Unhinged (Dance With My Demons, #1)

by Steph Macca

When I push back to get up, I accidentally collide with someone walking behind me, not bothering to check my surroundings. "Fuck sake, watch it!" someone sneers at me. I jolt around in a panic, eyes widening when I spot Vivian's friend — Sam, I think.

who tf you talking to? our niggas gonna get you

My eyes scan the room, noticing the curious faces watching with amusement. I don't find the infamous leaders in here, and I suspect he knows that too. Theo is still sitting across from me, but his head is down, completely ignoring our exchange. "How much room does your fat ass need?" he yells at me, making me jump.

THE SHOCK ON MY FACE. oh ok he acting like that because they not in the room

"I'm sorry," I offer again. "It was an accident." Sam scoffs, laughing as some of his friends join him as back-up. "Yeah, sure. Ya really think you can just waltz in here and do whatever you want. Be considerate of other people."

ay stop apologizing

Assuming I'm making a bolt for it, Sam smacks his hand out, knocking my tray flying into the air. It lands with a bang on the hard floor, splashing mashed potato everywhere.

rd bitch cause now you dtm

I'm still covered in food but I follow silently, nearly losing my footing as I walk into Charmaine's classroom. Grey is already sitting at his desk, his face dropping to one of a serious look as he takes in my appearance.

BAE LET ME TELL YOU WHAT THIS BOY DID

It's one of those occasions where I know what I'm looking at, but my brain hasn't quite caught up to the realization yet. Finally, it does. I let out a yelp, jumping backwards with wide eyes when it finally hits me. Inside of the rose is a severed finger – the skin a pale color as blood dribbles on to my desk. There's a fucking finger in a rose on my fucking desk.

PERIOD OUR NIGGA TOOK CARE OF IT

Though, there's one bout of laughter that rings out louder than the others, and I can feel my blood boil as it pierces my ears. That motherfucker.

"Ooft! Little killer. I like when you are fired up but at least give me some warning," Grey jokes when I slam him against the wall in the library. He looked pleasantly surprised in class when I handed him a note telling him to meet me in here. God knows what he was expecting, but something tells me it wasn't this. "What the actual fuck is wrong with you? Are you for real psychotic?" I bark at him, taking a step back. Grey raises an eyebrow, blinking. "Psychotic, yes. As to what's wrong with me? You'll need a lengthy session with Dr. Smith for that information. We don't have enough time to cover it today."

LMAO

"Look, I get this whole hierarchy thing, but this was too far. Are you trying to dig my grave?" I sigh exasperatedly, earning a puzzled look from Grey. "Dig your grave? Whatcha on about, boo?"

oh i love it here

"Whoa, calm down, firecracker. Let's rewind and start from the beginning. You're talking more in riddles than usual. Who was in your room?" Grey asks. I stomp my foot, annoyed. "You!" "Me?" he repeats, pointing to his chest, laughing. "If I was coming for a visit, it would be to see you. I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not really the subtle type."

sigh maybe it was theo

"Whoa, calm down, firecracker. Let's rewind and start from the beginning. You're talking more in riddles than usual. Who was in your room?" Grey asks. I stomp my foot, annoyed. "You!" "Me?" he repeats, pointing to his chest, laughing. "If I was coming for a visit, it would be to see you. I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not really the subtle type."

right..

I grasp my head, pacing the library aisle. "Fuck me. If it wasn't you, who was it? This is nuts. Maybe I'm going insane, after all." Grey grabs me by my shoulders, pushing me into the shelf. "Calm your funny farm. Stop speaking in tongues. What was in your room?" "A finger…" I whisper, gazing up at him. He observes my face, completely blank for a moment before he bursts out laughing. "A finger?"

Catching my horrified look, he waves me off. "Don't stress. I'll take care of it. Under your bed, you say?" I nod slowly. "You'll take care of it?" He grins, outstretching his arms like some type of showman. "Of course I will. But just remember, you'll owe me one."

