Fallen

Michael H. Potter

Hope

Wake up. Go to work. Come home. Go to bed. The cycle was a familiar one. Lucas had gone through it many times over the past four years. Five days a week, plus the occasional Saturday, three meals falling at some point within each day, and very little to break the monotony. Yes, leaving the office and returning to his apartment gave him the chance to relax, to take a few minutes or hours for himself, but nothing truly shook him out of his routine, and he had to admit that he liked it that way.

Today, however, he was in the third phase of that routine, driving home, and he made his way along the road in the full knowledge that the circle had been broken. Tomorrow was the start of the weekend, one where he wouldn’t be going to work anyway, but next week would not bring a return to normal. On Monday, he would wake up and go to bed, but without the parts in between. Most notably, the part regarding work.

The company that had, until a few short minutes ago, employed him did so no longer. True, he had been warned weeks in advance, but the end still brought a bitter taste to his mouth. It wasn’t because of anything he did, either, and that may have been the worst part. Lucas had been let go not because of his own actions, but because of a decision he was not privy to. Management wanted to cut away some unneeded fat, and some genius had decided that IT fit that description. While Lucas would gladly admit that he needed to lose a few pounds, the department he served was far from extraneous. Three months removed from a security breach, and they were firing Dean, one of Lucas’s few true friends and a more than competent technician. Half a year until their next planned upgrade, and they had sent away two of their top network administrators, including himself.

It wasn’t fair, and no amount of severance could balance those scales. Lucas turned onto his street with such thoughts flowing through his mind. It’d serve them right to get hacked now. A big Russian job, and they’d probably be begging us to come back. No, you’ve got to be the better man, Lucas. Move on, find something new. You’ve got the experience now, so this time around will be that much easier.

He had a month, give or take. Four weeks to find a new job and get settled in. There was no need to rush, no reason to panic. Some of his coworkers—former coworkers, he grimly reflected—would likely be doing that this very minute, but not him. No, he could handle this. It’d be like the time just after he graduated, when he spent half a year living with his parents and scanning every online job site he could find. The only difference was that he was entirely on his own this time, but that wasn’t a problem. Lucas almost preferred it that way. Other people tended to make things worse.

Finally arriving at home, he climbed out of the car and made his way through the parking garage. The place wasn’t all that full, but then it never was. Half the units had been bought up by somebody with more money than sense, an investor who thought he could rent them out online to visitors, vacationers, and tourists. What he clearly didn’t realize, Lucas thought wryly, was that this town didn’t have enough of any of those to make it profitable. Not in this day and age. Too far outside the Beltway for government and contractor use, too far inland to be a decent vacation spot, and it lacked the history to really draw more than a token tourist effort. The only people who wanted to stay were the ones already living here.

Maybe I should think about moving, Lucas mused as he unlocked and opened his door. But I don’t know where I’d even go. New York looks awful from everything I’ve seen, and Silicon Valley is a few thousand miles away. I’d be starting over out there. Where else needed trained, certified network engineers? He wasn’t sure, but he made it a point to look as soon as possible. First, though, he wanted to get cleaned up, to wash away the stench of despair.

A long, hot shower released some of his tension. An hour at the computer—a real desktop, not a phone or tablet, because he knew what he was doing—did away with the rest. Sure, the world was in bad shape, but so was he, and neither of those was anything new. Reading through the news at least let him feel a bit like he had kindred spirits out there. Sixty thousand of them this quarter, if this particular story was to be believed. At least I’ll have company while I’m out there searching, huh?

Friday night wasn’t for searching. It was for recuperating after a long work week. Never mind that this was the last one of those for a while. Following the usual pattern, Lucas believed, would help him get through this rough patch of his life. So, shortly after seven in the evening, he made a quick call, then hopped in his car. Within half an hour, he was slipping back inside his apartment, a pizza box held before him. He set that on the table, then took out a couple of slices, giving them one last check before heading into the living room. Extra pepperoni, check. No black olives, as he requested. And not a pineapple in sight, because even a nonbeliever like him knew that was blasphemy of the highest order.

Office Space, of course. There was no better way, in Lucas’s opinion, to deal with the absurdities of office work than with the most absurd office movie in existence. The last time he watched it was four years ago, the first Friday night after he had been hired. Now, in addition to a good time, it made for the perfect bit of closure on this chapter of his career. Half a pizza and a whole movie later, he felt his spirits lifted somewhat. You know, I could get back on the computer for a few minutes. Not like I gotta get up early tomorrow.

Mindless action filled the remainder of his evening, then continued deep into the night. And Lucas decided he’d just go with it. He was no longer a company man. For the time being, he no longer had to worry about appearances, or schedules, or anything like that. He was free to pursue his own goals, even if one of those goals was to get twenty kills in a round. It’ll be harder later on, he thought. Tonight, I can just be me.

He could the next day, too, but he could be more outspoken about it. Saturday was always his preference for socializing, anyway. Friday, he had long since decided, was the day to decompress, and he did that better alone. The weekend, however, he had made his time to join the world at large. Or small, on those days where he spent more time on the computer. Whatever way he went about it, the object was to find someone to talk to.

That went about as well as he expected. Through the daylight hours, he made little effort to leave the house, instead sitting at his desk, deeply immersed in half a dozen different chats at once. Once it got late enough for outdoor entertainment, he found a place that looked interesting, a bar with live music that didn’t sound awful, and he set out.

The band wasn’t half bad. Too many around here, Lucas thought, fell into a few different camps, none of which he cared for. Some were so proudly Christian that he half expected them to want to either convert him or burn him at the stake. Others went in the opposite direction, filling the air with gratuitous profanity or grating screeches and growls. And then there were the occasional so-called “punk” groups that treated their songs—none of them any good—as nothing more than vehicles for their manifestos. It sometimes seemed like nobody wanted to just make music anymore, so finding a place where somebody did was a welcome respite. Even if it was country, at least it was the good kind, the kind that sang of love and loss, but also the belief that things would get better, if only you were willing to work towards that end.

For the whole show, Lucas sat at a table near the bar, mostly alone but looking. A few times, he tried to initiate conversation, twice with women, once with an older man who appeared to be in about the same boat. That one, at least, bore fruit. “I got laid off a month ago,” the man said. “I know how it feels.”

“Oh?” asked Lucas. “What did you do?”

“Well, I did work in finance. Don’t know what I’ll do now.”

“Huh. I’m in IT. Or I was. I hope I can find something like that again. It’s not like I’m good at anything else.”

“Eh, you’re young.”

Not really. Twenty-nine, so I’ve probably got about three or four more years before they say I’m too old to work anywhere. “Sure. Just gotta keep looking, right?”

The man nodded. “Yeah. Things will turn around for both of us. You just gotta have a little faith.”

Easy for you to say, Lucas thought, stifling a groan. Too often, talking with strangers, especially around here, brought him around to that. Faith. Most people had it, that much was obvious, but he didn’t. He hadn’t since he was a child. At times, he’d paid the price for it, whether that came in the form of being teased at school, ridiculed online, ostracized by his family, or berated by supposed friends. In every case, he started out trying to argue his point, but he had long since learned not to bother. When faith was the topic, reason was left far behind. For the most part, then, he politely nodded along, keeping his thoughts to himself, and so it was here. If this man seated across from him wanted to believe that God would send him a better job, more power to him. Lucas would take the more sensible route: that job wasn’t going to land in his lap any more than the women who had spurned his advances.

His temporary friend changed the subject after that, and Lucas was silently thankful. And then the music started up again, this time of the recorded variety. Not nearly as good as a live band, in his opinion, but it would serve for the moment. And it wasn’t the kind of music that made people want to dance. That was good. He was enough of a fool already; no reason to make things worse.

Saturday became Sunday, which had to be Lucas’s least favorite part of the week. That one, at least, wasn’t solely due to his lack of faith. No, Sundays were simply boring. Maybe it was different for people who went to church, but he found the second half of the weekend to be dull, lifeless. Mornings were the worst, because he couldn’t accomplish anything outside—nobody was open. And a lot of places closed early, leaving the useful parts of Sunday even shorter. All in all, he felt it was a waste of a perfectly good day.

But he wouldn’t waste it. Not this week, when everything else was wasted. Fortunately, the Internet didn’t keep the same hours as traditionalists and churchgoers. While the rest of town was dressing up in their Sunday best to lose their rational minds for an hour or two, he sat in his underwear, skimming through a collection of potential matches for his experience, education, and location. Fifty miles, for that last one, because he had to admit a bit of desperation when the ten-mile search came up empty. I am not working in Washington, he vowed. If it comes to that, I’ll move first.

None of the bigger names were looking for someone with his specialties, unless he was willing to go through some serious background and security checks. These days, he really couldn’t blame them, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. So he set his sights a little lower. I don’t need to embark on a new career or whatever. I just need something to pay the bills for a while. I’ll worry about the rest later.

A smaller, more local company dealing in financial services had an opening that he could fill. It wasn’t a perfect fit, and Lucas dimly recalled his conversation partner from the bar last night. Is this where he worked? he thought. And if it is, does that mean I wouldn’t want to work there? Well, that could come later. Figuring there was no sense delaying the inevitable, he followed the link to an online application. Filling that out took half an hour, mostly because he got stuck on the self-assessment portion. Why do they need this, anyway? I’m going to be in the server room, or a cube farm. If I’m talking to other people, that means something’s already gone wrong.

Two other positions caught his eye, and he went through the same process for both of them. By the time he was done, it was getting close to noon, the time when the world would awaken from its religion-induced slumber and return to something approaching normal for a few hours. The time, in other words, to get a few things done.

Groceries were a good idea, Lucas thought. He had neglected those since his unemployment began, partly out of pity, partly from some worry deep inside his mind that told him to conserve what he had, in both money and food. Now, with his applications on the way to some HR rep’s inbox, he felt a little more comfortable, a little less concerned with rationing. That can wait till later in the day, he told himself. Those stores don’t close early, so I can go while everybody else is busy.

Thus, he had over six hours to kill, and no real plan for them. Computers served for a lot of that time, whether social updates—funny how so many of the ads were for temp agencies, now that he had updated his employment status—or games. Single-player, for the latter, because the online servers would be as barren as his job searches this time of day. Movies usually worked, too, though he instead decided on a TV show he could binge. That’ll work great for tonight.

When six o’clock rolled around, he was ready and waiting. His apartment building, like the rest of the city, was lighting up for the coming night, and the garage was even less crowded than normal. Two spaces down from his car, he saw a woman in her thirties wrangling her two children into an SUV. “Need some help?” he jokingly offered.

His nominal neighbor groaned. “I’m trying to get them ready for church, but somebody doesn’t want to go.” She indicated the four-year-old boy struggling in his seat, fouling her attempts to buckle him in.

Lucas let out a polite chuckle, thinking, Maybe that’s because he knows it’s all for show. Nah, he’s too young for that, too young and innocent. “Well, good luck,” he said, heading for his own vehicle.

