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!Warning!
This book contains a lot of blood, gore, strong language, mentions of suicide, sometimes attempts at it, death, maybe murder.
This book starts off with some of these things, so if you're sensitive to anything listed above... don't read this book.
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His crooked smile made my skin crawl, I knew this man in front of me was not normal, he relished in the blood he had just shed.
The body's that covered the ground made him happy, made him feel alive.
"What are you?" I ask in a low whisper as my eyes look over the blood that pooled around his feet.
"Broken," He replied with a chuckle. "I'm nothing more then a broken person, just like you."
"I would never do this." I snap as my eyes come up meeting his again, there was no emotion there, he felt no remorse for taking lives. "Killing people is not normal!" I yell as I feel anger taking over the fear in me.
He tilted his head to the side with a hum. "True, I shouldn't have said person, because I'm not a 'person' per say." He wiped his hands on his pants leaving bright red streaks over the light blue material.
"What are you then?" I knew before he admitted that he wasn't a 'person', a person could not do this.
"Like I said, broken." He said with a wicked looking grin. "I'm a fallen angel."
I swallow thickly as I realize what he meant. "You're a demon?"
He pointed his finger at me and shook it a little. "Movies and books have made everyone believe that fallen angels become demons, not all do, some of us choose a different path."
"And what path did you choose? It looks to me as if you're a demon," I wave my hand to show the mess he made. "You did this after all."
"I'm a soul collector."
"Isn't that a demon?" Honestly why was I still standing here? Why was I letting him explain himself, this all seemed to crazy to be real, fallen angels were a thing? Demons, all of that fake stuff was actually real? I had to be dreaming, maybe I drunk more then I thought and passed out.
"No, I collect the souls that demons have tainted, or even demons themselves, sending all those souls where they belong, either it be haven or hell, I don't know and don't care as long as I get to kill and stay on earth."
"None of this makes sense!" I raise my voice a little as I grip my hair, I felt like I was going crazy, I had just woken up to find everyone dead, maybe I was still dead and this was my personal hell?
"The less sense it makes, the better." He said leaning back against the wall and looking over his nails that were still stained with blood. "You really want to know what's going on? Or do you want to walk away and forget all of this happened?"
Of course I wanted to walk away and forget all of this had happened, but how could I forget I had died? The cut in my shirt that was stained the same color as his nails was enough of a reminder to the fact I had died not even an hour ago.
"How can I walk away when I somehow came back to life?" I step away from a stream of blood that was making its way to me over the concrete floor. "Did I die...?"
I felt the knife going in me, I felt my own heart slow down, I felt my head swimming as I lost blood, I even felt my last strangled breath before everything went black.
"You did die, yes." He answered as if we were talking about the weather, to casually for letting someone know they had died.
"Then how am I here?" I look down at the spot I had been stabbed, there definitely was no hole, no blood running down my stomach, nothing but a torn shirt with old blood. "Am I dreaming? Is this my own hell?"
"Oh, this is far from a dream and it's no hell. Hell is a lot worse then this. It seems it wasn't your time. When I killed these demon tainted people, your soul returned to your body and you came back, simple really." He shrugged as if it was all so simple, like he said.
"Simple? How is any of this simple?" I throw my hands up as I turn away for a second trying to gather my thoughts, nothing has been simple since I had stepped foot into this part of town, somewhere I knew I shouldn't be.
"It's simple when you've been around it for many years, everything about life and death becomes simple."
As I think over the past few hours I start to feel like he was lying, how was all of this simple? These people were tainted by demons? They killed me for some reason and then I came back because this crazy man killed them? How was that simple? How was this not a dream?
"Why did they kill me if it wasn't my time? I thought no one died if it wasn't their time?"
"Many people die before it's their time, really. You just got lucky they were trying to sacrifice you to the demon that possessed them, your soul was in limbo because I killed them before they could send it off to their demon 'boss', then when that demons presence on earth was gone, your soul returned to where it came from."
Again how was this real?
"But how is my body healed?"
The man sighs as he pushes off the wall and walks towards me. "You really have a lot of questions."
"And you wouldn't?" I ask, crossing my arms as he stops a foot away from me, the smell of blood hitting my nose again as he stirred the blood that was slowly drying on the floor.
"I would just be happy my soul didn't end up being sacrificed to a demon."
"I guess we're different in many ways then, because if this is real I want to know everything about what's going on." I wiggle my nose a little to try and ease the sting from the strong metallic smell.
