Don't mess with the devil Momma always said

Don't mess with the devil or you'll end up dead

Don't look at his dagger-like eyes, they'll make you bleed

Don't listen to his words, he'll lead you into fulfilling evil deeds

Making him mad would be your biggest regret

He'll make sure you pay an extra fee with your debt

He slits throats and crunches bones with emotionless eyes

While smirking maliciously with those dark red lips that spill lies

He'll pretend to be friendly, give your cheek a poisonous peck

But once he's done with you, he won't think twice before snapping your neck

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When Jules woke up the next day, she excitedly looked around her room for her new friend but was disappointed to find out that she was alone.

"Dixon?"

There was no reply.

Jules placed her cheeks in her small hands as she stared sadly at the ground. Her new friend must have left because he didn't think she was cool enough to play with anymore.

Within seconds, the air in the room became cold and if Jules had been looking up, she would have witnessed Dixon appear out of thin air.

"What's wrong?" The sudden voice startled the little girl, but the excitement of having someone new to play with was so overwhelming that Jules didn't even question where Dixon had been or where he had come from. Reville Oaks--the town Jules had lived in all her life--was so small that everyone knew each other. Jules never had friends other than the ones she grew up with. To her, Dixon was like a new toy waiting for her to play with. 

Dixon felt a surge of sparks run through his arm when Jules unexpectedly grabbed his hand and led them out of the room.

"Come on Dixon! I'm going to try to convince my mom to let you come to school with me."

After breakfast, lots of begging, and the use of puppy dog eyes, Jules' mother was left feeling unsure while driving her daughter to school as she watched Jules talk to her imaginary friend in the backseat. Was it okay for an 8 year old to still have imaginary friends? Her mother pushed the worry away. As long as her daughter was happy, she was happy. After all, they only had each other after Jules' father left them.

Once they arrived at the school, Jules was so exited she dashed out of the car. She couldn't wait any longer to introduce Dixon to her all her friends. As if on cue, she saw one of her close friends walking towards the entrance.

"Lily! Over here!"

A young blond child turned around and smiled brightly, showing off her perfect white teeth that contrasted with Jules' crooked baby teeth. Dixon noticed that one of Lily's cheeks was suspiciously much redder than the other. It didn't take a genius to know that the blond little girl had recently been slapped by someone.

"Howdy do Jules!"

Lily always talked in southern accent even though her family had no connections to the South. Her mother, who was extremely intent on getting her daughter to marry a rich man, taught Lily to always talk in a southern accent because it made a lady more attractive and refined.

"Hey Lily! Want to meet my new friend?"

Lily gave Jules a confused look. 

"What fella you talkin' bout?"

Before Jules could answer, their teacher came out.

"Girls, hurry on now and come in. It's dangerous for children to stand outside alone without an adult," Mrs. Rally scolded. Dixon smiled at the comment. They were all in danger as long as he was there.

The girls walked hastily towards their classroom and found a table to sit at. However, Jules thought it was strange that Mrs. Rally didn't acknowledge Dixon, but she didn't want to make the already cranky teacher mad and decided it was best to just follow orders.

Before sitting down, Jules pulled out a chair for Dixon. She wanted him to feel welcome. Lily sat on the other side.

"What fella were you talkin' bout Jules? I want to meet your new friend!" Lily's eyes sparkled with anticipation.

"Meet Dixon," Jules replied while pointing to the chair she had pulled out.

Dixon realized that he forgot to make himself visible to everyone else. He scratched his head awkwardly.

Lily raised her eyebrows and frowned, "Jules, I reckon you messin' wid me. I got all excited for nothin'."

Jules mirrored her friend's frown.

"Can't you see him? He's sitting right in front of you!"

Lily stared at Jules for a few seconds and when she realized that her friend was being serious, she busted into a fit of mocking laughter.

"Well I'll be darned. Looky hyeer! Jules has an imaginary friend! Jules has an imaginary friend!" Lily sang loudly to the whole class which caused laughter to spring around the room.