At least he didn’t have to put up with more of that. At his chosen store, he wasn’t fighting his way through the aisles, dodging kids at every turn. Indeed, those aisles were quite bare, both of people and items for sale. But he was a bachelor, a single young man who had to buy only for himself, so a lack of options didn’t faze him in the slightest. And, since he was no longer among the ranks of the gainfully employed, he didn’t even have to get everything now, just enough to hold him over.

Still, the whole thing took over an hour inside, made worse when he found that his usual self-service checkout was busted, forcing him to stand in the single open cashier’s line. I’ll be so glad once they start selling all this online, he reflected. One less thing to have to worry about.

Loading up his day’s haul took only a few minutes, but those few minutes saw the sky change from the faded blue and rich orange of sunset to the deeper purples of late twilight. By the time he got home, he knew, it would be getting fully dark. And all the churches will be finishing up. Great timing, Lucas. No wonder you got fired. Cursing his own luck, he pulled out of the lot and onto the road, losing himself in thought.

Half a mile from the apartment, his attention was drawn to the skies as he saw a great, fiery streak light up the oncoming night. A shooting star, obviously, and he idly recalled his mother’s words. Make a wish, and it’ll come true. Yeah, right. Because that’s a thing. He did notice that the meteor’s trail pointed in about the same direction he was going, and that it was awfully low. Maybe it’ll hit. A chunk of a meteorite is a lot better than a wish that gets ignored.

The streak burned itself out as it neared the ground almost directly in front of him. Not quite straight ahead, though he could easily trace the trajectory of whatever space rock or ex-satellite had fallen into a wooded area not far off his present course. Thinking quickly, he turned onto a side road, a diversion that would take him away from home but closer to the presumed impact site. The ice cream can deal with it. This might be more valuable.

Despite its clear size, whatever it was didn’t seem to have caused an explosion. The woods up ahead were dark, though, so Lucas parked the car on the side of the road and pulled out his phone—the closest thing he had to a flashlight. A couple of taps brought up the app he needed, and the flash blazed into full brilliance. Too full, as he had to squint while his eyes adjusted to the onslaught. Once he recovered, he mentally checked for anything else that might be helpful. The only thing he could come up with there was a weapon for self-defense; a crowbar in the trunk was the best he could do on that front.

Thus prepared, he set out. His phone’s light illuminated the scene, but he had nothing much to go on save a general direction. Look for a crater, he first thought. Then he stopped himself. No, I’d know if it made a crater. I would’ve heard it. This one either burned up completely, or it fell harmlessly to the ground.

Twice he heard the sounds of wild or near-wild animals, but no people. No one else was around, as far as he could tell. No meteor hunters, no kids out roaming the woods, not even a random crazy calling it the end of the world. It was as if nobody else had even seen the sight. Or they simply had better things to do. It was Sunday night, after all. The younger ones would be getting ready for school, the older ones preparing for supper or bedtime. Finding a bit of rock or melted metal in the woods was a much lower priority.

Lucas continued following his best idea of the trail, occasionally switching his phone to a compass view that left more questions than it answered. A few times, he stepped over toppled trees, none of which looked to be freshly fallen. Some fifteen minutes of searching, according to the phone’s time display, led him to one that finally did. This one was a small, young pine, its trunk not even six inches in diameter. It sat at one end of a clearing, and he could easily tell the exact point where it had been struck: halfway up its length, some three feet above his head. From there, the top half had collapsed onto the part that remained upright.

This one was new. There was no doubt about that. Jagged spikes of almost-white wood stuck up from what remained of the trunk, and the pine needles were still a bright green. All he had to do, then, was find the body responsible, and he’d be—well, not rich. Not famous, either, but it would be a nice story to tell his children, should he ever have any. And maybe it could help with his job search. A bit of local notoriety would go a long way towards getting his name out there.

While his mind dwelt on that, Lucas turned to the harder job of locating the meteorite. Assuming it hadn’t shattered when it struck the tree, it had to be somewhere underneath the mess of branches and needles. First order of business, then, was to start moving those around. I’m gonna get sap all over me, his inner voice moaned. Is it really worth it? As he lifted the first heavy branch, feeling it stick briefly to his arm, he decided that he was too far gone to stop now.

He tossed another branch aside, then two more. At last, he could see the ground beneath the fallen tree. Shining his flashlight in the space he had cleared, though, he gasped in shock. For what he saw was not a rock, not a piece of space junk that had somehow made the descent from orbit intact. No, the first thing he spotted was a human hand. A dirty one, yes, but definitely human. The fingers were soft and slender, the nails a white that reflected his phone’s light like a mirror. A woman, then, but why was she here? Had she been out hunting for the meteorite, too? More importantly, was she alive?

Thought took a back seat to action. Lucas had never been big on chivalry; women were always talking these days about wanting to be equal, so he took them at their word. But right now, it didn’t matter that this was a woman lying beneath a fallen tree. It was another person, which was just as important. And nobody else was coming to her rescue. He could call 911, sure, but would they get here in time? How would he even be able to tell the paramedics where to go? Nope, it’s all on you. Best get to work.

The more Lucas uncovered the feminine form beneath the wreckage of the tree, the less the whole scene made sense. Briefly, he wondered if the woman was dead, if the toppling pine crushed her. That would explain why she wasn’t moving, why she failed to respond to his calls. More likely, he assumed, she had been knocked unconscious when it fell on her, but that still didn’t answer the question of why she was out here in the first place. No, the timing doesn’t work. If the meteorite knocked the tree down, then she couldn’t have been out here hunting it. She was already out here, and it was just bad luck that she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Maybe he could ask her, but that would have to wait until he finished uncovering her. Minute after minute, branch after branch, he worked at that, slowly revealing the rest of her form, and there he got another shock. More than one, even, but the biggest was when he followed the trail of her arm to an equally bare shoulder. Was she wearing a tank top or something? It was a bit cool for that, he thought, though some people simply didn’t care about such mundane matters. Tentatively, he ran his hand along the skin, ready to yank it back at the first sign of resistance. He felt none of that, but also no clothing, which only deepened the mystery.

Okay, so now I’m dealing with a meteor and a streaker. Wonderful. He kept working at the branches, now getting near the bottom of the pile, but most of these were larger and more firmly attached. Lucas realized that he was fast approaching the point where he’d have to move the trunk itself. Whether he could do so with his bare hands was debatable, so he decided not to bother. He’d only push it far enough to get the woman out. The meteorite could wait until later.

He couldn’t lift it. He tried, and the only thing that came of it, besides about three inches of upward motion, was a twinge of pain in his lower back. Not gonna work, he told himself. So what else can we do? Thinking quickly, he shifted his body to a position where he could push rather than pull. That gave him more leverage, although not that much more. “Miss?” he called to the woman. “Can you hear me?”

No answer. Not that he expected one, but he had hoped. So he couldn’t rely on her getting herself out. All on your own, Lucas. Isn’t that how it always is? With a loud grunt, he lifted his body and the part of the tree nearest its victim. The trunk started sliding, but he shifted underneath it to guide it away from the prone form below. Only when he was sure it wouldn’t fall right back down on her did he push himself out of the way, and he took two steps forward to stand, hands on knees, while he panted from the exertion he had just endured. This better be worth it.

His phone had fallen out of his pocket, landing on a cushion of much older needles. Taking it, Lucas shined its flash at the woman, now hidden only by a nest of smaller branches going up to her waist, ending just below a navel covered by a button-like jeweled plug. Her top half, as he suspected, bore not a stitch of clothing, though it was spotted with blotches of sticky brown sap. Despite that, masculine instinct led him to switch his flashlight out for a camera long enough to snap a single picture. Then he shook his head, clearing it of baser thoughts, and set to work again.

The trunk was not entirely stable, so the most sensible thing to do, in his opinion, was drag the woman out. Then, he’d wake her up, or take her to his car and then wake her up. Perhaps he’d get her number in exchange for his heroism, but that was a problem for later. For now, what mattered most was bringing her out of danger.

Lucas shoved his phone back into his pocket, hooked his arms under the woman’s shoulders, and began to pull. No back pain this time around. She was much lighter than the tree trunk. Indeed, it felt at times like she weighed nothing at all. She glided over the ground with little resistance as he backed away from the mess of branches and needles, and he heard the distinct crunch of a pine cone under his feet. I hope that doesn’t hurt her too bad.

Her nudity, he couldn’t help but notice, extended to the rest of her body. Once it was safe, he stopped his dragging and surveyed what he had found. Golden blond hair, a bit matted and tousled right now, but it was straight and shoulder-length. And it was also, he could easily tell, just about the only hair she had anywhere on her body. The woman’s skin was so pale that he thought her dead already, but it was warm to the touch—a finger along her arm was the most he dared. The face looked full and peaceful, almost like she was asleep, not knocked out from a random tree falling on her. She was clearly alive, though, as he watched the slow rise and fall of her chest, ready to swear to anyone who asked that he wasn’t staring at the pert mounds perched atop it.

She looks young, he mused. Then a more sinister, more alarming thought entered his head. What if she’s just a teenager? Oh, that could be very bad. This would be so much easier if she had, you know, a purse or something. But she didn’t. She appeared to be carrying no belongings, no identification, nothing that said who she was. I should probably get her out of here. It was getting cold—one look told him just how cold—and he shivered from both the temperature and the weight of responsibility.

This time, he wouldn’t drag her across the ground. No, he lifted the woman’s body, throwing it over his shoulder into a position that gave him a good look at a back side that was, in his opinion, just as alluring as the front. Stop thinking about it, Lucas reminded himself. You don’t need that. Especially if she wakes up and tells you she’s only sixteen.

Retracing his steps, he reached his car with his warring thoughts and his precious cargo, and not another soul in sight. This part, at least, wasn’t nearly so tricky. He opened the passenger-side door and laid her in the seat, careful to position her body so she could pass for sitting upright. Unconscious as she was, she wasn’t able to help with the seatbelt, and Lucas was reminded of the little boy fighting his mother earlier in the evening. Bet she’ll never have this problem, he laughed inwardly.

The woman was strapped in, but there was still that pesky nakedness to attend to. Lucas could do little about it right now. He didn’t have a change of clothes in the car, much less one suitable for a woman. She was tall, he saw, taller than himself, but much thinner. Willowy, some part of his brain helpfully provided. That was the perfect word to describe her. Now that I think about it, I’d almost rather she be a teen. Less chance of an angry boyfriend or husband that way. Because there is no way she stays single. Not a chance. In the end, the best he could do was cover her body with bags of groceries. That served to keep her decent as he drove away, hitting the road home.

Another car was pulling into a space not far ahead of Lucas. With a glance at his passenger—still out cold, still without a stitch of clothing—he paused long enough to let his neighbor park, then continued on, searching for a darker corner out of the way, out of casual sight. Finally, he found one in the back, under a dim, flickering light that wouldn’t give much indication of who was inside any vehicle parked nearby. Distance prevented anyone from seeing through the car’s left side, while the rear wall of the garage would do for the right.

Okay, so nobody’s going to see her in the car, but how do I get her out? He couldn’t risk carrying her. Sure, he might be able to get her to the door without being spotted, but the apartment building’s interior was not built for stealth. Somebody would see, Lucas had no doubt. Thus, he knew he had only one real option. First off, he’d need some clothes that would fit her well enough to ensure her modesty. Oh, and he should probably get some of that food inside.

