"There are poisons that blind you, and poisons that open your eyes."

— August Strindberg

/ / l o u i s / /

"W-What?" Dr. Foster widens her eyes before clearing her throat and acting as if she isn't terrified at all.

"He's standing right beside you," I repeat myself. "You can ask him your questions."

Dr. Foster slowly turns her head to look beside her and stares right at Harry. His dark figure leans against the wall and his bright eyes look back at her. The room fills with a ticking sound. It's always around when he's nearby. It's as if his entire body ticks. Dr. Foster doesn't seem afraid of him. Why is she not screaming and running away? Harry reaches out and touches her face but she still doesn't move in fear.

In fact, she looks back at me with a confused expression on her face, "There isn't anyone there."

My eyes widen as I look back at Harry. He's looking back at me now with a devilish smile. How can she not see him? He's standing right beside her!

"Yes, there is. He's standing right beside you. He's looking at you!"

"Louis, no one is standing beside me," she says again and Harry begins to laugh. He loves to make me look insane. He places his black hands against the wall and continues to stare at Dr. Foster. I watch him carefully. What's he planning to do now? "Are you all right?"

I'm quick to look back at her, "You really can't see him?"

She looks back beside her and shakes her head, "We're the only ones in the room. There isn't anyone else in here."

I turn my head back around and stare at the wall. I shake my head in disbelief. He had just touched her face. How could she not have felt it?

"She looks so innocent and pure," Harry whispers. "What would happen if I took her innocence? What would happen if I suddenly made her a sinner?"

"W-What?" I stutter, turning my head around to look at him.

"I said we're the only ones in the room." Dr. Foster says.

Harry gets off of the wall and his long fingers ball up into fists, "I wonder how long she'll last before she figures out that you truly are mental. Let's bet on it, shall we? Seeing as how you don't have any money, how about we bet on your soul? I don't own that, yet."

You only own my fear...

The ticking sound gets louder the closer he gets to me.

"Shut up!" I snap and Dr. Foster winces. "Shut up! You can't say that to me!"

"I'm sorry," she apologizes. "I...I guess I shouldn't have said that."

I look at her and her eyes are wider than before. I look back at Harry and he's laughing. He wants her to think something is wrong with me and I won't let that happen. I'm going to get out of here whether he likes it or not. I turn my attention back to the wall and stare down at my bloody fingernails.

Harry begins to whistle, "I don't think she'll last long. Remember what happened to all the others that tried to help you? Oh, the horrible things you did to them."

"That wasn't me," I whisper.

"Ah, but it was," he continues. "It was your arm that grabbed the pen and attacked Dr. Horan. It was your arm that took Dr. Sanchez's nail filer and attacked her."

"You had control over my body," I hiss. "You were controlling me. You did those horrible things because you wanted me to stay here and suffer."

"I wonder what I'll do to your new doctor," Harry says and the word 'doctor' slithers off his tongue. I look over my shoulder at him and he's running his fingers through her hair. She doesn't feel it. If she doesn't feel it now, she'll never feel it. "Will I have you attack her arm? Or will I have you snap her neck? Oh how delicate and fragile it looks..."

"You wouldn't dare," I say. "I won't let you control my body for something horrible like that. I'm not like you. I'm not a murderer."

"I've killed plenty of people and I'd do it again if it was necessary," he mutters. "I wonder how you would feel if I decided to have you kill her."

"You wouldn't."

"I would."

I shake my head, "You can't keep doing this to me!"

"What am I doing to you?" Dr. Foster asks and I keep shaking my head. "If you're talking about me questioning you, I have to. It's my job and I want to help you get better."

Harry chuckles, "I can do whatever I want. If you didn't want any of this to happen, you should have ignored me the first time I spoke to you."

"I didn't know this would happen! I was just a kid!" I snap and Dr. Foster awkwardly rubs her arm.

I'm making her feel uncomfortable. I need to stop but Harry is getting inside of my head. He stops touching her hair and he begins to walk up the wall, talking about how she's weak and will not last long. My heartbeat quickens as he gets comfortable on the ceiling and sits down. His bright eyes stare down at me and I swallow hard.

"Are you afraid, Louis?" he whispers in a cold tone. "Are you afraid that something might happen to her? Do you think I'll control you to harm her?"

I don't answer him. Dr. Foster's watching me with cautious eyes and I know if I make one wrong move, she'll leave. I cannot be left alone here. Not with Harry acting this way. He'll hurt me.

"You don't scare me," I whisper so Dr. Foster cannot hear me.

