really pathetic. You think you're so amazing because a human took interest in you,'

'I told you to go away!'

'You seem to be really desperate, befriending a human. You should know better than to waste your time with them. You're above them,'

'You're not Silas! You can't tell me what to do!'

'What would he have to say if he saw you're associating yourself with humans?'

'He can't do anything!'

'He would be really mad. He may even punish you,'

The bell rings and I speed out of the class. The demon is still taunting me as I rush to the bathroom. Thankfully, it's empty. I choose the cubicle furthest away and lock the door. I take deep breaths to collect myself. The demon still taunts me. I try to banish her from my mind with little success. I still hear her voice, telling me I suck, encouraging me to let her take over. Ugh! Just when something is looking up in my life it all comes crashing down.

Impulsively, I whip my dagger out and slice my wrist. I have to hurt her in some way. She cannot win this. I slice again, not feeling any pain. She laughs, and that makes me slice even more.

'Is that all you've got?' She teases. Her wrists are bloody, just like mine.

"Tch!" I slice on both wrists. Blood oozes out at a rapid pace. However, I don't care. My main goal is to hurt the demon. As per usual, she feels nothing also, just like the many times I've done this.

I stare at my wrists, my eyes burning red. I unleash my fangs as well. I watch the blood slide down my arm, staining my clothes. I watch it drip onto the floor. The smell makes me hungry. Hungry to torture. Hungry to kill. Maybe if I just succumb to the demon I can give in to these urges. I won't have to deal with her. I'll be free of her.

Wait... I can't do that. A nagging voice in the back of my head makes me think of Adam. What would he think if one day he sees me and I torture him? He would start acting like everyone else. He would hate me. He wouldn't want to be near me again. He wouldn't want to be my friend anymore.

I snap back into reality and grab a bunch of toilet paper to clean the blood on my dagger, before shoving it in my pocket. I wrap my wounds in toilet paper and roll my sleeves down to conceal them. I wipe the blood off the floor then throw the tissues in the bin. I struggle to calm myself down. The demon releases her final blow. She reminds me of that flashback I had when I was asleep. She reminds me of the dreaded moments when Silas carried out his horrible punishments. She reminds me of all the things he's done to me. She leaves, as quick as she came.

I'm all jittery. I'm shaking and panicking. My stomach is in knots again. My heart is beating at a fast pace. I look at my surrounding to calm myself down, but all I see is myself hiding from Silas as he comes to punish me. At every noise I hear in the hall, I think is Silas. I hear something fall and I jump, accidentally bashing my head on the stall door. It's not Silas trying to throw things at me, it's just someone dropping something.

***

ADAM'S POV

"Eheheh," I laugh to myself as I start spamming Paul with messages. It takes him a while to reply. When he finally does, I can practically hear the annoyance in his voice when reading the messages.

'Can u not? I'm at work.'

'I'm bored 😭'

'Aren't u supposed to be in class?'

'🤫'

'Wait, ur ditching class? I'm telling mom.'

'NO! IM IN CLASS!'

'So ur just texting in class?'

'Yeah.'

'I'm still telling mom.'

'OKAY OKAY! I'LL SROP ANNOYING U!'

'Please do.'

'OWBEKRBIEGDI2KEVIFJFB.' Paul doesn't reply. I grumble. I guess I'm going to have to do this when I'm back in my room.

I put my phone away and refocus my attention on the class. However, my eyes keep shutting. I feel like falling asleep right here on the desk.

'I knew shouldn't have spent the night binge-watching kid shows. But I needed to see them for the nostalgia!' I curse myself for getting the most random ideas in the middle of the night. And of course, the tiredness had to hit me smack in the face in the middle of a boring class. Why couldn't have I felt tired after classes?! That way I could've slept! I discreetly go on my phone for the remainder of the class. I'll catch up with the notes tomorrow!

Once the bell rings, I pack my stuff and head out. The students are going in different directions; it makes it hard to walk through the corridor. Somehow, I manage, and I continue on my way through the corridor.

Someone catches my eye as I walk. I recognise the jet black hair and their hands in their pockets. There's that usual dark, mysterious aura around her. I catch up with her.

"Hey!" I greet. Scarlet spins around. As expected, she tries to punch me. I quickly dodge it at the last second.

'Oh my gosh! I feel like a fighting master!' I proudly think. Scarlet looks shocked. She lowers her fist and looks at me.

"I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else." She hangs her head down.

"Don't worry about it. The main thing is you missed,"

"How did you manage to dodge that?"