“Just stay right here,” he said aloud.

Again, he received no answer, but he was already shuffling sacks around. Everything that wasn’t perishable could stay out for the moment. Ice cream could melt, as it wasn’t that cold, so that was coming in now. Loaded up with as much as he could carry, Lucas headed for the elevator, then his apartment. Next, after putting away what had to stay frozen, he dug into his closet, picking out some of his more ill-fitting garments. Baggy sweatpants, a shirt that was a little too small for him, whatever would work. She could stay barefoot for now, just as long as the rest of her was clothed.

“Okay, I’m back,” he told his unresponsive passenger upon his return to the car. Half his groceries were still in there, but none were now in her lap. If anyone could see, they’d see it all, and he wasn’t sure he could dress a woman in her sleep. I can barely go the other way when they’re awake. Gently, he gave her shoulder a shake, saying, “Miss? If you can hear me, you really need to wake up now.”

At first, she simply continued to lie there, but a second, firmer shake finally seemed to rouse her somewhat. Her eyelids fluttered as her head turned his way, and her body shifted in the seat. “Hmm?” she mumbled.

“Hello? Are you awake?”

Lids raised ever so slightly to reveal two eyes of an almost silvery gray, and those eyes showed a wakefulness, an alertness, that the rest of her body lacked. “I…,” she began.

Lucas shook his head to keep himself from staring. “Here. Let me help you get dressed, and we can talk inside. Do you think you can do that?”

A slow, short nod was her reply, so he passed over the shirt and pants. The woman was clearly a bit woozy, as it took her a few seconds to get the garments oriented, but she showed no shame at her condition. She didn’t try to hide herself or even push him away. “Oh, this hurts,” he heard her mutter.

He dropped the bag he was holding and moved closer as his concern grew. “Where does it hurt? Your head?”

“Everywhere. Ow. I…didn’t think it would be like this.”

Now that she was speaking in something above a whisper, he could hear the melodic quality of her voice, something that went far beyond a simple lilt. She might be a singer or something. Maybe an actress? She looks the part, that’s for sure. Lucas again averted his gaze as she leaned forward to don the T-shirt. On her taller frame, it exposed her midriff, but that was better than all of her torso, so it would do. That plug, or whatever it was, did a good job of catching his eye, though. A navel piercing? Never really thought about those before, but I could see how they might be…interesting.

The pants were next, and he had to tie the drawstring tight to keep them from falling off of her. But that would serve to get her inside the apartment. Then, he’d start getting some answers. Before that, though, there was one more task. “Do you think you can carry a couple of these?” he asked. “Nothing too heavy, but it would save me a trip.”

She looked up from her inspection of her skin—probably wondering how she was ever going to get all that sap off of her, Lucas guessed—and fixed those bright, piercing eyes on his. “I can do that, I think.”

“I don’t want to hurt you any more than you already are. You said you were in pain.”

“No, I can. It…won’t hurt more.”

Okay, whatever. “Sure. These two. I’ll get the rest.”

The woman dutifully took the bags, though he noticed her fingers rubbing at the plastic of one. “Where are we going?” she asked.

“My apartment. I didn’t know where else to take you. What were you doing out there, anyway? No clothes, no ID, just wandering out in the woods at dark. That’s pretty weird, if you ask me.”

“I…fell,” she replied slowly.

“Probably when that tree landed on you. Did you see the meteor?” At her blank look, he shrugged. “We’ll worry about it later. Let’s get you inside.”

She did follow, which left him inexplicably relieved. And no one remarked on her presence inside the apartment building. At times, it was like nobody else even saw her, but he knew that wasn’t true. One little girl openly stared, though she never opened her mouth. And his stranger kept quiet, trailing him by never more than a step. As he unlocked his door, she was right there beside him, and he announced, “It’s not much, but it’s home.”

Looking a bit dazed, she walked inside, dropping the bags off at the coffee table that he more often used as a footrest. She then proceeded to explore, nosing around like a child, or a puppy, or something equally innocent and confused. Lucas, seeing no other obvious course of action, left her to it and attended to his own chores. Notable among those was putting away the rest of his purchases, which took ten minutes that saw his new visitor poke at the TV, the computer, and whatever else wasn’t nailed down. “Don’t break anything,” he warned.

“I won’t,” she promised, her voice distant as she found something else to amuse herself with.

Once he was done, Lucas decided it was time to get some answers. “What’s your name?” he asked casually.

The woman looked up from her seat on the couch and sighed. “Elyssa,” came her response.

“That’s a nice name. I’m Lucas. So, Elyssa, what were you doing out in the woods tonight?”

“I told you already. I fell.”

“Yeah, I got that, but I was wondering what led up to that point. See, I was driving home from the store, and I caught this meteor going across the sky. I tracked it to the woods, and that’s where I found you. Might I ask why you were naked?”

Elyssa gave him a funny look. “I was nude,” she said in a tone of correction.

“Same thing. Now—”

“It’s not. They’re different words, with different meanings.”

Lucas threw his hands up defensively. “Okay, okay.” My first guess was right, then. She’s some kind of nudist or something. Who else would let that get under their skin? Ugh. Now is not the time for puns. “So you were nude in the woods. Do you usually walk around like that wherever you come from?”

For some strange reason, Elyssa actually had to think about that one. “It’s…different. I don’t know if you would understand, but I’m starting to remember. Yes, I do remember.”

“Well, that’s a start. Is there someone you can call? Somebody who can pick you up?”

Her response here made no more sense than the last one. “None who would hear.”

“You are a weird one, I’ll give you that.” She didn’t seem opposed, so Lucas took a seat on the couch beside her, sliding her legs out of the way. Elyssa shifted into a sitting position, though she continued to lean at an angle he would describe as inviting. “Can’t say I mind the weird ones, though. Where do you live?”

Again, she needed to contemplate her answer. “I suppose I live here now.”

Lucas’s hand went to his face. Not just a nudist, but a crazy nudist, possibly with a bit of amnesia. “Where did you live before tonight, then?” he asked slowly.

“You wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me.”

“No, it…doesn’t matter anymore. I’m here, in this place.”

So she clearly wants someone to share in her insanity, because that’s definitely where this is going. With a groan, Lucas said, “Let me get this straight. You were wandering through the woods naked. Sorry, nude. You fell and hit your head, and now you can’t remember everything. You know where you live, but it’s somewhere I wouldn’t know. Sound good so far?”

Elyssa mulled that over for a moment, then responded, “You have it wrong. I wasn’t in the woods until I fell.”

“Well, how does that happen? What, did you fall out of the sky or something? I don’t see how you would’ve survived that.”

“I’m strong, or I thought I was. I…may have been wrong about that. I didn’t know how much it would hurt. Is it always this bad?”

Lucas had no idea what she was rambling about, so he simply answered her question in as literal and direct a way as possible. “Depends on how hard you hit. You might have a concussion or something. You know, we should probably get you to a doctor. Oh, and I have to know something. It’s not polite, but…how old are you?”

“Older than you,” Elyssa replied without hesitation. Without even knowing his age, for that matter.

Glad we cleared that up, he thought with no small amount of sarcasm. “Gotcha. Now, the doctor.”

Lucas made to stand, but Elyssa grabbed his arm. “Please, no. I can stay here. I’ll be better soon, I think. It’s only a body.”

“A very nice body, I must admit. It’s your choice, though. If you’re sure you aren’t hurting anymore, I won’t call 911.”

“Thank you.” She looked down at her borrowed clothes. “But I do need to be clean. I didn’t know a tree could be so…sticky.”

“Well, I bet all those nude beaches you come from don’t have pines. You can use my shower, but don’t expect any conditioner.”

She thanked him again, adding, “You’re very generous.”

Lucas stood again, and he couldn’t resist giving a slight bow. “Only the best for a beautiful young lady like you.” He grinned despite himself. “The bathroom’s right this way, my little angel.”

Elyssa had taken his outstretched hand, but she stopped cold. “How did you know?”

What in the world did she mean by that? “Huh?”

“I wasn’t supposed to say it to anyone who didn’t already know.”

“What? Elyssa, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I’m…an angel. A fallen angel.”

Faith

Lucas didn’t know whether to look at Elyssa in confusion, amazement, or even pity, so he settled on an expression that contained a mix of all those and more. Obviously, she wasn’t telling the truth. The question that then entered his mind was a simple, logical extension of that fact: what was she playing at?

“Is there something wrong?” she asked him when the silence grew too great.

With me? No. With you? Maybe. “Are you sure you didn’t hit your head?” Lucas asked her in turn.

“I did, but I’m remembering more now. I’m getting better.” Elyssa sighed and slumped back onto the couch. “I didn’t realize how difficult this would be. The confusion, the pain…now I have to wonder how anyone can stand it.”

“Concussions can do that. Maybe you should go to the emergency room.”

“No, they wouldn’t know how to help me.”

Neither do I. Lucas fought to keep from groaning in frustration. “Look, we’ll worry about that part later, okay? First, go on in there and get cleaned up. I’ll…see if I can find you something else to wear, too.”

Elyssa agreed to that, thankfully without more weirdness, leaving Lucas alone in the living room. Okay, so she’s crazy, or she’s just got something wrong with her head. Either way, I can’t very well let her go out alone. She had no identification or possessions on her, which could mean any number of things. None of them were particularly good, though. She might have escaped from a kidnapper or something. Somebody who spent a few years brainwashing her. That was slightly easier to swallow, in his opinion, though it did imply that there was such a man close to his home.

For an angel fallen to earth, he thought humorously, she figured out the shower awfully quick. He heard the water rushing within a minute, which meant he had to fulfill his end of the bargain. Again he dove into the closet, seeking clothes that could pass for unisex. A long T-shirt and another pair of sweatpants served for that; underwear was a bit harder, so she’d just have to settle for men’s boxers until she could get something of her own. Lucas chuckled to himself as he gathered the stack, thinking, Not how I expected to get a woman wearing my clothes.

He couldn’t stop thinking about Elyssa like that. He simply couldn’t help it. He was a man, and she was—whether she wanted to admit it or not—an attractive woman. It was only natural, and the hardest part, he was finding, was going to be restraining those natural urges that sought to take advantage of her situation. Gotta be better than that, Lucas. She might not recall what happened when she comes back to her right mind, but what if she does? You don’t want to be that guy.

Fifteen minutes gave him time to think, to contemplate the events of the past hour or so, and he came to one certain conclusion: he needed to eat. So did Elyssa, no matter what she claimed. So, once he heard the shower stop running, he pecked one knuckle on the bathroom door and called out, “Elyssa, are you okay in there?”

“I’m wet,” she replied; it sounded like she was making a joke, or trying to.

She doesn’t mean it like that, Lucas mentally chided himself. “Towels are in the closet. You hungry?”

“Hungry? Um…I think so.”

“Sure. If you don’t have any preference, I’ll just see what I can throw in the microwave. It should be done by the time you come out. Clothes are right outside the door.”

He departed for the kitchen before she could respond with one of her odd comments. In there, his destination was the freezer, his objective two of the boxes he had just put into it. I hope she’s not a vegan, he mused, taking a tray out of one box and tossing it into the microwave. I mean, as crazy as she is, that wouldn’t even surprise me.

