My Shadow's Smile

A boy is haunted by a smiling, childlike shadow that only he can see. To fight back, he discovers a horrifying ritual in his dreams: by mutilating himself in the dream world, he can inflict real pain on the creature. But every victory brings him closer to a terrifying truth, and the shadow's final, widest smile promises a fate worse than death. He thought he was hurting his tormentor, but he was only feeding it, piece by piece.