I'm still laughing several hours later at the look on Avery's face when I told her she's going to owe me. You'd think I'd asked her to sacrifice her first born. It fills me with little bubbles of warmth that she came to me for help. Granted, she thought it was me slicing and dicing to begin with. But I digress…

lol

The real question is who is removing digits and leaving them as presents. I have to hand it to them, no pun intended, but I like their style. Unless they are doing it as some type of sinister plot against Avery. In which case, they are going to have some problems. It's me. I'm the problem.

period omg the narrator whispering rlly just did it for me

I stand in the open door frame, smiling when Damon's eyebrow raises up. He doesn't even glance up to know I'm here, he can just sense it. "What now, Grey?" he mutters, scribbling something down.

hello to you too damon

He scoffs. "With the gen pop? I'd rather fucking choke to death." "I'm sure that can be arranged," I grin. "But I think you'd rather be more interested in choking someone else." Damon sighs, putting the notepad down. "I'm not going to choke you, you sick fuck." "Nah, not me," I say, unfazed, waving my hand. I walk into his room, plopping myself on the end of his bed. "Then who?" he asks, getting annoyed that I've interrupted his quiet time.

lol yall are a trip

"I don't have the patience today for your games, Grey. Spit it out." "A dear friend of mine had a present in their room. A finger."

"a dear friend" hehe

"Oh, fuck sake, Grey. It better not be who I think it is." "What?" I gasp innocently. "You don't even know who I'm referring to. I could be talking about myself. I'm very popular, you know." Damon rolls his eyes. "Save me the theatrics. It's the new girl, isn't it? You've been infatuated with her since she arrived. If it was anyone else, you'd be waving them off and turning a blind eye." "That's not true. I'm very hands-on. Get it… hands on." "Go fuck yourself," Damon mumbles. "I'm in no mood for your puns today."

LMAO

When I do find him though, I'm surprised that I'm able to kill two birds with one stone. The motherfucker is in the infirmary, nursing a bandaged hand while that docile Dr. Markel wanders around, humming to himself.

oh how lucky

I walk over, sitting down rather bouncy-like next to Hallman's bandaged hand. The movement sends a shot of pain through him, making him cry out. "There, there," I say soothingly, patting his forehead. "Tell Dr. Grey what happened."

LMAOOOOOOO

"Hmm…" I tap my chin with my finger. "So, who cut it off?" He looks away, jaw twitching. I snort, running my hand through my hair. "Aw, have you been sworn to secrecy? It must be someone really big and scary for you not to be ratting them out."

"Wait!" he calls out as I step foot into the corridor. "It was…." I look over my shoulder. "Yes?" He scrunches up his face tightly, swallowing hard. "It was Ashwood."

THEO

"Who?" I order, needing absolute confirmation. He looks at my pocket, the demons obviously winning. "It was Theo Ashwood." Theo Ashwood. Well, that wasn't on my bingo card for this week. Interesting.

real

When I push open the door, I immediately breathe in the smell. It's just like every other shit room here except this one also has the faint smell of Avery. The room is completely bland, and I shake my head. This won't do. We need to brighten this up soon.

right lol

Well, she wasn't kidding. It's a finger. But what she failed to mention was that it's in a flower. That's a nice touch. I never pegged Theo as the romantic type, but I guess even he has a heart. I've never seen them interact outside of meal times, and even then, he ignores her. But he's allowed her to sit with him at meal times which is a big deal.

She's full of surprises. I don't think she realizes her power and her aura. She seems to think she's some broken little soul, but she's much more than that.

her "aura" lol

We're all broken. But there's something different about her. And if I'm not the only one to notice, then I'm going to have blood on my hands.

Call it a hunch but I decide to check under the mattress. I have no idea if Grey is going to be true to his word and help me, but he's growing on me. Like a poisonous weed… but growing.

valid

When dinner time rolls around, I skip the food line and head straight to Grey who's sitting at a table with Damon and the guy who does the random free time announcements. He looks up as I approach, grinning from ear to ear. "Little killer! Are you coming to sit with me?" I don't miss the deadly glare Damon shoots him, and I quickly shake my head. "I just wanted to say… thank you?" I mumble quietly, aware of prying eyes. Grey nods. "You're welcome. I took out the trash."

the smile does it for me i love it here

Breathing a sigh of relief, a real smile crosses my face. He notices immediately, beaming at me.