All told, both meals together took another quarter of an hour, but that was enough time for Elyssa to finish cleaning up. He did hear the distinct sound of the bathroom door opening, then shutting again, which he took as her grabbing the outfit he had left for her. The second time, coming as he scooped mashed potatoes out of the tray and onto a plate, didn’t include the closing of the door; light footsteps padding closer confirmed his suspicions.

“This is all so strange,” Elyssa remarked.

Lucas neither stopped nor turned around. “Tell me about it. Feel any better now?”

“I think so. It’s nothing I can’t handle.”

“Mm-hmm. Salisbury steak or grilled beef are your choices. Sorry, but I don’t usually go in for fancy meals. It’s not often that I have, uh, guests.”

“I don’t understand why not. You’re kind and generous.”

He took his seat, but only after holding hers—not because she was a woman, but in case she acted like she didn’t know how to use a chair or something. “Yeah, but that’s not enough for some people.”

Elyssa looked down, studying the contents of her plate, then said, “It should be. I…don’t know if it would be proper for me, though.”

I guess that’s her way of turning me down, then. Well, not like I was expecting any different. “I tell you what. We’ll worry about all that after we eat. We can talk all night, and you can be as mysterious and confusing as you want.”

Under normal circumstances, Lucas would spend the waning hours of Sunday night watching TV. These were not normal circumstances, but he wanted to stick to his routine as much as possible. Elyssa had no romantic intentions, and this was not a date, so he didn’t feel it was his duty to impress her. No, this was more like a case where a friend had asked to spend the night because of troubles at home. No reason to change things around too much, whatever she ultimately said.

“Hope you don’t mind zombies,” he remarked as he crashed onto the couch, already reaching for the remote.

Elyssa gave him another curious look—by this point, he was half wondering if she had any other kind—and followed, taking a chair instead. “I’ve heard of them, but they’re…strange.”

“Not half as strange as you. You’re really playing this one for all it’s worth, aren’t you?” Lucas found the show in his list of favorites, turned the volume up to a respectable level, and leaned back to wait for the ads to end and the action to begin.

“Playing? I don’t know what you mean.”

Here we go again. “This whole ‘I’m an angel’ thing. It’s a nice act, I’m sure, but you picked the wrong guy to try it on.”

Elyssa began shaking her head. “No, it’s true.”

“Except for the part where angels aren’t real.” For the first time, she actually looked upset, even offended, and Lucas thought he understood why. She’s one of those fundamentalist types, I bet. And I’m sure she’ll start trying to convert me just as soon as she remembers which of her preacher’s lessons to the faithful applies in this situation.

“We are,” she stated firmly. But she didn’t follow that up with biblical quotes or anything of that sort. Instead, she simply turned and faced the TV.

“I don’t believe in them,” Lucas told her.

“Some of them don’t believe in you. Does that make you any less real?”

He sighed in resignation, knowing exactly where this was going. “You know, forget I said anything. Just watch the show.”

He shut up, and so did she, but that lasted only for about ten minutes before she started asking questions. “They’re supposed to be dead?”

“The show is called The Walking Dead.”

“But the dead don’t walk. They can’t.”

Lucas held back the scoff that so desperately wanted to come out. “I know. It’s fiction.” You know, like angels, he longed to add. “You’re supposed to suspend your disbelief.”

That got her to look back at him. “And you can do that for them, but not for me?”

Ouch. That one even makes sense. Almost. “Does that mean you’re an actress? Because they are. They’re just people playing a part, with lots of makeup and a script and a director telling them what to do. Maybe you’re part of some reality show, and the camera crew is gonna come in here any minute to get my reaction. I could believe that. What I can’t believe is something for which there is no evidence. That’s not just angels, but anything supernatural. Ghosts, vampires, even zombies. I have to have proof.”

“I am proof,” Elyssa countered. “Or I should have been. Since I fell, I don’t know how much I can prove it to you.”

“How very convenient. Like those guys hunting Bigfoot and aliens. There’s never indisputable evidence, but always some excuse as to why you can’t give it.”

She frowned, then scowled. “That’s not very nice of you, Lucas. You were kinder before. What happened?”

“I don’t like being lied to, that’s all. And I can’t stand it when people try to convince me to believe their way. Family, friends, total strangers, it doesn’t matter. It’s…a sore spot for me. Sorry if that upsets you, but you’re not the first to try to convert me. Probably the most inventive, I’ll admit.”

“I don’t want to convert you. I’m only telling the truth.”

“Uh-huh. That’s what they all say, except half of them claim it’s God’s truth, not theirs. Funny how that’s the only kind they want to hear, though. If I start giving them scientific data that shows the world is four billion years old, they’ll stick their fingers in their ears, but I’m supposed to accept what they’re saying. Worse, I’m supposed to do it without questioning. It’s that part that makes me mad, and it just sounds like that’s what you’re trying.”

The fury of his outburst quieted Elyssa for a moment, one she spent mostly staring at the floor. “I liked the other you better,” she said at length. “This one sounds too angry.”

Lucas blew out a breath and sank further into the couch. “Yeah, religion talk does that to me. When you spend half your life arguing about it, it happens.”

“But why? Why do you do it? And why are you so certain that you are right, but no one else is?”

“Hey, it’s not that. Everybody’s entitled to their own beliefs, as long as you keep them to yourself. It’s only when you start pushing them on other people that I get upset. Especially when I’m one of those other people.”

Another long, awkward silence. “I can give you no proof. None you would accept, I think. All I can tell you is that there is more than you know. More than you can know.”

“More things in heaven and earth than are dreamed of in our philosophy?” Lucas joked.

That brought a ghost of a smile to Elyssa’s face. “Shakespeare?”

“Hamlet, yeah. And how would an angel know that? Heaven has a bookstore now?”

She ignored the jab, taking the question literally. “We don’t have books, but we do have knowledge. Mind and spirit we are. No bodies, though, not like…you people.”

“I certainly see a body,” he objected.

She looked down at her own physical form. “This is a vessel for the spirit, not a body of birth.” The latest commercial break ended, bringing zombies back to the screen. “Those, I suppose, would be body and spirit, but no minds.”

Now that she wasn’t so obviously proselytizing, Lucas calmed down, his reflexive defenses relaxing. He even found himself enjoying this verbal spat. Elyssa was running with it, and she hadn’t slapped him or walked out yet, so why not? “Right. So what’s the one where it’s body and mind without spirit?” Other than normal human beings, that is.

“That would be…animals. Yes, lower thinking animals, the ones that have no sense of self. Plants, germs, and things of that nature are bodies only. The beings who contain only spirit are what you people would call demons, but—it’s complicated. Leave it at that, please. I don’t understand all the distinctions.”

“Uh-huh. I think I’m getting the pattern here. And I’m sure that leaves only one, so go ahead.”

“I honestly don’t know that one. What can have a mind, but neither body nor spirit? Nothing I’ve ever seen. Maybe a book? No, that’s a creation of mankind.”

Lucas let out a laugh. “How about AI? Computer intelligence? It’s all data, and even the craziest of crazies doesn’t claim a computer has a soul.”

Elyssa seriously considered that one, finally replying, “That may be true. See? Now you’re nice again, and intelligent and…likable.”

“First time for everything. I still don’t believe you, though.”

She waved that away. “Oh, you don’t have to. I’ll find a way to prove it to you.”

Old habits die hard, as Lucas discovered when he woke up shortly after six. No alarm needed, just the knowledge that this was Monday. Even in the absence of a job, his body seemed to know exactly what to do, and he wasn’t sure he really wanted that. I could have slept in, his inner voice grumbled. Not like I have anywhere to go.

Half an hour in the bathroom, including a shower that he mostly spent leaning against the wall and cursing his own luck, left him mostly awake and alert. Coming into the living room to see a sleeping woman sprawled out on the couch, dressed in his clothes, jolted him the rest of the way. Right. That’s Elyssa, the nut from yesterday. His head still swimming from slumber, he couldn’t recall every moment of last night; judging by the fact that she was here, and not in his bed, he surmised that neither of them had taken things farther than talk.

“Morning, sunshine,” he called as he went past, aiming for the kitchen. Elyssa stirred, as did his wit. “Huh. You’d think an angel wouldn’t need to sleep.”

As was becoming the norm, she took him at his word, ignoring entirely the sarcasm surrounding his statement. “The body does. It’s like yours in that, the same as eating or…cleaning. I think I should do that now.”

“Sure. Go ahead. I’d give the shower a few minutes to warm back up, though.” She disappeared into the bathroom, leaving Lucas alone with the ingredients that would become breakfast and a mass of thoughts that brought him no closer to a theory on just what her game was. You know what? I give up. If she wants to claim she fell from heaven or whatever, that’s on her. As long as she doesn’t come crying to me when other people laugh in her face. Around here, far too many wouldn’t do that, but that was not his problem.

Breakfast was, but it wasn’t much of a problem. Despite taking the time to cook something—he couldn’t very well be late for work, could he?—everything was ready by the time Elyssa returned from her own morning routine. She was wearing the same clothes as before, but her damp hair showed that she had indeed been in the shower again. She looks a lot better now than when I found her, Lucas thought. I can’t imagine what she went through to get the sap out of her hair, though.

As he set a plate covered in eggs, toast, and bacon before her, she declared, “After you went to sleep, I started thinking.”

Lucas raised an eyebrow. “Uh-oh. Should I sit down for this?”

“If you want.” Her gaze descended to the plate briefly, before coming back up to meet his. “I can’t leave until I have an…achievement. Something to show for my time spent here among your people. I don’t know if I could leave even then, but that has to be the start.”

“Somebody’s watched too many movies. Probably me, ’cause I’ve heard this one before. The angel can’t get back into heaven until she completes her quest.”

“That’s right. The idea is, at least, even if they get the specifics wrong.”

Whatever. Like I said, not my problem. “Don’t tell me. Let me guess. You think your quest is to get me to believe.”

Elyssa, again ignoring the sarcasm, shook her head. “If I tried that, it would be for my own benefit. And yours, but that’s different. No, I haven’t decided what to do yet, but I hope I’ll find something soon. Until I do, I think I’ll stay here with you.”

Lucas dropped his fork in surprise. “Me? Why?”

“You did find me,” she stated, as if that counted for enough.

“Sounds like a bad idea, though. I’m sure you could do better. Now, maybe I couldn’t, but that’s my problem. And I don’t think I would want someone as, ah, devout as you for a partner.”

“That is not what I mean. I know some of how your world works, and I can’t fulfill all of my bodily needs alone. You’ve been so generous already, so I hoped that you wouldn’t mind. We would be…roommates, and I can help with some things.”

Well, this has taken an interesting turn, hasn’t it? Except for the angel insanity, Lucas couldn’t deny that he was starting to enjoy Elyssa’s company. This, however, was a much larger step than borrowing clothes and crashing for the night. “Roommates aren’t usually of the opposite sex,” he pointed out.

“What do you mean by that?” she asked innocently.

