An alarm was the first thing that jarred Devyn from his slumber. Groaning, he smashed the snooze button with the heel of his hand, not quite registering why it was even going off in the first place. Then his eyes shot open and his heart skipped a beat. Class!
Quickly he pulled a pair of jeans on and a long-sleeved black shirt. It was barely fall, but still, the wind was chilly this time of year. Pulling his boots on, he made his way downstairs to where he could already smell his father cooking breakfast.
Pancakes sizzled in the pan as his father, Kento, turned his head to greet him. An early riser, he was always in good spirits at this hour. "Good morning, sleepyhead! I didn't know if you were ever going to wake up."
Devyn nodded and yawned, pushing his blonde hair out of his eyes. He sat down as his father pushed a pancake onto a plate for him. Grabbing the syrup, he doused the pancakes before shoveling them into his mouth.
Today was his first day of Exorcist training, and he wouldn't have wanted to be late for the first day. Just in case, he had even packed his books into his bag the night before and had laid his clothes out on the edge of the bed to save time. He had even gone to bed early which was a rare occasion for him.
His father, however, would be heading to work shortly. Being a council member meant early mornings and late nights through most of the week. It was even worse for him over the weekend, when people began to travel more, and demon sightings increased greatly.
Devyn shoveled one last pancake into his mouth before grabbing his things and saying his goodbyes. Stepping out onto the porch, he felt the wind snap at his coat, prickling his skin. Shivering, he walked briskly to the school building.
A spark of excitement went through him as the building began to poke through the trees. Everything he had ever worked for, everything he had ever done, was for this moment. His father had begun training him at a young age, when he had voiced his opinion of becoming an Exorcist. In his freshman year of college, he was already studying demonology and other textbooks. As his junior year loomed overhead, Kento had finally caved.
Devyn had wanted to stay close to home, and so, his father had transferred him to a two-year program that would allow him to become an Exorcist in just a short time. Of course, the program had been expensive, and Devyn had received a long lecture about keeping his grades up. He hadn't really understood why his dad had lectured him the way that he did. He knew better than anyone what his son was capable of.
A car beeping its horn as it passed caught Devyn's attention. Snapping his head around, he caught a glimpse of his friend sticking his hand out the window to wave before the car disappeared down the street.
Smiling, he trailed after the car. At least he wouldn't be alone here in a new place. His best friend, Alex, had been transferred along with him, and with the grades he had, there had been no argument as to why he shouldn't be allowed to attend. Alex was a hardworking student, but Devyn hadn't known about his interest to be an Exorcist until he himself had transferred.
"Come on, it'll be fun!" Alex had exclaimed, his brown eyes twinkling. "We can both become Exorcists together, fighting demons' side by side!"
Of course, Devyn hadn't been able to protest to that. Besides, how cool would it be to work alongside Alex and his father? They could become an unstoppable force.
Checking his watch, Devyn clicked his tongue as he realized he was cutting it close. The bell would ring in five minutes for his first class. Picking up the pace, he jogged the rest of the way to the front doors.
Devyn huffed as he finally sat his bookbag down on the floor next to the cafeteria. It was lunch time already, and he was starving. 'I better wait on Alex, just in case he plans to sit with me. I'll hear it all week if I don't.'
Taking a seat on the bench, Devyn waited until he saw Alex's spiky brown hair poke out from the throng of people making their way to the cafeteria. He stood up as Alex approached, a grin on the boy's face. They quickly took their position in line.
"So, how did your classes go?" Alex asked, taking a sip from his water bottle.
"They were okay. I think I'm going to like it here."
Alex nodded as he turned to face the front of the line, waiting patiently. Devyn's stomach growled in protest at the sight of food. Maybe he should've eaten a larger breakfast…
At that moment, a woman came towards Alex, a textbook in hand. She wore a cyan sweater, the sleeves covering a portion of her hand. Her long blonde hair flowed down her back and brushed her waist, her hazel eyes darting around uneasily. A thumb tapped the spine of the textbook, making it obvious that she was nervous about something.
Alex grinned as he pulled her in line with the two boys, not seeming to care that she looked extremely uncomfortable. "Devyn, this is Sophie. I met her this morning in one of my classes."