"I don't?" he asks and I nod my head. "Well, isn't that a shame?"

"Stop it," I beg.

"I'll never stop, Louis. We'll be spending the rest of our lives together and there's nothing you can do about it," he smirks. "You belong to me now. If you want to get rid of me, you'll have to kill me first. And you can't get rid of demons."

"Why won't you leave me alone?" I whisper.

He laughs and his head shakes uncontrollably, "Don't you get it, boy? You're mine!"

"I'm not yours," I whisper.

"Yes, you are!" he snaps. "Your fear belongs to me, not anyone else. The longer you feed me your fear, the longer I stay for more. This isn't going to end, Louis. Even when you die, your spirit will fear me. It'll be an everlasting feast!"

"No," I shake my head. "I won't let you feed on my fear."

"It's too late," he murmurs before pointing a finger at me. "You're already afraid!"

"I'm not afraid of you."

"You are and the more you deny it, the more your fear grows!" he yells. "The more fear you have, the more food you have for me!"

I cover my ears as his laughter gets louder and louder. Dr. Foster sits down on the chair I was in earlier and she sits her hands on her lap. Harry smiles, his sharp white teeth showing as he lets himself fall from the ceiling. He falls through the floor and I sigh in relief. When he does that, it means he won't be back for a while.

"I'm sorry," I apologize as I remove my hands from my ears.

She tugs at a loose piece of hair, "Are you all right?"

Why's her hair up in a ponytail? It was down earlier...I like it when she wears her hair down. I nod my head and she shifts uncomfortably in the seat.

"Do you not want to stay the night anymore?" I ask, looking down at the floor.

"I'm going to stay," she reassures me. "It's just...you kept yelling at me and then you were whispering to yourself in the corner."

"I'm not crazy." I murmur.

"I didn't say you are," she says. "You're just suffering and I'm here to help you, okay?"

"I'm not mental, either!" I snap and she continues to tug at her hair. "You think I'm mental, don't you? You all think I'm crazy!"

"No," she shakes her head. "I'm just thinking."

"Thinking about what?" I ask.

"Guy," she says, tapping her fingers against her thighs.

I look around to make sure Harry's no longer in the room. He's gone. "You can say his name now."

"Okay," she murmurs. "I'm thinking about Harry."

"Why would you be thinking about him?"

She looks at me, "You were so certain he was standing beside me; yet, no one was there. Louis, I'm beginning to think Harry is just simply in your mind. Perhaps he's just an imaginary friend that went wrong? One that you can't let go of?"

"He's not imaginary!" I argue. "He's real and you just can't see him!"

She sighs and I cover my face with my hands. Harry's plan is working. I'm beginning to make her think that I'm truly mental. This isn't fair nor is it right. I didn't ask for this life. I simply wanted a friend, not a monster. I cannot let him win. I won't let him win.

"If no one can see him, Louis, he's not real. He's your imaginary friend," she explains and my hands fall from my face. I shake my head and she exhales slowly. "You've held onto Harry for years now. I think it's time that you finally told him goodbye."

I place both hands on top of my head, "I can't do that."

"Yes, you can."

"I can't!" I hiss. "He's always around and he's always talking to me. No matter what I do, he always comes back. I can't shake him off me!"

"Okay," she says, moving from the chair to the floor. "This is why I'm here. I'm going to help you get through this. But first, you have to tell me everything you know about Harry. Once that happens, I can help you get rid of him."

I laugh and look at her, "You can't get rid of my demons. No one can. They're here to stay and the party will never end. I'm their host and they say I'm not very good. I suppose my suffering isn't much entertainment."

Her eyes widen and she backs up a little bit. I don't blame her. If I were her, I would have ran out of this room a long time ago. She isn't like the other counselors I've had before. Unlike them, she's determined to help me and it looks like she's going to do everything she can to do so.

"You don't have any demons," she says before placing a hand on my shoulder. I flinch but she doesn't move her hand. I don't enjoy it when people touch me. 

"How would you know that?" I ask her. "You barely know me."

There's only one demon in my mind and his name is Pustošit but he goes by the English version of his name.

Harry.

I met him when I was younger and I thought we were going to be friends forever. No one at school liked me because I had different interests than them. Harry and I were the same. He liked everything I liked and it was perfect. I had never had a best friend before and I never wanted to let him go. I promised him I wouldn't do that to him.

