I kissed Jake goodbye as he left my place, heading out for a fun-filled day of used-car shopping with his good friend Ashley. It was early in the morning, but I wasn’t sleepy in the slightest. Not after Jake woke me up with his lips around my morning wood. I leaned against the closed door and stretched, happy with how this day (and many of the previous ones) started off. I didn’t think I’d ever get tired of rolling over in my bed and feeling Jake’s firm and naked body next to mine. It was like waking up from a dream only to land in an even better one.

I shuffled over to my kitchen, scratching my belly and pausing for another stretch before I started on making my coffee. While it brewed, I got a clean bowl out of the dishwasher and went into my pantry, grabbing the colorful box of cereal and pouring a generous amount into the bowl.

At my dining table, I settled in by propping my phone up against the napkin holder and sipping on the coffee as I scrolled through the morning news. One headline made me pause midsip: Murder of another gay man puts community on high alert.

I opened the article, picking up my phone and leaning back in the chair.

The death of Alex Torres marks the fifth gay man murdered in Atlanta within the last year, all under similar circumstances. Police have been hesitant to spread panic and have avoided using the term ‘serial killer’ but after a press conference held yesterday evening, the Atlanta Chief of Police stated they are on the hunt for a serial killer targeting the queer community.

Further details on the murders are being withheld in order to protect the investigation.

… Fuck. Gay guys were the targets? That bit of information was new to me. No one had made that link publicly before, and it was a chilling connection to even think about. Our community was already small enough (and traumatized enough) as it was; now we had to be suspicious of someone picking us off one by one?

I spooned some cereal into my mouth as I searched around for more information, my morbid curiosity getting the best of me. There were unsubstantiated rumors floating around social media, but nothing that came from an official source.

He’s a local.

They’re cutting off the victim’s penis.

I heard he uses chemicals to paralyze and torture his victims.

It was all too creepy for me, especially this early in the morning. I closed out of the screen and opened up a mindless video app. I tried using the viral dances and trending sounds to scrub my brain clean, but it wasn’t working. I kept circling back to the news, and then I started thinking about my own issue—could they be related?