An Angel's Heart

Confession

"Would you like to come in?" Yo asked when Pha walked him to his door. It was late, and Arthit had decided to go with Kong only after Tharn and Type agreed to make sure that Yo got home safely. They'd gone straight to their own room though, leaving Yo and Pha in the hall outside his room. "I've got a new dessert to try, if you want."

Pha's smile brightened and he squeezed Yo's hand, which he had been unwilling to relinquish all evening, "I would love that. There's something I've been meaning to talk to you about anyway."

"Okay," Yo opened the door and Pha followed him inside. Once the door was shut and they'd removed their shoes, Yo brought over a plate of cookies and some milk. "These are made from a store bought cake mix. I found the recipe a few days ago and decided to try it out."

Pha took a bite of cookie and his eyes opened wide. "Delicious," he managed to get out around the rest of the cookie that he shoved in his mouth. They were so good, he couldn't help himself. Yo smiled, enjoying the happiness in Pha's eyes as he ate. He leaned back, taking a bite of a cookie while watching Pha start on his second.

"You're a really good cook," Pha said, embarrassed as he finished his third cookie and downed his glass of milk. "Sorry, I'm so greedy."

"I don't mind," Yo said happily. "It reassures me that you like the cookies."

"I like more than just your cookies," Pha said, reaching for the hand he'd let go while eating. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I know you said you just wanted to be friends, to get to know each other better first. But I don't want to wait anymore. I really want to be with you, so I need to know if there's a chance for us. If you're not interested, please just tell me and I won't bother you again."

"I do want to be with you, Pha," Yo said, looking up at the taller man, who was sitting next to him on his little couch. "I've liked you since the first time we met and you've only made me like you more."

"Then can we make if official?" Pha asked nervously. The last time hadn't gone so well, but this time, he really wanted to do it right. "I'm crazy about you. If I thought you would agree to marry me now, I'd ask for that. But for now, I just want to be your boyfriend, to know you're mine and that you want me as much as I want you. I'm not trying to pressure you. If you need to wait, I won't give up. I just want to know there's a chance. But if you're willing, I'd like to be your boyfriend now."

"If I agree to be your boyfriend," Yo started, his angel's heart beating hard. "There's something really important that I need from you."

"Whatever it is, I'll do it," Pha said, feeling elated. Yo hadn't said yes, but it sounded like he would.

"Promise me," Yo said, looking into Pha's eyes. "Promise that you'll trust me, that you'll always stand by me. That you'll never run away when I need your help. That we'll be there for each other, through all the ups and downs of life."

Pha's eyes filled with tears, happy to make the promises that Yo had just asked for, "I promise. No matter what comes in the future, I'll still love you and be by your side."

Yo pulled Pha close and brought their lips together, gently licking and tasting as Pha gripped him more tightly and pulled the smaller man into his lap. The feel of Yo's weight on his legs, the way their two bodies pressed together, and Yo's hands in his hair as they kissed softly made Pha sigh in wonder. It was better than he'd ever dreamed. When it was over and Yo had rested his head on Pha's shoulder, still sitting on his lap, Yo cleared his throat and spoke somewhat nervously.

"I need to tell you something, Pha," Yo said, sitting up to look into the other man's eyes. "Before you decide if you really want me, before I accept your promise and give you my heart, I have to tell you the truth."

Pha gazed back at the person he'd wanted since he'd first seen the man, and smiled, sure within himself that nothing his love could say would ever change the way he felt. Yo looked anxious, but he continued, "I'm not like everybody else you know. I'm different."

"I know," Pha chuckled, thinking back to all the times when Yo had shown just how smart, thoughtful, and observant he was. His differences were small, but enough to prove to Pha that his love was worth the risks he would be taking to be with a man. "You're kind, a great cook, patient, loving. You're wonderful."

"Thank you, but that's not what I meant. This is more important, okay?" Yo was worried. He'd never considered what Pha's reaction might be, but he realized he couldn't really accept his promises until Pha understood what he was getting into. "If I give you my heart, it's forever. I will never change my mind, you will be the only one for me, forever. If you leave me, I won't be able to move on and find someone else. My heart will break and nothing will ever be able to mend that."

Pha took a deep breath, thrilled with his love's confession. It was what he longed for, of course, a love that would last forever. He leaned forward, intent on Yo's lips, "I feel the same way."

Yo leaned back slightly, avoiding the kiss, and continued, "Did you know it's nearly impossible to break an angel's heart? When an angel gives his heart, he gives the other person the power to break it. An angel cannot heal, so if you break his heart, it will remain broken throughout his existence. I'm telling you this because when I give you my heart, it's forever. And because I'm an angel, if you break my heart, it won't ever heal."

"I promise to treat your heart with love and never break it," Pha said, chuckling again at Yo's metaphor of himself as an angel. "My sweet angel."

"You promise? You're really okay with the fact that I'm an angel?" Yo asked excitedly. "And you promise you'll love me forever?"

"Of course I will, I'm giving you my heart too," Pha said, pulling Yo as close as he could. "You'll have my heart and I'll have yours."

Yo was elated, Pha had taken the reality of angels very easily and had promised to care for his heart. He allowed Pha to hold him tightly and he said the words that would seal his confession, "Throughout all the eternities, I will love only you. My heart is yours. Let the Heavens witness and rejoice."

The two kissed, holding each other tightly, allowing their bodies to confirm what their mouths had uttered. Throughout the Heavens, the angels looked down on their union with joy. All the angels in the mortal world stopped for just a moment to mark the occasion. One older angel, wrapped in his fiancé's arms, felt both fear and joy as his little brother gave a human man the ultimate gift of love and trust. Whether it would be for good or for ill was yet to be seen.

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Cranberry White Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies
(https://thefrugalgirls.com/2015/12/cranberry-white-chocolate-cake-mix-cookies.html)

Ingredients
1 box white cake mix
2 eggs
½ cup canola or vegetable oil
1¼ cups dried cranberries
1¼ cups white chocolate chips

Instructions
Beat together 2 eggs and ½ cup vegetable or canola oil in medium bowl. Add all dry ingredients and stir well with spoon. Chill dough for 1 hour in the refrigerator prior to baking. Then, drop onto un-greased non-stick cookie sheet in rounded balls. Bake for approx. 8 – 10 minutes (or until done) at 350 degrees.

Alternate Versions
You may try different cake mixes to get different flavors. Betty Crocker mixes seem to work the best, Duncan Hines is second best, but they tend to end up a bit drier. Cake flavors that are great alternatives are carrot cake, spice cake, and yellow cake. If you don't like white chocolate, you can use milk chocolate, but it really changes the whole balance of flavors. If you make spice or carrot cake, you can also switch dried cranberries with raisins if you prefer. I like cranberries best. For more of a cake texture to the cookie, you can switch oil for apple sauce. Just like doing this for a normal cake, this lowers the fat content, but sometimes the cookies don't hold together as well, so for cookies, I prefer using oil. If you want to add nuts (which I think are delicious) you should take out 1/4 cup of dried cranberries and 1/4 cup of white chocolate chips and add 1/2 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts or cashews.