"Well, you usually do this when I come up from behind. I expected it." She looks even more shocked, and it makes me feel even more proud.

"I know right. I'm like the flash or something." I slick my hair back and she rolls her eyes.

She turns on her heel and walks away. I catch up with her.

"What's the matter? D'ya feel better?" I ask. She doesn't reply. She just keeps on walking with a serious look on her face. I walk with her, not really knowing how to interpret her mood. I want to crack a joke or do something to get a reaction, but something tells me I shouldn't. The aura of coldness follows her every step, making me shiver.

We enter another corridor filled with people. There is this one person who is being really loud. The others in the corridor are complaining about it. I glance at Scarlet and see she's got a frown on her face.

'This can't be good,'

We're now approaching the loud person. Someone pushes him and he grabs onto Scarlet to save himself. I see fury fill her eyes. She grabs the guy's wrist with one hand, practically crushing it. The guy is on his knees in pain.

"Scarlet, I think that's enough," I whisper in her ear. However, she ignores me. She releases his wrist then slaps him. The sound echoes through the corridor. I am shocked to see the guy's cheek is bleeding.

I grab Scarlet's arm and drag her away as I see her getting ready to deal some more damage. She tries to resist but I practically run for it. I take her to an empty corridor. I don't have time to say something as Scarlet grabs my neck and pins me to the wall. I choke and try to release her grip.

"What?!" I manage to spit out.

"I'll say this once: don't you dare interrupt me when I'm teaching someone a lesson." Her voice is cold, emotionless. I keep smacking her wrist and she finally releases her grip. I slide to the floor and catch my breath.

Once I've caught my breath, I look up into Scarlet's eyes. She's staring at me with annoyance. I shiver and grip onto my bag straps for protection. The look in her eyes turns from irritation to emotionless. I gulp and start fiddling with my tie, averting my gaze. That cold atmosphere surrounding her intensifies.

I feel cold fingers grab my chin and turn my head. I'm staring right into Scarlet's black eyes. She's kneeling before me, staring at me with a strange look in her eyes. She looks like she's examining me. I feel as if she's reading my mind - she's staring right into my eyes.

A smirk forms on her lips. Her eyes fill with a dangerous, teasing look.

"You humans are so innocent. So naive," she whispers, tilting her head to the side. I gulp, not knowing what she means.

'Why does she talk like that? She's human too.' She lifts her hands and I turn my head, snapping my eyes shut. I feel her adjusting my glasses. I shudder. She makes me look at her again and she flashes me a creepy smile, before standing up and stalking away, hands in pockets. She reaches the end of the corridor then looks over her shoulder. She flashes me a wink and I shiver all over. She giggles before disappearing out of sight.

I look around before standing up. I didn't realise I was breathing so fast. I regain my composure before nervously walking away. I hope she doesn't act like that again. It's partly how she's described on TV.

SCARLET'S POV

I casually walk through the crowded corridor, enjoying the fear emanating from the students at my mere presence. It makes me feel like no one would dare get in my way. It reminds me of Silas.

I enter my dorm and throw my bag across the room.

"So unfair," I keep muttering to myself. I clench my fists so I don't set fire to the place. I think of Adam, and my anger rises even more.

"Why do humans not have to worry about supernatural shit but we do?! Ugh! Their lives are so easy and worry-free!" I yell as I throw myself on the sofa. I lie down and shut my eyes. I feel a headache coming on.

"Ugh!" I grab a pillow and scream into it. Once I've stopped, I think about how carefree Adam is. I sense no negative emotions coming off him. How does he do it?! How is he able to stay so carefree, whereas I can't even enjoy life?! How is he able to keep a smile on his face with ease?! I can't even muster a fake one properly!

I can't help but envy him. And everyone else for that matter. It feels like everyone around me has at least some positivity in their life, whereas I'm stuck being depressed and suffering by myself. I can't experience all these positivities like everyone around me can. I'm doomed to darkness - it's never going to leave me.

***

My eyes shoot open as I wake up. I'm sweaty and shivering. It takes me a while to adjust to my surroundings. I hug my teddy as I remember my dream. I saw my mother's silhouette. She was running towards me. We were finally going to reunite. But of course, Silas got in the way of things. He stepped in us and gave me that vicious smirk of his before dragging mother away. I screamed and yelled out to her, but she slowly started fading out of view. Ugh! If only I can remember what she looks like! I would've been able to see her face! But, this way I wouldn't be able to see her pained expression.

