Demons

Chapter 3

*DAMIAN'S POV*

I ran to the safest place I could remember. This was hideout that my dad and I built in the heart of Lake Birchville called "the shed." To say that I was distressed would be an understatement.

Who was this new guy, Zayn? Why did he seem so familiar? Where had I seen him? By now, my head was pounding. And being around Lacey didn't make it any better. It was totally obvious that she was very interested in Zayn. Though I had no special interest in Lacey, I had this bad feeling that Zayn was dangerous, and I would never want to see my best friend get hurt.

After an hour of trying to clear my head - in vain - it was 5:30 pm, and I knew that my grandparents would be waiting at home for me. My grandfather was a retired cop and devoted all of his time to help out my grandmother, who had a terrible case of Alzheimer's.

However, my grandparents were rich, just as everyone in this tiny town understood. Eady, my grandmother, was a retired neurosurgeon. It was starting to get cold, and a shiver went up and down my spine, a sign that I should be heading home.

My grandparents owned a beautiful Victorian house. The neighborhood was on the poorer side, so the commodious house stuck out like a sore thumb. It was painted a shadowy gray with three stories, and blood red lining out the windows and doors. There were two sets of stairs leading to the house. Above the right set of stairs was a balcony covered by a maroon curved dome (a/n: this is the house on the side).

I was just about to open the door when it opened from the inside and knocked me over backwards. A petite old woman with short, curly gray - brown hair and thin round glasses and wearing maroon lipstick and a lavender knit sweater, wobbled towards me and bent down to my level.

"Byron!" the woman screamed.

"What is it, Eady?!" A man's voice hollered back.

"There is a teenager at the door!" Once I heard the little woman say this, my eyes swelled up, but I couldn't cry because I was in shock.

My own grandmother had forgotten her ONLY grandson. The Alzheimer's had never gotten this far. She was only 67! My 69 year old grandfather, Byron, rushed to the door as fast as his surprisingly strong legs could carry only to find me just as shocked and confused as he was.

"Damian, what happened?" Byron asked, with a look of concern.

"She doesn't remember me. She doesn't know who I am."

"Wait, am I supposed to know you? Just tell me who you are!" Eady cried, who was exasperated.

"I am Damian! Your one and only grandson! Remember, the one you took in because his parents were killed in a car accident?!" I sighed, calming down. I was about to cry, but clearly, crying like a little girl was not going to bring Eady's memories back, and so I composed myself.

It was scary. Forgetting family members was a sign that the Alzheimer's will have gotten too far. I looked up to my grandfather, who had confusion written all over his face. Byron pulled both Eady and me up from the ground and brought us inside. We ate and went on with our business, me to my room for homework, Eady to our library, and Byron to his study.

As I went on my Macbook Pro, a prized 17th birthday present from my grandparents, I saw that Ava had been messaging me non-stop. The majority of the messages included pleads for answers on the Calculus homework, making  me smirk. Oh Ava, you never were the sharpest tool in the shed. After a minute of laughing to myself and taking out my Calculus textbook, I finally replied:

Damian: hey sorry I was a little busy with my grandma.

Ava: for five hours?? -_-

Damian: nope I was at the shed

Ava: omg I haven't been there in like a year! Anyways, how is Eady doing?

Damian: Actually really bad. Today was the first time she forgot me!

Ava: x0 aw I wish I could come see you and your grandparents, but Lacey is sleeping over.

Damian: again? Why?

Ava: she said her mom has been on a business trip this whole past week and she doesn't want to be all alone.

Damian: she should get a dog

Ava: I told her that too but her mom doesn't like animals.

Damian: oh wow then ok. Anyways, didn't you need help with the Calculus hw?

Ava: Oh yeah, and I've only been messaging you for the past two hours!

*********************

I had finished Face - timing Ava and all of my homework, so I decided to go downstairs and watch some television. But I was too late. Eady was already watching Dr. Oz.

"Grandma, I thought Dr. Oz only came on at 4:30!"

"No, these are just reruns that I missed Damian." Eady grinned at me, while I just stood there dumbfounded.

"Wait, you remember who I am?" I asked, walking over to Eady and sitting next to her on the luxurious tan leather couch.

"Why, of 'course I do! How could I forget my only grandson?!" Eady exclaimed, the grin fading from her with a look of confusion to mask it. She gently and gracefully placed her right nimble hand on my left knee, and I took her small hand in mine.

"Do you remember anything about this afternoon?" I barely even whispered.

"Yes, honey I do. And I am really sorry for not recognizing you." Eady's faced turned to the floor, disappointed. "Byron scheduled another doctor's appointment for him and me to go to all day tomorrow, so maybe you should go over Ava's house."

"Hey, it's all okay. You're fine now. That's all that matters." I smiled cheekily in attempt to lift Eady's spirit. And it worked. We spent the last fifteen minutes of Dr. Oz bonding and talking, before Grandma and I both ended up falling asleep on the couch.