"I used to have an imaginary friend....when I was like two!" A boy sitting at the table besides them commented. The taunting continued.

"Maybe she has an imaginary friend because she has no real friends!" A different child shouted.

Dixon didn't care about the pathetic insults the children threw, but when he saw water beginning to swell up in Jules' eyes, he had to clench his fists and grit his teeth in order to control the anger that began to swirl wildly within him. It probably wasn't the best idea to murder all the children his precious Jules grew up with in front of her. Dixon looked inside the hearts of every child within the room and saw instantly that none were as pure as Jules'. Their hearts were tainted. He knew every disgusting desire that pushed the children to taunt his mate.

Lily, the so called "friend", wanted to boost her own self esteem. The boy beside them wanted popularity. Many of the other children were tired of nothing happening in the boring town of Reville Oaks and wanted entertainment. Dixon was used to seeing selfish desires pushing humans to go against one another.

Luckily, Mrs. Rally came in before a tear could escape Jules' eyes and more importantly, before Dixon decided to rip the hearts out of anyone that dared to hurt his mate.

"Children, be quiet! I can hear your voices in the hall."

The room became silent but the mocking looks were left unchanged.

For once, Jules was thankful for having a snappy teacher. However, the child became even more confused when she instinctively held on to Dixon's hand. His hand was cold. She could feel it. She could squish it. He was real.

She was big girl now. Jules knew the difference between imagination and reality. She was old enough to distinguish a real person and an imaginary friend. She wouldn't be able to hold or feel an imaginary friend. So why was everyone else pretending like he wasn't there? That question ran through Jules' mind throughout class. In a blink of an eye, it was time for recess.

Jules decided that she was going to ignore her teacher and classmates. She was going to focus on having fun with Dixon. She owed him for saving her life.

"Let's go play Dixon!"

They went outside and Jules ran to the swings before any other kids got there. The swings were the most popular part of the minuscule playground. 

While they were swinging peacefully, Jules had to ask the question that had bothered her for hours.

"Dixon, why can't anyone see you?"

"I don't know, but just ignore them." He answered.

Their peace was interrupted when Lily approached and sat on Dixon.

"Hey! Don't sit on Dixon. You're going to hurt him," Jules yelled.

"Yall, come on over 'ere!" Lilly called out, making the other children curious and surround the swings. "Jules hollerin' bout me sitting on her friend, but do y'all see anyone?"

The other kids laughed and shook their heads no.

"Jules ain't got a lick o'sense."

Lily stood up from the swing and feigned being apologetic.

"Sorry Dixon, I'll just sit on the other one," Lily said mockingly before going to Jules to push her off the swing. Jules let out a cry as she scraped her knees harshly on the concrete.

"My bad. Why don't you get your imaginary fella to help you."

The other kids continued to observe and laugh.

Jules held her knees tightly and hid her head in shame as tears began to cascade down her cheeks. There was a gentle tap on her shoulder. When she looked up, Dixon knelt before her with concern.

"Here, let me see your knee."

Jules stretched out her leg and winced in pain. Dixon's eyes became dark. He bent down and kissed the bleeding knees, making Jules gasp in surprise.

"Why did you do that Dixon?"

"So it can heal faster."

When Jules looked at her knees again the blood and the cuts were gone.

"Is it magic?" She asked with wide eyes that still tried to find the cut that was there seconds ago.

"Lord a'mercy, look at how she's talkin' to herself!" Lily sneered.

Jules felt her vision become blurry with tears once again.

She looked at Dixon and was horrified. His eyes were no longer brown. They were dark red like the blood that had been oozing out of her knee.

He was glaring at the other kids and had his hands clenched tightly into fists.

Jules was about to tell him that she was okay and that they should just ignore the bullies, but was then distracted when she saw a black feather land on her leg.

Jules looked up at the sky.

Maybe Lily was right. Maybe her mind was creating things only she could see. Maybe she was dreaming. Maybe she was imagining Dixon all along. There was no way what she was seeing now was real...at least she hoped it wasn't.