The Devil's Prey (The Demon Within) Read Free

past, but I ignored him and kept my head down. I got my timetable to see I had Advanced English first with Mr. Timberwood, then Biology with Mrs. Hampton.  Everyone was comparing their timetables to see what classes matched up, but I just sat there, waiting for the bell.
    ‘Ok , I will see those of you I have for first lesson,’ Mr. Timberwood announced.
    T he bell went, and I bolted out the class into the bathrooms. I splashed water onto my face and looked at myself in the mirror. I could not even recognize the face I was looking into. I undid the bandage to see the words still on my arm. I sat on the cold floor and put my hands on my head. I took deep, slow breaths, in and out. Suck it up, Summer, I thought.
    I got up, put the bandage back on, and went off to class.
    I knew I was late , as no one was in the corridor. I made my way to the classroom and went inside. I sat alone in the back, and Mr. Timberwood did not take notice of me, which was good.
    ‘Ok , students, for those who don’t know me, I am Mr. Timberwood. I am handing out the book you will be reading. It is called To Kill a Mockingbird. You will have to read it, as there will be an exam on it.’ The books were getting handed out, and someone put the book on my table. I looked up to see Ethan handing them out with Amanda. He smiled at me, but I looked down, trying my best to become invisible.
    ‘So today I am going to teach you …’ Mr. Timberwood talked about how to analyze a book, and we had to take notes. Normally I love English, but I was so distracted that I was not paying attention to what I was writing. I looked down at my page and was surprised to see weird symbols instead of words. I closed my notes and saw Mr. Timberwood writing our homework down for the next lesson. ‘Make sure it is done. You can go now.’
    W e all got up to leave the class. I quickly put my books away so that I could make a quick escape, but Mr. Timberwood caught me.
    ‘Summer , can you stay behind, please?’
    I groaned inwardly at the thought of stay ing behind.  I waited for everyone to leave, and when the class was empty, my teacher spoke again. 
    ‘Summer , I knew you were late today, and that is ok. I have been told you are going through a rough patch, and if you need someone to talk to, you can trust me.’ He smiled at me, but I looked away.
    ‘I am sorry , sir. It won’t happen again.’ I clutched my book to my chest, fighting back the tears, and went to my next class. Biology went fast. I had Amanda in this class, which was good, but I did not sit with her. In fact, I didn’t sit with anyone all day.
    The day flew by in the blink of an eye. People still whispered every time I walked past them. When it was time for lunch, I went into the cafeteria to see everyone at their tables, eating. The nerds, the jocks, the emo kids…you name it, they were all there. I had always sat with the volleyball team, but this time I walked straight past them and sat at a table by myself. I played with my food for a while before two people sat down with me.
    ‘I like this school , but it would be nice if I knew where I was going.’
    I smiled at the voice that was talking to me .
    ‘You know , that is the first time I have seen you smile today.’
    T hey were both trying to cheer me up, but it was not working. I was just too distracted.
    ‘Summer , you might want to keep Ethan on a short leash. You should see how friendly all the girls are being towards him,’ Amanda told me. I looked up to see Ethan smiling at me, which made me smile back. I tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.
    ‘What is wrong , Summer? You have been ignoring us all day. Did we do something wrong?’ His voice was soft, like he was afraid I was made out of glass and about to shatter.
    ‘ No, it’s me. It is hard. Please tell me you have not heard what they are saying about me. The way they look at me when I walk past- I could crush them all like bugs, and no one would know!’ I stopped, as the last