DEVIL TOWN: BOOK OF CANCER

CHAPTER ONE: I DON'T KNOW

TW: SELF HARM

Gil was going home late today. He found a notebook full of his students' names. It was presumably a hit-list. It belonged to Edward Richardson. Gil would often find Edward looking up guns and ammunition. This didn't really worry him. Hunter liked guns. So did James, and he's a pastor. However now that this book has surfaced, it seems Edward has more than a fascination with guns.

It seems that he had a plan to cause a mass murder.

Gil's name was on that list.

Edward wrote down the date and everything. It was gonna be on October 28th. That was only a week from now. He would've died within a week! Nobody would've seen it coming!

Gil hugged Edward. "Everything's going to be okay, son. Trust me," he said.

Edward pulled out. The officers pulled him away.

Gil walked to his car. The dry gravel crunched underneath his feet. The police officers were currently putting Edward into custody. Gil was crying profusely. He didn't wanna go back to work. Then the glimpses came to him.

A knife going through his body, Hunter crying, and that scary looking man. Then it started going further back. It was him showering when his mom went to hide in the bathroom. His dad came in and pushed her down. Then it went even further than that. It was his mom swinging him into the bathroom.

Gil hit the side of his head. He unlocked the door and sat down. He flipped down the sun visor and opened the mirror. He cried harder.

"Why are you like this," he asked his reflection. "Why can't you just be fucking normal, you fucking pussy?!"

A stinging pain in his eyes appeared. Veins sprouted from beneath his lower eyelids. His deep-brown eyes turned an emerald-green. He looked back in the mirror. He pulled down his right eyelid and saw that there were tiny, black blood vessels. Gil exhaled a shaky breath.

Gil drove back to his apartment. It was 7:00 P.M. The moon was out already. Hunter would be worried sick.

He played Day of the Lords by Joy Division. Maybe Ian Curtis' voice could ease his thoughts. He slowly stopped crying. This was good. At this rate, he'd stop crying by the time he was with Hunter. It took half an hour to get there. It'd be an hour if you didn't take the freeway. Everything was so scattered around in Outlands.

Gil whispered along to the lyrics. He wiped away a few tears. He looked in the rear view mirror to see if his eyes were still the same. They were. He didn't know what was going on with his body. Everything changed that day. First, he grew baby wings. Now this? Eyes changing color?

"What happened," he thought.

Why did he get stabbed? Who was that guy? Is Hunter a demon? He had so many questions, yet none of them were answered.

Gil exited the freeway on Sunset Avenue. It was funny to him. His apartment complex couldn't even come up with an original name. They had to go with Sunset Avenue. He laughed at the thought.

Gil parked his car next to Hunter's motorcycle and walked to the apartment. He jogged up the stairs and opened the front door.

Hunter was on the velvet-red couch with a dagger in his hand. There was a flash of blue light and it disappeared. He turned towards Gil and saw the look on his face. Gil had stains of tears on his cheeks and his eyes were wide. His entire face was completely blank except for his eyes.

"Gil? What happened?"

"I almost died," he whispered. He faced Hunter.

"W-Was there a shooting?! Here?! In Outlands?!"

"No! But there would've been if I didn't see the notebook!"

Hunter stood up. His jaw dropped ever so slightly. He gulped. "Was it one of your students?"

"Yes! And I should've seen it coming, but—" Gil cried again. "What's going on? Why is this happening?"

"I don't know. The world's ending?"

"Yeah right." Gil blew air out of his nose.

Gil sat next to Hunter. Hunter put his arm around Gil and Gil leaned further into him.

"Would you know why my eyes are like this," Gil asked.

"I've never seen angels with eyes like that. Most angels I see have multiple eyes in their true form. They also have wings. I don't think this is your true form... I don't know. I've never came across an angel like you."

Gil hugged Hunter. His face was in his side. He inhaled a shaky breath.

"You wanna talk about it, Gil?"

"No."

"You're gonna have to eventually."

"Eventually is not now."

Hunter sighed. "Is there anything else you wanna do?"

"I just... I just wanna be with you right now."

"Then that's what we'll do."

"Thank you."