Devyn's heart fluttered in his chest as she smiled warily at him. His throat closed as he gaped at her. "H-Hello."
Alex's grin seemed only to get wider at Devyn's reaction as he rambled on about how smart Sophie had been. Apparently, she had partnered up with Alex for a project, something they had to complete in their class. Devyn only half listened, his interest mostly on the girl.
A blush had crept over her cheeks at something Alex had said. She huffed and turned away with a frown. The boy only laughed it off as they grabbed their lunch and headed to an empty table. Devyn's mouth almost watered at the site of the food.
It was even better than high school food! He wolfed down his food as the two across from him continued to chatter endlessly. Well, it was almost a one-sided conversation really, with Alex rambling on to Sophie. At the least, she no longer looked uncomfortable. She even looked like she was enjoying herself now.
Devyn took their moment of silence to butt into their conversation. "So, Sophie," He began as he sat his empty milk carton on his tray. "Why did you transfer here? What made you want to become an Exorcist?"
Sophie twirled her hair between her fingers as she thought about it for a moment. "Well, my parents are both doctors. I figured maybe I could do something a little differently, like maybe using what I know to treat Exorcists from demonic ailments."
Impressed, he nodded. There weren't too many doctors that picked up the Exorcist uniform, so whatever could help them in the long haul would be great. "That's great. If both your parents are doctors, I don't see why you wouldn't become an excellent doctor as well."
Sophie blushed as she quickly took a bite from her pizza, looking away. Alex snickered as he too began to finish his lunch. Silence filled the table, but the rest of the room was filled with the roar of indistinguishable chatter.
Not too long after, the bell rang, and they hurried off to class. Sophie almost looked surprised when I showed her my schedule. "We have the next class together."
Devyn's stomach twisted in a knot as he nodded. "Maybe we can sit together."
Alex split from the group then, waving goodbye as he hurried to his swordsmanship class. Devyn pulled uneasily at the strap of his bag. Now that they were alone, he felt almost uncomfortable to be with her. He grasped at something to talk about but couldn't find anything.
"You were transferred here, right?" Sophie asked softly, her books cradled in the crook of her arm. Devyn nodded, relieved that she had finally spoken to him. "Why would you want to do something like that? You could have finished high school first."
Taken aback by the question, Devyn realized that most of the students here were adults. That included Sophie. "I never really fit in with the other students at my school. I was always ahead of them, so there really wasn't a point in staying in high school when I already knew where I wanted to be. I needed to be in this school as quickly as possible, and my father agreed."
Sophie nodded as she fiddled with her books in thought. They continued in silence. It didn't take them long to reach the pharmaceuticals room, the words 254 printed on the top. Devyn held the door open for the girl before stepping inside the room.
It was almost set up like a lab with black wooden desks that fit two people at a time lined the room. The back of the room was lined with cabinets, the glass sparkling as the light hit it. White tiled floors filled the space below them, not a smudge to be seen. Since it was the beginning of the year, everything was completely organized and in proper working order.
The class was a small one, not even fourteen students had shown up before them. Nervously, Devyn took a seat towards the front of the room and Sophie took the chair beside him. It was easier knowing that he was already friends with someone in the class.
Pharmaceuticals went by quickly, but Devyn was already tired and anxious to go home. At least this was the last class of the day. Maybe he would even get home before his father did. If that happened, he could stop at the café and grab a coffee and a bite to eat.
As soon as the bell rang, the blonde-haired boy was on his feet and gathering his things. Students filed out into the hallways and lockers began to click open and slam shut. Sophie stood up, pulling at her sweater sleeves as she waited for Devyn.
He glanced up and smiled before standing straight. "You don't have to wait on me. I don't live too far away, so I usually walk home on my own."
Sophie smiled faintly as she followed him out the door. "I'm taking Alex home if you want a ride. I can drop you off wherever."
Not knowing what to say, Devyn threw his books into his bag before slinging it over his shoulder. "Umm, okay, sounds great."
