Author: Okay chapter nine is finally here. I know I'm not that great at updating on time or anything, but I really do try. Oh and please try to forgive me for my completely lame love scenes. I'm really bad at doing that. Hopefully I'll get chapter ten up soon.

Chapter Nine

Cold cruel laughter echoed everywhere, making me tremble in fright.

"Rene!" I called out, but the word was swallowed up in the darkness. Then he was there, standing before me, his black hair blending in with the sheer darkness. Some invisible light reflected off his eyes. He stretched his hand out to me, but I backed away from it as if it burned with a terrible fire.

"I love you." He said, a smile playing along his lips.

My heart fluttered at those words. "Rene, I…I…"

"I love you, Satsuki."

I froze. Something was wrong. Completely wrong. I could feel my spirit plummeting down to the pit of my stomach, then said in a low trembling voice. "You don't know my name."

His eyes flashed with anger then he threw back his head and roared with hateful laughter. He instantly stopped, staring deep into my eyes. "You're a fool, Satsuki."

"You're not real." I told him. "You're just a dream."

"That's where you are mistaken, Human. I am here with you. I live inside you."

"No! You're just in my mind! Go away!" Then to myself. "Come on, girl, wake up!"

Rene laughed again. "Sill, Mortal. I am real. I am your shadow."

I snorted. "I highly doubt my shadow looks like Rene."

His lips twisted into a crooked smile. "I can change that." And at that his body began to glitch like the ghost at the old school house. His hands stretched out and grew two inch long claws. His arms shifted, turning jet black. The bottom half of his body bent, so it looked like he was in a low crouch. The blackness rippled up over his body. His face began to change, revealing a snout with long jagged teeth. Last a pair of leathery black wings sprouted out of his shoulder blades. And then it was over, leaving Rene as a black demon.

I stared in horror then began to shake with fear.

I am your shadow. His voice was a snarl in my head.

I couldn't see him anymore; he had faded into the darkness. Then I could see two glowing red lights. And I realized that they were eyes slowly blinking.

I woke up to someone roughly shaking my shoulders. I squinted at the blinding sunlight.

"Where am I ?" I croaked.

"Momo's house."

The voice sounded so familiar, but I couldn't seem to place it. All I could concentrated on was the snarling voice I had heard in my head. I am your shadow.

"Rene—" I began, but a hand slammed into my face.

My eyes widened in surprise and pain, and I finally realized that it was Hajime who knelt beside me. His face held faint traces of tears, but I couldn't be sure if they were for me or not.

"It was terrible." I said shuddering. "He was—"

Hajime slapped me again.

"What's wrong with you?!" I cried.

"I don't want to hear about Rene!" he replied.

"It wasn't Rene! It couldn't have been! It's not possible!"

The boy raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Promise me that you won't hit me again."

He rolled his eyes. "Okay. I promise."

I shut my eyes and recalled back the horrifying images. "I was standing in complete darkness and someone was laughing. It was terrifying. And…" I can't mention that I had called to Rene. "I called out to someone—"

"Who?"

"…I don't remember. And then…Rene was there—"

"Is it possible that you might have been calling for him?"

I shook my head. "I don't know! But…I was afraid of him. He held his hand out to me, but I did not reach for it. Then he told me that… he loved me…" I will not tell him my response. "then he said it again…using my name and I knew then that something was wrong…" I trailed off and lapsed into silence.

"That's all?" Hajime asked.

I shook my head. "No…it's just…the next part…is hard to talk about. It was so horrifying."

"Okay. Continue."

Continue.

"Then he laughed at me and mocked me, calling me names. He said that he lived inside me and that he was my shadow, but I refused to believe that so then…" I cut myself off too afraid to say the next part, but Hajime forced me to.

I took a deep breath. "Then he…began to change. It was so horrible! He turned black and got claws and teeth. And he had wings. It was awful! I was so terrified! He spoke telepathically. In my head, I mean."

Hajime's eyebrows were knitted together in concentration as he thought about what I had told him. He finally grabbed my hand and squeezed it. With compassion. I thought.

"Hajime." I whispered. "Will you help me?"

"With what, Satsuki?"

I pulled him down closer to me so I could whisper in his ear. "To save Keiichirou from Rene."

he pulled away from me, his eyes wide. "What? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I did , but you weren't there to hear me. You walked away remember?"

He hung his head in shame. "Sorry, Satsuki. I thought….I thought…."

"You thought that I was cheating on you?"

Hajime nodded. "Sorry."

I grabbed his hand and pressed my head against his chest. I wept bitterly and wrapped my arms around the boy. I pressed my lips against his cheek, my arms still tight around his neck.

"Hajime," I whispered into his ear. "I love you. I love you so much."

He pulled me against his body and planted a kiss right on my lips. His hand was on the back of my head, holding me tight against him. His face was on mine, his arms around me, and mine around him. I was happy as I lay there on the couch with Hajime leaning over me and kissing me full out. It was paradise, but the feeling didn't last long.

Hajime yanked me off the couch, sending me sprawling to the ground. I stared up at him in shock, but his once loving face had contorted into a horrifying image of hate and evil. A cold smile twisted his lips into a grimace.

"Satsuki," he said. "I know that you're a fool, but to fall for it twice in the span of one hour?" he laughed at that.

I was incredulous. What on earth was he talking about? Then the truth slammed into my body knocking the air out of my lungs. None of this was real!

After I figured it out the safe cozy house of Momoko's slowly began to fade, being replaced with the terrible blackness of my nightmare world. And there stood Hajime or rather Rene in the form of Hajime.

"Stop this!" I shouted. "I don't want to play games anymore!"

"We're not playing. This is why you haven't gotten anywhere in life. It's because you think the world is one big joke. That pain isn't real and only a game."

I shook my head. "I don not think that!"

He ignored me. "But I'm sorry to say, mortal, but heartbreak is real and everyone experiences it. Even I do, but the only difference with that is…I enjoy it. I cause it."

I shook my head again and close my eyes. "No! No! No! Stop this! I don't want to be here! Wake up! Wake up! Come on!"

His icy cold fingers wrapped around my neck and when my eyes sprang open I wasn't looking into the wonderful eyes of Hajime, but into the pitch black eyes of a demon. I screamed.

Author: So, please tell me how you liked it. And I also have to know if you want me to make this story super long because I have a ton more that I can add, but it gets really confusing. And everyone would probably hate me at the end because I would kill off all the characters. No joke either. Well, not all, but I was going to kill Satsuki, Zoe, Momoko, and Hajime. Heh. Heh. So should I do around 15 chapters or continue on and do like 30 chapters?