Even In The Next Life

Times Change

  "Taiyo, where are you going?" My mother called as I was slipping my shoes on at the door.

  "Out." I replied.

  "But there's devils out there!" She rose her voice.

  "Don't you remember what we had to do to your grandfather?!" My dad shouted from the living room. "No one believed me, but now....now they all believe me! I remember! I was there! I thought it was a dream, but it's real!" He rambled. "Every last damned one of those God-forsaken devils can go straight back to Hell!"

  "....Not everyone with a devil in them is bad." I stated, staring straight at the door with a stoic expression.

  "What the fuck are you talking about?" My dad asked with a dangerous edge.

  "Not everything is as you think it is. There are devils that keep their humanity, and they're no different than us other than physically." My parents went quiet before my mother spoke.

  "Oh, my God! Are you a sympathizer?!"

  "Have you been cohorting with demons?! Taiyo, I swear to God, you better not lie to me! Those filthy bastards are nothing but evil! Don't let them corrupt you into thinking they're any better!"

  "Filthy?!" I spun on my heel, looking into the living room as my parents were still on the couch. "You know what, I'm tired of listening to your ignorant rambling! Grandpa was the same as before- you people just attacked him when you saw how his body changed! I remember Grandma telling me how he was, and I remember you ranting about how the beast must go down, but you people didn't even bother to look past what the first thing you saw was!" I shouted as my hands balled into tight fists at my sides.

  Ever since the incident at the track, the world had gone to shit, and neighbors were killing neighbors out of fear. Children were left orphaned, no one trusted anybody, and gangs were taking over the streets. The military was gunning down anyone that opposed, and it seemed Ryo's word was law because no one else knew what was going on.

  "So you wanna know if I've been hanging out with demons? No, I haven't, I've been with people who are stuck in the bodies of devils." Their eyes went wide as my mother gasped and covered her mouth.

  "We will not have this blasphemy in our house! You either stop this nonsense or be tried as a demon!" My father got to his feet, pointing a gun at me. My mother was screaming and crying, and all I could think of was how good they used to be before the fear. I was angry with how they let their minds become twisted by terror, and I wasn't about to hide how pissed I was with how they were lumping people like Akira together with devils that actually were heartless.

  "You know what else? Oh, this'll really kick you right in the nuts, Dad." I felt my lip twitch up into a snarl. "While you've been praying for God to smite the 'unclean', I've been fucking with a Devilman. Almost every time you think I'm at Miki's house, I'm with him, so fuck you and your prejudice! You want to treat me like a devil, go ahead! Like I'd want to be in the same house as you two quivering imbeciles too blinded by hate to see what's really going on!" Flipping them both off, I slammed the door shut behind me, and I hissed when a bullet passed through the door.

  "Take that as a warning, you she-devil bitch! No child of mine would go against God so!" My father shouted from inside as I looked at the graze on my arm. Kicking the door out of anger, I stomped off of the porch while putting pressure on my arm.

~

  Climbing up the fire escape on the side of the building, I sighed while holding my jacket tighter around myself. My shoes clanged on the metal stairs, and the alley was empty below so I didn't have to worry about anyone following me. When I reached the top, I grunted while hoisting myself over the edge and rolled onto the roof.