I can still feel eyes burning into my back, and I dare a glance over my shoulder, spotting Grey grinning at me. I give a quick smile back, looking away before Damon chops my head off.

this nigga gonna be smiling all day LMAO

Suddenly, I feel like I'm in a good mood, knowing my little problem has been taken care of. So when I spot Theo digging into mac and cheese as well, I sit down, looking over at him. "Looks pretty decent today, eh?"

lord

"It's just fucking pasta and cheese," he says in a low tone. "Yeah, but it's not moldy today. And seems edible," I reply sheepishly, regretting my happy mood. Theo stays quiet for a few seconds before stabbing his fork into the pile of mac and cheese. "I suppose. I'd kill for a pizza though."

dont be a debbie downer & youre so real for the pizza comment

"Pizza would be nice," I reply casually, shoveling a mouthful in. "Hawaiian with a barbeque base." Theo raises an eyebrow, likely contemplating my death and his decision to let me sit here. Today might be the day I get yeeted after all. "You like pineapple on pizza?" he asks. I nod. "Yeah…" "Disgusting."

lol

"I'll go," I mutter quickly, reaching for my tray. "Stay."

oop

I peer off to my right, spotting Grey watching us. What's worse is Damon is watching too, his face stern as he observes us.

lord

"Ignore them," Theo says coldly. "Ignore all of them." "It's a little hard," I mutter under my breath so no one else except Theo can hear. Theo snorts. "Do I scare you, Avery?" My back straightens, my body on edge. "Yes," I finally admit, not even surprised that he knows my name.

a wee bit but im not ignoring grey thats my man

"I figured if you didn't want me sitting here, you'd tell me." Theo nods once. "That's true. You've got guts, I'll give you that."

"I don't think so," I mumble sadly. "I just wasn't welcome anywhere else and I enjoy the quiet here." "And today you're awfully chatty," Theo points out, carefully scanning my face with his dark eyes. I give a small nod. "I was in a good mood. A problem fixed itself, kinda." "Problems never just go away," Theo says matter-of-factly. "People take care of problems." "Yeah," I agree, glancing briefly over at Grey. "They do." A sinister smirk falls over his face, putting me on alert again. He smirks at me, dropping his fork on the now empty tray.

"Sometimes the best way to deal with problems is to cut them off." I'm horribly aware of how every nerve in my body freezes, a chill rushing through me. My mouth drops open slightly as I look at him, taking in his expression.

i fear he ate that omg

"Psychos, you say? Tell me more," Grey says dreamily, tapping his fingers on the edge of my desk.

"Will you please just give me space?" I snap quietly. "I'm not in the mood." Grey pouts at me, throwing carefully perfected puppy dog eyes at me. "I'm hurt, babe. Do you need a session with Dr. Smith?"

lol

I look at his hand on my desk, contemplating stabbing him after all. He notices, wiggling his fingers at me. "Go on, do it," he says encouragingly. "I'm bored out of my mind here. Give me some entertainment."

I shrug. "The door was so quiet, it didn't nearly fly off the hinges with scary businessmen." "Ooft, do you think I'm a scary businessman?" he teases, walking towards me. "Scary, yes. Businessman, no."

lol

"I think you're a psychopath who takes delight in people's pain. And your own." "You know me so well, little killer," he grins, grabbing his chest. "It's like we're best friends." I roll my eyes. "We're not best friends." "Business associates?" he asks. "You do owe me a favor after all." Tensing up, I scan him nervously. "Are you here to collect or something?" Grey pauses, contemplating my words. "Hmm. No, not today. But I am interested in playing a game." "A game?" I laugh. "I-Spy?" "How about twenty questions?" he asks, shuffling over so his back is against one of the shelves and his legs are spread out, blocking me in.

great so lets play

"But I promise I don't bite. I'll even let you ask the first question." Curiosity takes over and judging by the smirk on his face, he knows I'm chomping at the bit to ask the most obvious question. I can't help myself, the words spilling from my mouth before I realize it's too late. "Did you get rid of the finger from my room?" Grey grins, tilting his head back against the books. "I did. It's gone." "Good," I say, relieved to finally be sure.

"My turn," he replies, making my stomach churn. "What's your favorite color?" I snap my neck up, taken aback by his question. "My favorite color? You're not going to ask me something more in-depth?" "It's only the first question, little killer. Calm down. I like to build my way up to things… take my time."

he does it for me omg

"My father slit my throat during one of his schizophrenic hallucinations. He thought I was the man my mother left him for." A look of horror crosses my face, making Grey laugh. "Yeah, that's usually the look I get when I tell the story. It's fine though."

what-

"Then why are you in here and not him?" Grey smiles at me. "Bit hard to be in here when you're dead.

did you kill your dad too?