He groaned, wondering just which part she meant. Since she likes to take things literally, let’s see what she thinks when I turn it around. “Men and women don’t normally stay together unless they’re, well, together. As in a relationship.”

Instead of a reply, Elyssa turned back to her food for a moment. Then, around the time Lucas thought she had let the matter drop, she said, “You’re afraid of me.”

“No,” he spoke without hesitation. And that was true. He wasn’t afraid of Elyssa. Afraid of what might happen to him once she was found, yes, but not the woman herself. She was a lunatic, but she was mostly harmless.

“You are,” she asserted. “What I am scares you, and so your mind tries to push me away, even as your body wants to pull me closer. And your spirit, I think it’s left confused.”

I certainly am. “Yeah, okay. Whatever. What I’m trying to tell you is that people might get the wrong impression if you stay here.” Ah. I get where to take this, and she’s got no room to complain when I do. “You shouldn’t be cavorting with mere mortals like myself, right?”

He was fighting to keep his laughter on the inside, so inane was that statement, but Elyssa went back into her silent reflection as she took another bite. “That was how I fell in the first place,” she finally replied, her voice quiet, indeed timid.

“Oh, do tell.”

“I’d rather not, but…maybe it would help you understand. It wasn’t a physical relationship, just so you know. It couldn’t be, because I didn’t have a physical form until I fell. But I did, ah, influence some mortal souls.”

She paused, and Lucas groaned. “Uh-huh. Go on.”

“We aren’t supposed to make ourselves known except in the direst circumstances. I only told you because you guessed it, but I showed myself to a woman not far from here. It was a place of hate, where so many people were angry, all shouting and fighting and arguing. Like you last night, but much worse.”

Now he was at least intrigued. If nothing else, perhaps he could tell where she came from, where he could send her back to. “Do you remember where this was?”

“To the southwest. A smaller city than yours, but older and grander, with a large school. I don’t know which one.”

Lucas thought for a few seconds, coming up with one obvious solution to this logic puzzle. “Charlottesville. Has to be. That’s where I went to school, actually.”

“Oh, so you do know it!” Elyssa looked him over, because she hadn’t done that enough. “You weren’t there for this, though. I think I would remember you. As I was saying, I revealed myself to a woman. She was crying, saddened by the hatred, and I felt like I had to do something. So I touched her spirit and told her that she was safe, and I would help her leave without being seen.”

“You interfered,” Lucas scoffed.

“Yes! But I interfered too much, because there were…beings of spirit there, too. I saw them, and I let her see them. We aren’t supposed to do that, not when there are so many around. It frightened her so much that she ran away, and I never saw her in the flesh again. A month ago, I was told that she died, and that was when I had to confess. For placing myself in this world, my punishment was to fall into it.”

It was a nice little story, he thought. Not a word of it was true, of course, but he no longer concerned himself with such trivial matters as truth and honesty, not when it came to Elyssa. Because she clearly believed everything she said. Maybe it’s some messed-up metaphor. Like she doesn’t want to admit that she killed someone, so she’s got to say it in this roundabout way. He did remember last year’s events in Charlottesville. How could he forget? Living halfway between there and Washington, there was a period of about four months where he couldn’t go a day without hearing of it. I really hope she’s not a white supremacist. They don’t deserve her.

“I have to atone,” she was saying. “I don’t know exactly what I have to do for that, but I was told I would understand when the moment was right. Until then, I’ll stay with you.”

And so it came back around to that. “Looks like I don’t have a choice. I guess I should be glad I got fired last week, huh?”

He did have work to do. Not his job, but a few errands he needed to run. Also, there were the applications he’d sent off, and he wanted to check on their status. Those he could do at home, but he had to do them with Elyssa hovering over his shoulder, staring in wonder at the computer. At one point, he was sorely tempted to pull up a video that would shock her out of her reverie, but he refrained. Let her watch. As long as it’s nothing important. If she wanted to steal my identity, she would’ve already done it. And she probably would have climbed in bed with me last night.

If anything, that showed that he could trust her. It was a paradox, he knew, but it made sense in some bizarre way, and bizarre was an apt description of the past twenty-four hours, so he went with it. In his mind, he concluded that, because Elyssa never made any sexual overtures towards him, she wasn’t out to manipulate him into compromising his safety, security, or privacy. That was, after all, the best way he knew for a woman to manipulate a man, and he had no doubt it would work on him. Since she wasn’t trying the obvious, that made it easier to assume she was sincere. Not truthful, but sincere in her offer.

I don’t know if I want a roommate at all, let alone a woman who’s not all there. He would endure, though, for however long it took to get her back to her senses. And, he decided as he checked for email replies on his applications, he would lighten up. Elyssa didn’t seem to be looking to preach to him, so he could have a bit of fun with it. First up had to be a bit of music, and he had a good idea what kind he wanted to play.

With the first wail of the guitar, Elyssa’s attention turned from the kitchen—she was nosing around again—to the sound emanating from his speakers. “What’s that?” she asked.

“You can’t tell me you’ve never heard music,” he laughed.

“Not this song.” She listened closely to the words, then gave him a radiant smile. “No, I have heard it before, but not like this.”

“You probably heard Hendrix. I like the Clapton version better, but that’s just me. And how could I not play ‘Little Wing’ for a woman who says she’s an angel?”

Elyssa’s warm laugh filled the room and his ears in near-perfect concert with the music. “So you believe me now?” she asked, sounding almost hopeful.

“Not yet, but I won’t argue about it anymore. Now, I do have to go out in a little while, and I don’t know if you should. Can I trust you not to get into any trouble if I leave you here alone?”

“Yes.”

“Good. I tell you what. Let me set some things up.” Lucas let the music keep playing, switching to Aerosmith when his current song finished—he had a whole angel-themed playlist already forming in his head, starting with the classics. While that stayed in the background, he set up a guest account on his computer, then moved to the couch to enable parental controls for the TV. Next, he went off to the bedroom, retrieving his emergency backup phone. Nobody even had the number to that one, neither family nor friends. “This one’s yours,” he said to Elyssa, handing her the device.

“Mine?” she asked, confused.

“If you need me while I’m gone. Look, my number’s the only one in the contacts. Just tap it if you need me. You figured out the TV yesterday, so have fun with that. Computer can wait till I get back, and then we’ll start looking into getting you some proper clothes. I’ll see you later.”

She looked down at the phone, turning it in her hand. “I can’t thank you enough, you know.” Placing it gently on the coffee table, she wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him into a tight embrace. “But I’ll keep trying.”

In the three hours he was gone, Lucas had a lot of time to think. Elyssa entered his thoughts early in his excursion, only leaving when he mentally forced her out, but he wanted more to focus on his own life, not that of the strange woman who had entered it. One of these jobs will come in, he told himself. Then, everything should go back to normal. Helping a few friends with work around the house wasn’t going to cut it, even if he did earn a grand total of a hundred dollars—as well as a full tank of gas and a twelve-pack of beer he never asked for—for his troubles. Every little bit helps. It’s not a living, but it keeps me going, and its that much less reason for me to dip into the savings.

His new roommate wasn’t waiting for him when he arrived at the apartment, but she was front and center in his vision. Lying on her side on the couch, she was staring at the TV and wearing one of her less pleasant expressions. “Nobody really understands,” she commented as he walked in.

“Ain’t that always the way of it,” he said, moving past without stopping.

“About us, I mean. Me. They all try, but they’re only guessing.”

One of the things he’d been thinking about was faith, both his own lack thereof and Elyssa’s peculiar brand of it, so he had already prepared his remarks for just such an occasion. “It doesn’t help that nobody gives us a straight answer. Show me a religion that doesn’t have a scripture full of half-truths, riddles, and contradictions, and I’ll show you one that just started yesterday.”

Elyssa sat up and stretched, then paused whatever show she was watching—it looked like a sitcom, from the single glance he gave it. “That’s not our fault. Humans are imperfect beings. So are we, but it’s worse for you.”

“Sure it is. What were you watching?”

“I was looking through a few of them, the ones that are supposed to be about us. The animated ones are better, because I don’t see them as people dressed up.”

“Huh. Never really cared for anime, personally, and I haven’t watched cartoons in about twenty years.” Lucas sat down at the computer, checking that never-boiling pot that was his inbox. “So, Elyssa, come over here, and we’ll find you some better clothes.”

Online ordering was so much easier than going shopping in person. For one, he didn’t have to go anywhere, nor would he have to worry about little things like other people. The selection was better, too, although sizing was a bit difficult for someone who claimed not to know any of her sizes. Fortunately, Lucas owned a measuring tape, even if finding it required an agonizing search through the bedroom. Unfortunately, he then had to do most of the work, as Elyssa pretended she didn’t know how. “Good thing you said you didn’t want a bra,” he joked. “I doubt you’d want me to measure you for that.”

Once that uncomfortable work was done, he then let he choose her own styles. Not too many, as he was now unemployed, and he couldn’t waste money on frivolous purchases. Elyssa bounced joyfully in his seat as she clicked and scrolled, selecting a couple of each type of garment. When he saw her shopping cart at the end of it, the pattern she followed became clear: nothing black, no T-shirts with logos, and everything chosen for comfort. He wondered about that, then figured he could work it into his next idea.

“How long will this take?” she asked as he completed the order.

“I’m getting next-day shipping, so it’ll all be here tomorrow. Go ahead and thank me for being generous again.” She did, throwing in a hug for good measure. “Yeah, so, now that we’re done with that, I’d like to ask you a few questions. To…sate my curiosity, let’s say. That can kill time until lunch, I think.”

“I can do that,” Elyssa agreed. “I can’t answer everything, though.”

Lucas ushered her back to the couch, then took the chair beside it. “We’ll worry about that later. First off, for the sake of argument, I’ll assume that you’re not a total liar.”

“I’m not,” she stated, already starting to grow annoyed. “You shouldn’t accuse me of it.”

“I wasn’t. Like I said, for the sake of argument. If we don’t move past that, we’ll never get this done.” His intent, as he planned in the car, was to maneuver her into contradicting or exposing herself. Mostly, that was for his own peace of mind; he wouldn’t jump up and down in victory when she did, but he would secretly bask in his success. “First question, where are you from?”

“A world of spirit,” she replied cautiously.

Every fiber of his being wanted to shout as he said, “Heaven?”

“Some people call it that, yes. Or Nirvana, Elysium, Valhalla—it has many names. It’s nothing like what Dante describes, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Very astute of you. That’s where I was going next. Now, what about the opposite? Heaven implies hell, does it not?”

“It’s complicated. We have places of punishment, but so do you. Prisons, labor camps, that sort of thing. It’s no different for us.” Elyssa shook her head. “I can’t argue theology. I was never very good at it.”

His laugh was more than half scoff. “Some angel you are. Okay, let’s skip that for now. Another thing I noticed is how you look.”

That, at least, was worth a bright smile. “I’ve seen that. You do like to look at this body of mine.”

“You got me there. I can’t help it. I’m a man, after all. But that’s not what I meant. Do all of…your people look like you? Basically, what I’m trying to ask is, are there any black angels?”