I grudgingly get out of bed and stand in front of the mirror. I see Silas in there.

"You are not going to win. I'll make sure of it!" I mutter to the mirror Silas. I give him a hard glare and he gives the same one back. "Imbecile!"

After a while of cluelessly standing in the middle of the room, I decide to go for a shower. I usually take a really long time. I strip, step in the bathtub then adjust the water temperature to hot. Pretty soon the bathroom steams up, and I'm left alone with my thoughts. Not surprisingly, they are melancholy. I find myself comparing Silas to other fathers, thinking that normal fathers would never hurt their daughter in any way. They wouldn't go to the extreme. They would take care of their daughter, be there for her, love her. They wouldn't roll their eyes every time their daughter spoke. They wouldn't degrade her, ignore her, tell her the problems in her life mean nothing. They wouldn't hate her.

A shampoo bottle falls, snapping me out of my dark thoughts. I jump up and look around the place. No one's here. I use my powers to put the bottle back in its place, then my mind wanders to other things. I think about this morning. Ugh! This is the second time I've been weak in front of Adam. It's embarrassing. He must think I'm a weakling like Silas does. He must also be afraid of me. I've hurt him again. I would be surprised if he acted like everything was normal the next time I see him. For some reason, I hope he does. It felt weird having a random human caring about me. But also kind of... nice? I don't know how to go about it. It's the first time some human is acting so friendly towards me. Apart from him, humans are all afraid of me or look down on me in some way. I know I'm above them, but it still hurts all the same. It exhausts me how I have to keep my guard up around them. But with Adam, I don't need to be that cautious. Well, of course, he can't know I'm a demon - he would freak out.

I cautiously step out of the shower, wrap myself in a towel then head to my bed. I sit there, staring at the wall. I don't know what else to do. I don't have the motivation to do anything. I just lay there, feeling empty again. Feeling worthless again.

RACHEL'S POV

I am standing at the front door, desperately trying to escape. However, I don't go through the open door. I'm stuck. I'm stuck watching the sun shine on the grass, but not being able to bask in the warmth. I feel a slight breeze and I try again desperately to escape. But I can't. I can't feel the gentle breeze, smell the fresh air, take in the warmth of the sun.

I sense his powerful aura. He's coming. I tremble and make myself look small. He looks at me, then proceeds to casually walk outside. He stands in front of me where I can't touch him. However, he can touch me. I avoid his gaze, staring at my feet. He leans forward so his head is level with mine. I don't look him in the eye. I can't. It's too intimidating.

"You poor thing. You can't enjoy going outside like everyone else can." I ignore him. He chuckles at my reaction. Of course, nothing is effective to get him to leave me alone.

"It'll be useless to ponder over what you don't have. You are not escaping. I'll make sure of it." He glides his thumb over the corner of my bottom lip as he whispers it. I try to push his hand away, but of course, he doesn't move an inch. He lifts my chin, forcing me to look at him. I try to hide my pained expression with difficulty. I see that smirk form on his face as he stares at me.

"Why did you kidnap me? I thought you hated me," I ask, needing answers to my questions.

"I need you for something,"

"Has this something got to do with Scarlet?"

He chuckles, "You're still so perceptive, Rachel,"

"What do you plan to do with her?! You better not hurt her!"

"I am going to do exactly that,"

"I-I'll hurt you if you go anywhere near my daughter!"

"Dear Rachel, you wouldn't be able to harm me in the slightest. Scarlet is in danger, and there is nothing you can do about it,"

"You're lying! You're just trying to scare me,"

"Trust me, if you've seen her, you'll understand,"

"I can't exactly see her because I'm stuck here with you!"

He ignores me, "I haven't even done anything to her yet, and she's already suffering. I should take you out to sense how much mental pain she's in,"

"Y-you've seen her?"

"She hasn't seen me, but I've seen her,"

"Take me to her!"

"Now why would I do that?" I don't answer him, and he chuckles again.

He grabs me by the wrist and drags me inside, before using his powers to shut the front door. I just blindly follow him. I can't shake the dull anxiety washing over me. Scarlet's suffering. She's in danger. He's already seen her, but she hasn't.

He pushes me forward and I find myself in the bedroom.

"Keep your ass here. I have no use of you for the time being," his cold voice makes me shiver. He exits the room, slamming the door on the way out. I'm now left alone with my thoughts.

'Please please please let Scarlet be okay. Please let her have the strength to face him when the time comes,'