Angelic // Jerrie

Twenty Three

   Jade and her dad shared a hug and a few tears before they took their seats and began catching up. Her father explained the woman he lived with is his wife, and she came to him as a fallen angel in need of assistance. Her name was Eve. She was so thankful of him that she wanted to help him, and they fell in love. They've never technically had a ceremony, but they still refer to each other as the other's wife/husband.

  "Does Jade have a special someone in her life?" her dad asked, smiling wide.

   Jade nodded and reached for my hand. "Perrie." She looked to me and smiled, and I smiled in return.

   "Oh, you two are adorable!" Eve exclaimed.

"Thank you, Eve," Jade smiled at her. "So, dad, I have to ask, how did you get out of prison?"

   "I was only sentenced for two years, and I even got out early on good behavior," her dad explained.

   "Two years? You only got sentenced two years, but you..." Jade paused. "I saw what happened. You threw him into the wall. How did you only get two years?"

   "Wait do you think I killed him?" her dad asked. Jade shyly nodded, and her dad shook his head. "No, no, no, Jade, I just knocked him out. He woke up, and I got charged with assault charges. You didn't watch the trial?"

   Jade shook her head. "I only saw parts of it. I saw you pleading self defense, and Brea was testifying against you. I was too heartbroken to watch the whole thing. I guess I missed the charges."

   "And Jade, honey, I am so sorry for abandoning you when your mother passed away. There hasn't been a day that's gone by where I haven't thought about you and regretted leaving you in heaven on your own." Tears pooled in his eyes, and Jade half-smiled.

   "I forgive you, dad. I'm just so happy to be reunited." Jade smiled. "Now how about we get to removing these wings." She chuckled.

   He nodded. "Of course, of course. Who's first?"

   "I'll go first," Jesy volunteered.

   "Okay. Did Eve tell you about the scars?" he asked us, and we shook our heads. "Well after this procedure, you'll have scars where your wings used to be. I've had my wings removed years ago, and my scars had never faded one bit. The more black that's in your wings will create a more prominent scar."

   "Can we see yours?" Jesy asked, curious. He nodded. He turned his back to us and removed his shirt. We gasped at the scars. They weren't small, and they definitely don't go unoticed. He slipped back on his shirt.

   "That's only a small price to pay for all this," Jade said as she gripped onto my hand.

"Okay, let's go." He motioned for Jesy to follow him. Jesy did, and we sat their anticipating her return. We heard her loudly cry out in pain for a few seconds as each wing was being removed. Jade's hand grew sweatier, and she became more fidgety as she anxiously awaited her turn.

When she came in, she was sweaty, and dazed, but happy. "Can you guys ice her back?" Eve asked us as she handed Leigh and I each an ice pack. We nodded as Jade stood and Jesy took her seat beside me. Leigh moved to Jesy's other side as we sat the ice against her wounds. She inhaled sharply at first, but then eased up after a few moments. I was still holding onto Jade's hand with my other arm, and I gave it a squeeze before releasing it. She walked out of the room with her father as I sat here anxiously hoping everything would be okay.

"I feel so horrible," Leigh said out of the blue.

I looked to her with a questioning glance. "About what?" I asked.

"I was so rude to Jade, and she was going through so much stuff. I feel like such a bad person," Leigh frowned, looking down.

"You're not a bad person. You still have time to fix your mistakes. Not everyone is perfect." I tried to convince Leigh-Anne.

"I guess," she sighed.

"How are you feeling, Jesy?" I asked the strong girl sitting beside me.

"Mentally, I'm happy. Physically, I hope I never have to experience anything as painful ever again." She chuckled. "But the ice is helping, so thank you guys." She looked back at each of us.

"How long do you-" I began saying, but was cut off with a blood-curling scream from Jade in the other room. Her screams were louder than Jesy's, and they sounded more pained. They were more frequent, and sounded more urgent. I became more and more worried with each scream. How much pain can one angel handle?