She let out a sigh that sounded less like frustration and more like she couldn’t keep from bursting out laughing. “We don’t have physical forms, remember? I only do because I fell, so I had to take one. It represents my spirit, I think, but I know others’ spirits are different. I don’t understand it very much, nor do I understand why humans care so much about appearance. I suppose that comes from being creatures of body.”

“Sounds about right. Maybe you should get used to it.” If I keep rolling my eyes, I’m gonna get dizzy. “Although, I can’t complain about a woman who cares for something other than looks. I wish I could be like that sometimes.”

“You can, if you try. I don’t know if I could go the other way, though. I can’t see much difference between you and the people on TV. I mean, I can tell men and women apart, and the colors and all, but…you’re all humans, right?”

“Yeah, we are, but…hey, if you don’t get that, you’ll never get us. You sound like one of those idealist types, and that’s respectable. I am, too, at least in some ways. But the real world’s messy. It’s dirty, and it can be hard, cruel, unforgiving. Whatever word you wanna use, I think a lot of people end up the same way, like the world just, I don’t know, wears them down.” As he spoke, Lucas could see where he wanted to take this segment of the conversation. “They’ll talk about how there’s a better world awaiting us, and I think that’s got a lot to do with why I don’t have faith. Why worry about a better world? Why not make this one better instead? It’s the one we’ve got, so we might as well make the best of it. But that’s just me. I know I’m the minority on that one.”

Elyssa eyed him closely as his voice rose with the passion of his words. “You’re getting angry again, Lucas. Don’t be mad at me, please. I can’t change your world. I tried, and look what happened. Some people don’t want to listen. No, I think all people don’t want to listen to something, but it’s a different thing for everybody.”

Lucas released a deflating breath. “Heh. Too bad you’re not really what you claim. Maybe then you could change how some of them think.”

“I am, but I can’t. Not because of ability or rules, but because of…I don’t know the best word for it. Before I fell, I had the means to give people thoughts they wouldn’t otherwise have. Getting them to act upon those thoughts when they’d rather not, though, that’s impossible. The only true way to do that would be to break their spirit. I could never do that, even if I wanted to.”

“Well, at least we’ve got one thing in common.”

Talk filled the remainder of the morning. Elyssa was mostly normal for that, only occasionally veering into nonsensical ramblings about angels and spirituality and the like. Mostly, she sounded almost reasonable, and that made Lucas wonder even more. For an alleged angel, she’s awfully human in her thinking. So are her friends, from the way she talks about them. She rarely spoke of others of her kind, though, leaving him mostly in the dark on such matters. By lunchtime, he was tired enough of that to force the issue a bit. “So, Elyssa,” he remarked as the clock struck noon. “Not really an angelic name, not from all I’ve heard. Why don’t you have a name like Gabriel or something?”

In response, she shrugged and retorted, “Why aren’t you named Alexander or Catherine or George? We have our highs and lows, too. And I’m one of the lows. Besides, Elyssa isn’t my true name. You couldn’t pronounce that, because it’s not a spoken word. It’s more like…a fingerprint, or one of your identification codes. Since I have a physical form now, though, I needed a name, too. I didn’t choose it. It just came to me before I woke.”

“Uh-huh. Well, I think that’s a good place to stop for the day. I don’t have anything else to do, so how does lunch sound?”

That was harder than it should have been, mostly because Elyssa didn’t quite feel comfortable leaving the apartment just yet, and Lucas didn’t quite feel he should let her. Maybe tomorrow, after she had something better to wear. Today, he could run out and pick up a couple of sandwiches to bring back, which worked nicely. Then came the afternoon, hour upon hour of playing games on his computer, watching TV, and all those other things that the slackers of the world did when everyone else was hard at work. Except that he also took the time to hunt for new employment. Oh, and he had a female roommate who called herself an angel. Other than that, just a normal day.

His guest kept herself occupied. Television served that purpose well, and she even seemed to be interested in a few of the movies. Comedies, thankfully; she steered clear of anything that might put her at odds with Lucas. She also spent a lot of time staring out the window or rummaging through his things. Neither was the mark of a stable mind, he knew, but he was willing to leave her to it. Asking would only make his head hurt.

As day turned into night, it was Elyssa who broached the most obvious topic that troubled him. “I was in your bedroom earlier,” she said over a dinner that she even helped to cook. “Your bed is big enough for two people.”

Oh, here we go. “And…?” He wasn’t playing dumb, but he wanted her to be the one to say it outright.

“And I think it’s more comfortable than the couch. It’s intended for sleeping, too.” How he kept from gaping in shock, he had no idea, but she clearly caught most of his unease. “You’re worried, I know. I’m not sure I can have physical desires like you, but I understand them. I also think you can overcome them. You’re a good person.”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Great!”

Elyssa spoke no further word about it, simply assuming that his silence counted for agreement. Thus, not too much later, Lucas was ready to turn in, and he found himself staring in mute amazement as she followed suit. At least she’s facing away, he thought. Means she can’t see the look on my face. Oh, and I should probably do the same. Reluctantly, he rolled over and tried not to let her into his dreams.

It could’ve been worse. She could have claimed that angels didn’t have to sleep, but he saw her on Monday morning, so seeing her lie in peaceful slumber as he woke on Tuesday wasn’t unexpected. Just my luck, isn’t it? Random girl inserts herself into my life, and I care way too much about keeping her safe to even think about taking advantage of the situation. And it’s the first week in years that I don’t have anything better to do.

Except for a brief trip to the bathroom, he stayed in bed until Elyssa stirred, spending the intervening minutes looking on in awe. When her eyes opened, though, they were pointed directly at him. Only a hint of drowsiness showed in her grin, none at all in her voice, as she said, “You are a good man.”

“Why is that?” he had to ask.

“You didn’t let your body overrule your spirit. That’s good. I think you deserve a reward.” Before he could ask what that reward might be, she scooted closer and hugged him, planting a light, incredibly warm kiss on his right cheek. Nothing too overt, but definitely something more than friendly. “I hope you didn’t mind that,” she whispered, pulling away as quickly as she had approached.

“Nope. Don’t mind at all. But I think you should start getting up before—how did you say it? Before my body overrules my spirit. Because, if you’re gonna go around being all cuddly like that, you know that’s what will happen.”

The look she gave him was not angelic in the least. No, this one was downright diabolical. “I’ve seen how it works,” she replied. “By the time it comes to that, I might be ready for it.” With Lucas thus left stunned, Elyssa slid out of the sheets and pranced away.

Love

Lucas got the call shortly after two in the afternoon. He had three packages waiting for him downstairs in the front office, all of them just delivered. “I’ll be right back,” he told his guest. “I think your clothes are here.”

“Ooh!” Elyssa jumped off the couch with an almost childlike glee. “I’ll come with you. I can help.”

“Your call. Don’t be telling everybody you’re an angel, though. Wouldn’t want them getting the wrong idea.”

Her usual annoyance did not manifest itself. “That would be the right idea,” she countered with good humor. “But I won’t. I won’t talk to anyone but you, unless they start it.” She didn’t wait for his response, moving past him, out the door, and into the hallway.

Lucas had no choice but to follow, and he looked out for any of his neighbors. Seeing none, he remarked, “You don’t have to hide.”

“I should. Until I’m more…used to this world, at least. It was so much easier before. Then, nobody could see me unless I wished it. Now, it’s almost the other way around. I still get confused sometimes, you know. Like when I woke up this morning, I needed a few seconds to remember where I was.”

“And who I was? Maybe you were just drunk.”

“No, you know it’s not that. It is similar, though, now that I think about it. I’ll be sitting on the couch, and I’ll forget why I have to sit, or why I’m wearing clothes.”

Putting his hand to his mouth, Lucas snickered behind it. “Well, if that confuses you, you could always run around the apartment naked. Oh, I’m sorry. Nude. Shame is a human concept, right? I remember that much from all those Sunday school lessons when I was kid. God punished us for wanting to be smarter by making us ashamed of our bodies. Wonderful guy, ain’t he?”

Elyssa glanced around; they were still alone. Yet she waited until they were at the elevator before she answered with a question of her own. “Have you ever considered that that might be a metaphor?”

Oh, now we’re arguing theology. Thought you didn’t like that. “Elyssa, I’ve never considered it anything else. Not since the first time I ever seriously thought about it. That doesn’t mean I like the implications, though. Metaphor or not, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Even if you don’t want to say it’s God doing it, then it’s the Bronze Age priests or whoever that wrote it in the first place. Either way, the intent seems pretty clear to me. Don’t question authority. Don’t look for your own answers.”

“Maybe you’re wrong.”

“Probably. That’s usually the case. On this one, though, I just can’t see any other way to read it. Anyway,” Lucas punched the button for the ground floor, pointedly changing the subject, “we’ll get the clothes and bring them back up, and then you can open them. Think of it like an early Christmas.”

That one actually surprised Elyssa. “I thought you didn’t have faith. Why would you celebrate a holiday for it?”

“I…don’t. Doesn’t mean I can’t get into the spirit. You don’t need a baby in a manger as an excuse to give somebody a gift in the dead of winter. I go visit my family, too. Before you ask, I doubt you’ll still be around here by then. If, by some chance, you are, I’ll think about it.”

While she mulled that one over, Lucas led her out of the elevator and into the lobby. The receptionist on duty today waved him into the office, where his packages were waiting—he detoured to pick up the mail along the way, but that was nothing more than a pair of flyers he passed off to Elyssa. Of the three packages, only the shoebox was really heavy. The other two were merely bulky, cumbersome, and he wrestled with them for a moment, leaving the smaller container to his guest.

As he was leaving, he received the question he’d dreaded. “Who’s she?” asked the receptionist. “I haven’t seen her around here before.”

“She’s, ah, a friend,” Lucas replied. “She needed a place to stay for a few nights. I hope that’s okay.”

“Oh, it won’t be a problem. Just make sure you let us know if she’ll be here for more than two weeks.”

“I’ll tell you next week. How about that?”

Elyssa had rushed ahead during the brief exchange, but Lucas caught up to her at the elevator. She made no mention of his short absence from her side, seemingly more interested in the box and its various labels. Indeed, that fascination kept her occupied all the way back to his apartment, which she entered with a giddy laugh.

“Well,” Lucas said, grinning at her enthusiasm, “these are supposed to be the first gifts you’ve ever been given, right?”

“The first in this world,” she agreed. Then she immediately caught herself. “No, that would have been the other clothes from two days ago. And bringing me here. But these are mine to keep, aren’t they? Real, physical things.”

“Yep, that’s how it works. This way, I can take mine back. Let’s call it—hmm, how about your birthday? Yeah, that sounds about right.” Since you’re not going to see reason and drop the charade, that is. “Happy birthday, two days late.”

That statement earned Lucas another hug, one that came so suddenly that he nearly dropped the packages when he reflexively moved to wrap his arms around Elyssa. She released him as quickly as she had embraced him, then fell onto the couch with a girlish giggle. “I like this feeling,” she stated.

“You like being pampered, is what it is. Here, let me get something to open these.” A bit of searching in the kitchen netted him a knife, which would do nicely. “You wanna do the cutting?”

