My name is Hiruma Yoichi. I'm the Devil himself. Or so they, everyone, says.

I am also a believer.

Sharp teeth, high spiky hair and acts that would shun everyone speechless.

Yes, I am not good when it comes to average life but that's fine with me.

My true nature is shown only in two places.

On the green astroturf clad fields of American Football and in a small local church of our subturbian neighbourhood.

I've always had things to do. To keep me busy.

Working out, studying and planning strategies, blackmailing and devicing material for it.

But there was this one day. Evening had turn into night and I was condacting research on teams that reign by height. It was quiet. Only the sound of tapping my keyport filled my ears.

Suddenly I stopped. For the first time in a long time I felt, I felt myself, lonely.

The mansion sized house was empty. But that was not it. Something was missing.

I snorted and fell back to work.

But even when lights were dimmed and I tried catching some sleep that funny feeling still lingered in my mind. Well, not in my mind but somewhere else. A feeling, yet not a tought. Like something that had been in dormend had finally woken up.

Sleep did eventually come but it had breaks and constant waking up. The following day was filled with yawning and loud remarks to anyone who had something to say with sacks underneath my eyes.

After schooll and training I gave everyone a friday-night off. Kurita did ask why but I was too tired to even turn to him. My walk home took longer than usually. For some reason a wrong turn, wich is really something not me, took me to a local church. People were singing inside. Doors were open so I saw some people from our schooll. I continued walking. Home was just around the corner and with it a place to lay for a moment.

After a quick meal and freshing up I turned laptop on.

Some arengements were to be done. Death Climb matches to plan and fields to book.

Sun had set and cool of the evening filled my room. After few hours window was closed. Five new folders had appeared on the desktop. There was still work to be done.

The feeling came back. This time I wanted to know where it came and what was it.

I closed my laptop and sat on the bed.

"Why? And where?" the questions echoed in the bedroom. I often spoke outloud when it was needed.

"I'm not alone. I'm here with myself and that's just fine."

That didn't convince the feeling.

"Who do I need?" that came by itself. I was surprised it actually seemed to affect the feeling.

An image of happily singing people in the curch hit me. "God? Chh! Haven't seen don't care." Feeling grew stronger.

I had studied religion according to curriculum of Japanese schoolls. Shinto religion was around the entire Japan but it had never affected me in a spiritual sense. I didn't believe in Japanese kami's.

"The only moment in those classes I felt sincearly intrigued was when we studied Jesus and christianity. A secret God who is close to everyone and anyone in His son and Holy Spirit. It did have a nice ring to it." Did the feeling just stop when I spoke those words or did it help me think them?

It was silent but the feeling maked me feel like something tried to speak trough the silence itself. "If you are there then show yourself! I don't fancy this at all!" Place still was filled with the feeling.

I did something I had absolutely never done before. Something that would rock the very foundations of everything in my life.

I prayed.

Nothing fancy. I just crossed my hands and bowed my head. "If you really do love me and wish to place my life somewhere than something..." Last part didn't make sense and it wasn't even said correctly in japanese but I felt like it was understood.

The feeling was still there but now it didn't feel strange to me anymore. Like in someway I knew what it was but still it was out of my power to comprehence.

I just sat on my bed in that very same position for an hour. Just like that. In peace.

My life had chanced eventough I didn't know how.

Next day the first thing I did in the morning was to go in local bookshop and there I bought a small Bible. Why Bible? Why not the Coran, biography of Buddha or just maked myself a miniature god to pray like someone else?

Because.

I don't know.

That's for God to know and me to quite clearly find out when everything else is over.

I did feel crazy and still do. "Why am I reading this? It's not like I'm pleasing the feeling or calling it to me. But I know this the right thing to do. Build my life on almost scary looking, sharp edged rock rather than beautiful loose sand. Buildind on something that will last." Funny. I never liked my own speech before this but now I actually make sense.

