Demon Within

Chapter 7

'Demon, blood, screams, crying.' It was really all Tray could think about the next day.

He had dark bags under his eyes from his lack of sleep, and had a tendency to fall asleep every few seconds before shooting awake after his head hit the desk.

He walked like a zombie down the halls and stumbled once in a while. He almost tripped up and down the stairs a few times.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Henry asked, concerned.

"I'm perfectly fine. You guys overreact too much." Tray waved them off.

"Did you even sleep last night?" Will asked, ignoring Tray's complete obliviousness to the situation.

"Yes, I did. You need to stop worrying so much." Tray tried to smile at them, but his eyes drooped and his head started to fall.

It landed in his potatoes.

He shot up, his hair flipping, making mashed potatoes fling everywhere.

His two friends ducked as it soared over them.

"Demon!" Tray yelped after his head sprung up.

Both boys exchanged glances. "Are you still going on about that demon you saw? Tray, it wasn't real. Demon's don't exist." Henry told him.

"Tell that to the dog." Tray said darkly.

"You need sleep, Tray. That's all." Will said, trying not to show that Tray's tone scared him.

"I don't need sleep." Tray objected.

"You literally look like the walking dead. I'm pretty sure you scared a few fourth graders." Henry told him.

"Okay, maybe I do need sleep, but the demon was real! I even talked to it yesterday!" Tray glared.

"You talked to it? If it was a demon, it would've killed you." Will said.

"Don't be so racist." Tray snapped.

"It wasn't a demon, anyway." Henry said. "So, either Tray had some crazy hallucinations or he doesn't know what squirrels are."

"It wasn't a squirrel, you stupid moron! It was a demon! A demon dog!" Tray growled.

"Sure it was buddy. Sure it was." Henry said sarcastically, nodding his head.

"Screw you!" Tray practically almost killed Henry with his death glare, and promptly picked up the leftover potatoes on his plate and chucked it at Henry's face.

It hit him square on, and Tray stomped away, mashed potatoes still in his hair.

Henry wiped off the potatoes. "Should we follow him?" Will asked.

Henry shook his head. "Let him cool off."

"Think he was telling the truth?" Will asked again.

"About the demon dog?" Henry asked, trying to get clarification.

Will nodded. "I'm not sure." Henry answered and used his napkin to get leftover potatoes off his face and hair.

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Tray washed out his hair in the boy's locker room shower, scrubbing potatoes out.

He turned around to get a towel, hair sopping wet, and came face to face with the demon dog again.

"Did you know my friends think you don't exist?" Tray asked it.

The demon raised an eyebrow and cocked its head, amused.