“Sure.” Elyssa took the knife and, after a bit of direction, started slicing at the thick packaging tape. “Ah!” she exclaimed as she removed one shoe from the box. “Oh, this is mine!”

Lucas couldn’t remember the exact style she had chosen—he never was good at telling women’s shoes apart. They were dress shoes, he knew that much, white and lacking much of a heel. They were also close to a perfect fit, as became abundantly clear when Elyssa slipped them on and began strutting proudly around the living room.

The second box contained underwear and a few T-shirts; Elyssa wanted to try all of those on right then, too, but Lucas convinced her to wait until he was out of the room. Thus content, she moved on to the final act. “I can’t wait to see what’s in here!” she gushed. As she spoke, the knife was in her hand, sawing through tape and occasional stray bits of cardboard. Neither paid much attention to it, but the blade inched closer to Elyssa’s left thumb where it held the box for leverage. Stainless steel bit into skin, and she jerked her hand back with a yelp. “Ow!”

Lucas swore his heart stopped for a second. “What happened?” he asked urgently, kneeling before her to inspect the situation.

“That hurt.” Elyssa lifted her left hand, staring in wonder at her wound.

So did Lucas, because the scene was not as he expected. The knife broke the skin, that much was clear from the streak of blood running across the pad of her thumb. But that blood looked off in some way he found hard to describe. It glistened in the light, which made sense, but then the glimmer remained even when the rest of her hand was in the shadow of his worried face. And it was a lighter shade of red than he was used to seeing, more scarlet than crimson. As he dabbed at it with the corner of a paper towel—the first thing that came to hand—he got a second shock. Yes, Elyssa had bled, but she was no longer bleeding. The cut had already closed, leaving behind only a white streak of skin that looked more like a paper cut than the slice of a knife.

“Is it bad?” she asked innocently, sounding more concerned than scared.

Was it bad? Was it good? Okay, this one’s weird. I’ve had paper cuts that bled before, but…this wasn’t from paper. Or cardboard or foil or anything like that. This one came from a knife. I saw it with my own eyes. “Looks like it’s already closing up,” he declared.

“What does it mean?”

I wish I knew. “Either you didn’t cut it as bad as you thought, or you really are an angel. Or Wolverine, but that’s about the same thing, if you ask me.”

Lucas couldn’t find a suitable explanation for Elyssa’s rapid healing outside of the obvious: the cut wasn’t as bad as she initially thought. But it did have a sobering effect on her, he noticed. She was a lot more careful with the knife, holding it gingerly as she passed it back to him. She even kept eyeing the blade as he took it back to the kitchen, as if expecting it to jump out of his hands and come at her at any moment. Just a little bit of shock, he told himself. That’s all it is. She’s still probably a little traumatized from hitting her head. It’s only been two days now.

Except that she didn’t remark on that anymore. Now that she was dressed as a proper young woman, wearing clothes of her own rather than Lucas’s borrowed hand-me-downs, Elyssa seemed to forget all about how she came into his life. She continued to make random comments that didn’t fit, and she often lapsed into uncomfortable silences. Those strange ways she looked at him also remained, the narrowing of the eyes when he got “angry”, as she put it, or the effusive praise and sparkling smiles she gave him when he acted the gentleman. Beyond those minor oddities, however, Lucas turned in thinking that she could almost pass for normal.

She slept in his bed, and he found he wasn’t quite as concerned about that as before. It was big enough for two, and both of them wore enough clothes to prevent any compromising situations. The extra heat from a second body kept him warm, as well, and that would be a big help in the cooler nights to come. Do I want that? he asked himself late that night, after Elyssa had drifted into slumber. Do I want another body under these covers with me? She’s nice enough. Plenty weird, but I can get over that, as long as she doesn’t get too zealous with the religion and spirituality stuff. Based on some of her comments, she didn’t seem entirely opposed to the idea, although it was clear that she wasn’t quite ready for it yet. Neither was he, though, so that wasn’t too bad. We can talk it over tomorrow, maybe. Or some other day.

With Elyssa dressed like an average young woman and Lucas having nothing better to do, he proposed something else entirely the next morning. “You know,” he said at breakfast, “I was thinking.”

“You’re always thinking,” she shot back, tittering like that was the height of comedy.

“Uh-huh. Well, if you’re going to act like that about it, maybe I shouldn’t bother.” Her apology came out in a whimper, and he pretended to relent. “Oh, all right. Here was my idea, and I’ll let you decide. You’ve been cooped up in this apartment for about three days now, apart from running down to the lobby yesterday. So, since you can get fully dressed, I thought I could take you somewhere later today. Maybe even this evening.”

“Where?”

That was the fatal flaw in his plan. “I haven’t thought that far ahead yet. We could go out to eat, maybe, or something like that. It’d be—” Lucas stopped himself. No, it’s not a date. Don’t even let her think that. Not yet.

“It’d be fun,” she finished for him, leaving him relieved at her presumed innocence. “Is that what you were going to say?”

“S-sure. Yeah. Fun. I’ll think of something, or we can work on it together.”

Wednesday was not the best date night, whether he wanted to call it that or not. Lucas realized that early in his search, so he settled on nothing more than dinner and a nice night in for this one. And that worked. Elyssa never suspected anything, though she marveled at the world around her like she was seeing it all for the first time. At no point did she make the first move, and he likewise refrained. If that came later, then so be it, but he was not going to force the issue. That one wasn’t even because of Elyssa’s weirdness; he had always been that way. She beamed the whole time, looking half-drunk when she sat down at the restaurant, utterly satisfied when they returned home.

“That really was fun,” she said at the end of the evening. “We should do it again soon.”

“I was thinking this weekend,” Lucas replied in all honesty, accepting the suffocating embrace and the scalding hot peck of her lips against his cheek.

The week progressed, and so did his sense of comfort around Elyssa. On Thursday, he started getting results from his job search. Of the three applications he had considered serious, one company rejected him because he didn’t have the right kind of degree, while another turned him down because he lacked experience in some obscure cloud service they apparently depended on. “You’ll find something,” Elyssa assured him after he read that one.

“Sometimes I wonder,” he sighed.

“You will. You’re good. They have to see that.”

Lucas wasn’t so sure, but she was not to be dissuaded, and he began to find her optimism infectious. “Too bad you can’t use your angel powers to convince them to hire me,” he joked.

“You know I can’t, but I don’t have to. You have your…human powers. Your mind and spirit. Just have faith.” Elyssa winked as she spoke the last three words.

Even that wasn’t enough for him to believe that things would turn around, because that wasn’t how the world worked. He knew that. Things didn’t happen without a reason, especially things like getting a job. So he spent most of that day searching for more opportunities, again avoiding Washington and its assorted associations, but casting a wider net to the south, towards Charlottesville and even Richmond. Anything would work, really, but I’d prefer something closer to home.

Friday brought a reward for his tenacity—a just reward, Elyssa named it. The third application from his original batch requested that he come in for an interview next week. It also included a number to call to schedule the whole thing, as well as a list of rules and requirements. He’d need a drug test, background check, and so on, but those weren’t anything too onerous. The usual, really, but that lifted his spirits to a high he hadn’t reached in almost a month. “Finally!” he cried, throwing his fists into the air.

Elyssa heard him from her TV-viewing spot in the living room, and she came over to look, asking, “What is it?”

“I might have a job.”

“I told you so.”

“Well, it’s not a done deal just yet, but it’s a start. Better than nothing. And that calls for a celebration, I think.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean we’re going out tonight. On a date, if you don’t mind.”

She gave him one of her more curious looks. “A date? As in a…romantic evening?”

“It doesn’t have to be that if you don’t want it. We’d just be spending some time together in public, like the other day. Dinner, maybe a live band, and…I’m not sure where it’ll go from there. Nothing, uh, physical, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Oh, good. I don’t think I want that yet.”

His face fell as she delivered that climactic statement, only rising slightly when she uttered the last word. Yet. So there might be a chance. But we’ve got a long way to go.

She did like being out of the house. That much was obvious in the way she walked, the spring in her every step. Lucas could see it in the smile that, at times, seemed permanently fixed to her face. And she wasn’t afraid to express her excitement, either. “This is all so amazing,” she remarked at dinner. “Everything about the world just fascinates me.”

“Even me?” Lucas joked.

Elyssa leaned forward, lowering her voice to slightly above a whisper. “Especially you.” Then she returned to her previous position and volume. “You’re too kind, and that might be the strangest part.”

He feigned being taken aback. “It’s strange that I’m nice? Is that what you’re saying?”

“Oh, no, don’t think that! No, I only thought…”

In the few days he had known her, Lucas hadn’t heard Elyssa trail off like that often. Usually, she at least found something to say. “What did you think?” he prompted, unconsciously taking her hand.

She blushed, and the heat from it seemed to suffuse her entire body. The color didn’t, remaining nothing more than a spot of brighter pink on either cheek, but he definitely felt the skin he held begin to grow warmer. Now that’s weird, he thought. She can jump into my arms like it’s nothing, but she acts like I just stripped her naked in public when I hold her hand? “Are you okay?” he asked, when her bashful silence stretched into awkwardness.

“I…think so?” she managed, her voice practically a squeak.

“Well, that’s a different sound. Here, I’ll let go, and we’ll see if that puts you back to normal.” He released his loose grip, slowly pulling his own hand back. “Better now?”

Elyssa shook her head as if to clear it. “A little. Wow. That was an odd feeling. It was like your spirit touched mine, but I know that’s not supposed to happen. It can’t, not when we both have physical bodies.”

“But of course. I’ve touched you before, though, and you never did that.” Lucas raised his eyebrow and one corner of his mouth. “Elyssa, are you in love?”

“Maybe,” she said shyly.

Okay, not the response I was expecting. Or the attitude, for that matter. Her blush had gone back down, which Lucas found to be a bit like turning off the bedroom light at noon. “See, there’s something you religious types don’t understand about science. We can test a theory by running an experiment over again. You know, like this.” He reached for her hand again, and she didn’t pull away. But the color in her cheeks returned, as did the bashful grin and the warmth. “And there’s your evidence in favor,” he laughed.

She wasn’t uncomfortable with it, just a bit confused. “It really does feel the same,” she stated, keeping her voice low. “Like before, when I would touch another…of my people. But then it’s different, too, because it’s making me wish you would never let go.”

“I’m flattered, but I do have to let go. I can’t finish eating until I do.” Again, Lucas released Elyssa’s hand. Again, she returned to normal, the fiery glow fading to embers. She looks even better when she’s blushing, he reflected. Not that she really needed it.

She didn’t seem totally opposed to the idea anymore, but he bided his time, letting dinner run its course, then escorted her back to his car. There, he held the door for her, then climbed into the driver’s side a moment later. While she leaned down to adjust her shoe, he moved his head closer, waiting for hers to come back up. When it did, he whispered, “Let’s see what this does.” Then he closed the final distance and let his lips meet hers.

He had kissed women before. Not as often as he’d like, but it wasn’t some new experience for him. Yet this one might have surpassed all the others combined in its intensity. Elyssa was surprised at first, but she caught on quickly, and that same heat that he had felt in her hand was magnified in her mouth. With his eyes closed, he couldn’t see if she was blushing as fiercely as in the restaurant, but it certainly felt that way when his fingers brushed her cheek. Time seemed to slow to a crawl, leaving him suspended in a moment he didn’t want to end.