Once they were done gathering their things, they hurried out the front double doors where Alex was waiting on a bench. He jumped to his feet, his bag dragging across the cement as he did. Sophie led them to a candy red Toyota and hopped into the front seat, starting the car.
Alex gave a whistle as he entered the passenger seat, impressed. "I didn't know you could drive, Sophie."
She gave him a puzzled look before realizing. We were probably a few years younger than her. "I'm almost nineteen now, so my parents bought me this as my first car."
Devyn gave a grunt as he entered the back. It looked to be a brand-new car, not even a year old yet. Not even his own father would have gotten him something like this as a first car. Maybe like an old, beat up truck, or even a car with some years on it, but nothing like this.
It only took roughly five minutes for Sophie to reach his house, which he pointed out to her. Slowly, she came to a stop by the sidewalk. Saying his goodbyes, he quickly took the steps leading to his porch. He inserted his key into the lock and walked inside, the house seemingly empty.
He didn't pull his shoes off right away. Instead, he waited for the low hum of Sophie's car to disappear before turning back out the door. Of course, his father would be angry if he knew that he had left the house while no one was home. He would just have to make sure that he came back before his father beat him home.
Walking briskly, he made his way across the street and down a dark alleyway. Not the brightest thing to do, but it was the quickest way to the café that Devyn could think of. To save time, he pulled his wallet out as soon as he got to the door.
He only had a few bucks on him, only enough for a coffee and a glazed donut. Sticking to that, he patiently waited as the woman took his order and began working. Usually he would come here on Fridays, but the new school let out far earlier than his old one had. That left him with more time to leave the house and do what he wanted without Kento being the wiser.
Before he had hit high school, he would've been too afraid to have done something like this. He had never liked to cross his father in anyway, but he hated being cooped up in the house for hours with absolutely nothing to do.
Even though Devyn had found out at an early age that he had been adopted, he had been too young to know what his real parents had been like. Kento never spoke of them, but he doubted that even he really knew who they were. Even so, Devyn was grateful to have him in his life. He had been the best parent anyone could hope for. Even now he felt a tiny stab of regret, but he tamped it down.
Taking a sip of his coffee, he watched as the cars zoomed past. Some of them he recognized from school, heading out to eat or to the movies. There wasn't much to do in this small town, but most people made do. There were lots of restaurants and a few theaters that you could catch a movie at.
Devyn had never been so lucky as to go out with friends like they could. Being an Exorcist, his father was too paranoid for his son to leave the house without any sort of parental guidance along with. When he had been younger, Alex had always come to his house to hang out, acting like it had been completely normal that Devyn wasn't allowed out of the house. He never questioned anything. Maybe that was why they had gotten along so well.
Something bumped into the table, pulling Devyn away from his thoughts abruptly. A boy with golden eyes smirked down at him. Obviously, he had done it on purpose for attention. His eyes unnerved Devyn, but even so, he only smiled politely before taking another sip of his drink.
This seemed to irk the boy, who decided to sit down and throw his muddy leather boots onto the table. His brown hair fell into his face, the same smug smirk never leaving his face. Devyn cleared his throat as he moved his donut from the table. "Do you need something?"
The boy grunted as he moved his legs and leaned forward, clearly satisfied with himself. "Yeah. I've come here for you."
Now Devyn really knew it was time to leave. Slowly, he inched himself onto the edge of his seat in case he needed to make a dash for the door. "I'm not really sure what you mean… Have we met somewhere before?"
The boy didn't reply, but his lips twitched, like he was becoming increasingly annoyed. Whatever his problem was, Devyn needed to get away from him. Fast.
"We haven't. But your father's looking for you. We need to leave before it's too late."
'Too late for what?' Devyn thought, but pushed the thought to the back of his mind. His heart skipped a beat at the mention of his father. Damnit, why was he home already? He still had at least another hour on the clock. "You must be one of my dad's friends from work, then. I can walk home on my own. Let me just…"
As Devyn was getting up, the boy grabbed him roughly by the arm. Annoyance flashed across Devyn's face as he jerked his arm away from the boy, who was no longer smiling. Devyn felt around in his back pocket for his phone, his heart beating frantically in his chest. This boy was acting strange, and he almost didn't… Seem human.
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