He started to get controlling not long after our friendship began. He wanted me to do things he knew I wasn't allowed to do. If I told him no, he would threaten me and make me do the things he wanted me to do. I told him I didn't want to be friends with him anymore and he said he would make me pay...and he did. My mother went next door to play poker with the neighbors and Harry came back and attacked me. He controlled my body and made me bring harm to myself. He also made me set the house on fire sometime later on and he refused to let me leave. I could've died. Sometimes, I wish I had died in that fire.

My mother thought I wanted my life to end, therefore, she checked me into a mental hospital. This mental hospital.

"I know I barely know you." Dr. Foster whispers and removes her hand from my shoulder. "But I don't believe in demons and I know for a fact that they're not real."

"They are," I whisper. "And you shouldn't say things like that. If Harry hears you, he'll come after you."

She smiles, "Let him come after me. I have my big girl shoes on."

"Don't say that!" I snap. "He'll kill you if he gets the chance!"

"All right," she says and rises to her feet. "I won't say that anymore."

"Promise?" I ask and she places her hands on her hips. "Promise me!"

"I promise," she tells me and I begin to scratch at the bandage on my arm. "Promise me you won't take that off until tomorrow. Then I can clean your wounds and put a fresh bandage on them, okay?"

I nod and stop scratching. I bring my knees up to my chest as I begin to feel cold. I can hear the ticking noise and I know Harry's on his way back.

"Don't say his name anymore," I warn her.

"Why not?" she asks. "I thought you said I could say his name now."

"Just don't say it," I say as Harry flies through the floor. He lands on my bed and he smiles when he sees me. My arms tighten around my legs and I begin to rock back and forth.

He tilts his head to the side, "Why did you have to warn her, Louis? We could have had so much fun together once she said my name. I love it when your face turns red as you scream. Your screams give me energy. The fear that grows within you makes me stronger. I can taste your fear from where I'm sitting." I look at him and his smile widens.

"I'm not afraid," I say.

"Good," Dr. Foster smiles. "You don't have to be afraid."

"Lies!" Harry yells and then bursts into a whole bunch of laughter. "I can smell your fear and I crave it. I can see the sweat on your forehead and it's making my stomach growl." I'm quick to wipe the sweat off of my forehead and he laughs even more.

"I'm not afraid of you," I whisper and tug at my hair.

Dr. Foster's smile fades away, "You shouldn't have to be afraid of me."

"You are afraid!" Harry yells and moves off my bed. He sits on the wall and tilts his dark head to the side as he looks at me. "I see the way your hands shake. I see the way your lip trembles as you speak. Your new doctor will think of you as mental soon."

"She won't."

"She should think you're mental and she will!" he shrieks and I cover my ears. He knows his shrieking hurts my ears. "I'll make sure of it!" He begins to run around the room, hitting me in the face every time he passes me. I move my hands away from my ears and cover my face.

"Louis?" Dr. Foster asks and I don't say anything. She doesn't see Harry and I cannot tell her Harry is messing with me. She wouldn't believe me even if I tried.

"Stop it!" I cry out.

Harry continues to run around the room, "Never!"

"Please!" I beg. "Stop it!"

"She will know how mental you really are!" he yells and I throw my head back as I feel him enter my body. My jaw drops as I begin to laugh. I laugh as loud as I can and my body falls to the side. I begin to twitch and jerk and my body feels as if it's on fire. The pain is excruciating. 

"Are you all right?" Dr. Foster asks but I can't answer. Harry's controlling me and he wants me to laugh until I can't anymore. I can hardly breathe and I know Harry's not going to stop to let me breathe. "Louis?" My fingers curl as I continue to shake.

"You'll pay..." Harry whispers in my mind and I roll over to be on my back. My body still shakes and my chest burns.

"I'm going to go get some help!" she yells before running out of the room. My hair bounces on my forehead as my laughs turn into screams. He is controlling me and there is nothing I can do about it. I want it all to end...but how? My hands drop to my sides and I claw at the tiled floor. I squint my eyes as I lean my head back.

"S-Stop!"

"You'll learn..." he whispers and I roll over onto my side. My knees come up to my chest as my laughter gets louder. "You'll learn to respect me..." Tears fill my eyes as my body jerks and Harry forces me to roll onto my back again. My back arches upward as he exits my body. His bright eyes look down me as his dark figure moves. "You'll be mine again, Louis."

"I'll never be yours!"

"You will," he whispers. "We'll be friends again and you'll do whatever I want you to do."

"Never," I murmur as I hear the door open again.

Dr. Foster calls out my name several times but I'm too weak to move. Harry does this to me. He weakens me by entering my body and eating on my fear. I don't know how much more of this I can take. I should've jumped out of the window when I had the chance...

I blink a few times before blacking out.