On one lesson of pchylogy a tought came by. What if I did all this just to please that one feeling? Like an addict of somekind? The answer was no. I'm cabable of rational thinking and that's exactly what I did. My mind actually was in favor with the feeling because the feeling itself was no longer. The feeling maked me understand, no, not understand but raise my head up and see what the sky looked like. "From all your mind, from all your soul, from all your heart love your God and your neighbour like yourself." Humans are whole beings. Something is missing but that can be filled but all in all faith can rest on many things on the same time.

When I went to a church for the first time on my own it was raining and thunder could be heard. On the very moment I opened the door lightning filled the sky with strong light. Few freshmen had been speaking about the devil on the same time. "Chi hi hi!" the timing sure was in my favor.

I asked if I could speak with the priest. The freshmen pointed a door for me. Maybe they were even more terrified now that they knew it was me. Still got it.

We spoke for a while. We agreed that the day would by next sunday four days from now. The priest, an aging father of three adult children, freshmen outside were his grandsons, asked if I would like to ask something more in depth. I declined. I knew.

Sunday came.

After preaching the priest asked me to stand up and come by the raised bowl of holy water.

He began: "Do you Hiruma Yoichi accept Jesus Christ as your savior?"

I raised my head and said: "I do."

Priest cupped his hands, took holy water and poured it on my bowled head while pronouncing: "I hereby babtise you Hiruma Yoichi in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

After that I admitted my faith with all the congregation: "I believe in God, Father Allmighty, creator of Heaven and earth and in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, who was from Holy Spirit, given birth from Virgin Mary, suffered during time of Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was entombed, stepped down to land of the death, was resurrected on the third day, ascended to Heaven, sits on God's right side and is from there to come back to judge the living and the dead. And in Holy Spirit. In holy shared congregation, holy contact and forgiveness of sins, resurrection of the body and eternal life."

Soon after that I was there with everyone on the Lord's Supper.

The priest handed me the small piece bread with words: "The body of Christ given for you." I ate it.

His assistant gave me wine in a small silver cup with words: "The blood of Christ poured for you." I drank it.

I gave a nod toward the altar as thanks and on my seat I prayed with gratitude. I cried a little.

Monday came.

Nothing new in schooll. I maked everyone go trough a horrific training session.

On a break Kurita asked everyone what they had done during weekend. Haha-Brothers lost all their coins to games, Butt-monkey saw a movie, Manajerk enjoyded a picnic with Peewee and Cheerleader boss. "What about you Hiruma? What did you do?" Kurita asked with his cheerfull voice.

I took a a final sip from a mug and answered: "I went to church and accepted Jesus Christ as my savior." A two minute silence.

Peewee was the first to come to his senses: "I-I'm happy for you Hi-Hiruma-san."

I turned to him and gave the smallest sincear smile I could. "Thank you."

"Now get back to work you clowns!!" Funny how loud voice and rattling guns can pay off.

Finaly after practice matches everyone was ready to go home.

"Wait." I called while taking a gym bag from a locker. "I want you guys to have these."

I handed a Bible to everyone. To Manajerk I handed one with light red covers. I instructed Cheerleader boss to hand every cheerleader one.

"If you have any questios recarding anything between Heaven and earth and beyond give me a call." With that I left.

I strode pass church and into my home.

After freshing up and a quick meal I began to gather data on new rival teams. Dinosaurs were quite new even to me.

Night came and I stopped working. It was time to rest.

I read some Bible. After it I bowled my head and prayed for everyone I knew and those I would eventually know. The world in total. After that I prayed the Lord's Prayer. In a formal way and yet in a way it truly matters to me as well: "Our Father who art in Heaven, blessed be your name, may your Kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as in Heaven, give us in this day our daily bread and forgive us our sins like we forgive those who have sinned against us, and don't escort us to temptation but deliver us from evil. For your is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen."

With that I dimmed the lights and began to catch some sleep.

I may look like a devil and most of the time act like one.

But like all humans even I desire more than meets the eye of our mortal lives.

Once in a while a devillike human bends his knees for the Lord of lords.

My name is Hiruma Yoichi. A devilish quarterback and a man who believes in God.