"I'm sorry, sweetie. But, no way can I explain everything to you right now, I don't have the patience for that and I have to clean this mess up."
"You expect me to just walk home like this, covered in blood and not knowing why I'm even alive?" I wanted to grab him by the front of his shirt and shake him, but I didn't have the balls to do that.
"Yes, just know it wasn't your time and that you have a second chance at life, use it well." He waved his hand at me as if dismissing me.
I open my mouth to protest, but stop when he gives me a look that shut down any complaints that were about to leave my mouth.
"Leave now before I decide it is your time to die."
I take a step back and ball my fist as I fought the urge to say something, maybe I should just leave and forget about tonight, maybe it was all a bad dream.
I turn and head for the door of the abandoned warehouse, only stopping for a second at the door before shaking my head and continuing my way out to the streets that had led me here.
The world felt different, I was scared to get robbed as I walked these streets earlier, but now I was afraid to be alive, this couldn't be natural, there had to be more to this then he was letting on, there had to be side effects or draw backs of coming back to life.
The sounds that made me jump before were lost to me now, not even penetrating my thought filled head.
Why would I get a second chance? I was nothing special. I had nothing really going for me in life to make me special, I worked a normal office job, I lived alone, I didn't go out of my way to help people, so why me?
Because it's all fake, a dream you idiot.
Why did all of this happen? Because I tried doing one good deed and I get repaid by being killed? Maybe me coming back was the worlds was of rewarding me for trying to be a good person?
I sigh as my head starts to pound, the few drunks and homeless people that lined the streets gave me looks, a few asking if I needed help. I either ignore them or tell them I'm fine, I didn't need to go to the hospital, I physically felt fine, I just felt mentally unstable.
When I make it home a half hour later I head straight for my bathroom and turn the shower on, needing to try and wash the night away. Telling myself over and over again this was all just a dream.
*~*
"What do you mean she came back to life?" A man yelled as he paced in an abandoned warehouse full of cold bodies.
"Exactly what I said, I was just about to call you when she sat up gasping for air, alive and well." The dark haired man said as he cleaned under his nails with a wet wipe.
The other man that continued his pacing wasn't as calm as the one leaning on the wall, he was on the verge of a break down.
"We have to go after her and bring her back here, she can't be out there alone, who knows what side effects she could have." The brunette said, finally done pacing for a moment.
"No, just leave her be, let whatever happens to her happen."
"Are you crazy?"
Yeonjun smiled as he opened his mouth to respond.
"Don't answer that!" The man held up a finger, he knew his friend was crazy, the mess of bodies that covered the floor was proof of that. "We need to contact Huening Kai."
"Why the goody two shoes?"
"Because, we need to keep an eye on the girl! What if she flips and starts killing people? She died, Yeonjun. She may go crazy and kill herself, we don't know what she will do!" The man ran a hand down his face as his mind raced with how all of this could end.
"Honestly, Beomgyu, I've never seen you so out of it." Yeonjun commented as he kicked one of the dead bodies close to him.
*~*
I turn back and forth as the clock beside my bed ticked on, it was already 4am and I had yet to fall asleep. As soon as my eyes closed, images of what had happened pop up in my mind jerking me away from any hope of resting.
It's just a dream, I'll wake up any second and realize that.
The usual silent clock seemed a hundred times louder tonight, the constant tick of the second hand almost made me flinch with how loudly it was echoing off the walls.
It's just a dream...
My breathing started to become shallow and quick as my mind focused on the ticking sound, every second that past felt like a count down, it felt like something would jump out at me, as if my body and mind were waiting to be attacked again.
Just a dream.
I jump up panting as my alarm goes off.
I had tossed and turned all night and I could feel the exhaustion in my bones. Today was Sunday thankfully, I would not be needing to leave my house, not that I even think I could.
I slowly get up off my bed and head for my kitchen needing to have some coffee, anything really to distract me.
As I click the button to start the machine I turn to the stove and stare at is as I try to decide if I'm hungry.
Just a dream.
I jump once more as the coffee maker clicks letting me know my drink was done. I grab the cup and slide down the counter to where the sugar and creamer sat. The clicking of the spoon on the ceramic felt louder, everything felt magnified. Every little sound felt like it was more noticeable, like the sounds were slamming into my head.
I carefully set the spoon down in the sink, my shoulders tensing at the sound of metal on metal.