The Devil Within

Chapter 9

Ethan's POV

I shot out of bed the moment I opened my eyes and glanced around me, half expecting myself to be back in the ice castle but it was only my room. I dragged my lethargic body out of my room to see that the house was still dark and the door to Dad's and Austin's room were still shut. They hadn't gotten up yet.

The morning was still considerably chilly, which felt good on my sweat clamped skin. I dreaded the heat of the summer which made me break out in sweat easily, and had me feeling drowsy half the time. If the heat wasn't enough, there was something else capable of making me collapse into dreamland.

My mental disorder.

As expected, there was nothing to remember after I gave in to Dad's suggestion to let the dangerous guy within surface. I shuffled around the kitchen, looking for cold water to soothe my dry and aching throat, but my limbs were careless and stupid, and my hand accidentally swiped a glass off the counter. I scrunched my face like a conditioned reflex, but there was no sound of glass shattering. When I opened my eyes a peek a second later, I see something outrageous. The glass was floating in front of me, bubbling up and down like it was riding on an invisible wave. I yelled out in surprise and tripped on my own legs, landing on my butt with a loud thud. The glass was still hovering before me. With shaking hands, I reached out for the glass and wrapped my palm around its cool surface gingerly. It was solid and cold, not a figment of my imagination. 

Just what the hell was that?

Does hallucination come in a package with my pre-existing mental issue?

"Ahem."

I jumped and accidentally banged my head against the steel handle of a drawer. Austin was leaning on the kitchen counter, still dressed in his pyjamas. He was fiddling with his phone which was vibrating and flashing like an alarm. When he was done he gave a loud yawn and scratched at his hair. I rubbed at the bump at the side of my head and got up slowly. "Your turn to make breakfast " he said, and sauntered past me to get to the bathroom. He hadn't forgotten about the fact that he'd been made to prepare breakfast for the past two days. I thought he would be more sympathetic towards me, his crazy younger brother. Especially if he'd seen the magical floating glass. 

But alas, Austin is Austin and he is a jerk. 

The both of them looked like they could do with another day's worth of sleep. Dad didn't want me to cook, but I figured it was better to get my hands busy, than grabbing them by their collar and asking them what happened last night. Dad didn't get to the topic straight away so I tried my best to not let my imagination run wild. If Damien was another personality that surfaced, he would be able to control my body in the time that I was out. With my face, he would...what would he do?

This isn't good. My head is already bursting at the seams over the unthinkable. 

They took their seats and we ate in silence. We weren't usually lively in the morning, but this morning was more dampening than usual. We finished the food quickly, but they pushed me to the living room instead of letting me help with the washing up. I glanced at the clock which read nine thirty a.m.

"Aren't you late for work?" I called to Dad.

He comes around with a pitcher of water and says "I took a day off today." Austin sat beside me on the couch. "I won't be going to the university today either," he stated. I gave him a withered look. "What?" he looked at me questioningly.

This guy may look and act like a womanizer. But there hasn't been a day he took a day off from classes at his university. He's taking a Master in Computer Science now and I think he was working on his thesis. Basically, he'll bite if you disturb him while he's working. And this guy actually skipped classes. There can only be one reason for that...