Water and Fire

Chapter 6

Without saying another word he grabbed his jacket and opened the front door to leave the house.

Lena had no idea where he was going, what he was going to do, but when she tried to open her mouth to say something, the words didn't come out. She had no idea what was wrong with her, what was going on with her. Brian had said that angels couldn't be corrupted, but if that was true, she should doubt if she was an angel or not. After all, she had been drinking alcohol, she had gone to a party and she had not spread her wings yet to fly back home and to tell them about the Demon she had met.

Her parents would hate her if they knew what was going on. For years they had told her everything about being an angel. They had told her about the dangers, about the successes, about the challenges and the wonderful experiences. They had even told her about the few times they had encountered a demon and had been forced to leave their mission to someone more experienced in dealing with them. 

Lena sighed and then she grabbed her jacket too and followed the demon she was supposed to hate wherever he had gone. If she wouldn't be able to find him anymore, she would know enough. She would go home, would tell what had happened and would accept whatever consequences that would have. She didn't know what she would do when she would find him.

The entire day had passed and it was cold outside. The darkness was falling already and the campus was not as crowded as it was during the day. 

"Brian?" She wrapped her arms around her shivering body and she looked around, eventually finding him, sitting on a bench next to the lake. "Do you mind me sitting down here?", whispered Lena, while she didn't wait for his answer and sat down anyway. 

"Aren't you supposed to get me killed by now?" His voice was cold and it had lost the playfulness that had made her like him in the first place. 

"Yes, I am", she replied, but she didn't stand up, didn't spread her wings, didn't fly away.

"But you're still here." He spoke softly and he turned his head towards her, cocking it a little while he narrowed his eyes. 

"I'm still here", she answered, not knowing what else to say. "Maybe angels can be corrupted." She swallowed and she avoided his glance.

"You're gonna tell me that everything they've taught me about angels is wrong?" Brian raised his eyebrows, but he didn't stood up, didn't walk away from her.

"I don't know what they've taught you." Lena shrugged her shoulders. She could imagine what they've told him.

After all, he had only need their description of an angel to recognize one.

"They've always told me that angels are perfect creatures." He paused for a moment. Maybe he had forgotten the description or maybe he was trying not to offend her. "They never make mistakes, they never do something that can harm them or anyone else." He squeezed his eyes as if he was trying to find out what she was feeling right now. "They always think about the greater good. They don't have wishes or needs of their own. Only the will to turn every human being into copies of themselves." His voice had started to sound mocking, as if it had been a game he had been playing with his friends.
"No wonder you think I'm boring." Lena's lips curled up forming a smile. If the words he had spoken were true, she wouldn't have been sitting here. Just like all angels would get as far as she had gotten if they had truly been like that. 

"That's the point." Brian smiled back at her. "I don't think you are." He looked down for a moment and then looked up again. "For an angel you're surprisingly entertaining." 

His shoulder touched hers and Lena felt a shiver down her spine. 

"I'll take that as a compliment." She tried to tease him back, although teasing wasn't exactly one of her specialties. Maybe she was entertaining for an angel, she for sure was still boring compared to demons and humans.

"What do they tell you about us?" Brian moved a little closer towards her and his hip touched hers.

A couple of days ago she would have moved away, but right now she didn't even flinch anymore.

"Demons corrupt everything crossing their path. They'll feed children drugs and alcohol. They will talk people into doing everything that's illegal and if someone refuses they will grab what they want using violence." Lena swallowed. If anyone would know that she was telling a demon all of this, she would probably lose her wings or worse. "Demons don't care about people and feelings. They care about the need to destroy the world and all the humans alive. They don't know morals, boundaries or restrictions. They only know the animalistic instinct for food, power and sex." Lena didn't even dare to look up as soon as she had finished. She didn't want to see the look on his face.

Maybe he was good at hiding it, but he didn't fit any of the descriptions. Yes, he had talked Maria into going to a party, but he had not told her to drink or to have sex. He had not tried anything on her, on Lena. Maybe he had filled the fresh air in the house with smoke, but so far he had not forced them to smoke themselves. 

Not that she would let that happen. Her beliefs were trembling and shaking, but she wouldn't destroy her own health and body by poisoning it. The few drops of alcohol had already been bad enough and she wouldn't even think about giving nicotine a chance.

"There is a word for what you've just described." Brian eventually broke the silence and he licked his lips. "A monster. You think I'm a monster." He shook his head and Lena placed a hand on his arm.

It had been an instinct, not something she had actually thought about and for a moment she stared at her own hand, holding his arm tightly. 

"I wouldn't be sitting here if I really thought you were a monster." She spoke softly. Although the campus was quiet now it was getting darker and darker, she didn't want to spoil any secrets that humans were not supposed to know. "You're charming and funny and you do have a few bad habits I don't like, but..." She looked up and bit her lip, noticing how the amused look was slowly reaching Brian's eyes again. "You're not a monster."

"Maybe I should be." He bent his head.

Softly Lena squeezed his arm. "I'm glad you're not."

The look in his eyes softened and he placed his hand on hers. For a moment they didn't say a word. They stared at the little ducklings in the lake. And they probably both thought about home, about heaven and hell, about what people expected them to be and what they wanted to be. Who they wanted to be.

"So, what are we gonna do now?" Brian eventually said the words that had to be said somewhen.

"I don't know." Lena shrugged her shoulders. "I can pretend as if I don't know you're a demon." She knew she could. As long as people wouldn't ask questions. As long as she wouldn't be forced to actually lie. 

No one would be watching her. No one would check if she was okay. No one would notice that she was sitting here, spending time with a guy instead of the girl she was supposed to look after. Once a month they would send someone to visit her and that was about it.

"I can pretend I don't know you're an angel too." Brian smiled and Lena smiled back at him.

She couldn't believe that she was actually going to break one of the most important rules her kind knew, but she would do so. She would do so for a demon boy that she wouldn't like to see dead, for some reason.

"One of my parents will visit me in a few weeks." Lena didn't know why she was telling him. Maybe because she wanted to be sure that he stayed away from her when her father or mother would be there. 

"One of my parents will visit me next week." Brian replied and for a short moment they exchanged a look, realizing that they had found something they had in common.

"As an angel, I can't been seen without the person I'm supposed to look after." Lena continued, but she could already see how Brian started smiling. 

"The same goes for me." He nodded towards her and Lena nodded back. 

"But if we both stay with Maria, I don't see a problem." Lena cocked her head and Brian did the same.

"Try to be less perfect when my parents are there." He winked at her and Lena bent her head.

"Try not to smoke when mine are there." Lena let her shoulder touched his. 

"I can't promise anything", he grinned.

"I can't either."