Chapter 2

The door suddenly opened.

I lifted my bloodless face.

Fannie froze for a moment when she saw me.

Something flickered in her eyes, but disappeared almost immediately.

“Is there still black around her?”

“Yes.”

The moment Fannie answered with certainty, Emily’s eyes turned red.

She broke down and rushed at me, hitting me over and over.

“You demon! When are you going to leave my daughter’s body?”

Her slaps rained down on me.

I couldn’t feel the pain anymore.

I only lowered my head and waited until her anger finally faded.

Fannie walked away whistling.

Then she locked the bathroom door again.

By the time I was finally allowed out, there was barely a patch of uninjured skin left on my body.

When I pushed open my bedroom door, Fannie was reading my diary.

She jumped in surprise.

The diary slipped from her hands and hit the floor.

Her embarrassment instantly turned into anger.

“Why did you scare me on purpose?”

“Get out.”

She rolled her eyes at me and kicked the notebook hard enough to send it flying into the wall.

But halfway to the door, unwillingness flashed across her face.

“How come you and Ethan haven’t been talking lately?”

I paused.

When I looked up, something unnatural flickered in Fannie’s eyes.

The three of us had grown up together.

Ethan and I were the same age, so we always had endless things to talk about.

Fannie was two years younger.

Most of the time, she couldn’t really join our conversations.

“Who said you could stare at me?”

Maybe she was afraid I’d figure something out.

Fannie suddenly screamed at me.

Emily heard us and came running.

“Jessica! Are you bullying Fannie again?”

My hand froze as I picked up the notebook.

My voice trembled despite myself.

“I’m not.”

“You still dare talk back to me?”

She snatched the diary from my hands.

Panic hit me instantly.

During those three unbearable years, that diary had been the only thing that helped me survive all the cruelty.

It held my happiness, anger, sadness, and pain.

Writing in it gave me a few moments where I could breathe.

“Give it back.”

Emily immediately noticed my fear.

A smug smile spread across her face.

She grabbed the notebook with both hands and ripped.

It split straight down the middle.

“Now let’s see where you’re going to write all that disgusting garbage!”

Scraps of paper fluttered down around me.

I stood there blankly.

Something inside me collapsed completely.

Broken.

It was all broken.

A smile flashed across Fannie’s lips.

Like always, she linked her arm through Emily’s.

“Okay, Emily. Don’t be mad at Jessica anymore.”

“My Fannie is such a good girl. Sweet and obedient. Never gives me any trouble.”

Then Emily glanced at me as I knelt on the floor, gathering scraps of paper.

Her smile faded.

“You have no idea who actually cares about you.”

“Come on. Your dad said dinner’s ready.”

I didn’t go out for dinner that night.

Instead, I spent the entire night piecing my diary back together.

By the time the sun began to rise, my eyes were bloodshot.

A tear fell onto the page, bleeding the black ink across the paper.

Then I heard the bell outside again.

That was Emily summoning me.

It was time for the morning reading of my “Pledge of Redemption.”

Every other time, I had broken down and ripped the speech apart.

Sometimes I slammed my head into a tree.

Sometimes into a wall.

But this time, I suddenly smiled.

I tore the pages I had spent all night repairing into pieces.

Then I opened the door and walked outside.

I stood in front of our house and began reading loudly.

“I am a demon. I am selfish and greedy by nature. I have a filthy sex life and have brought shame to Oliver and Emily. From now on, I will become a...”

Emily stood beside me, watching with satisfaction.

Every neighbor who passed by wore a strange expression.

“That’s Emily’s troublesome older daughter, right?”

“Yeah. She was such a sweet little girl. How did she end up like this?”

“I heard she’s possessed by a demon. Apparently she’s already slept with more than a dozen guys.”

“But Jessica isn’t like that. She’s always been such a good kid. I watched her grow up...”

“Her own mother confirmed it. Why would she lie?”