Shadow

Chapter 8

Mark's mother only responded with silence as she kissed Kayla and Jamie's foreheads, then made her way to their door.

"Why do you hate him?" Kayla asked, wanting to know what was really going on.

"I don't hate him," His mother told them as she made her way back to their beds.

"But why do you and Daddy always are so mean to him?" Kayla asked.

"I..." His mother trailed off, turning to face the wall that Mark listened through.

"Why?" Jamie asked, eager to know the answer.

"We...are unable to stop hurting him," His mother answered, voice quivering a bit from the sadness in her tone.

Huh? Mark wondered, confused of the answer.

"But why can't you stop it?" Kayla asked, also confused of the answer.

"It's because of....the shadow," His mother answered.

"What's the shadow?" Kayla asked.

"I've watched Mark for a long time and only recently, I have realised what is wrong with him," His mother told them.

"What is wrong with him?" Jamie asked.

"Mark has what exactly what my mother has."

"And what's that?"

"Shadow," His mother told them after a pause.

She knows of the shadow, Mark thought with wide eyes, then looked at the shadow who was still lying on the floor, silent.

"What's the shadow?"

His mother ignored him. "My mother started giving the signs she had a shadow by her side when I was only a young girl," His mother told them with a sad voice. "It told her to kill me and sometimes made up some excuse that killing me was some way to cure some made up virus that was killing off the children in the town we lived in."

"Great excuse that shadow made!" The shadow laughed.

"Shut up!" Mark harshly whispered, wanting to listen to more.

"My mother was able to fight off the manipulation the shadow did into making her killing me and others was the right thing to do, or even what I needed," His mother told them. "It was easy to fight off the shadow, actually."

His mother slowly made her way to Kayla's bed, sitting down on it. "Everyday she tried to find a cure to vanish the shadow forever, but nothing of what she was doing was working. But that was until one day she had heard it," His mother told them.

"Heard what?" Kayla asked.

"The cure to stop the shadow," His mother answered, caressing Kayla's cheek with a small smile on her face.

It can be stopped, Mark thought as a relieved smile slowly formed on his face. The shadow can be stopped!

"I'm still confused," Jamie said once a minute had passed.

"That's the answer I was hoping for," His mother said, kissing them both on their foreheads again and opened their door. "Goodnight."

Once his mother closed the door of their room, Mark opened his door, wanting her to tell him everything she knows about the shadow, no matter what it took to make her speak.

"Be up and ready tomorrow because we are going to your grandmothers, Mark," His mother told him and walked down the hallway, leaving his sight.

"Okay," Mark said, then walked back into his room.

Instantly, he kicked the shadow in the head, feeling happiness swirl inside him like never before. It didn't say anything as it stayed silent, which most of time meant it didn't have anything else to say or was wrong.

"Isn't it wonderful to know that you have something that can defeat you?" Mark asked the shadow, happily.

It didn't respond, only grumbled in annoyance.

Mark threw himself on his bed and rested his head on his arms, imaging the life he was soon going to have once the shadow was gone forever from his life. But a part of him was going to miss it, which he quickly shook off, hating the fact that he had gotten close to it.

"What do you think your last words are going to be?" Mark asked the shadow.

"I hate you," The shadow answered with a dull tone, not bothering to look at him as it answered.

"You deserve it, you know?" Mark said, smiling widely.

"I didn't do anything to deserve death!" The shadow yelled.

"You killed that dog. You took it's life away. You deserve to have your life taken away too," Mark answered, wanting to add in his sister's death but he wasn't sure if it was the shadow who had done it.

"It took you this long to realise," The shadow said.

"Honestly, yes," Mark replied, knowing the dream seemed far to real to be just a simple nightmare.

"Whatever," The shadow mumbled.

Silence filled the room for a moment once the shadow spoke up.

"You won't defeat me," The shadow said, it's voice very low, but enough for Mark to hear.

"I will defeat you and I know how," Mark said, sitting up.

"But I will kill you first," The shadow said, looking at him as it stood.

"No, I will," Mark stood up as well. "And do you even know how to kill me?"

"I just know," The shadow answered.

"Oh yeah? How?" He asked it, crossing his arms.

"I can control you into killing yourself."

Shit, Mark thought, clenching his hands together, angrily. I forgot it can do that.

"But I will kill you before you even have the chance to do that!" Mark spat, walking closer to the shadow.

"I can just do it now!" It yelled.

"Do it then!" Mark yelled back, glaring at the shadow.

"Wait-" It was interrupted by Mark.

"Do it!" He shouted at it, making it flinch.

"Fine!" It screamed at him.

Startled, Mark looked around, wondering when he was going to die. He mentally slapped his face, realising he yelled at the shadow to be killed, not prove itself. But, fortunately, nothing happened, which made him look at the shadow with a brow raised.

"Why aren't I dead?" He asked.

"I...don't know how to kill you," It said.

"Well, you better prepare yourself for death itself then," Mark told it, walking away.

Little did Mark know that the shadow glared back with a plan formed inside its head that it hoped will prevent him from arriving at his grandmother's house the next day.
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Short chapter, I know. Sorry!

I feel like I've said to much or to less in this chapter about the shadow, but oh well!

So, what do you think the shadow has in mind?

Thanks for reading and I'll see you all next update!