Yet it had to. Breaking the kiss was hard, but he forced himself to do it. “Wow,” he gasped. His eyes opened to meet Elyssa’s, and it was like those silvery orbs were staring into him, seeing his innermost thoughts. “Wow,” he repeated.

“I…think I liked that,” Elyssa said, recovering far more quickly.

“Yeah.”

“It was physical, but also spiritual.”

Now is not the time, Lucas thought, finding it hard to look away. “If you say so. You’ve never done that before?”

She shook her head. “Not physically, no. I couldn’t, remember? But we have something like it for spirit. Doing both at the same time, though, I think that made it even stronger.”

“I’ll say. So, I’m thinking we might need to skip ahead on this date of ours. There was this band I wanted to take you to see, but that can wait. Because I don’t know if I can stand another moment like that tonight.”

“Why not? You liked it. I could tell that, and much more. When we kissed, I almost saw the whole of your spirit. I didn’t think I could do that anymore.”

Weirdness, as usual. But he thought he could live with that, if it just meant more moments like the one a minute ago. “Uh-huh. Yeah, I did like it. I loved it. It was probably the best kiss I’ve ever had in my life.”

“So why would you want to avoid it?”

“Because of where it might lead. I don’t want to rush into anything too, uh, physical, and I’d rather not put you in the position where you’d turn that down.”

“You won’t,” Elyssa assured him. “You’re too good, and I see that even more now. I really do, and…I want to see it again.”

This time, she initiated the kiss, but it was no less intense for that. Once more, Lucas felt his mouth aflame, his mind reeling as it searched for a safe place in this maelstrom of emotion. “This is more than physical,” he heard Elyssa say. “You can let your spirit lead your body, instead of the other way around.”

He tried to respond, but he found that he was still locked in her embrace. How…? he began to wonder, only to get distracted, to lose himself in the tumult again.

When they parted this time, Elyssa sat back in the seat with a sheepish look on her face. “I probably shouldn’t have done that,” she said.

“I’m glad you did,” Lucas admitted. “It’s weird, though. It was like I heard you talking, almost like you were whispering in my ear.”

“I wasn’t. That was the part I shouldn’t have done, not kissing you.” Her eyes fell, and she acted ashamed. “I spoke to your spirit. I guess I can still do that now.”

“I don’t understand.”

She let out a long sigh. “I can’t force you to do something against your will. I’ve already told you that much. I can suggest things, though. Since you were so worried about your body, I told your spirit to hold it in check. If you truly want it, you can ignore that, but it would take faith in yourself.”

Lucas barely knew what to say to that. He certainly did hear her voice, and he couldn’t come up with a reasonable explanation as to how. She couldn’t very well have spoken to him, not with her mouth covered by his. And she was right about one thing, in an odd sort of way: he no longer felt his physical desires creeping up on him. Oh, he still had them—one look at Elyssa told him that much—but he had them under control. It’s because I’m older, more mature. This isn’t like when I was nineteen or twenty, when I could barely think straight if I was this close to a woman. That’s all. Yet he had distinctly felt that way with the first kiss, as well as the hand-holding earlier. Just not anymore.

“Can you forgive me?” asked Elyssa.

“For what? You think you, what, cast some kind of spell on me or something?”

Her head jerked up, and she looked offended, even hurt. “That wasn’t a spell.”

“Whoa. Sorry, I didn’t know that was a sore spot.” He sighed and ran a hand over his forehead—when had he started sweating? “I forgive you for…whatever it was you think you did. And I won’t try anything. I never would have, not if you gave me any indication that you didn’t want it.”

“I know that now, but bodies are strong. Can we go home? That made me more tired than I expected.”

That, Lucas thought, was an excellent idea. Better to get back home than risk embarrassing themselves in public. So he started driving, letting his thoughts run as they would. She’s completely crazy, but maybe she’s crazy for me, too. You never know. She spoke nothing more on the matter, or much of anything else, and both of them were climbing into the bed before another hour had passed.

Elyssa took her usual position facing away, and Lucas discovered that wrenching his gaze from her was, paradoxically, much easier now that they had shared an intimate moment. His eyes wanted to stare, his body wanted to scoot closer, to press against hers, and yet he refrained. And he didn’t suffer for it, not like previous instances in his life where his desires were thwarted. No aches, no frustration, just an inner calm, a mild satisfaction at the memories of the evening. Weird.

The weekend was the weekend, two days where he didn’t have to worry about much of anything. That time was made even sweeter by Elyssa’s presence, although she toned down the lovestruck act a few notches. Instead of acting like she had the worst crush in the history of crushes, as she had at the restaurant, she comported herself with much more maturity on their brief excursions out of the apartment. She did pick out a few things she wanted to try on their trip to get groceries, and she couldn’t help asking for something different to wear, but Lucas found it much easier to have her around. Not only that, but essentially nobody noticed her. Every time he cringed in anticipation of some stranger striking up conversation with his companion, they thought better of it, walking on without a word.

“Are you doing that?” he asked after one such incident.

“Hmm?” Elyssa spared him a single glance, then turned back to the shelf that seemed to interest her more.

“Is that one of your little angel things? Making people ignore you?”

“Something like that,” she answered cryptically.

He didn’t believe her. He likely never would, But he was coming to see that there was more to Elyssa than he originally thought. She was insane, of course, but that was apparently a symptom of some other problem. One of these days, I’m sure I’ll figure it out. Questioning her usually led to dead ends, but he thought he had made some progress.

Sunday morning brought even more of that. Lucas slept in, following his typical weekend schedule, but Elyssa was up bright and early. And, as had become the pattern for when he wasn’t engaging her in conversation, she was watching TV. This time, he saw as he exited the bathroom, it was just about the worst possible sort of programming: televised local church services. The bane of his existence, in his opinion, but she was listening intently. “Why?” he groaned, rubbing his temples in exaggerated agony when she noticed him.

“I thought it looked interesting,” she replied. “I was wrong.”

“I could’ve told you that.”

“No, that’s not what I mean.”

Lucas held back his laughter. “So what do you mean?”

Elyssa blew out an exasperated breath. “They’re too controlling. They want to tell people what to believe.”

“Well, yeah. That’s kinda the point of organized religion, as far as I can tell.”

“But that’s not how it works. If you believe because of what they say, then you’re putting your faith in them, not what they preach.”

“Yep. That’s one of the reasons I gave up on the whole thing. I thought it’d be better if people could just live their lives without all that.”

“Without faith?”

Exactly, he thought. But he wasn’t going to say that to Elyssa. “Without somebody trying to exploit it.”

She agreed with that much, but she didn’t have any ideas on how to fix the problem, either. And she didn’t mind his vocal criticism of the TV preachers, as long as it stayed humorous. The result was one of the strangest hours he’d ever experienced, as the two of them found common ground despite coming at the issue from what he had to figure were diametrically opposed positions. Elyssa giggled when Lucas caught a televangelist in a contradiction of his own making, and he almost fell in the floor when she took offense to the man’s one mention of angels.

But the chasm remained between them, and it was one he wasn’t sure he could ever bridge. She continued to take it all seriously, while he saw no reason to. And the religious programming brought more of her oddities to the fore, leaving him glad when noon finally rolled around. At least politics gave everybody something to laugh at.

“How are you feeling?” she finally asked, as talk began to give way to football—a subject that interested her not in the slightest. “You slept too long, and I was worried. Did I hurt you?”

Lucas blinked. “Hurt me? I don’t think you could.”

“Oh, I could. I don’t want to, though. It did worry me, and I kept thinking about when we, uh…”

“When we kissed? Yeah, I was thinking about that one, too. Probably for a different reason.”

“That’s what I meant!” Elyssa shifted about a foot to her left, closer to him. “I liked the feeling, and I would like to do it again, but I was scared that you’d be angry with me for…influencing you. I wasn’t thinking clearly. I wanted to protect us both, and that was the only way that came to mind.”

He stopped her, because the babbling was getting a bit too much. “It’s okay, Elyssa. I don’t believe you could do any serious harm to me like that. Maybe it even worked. I can look at you today without thinking about how you’d look naked.”

“Nude,” she corrected.

“Not this time. This one really would be naked, because I’d be the one ripping your clothes off. I’ll admit, I did fantasize once or twice. I’m only human.”

“And I’m not.”

Let’s move on, before she starts in with this again. “Sure. But it’s easier now. Notice how my eyes haven’t started drifting down? How I’m moving my hand out of the way so it doesn’t brush up against you? Don’t get me wrong. I still want to, but I don’t feel the need anymore. Now, maybe that’s because of you, or maybe not.” Lucas took a deep breath in preparation for what he was about to say. “Either way, I’m glad it happened.”

“You are? You’re glad that I influenced you? That I touched your spirit?”

“You did that a week ago, when I found you lying under a tree.” Her only reply was to lay her head on his shoulder. Without conscious effort, he then put his arm around her. “You keep talking about how I’m a good man. Well, you’re a good woman. You might be a little out there sometimes, but who isn’t?”

“I haven’t lied to you.”

Lucas kept his laugh mostly on the inside. “That’s debatable, but I’m tired of debating. I’d rather do this instead.” He leaned down and moved his lips to hers, let that strange and wonderful inner fire of hers cleanse him of his worries, his doubts. I’ll do it. As long as she’s willing, I’ll stay with her. Or let her stay with me. This is worth keeping.

His second week of unemployment was so much easier than the first. Having Elyssa around helped, especially given her new status as a romantic interest. She threw herself into that, showering him with affection, compliments, and other expressions of the love she said she felt. And Lucas found it difficult to deny her. It was rare enough that he had a woman effectively throwing herself at him; if nothing else, he would milk that for all it was worth. The sheer passion she could instill in him with a touch only sweetened the deal.

Despite such feelings, he continued to restrain himself when it came to progressing this new relationship. He didn’t take Elyssa out on any more dates—he couldn’t afford too much wining and dining, not until he got a job—but their evenings in found her lying with him on the couch, cuddling as they watched a movie or talked. Nothing else, and he never once regretted that. When he brought it up late on Thursday, Elyssa said, “I told you. Your spirit’s stronger than your body. You’re an honorable man, so my suggestion was only reminding you of what you already knew.”

“Uh-huh,” Lucas replied skeptically. “Assuming I believe that, is it permanent? For that matter, is it only for you?” If, by some chance, she had somehow put him under some sort of mind-altering effect, he had to know that much.

“It is, but it won’t last forever. I can remove it whenever I like, and I will. Not yet, though. I don’t think I’m ready for that just yet.”

“And what about me? What if I’m ready?”

“You aren’t. You shouldn’t worry so much. Since your spirit is stronger, that means the bond we have is stronger than if it were purely physical, right?”

She does have a point, in an odd sort of way. “I’ll give you that one, but we poor, pitiful humans like to have our physical bonds, too.”

“Because you all have bodies, I know. I’ve only had mine a few days, so I don’t understand everything about that. I can’t have your child, if that’s what you’re wondering. Or I don’t think I can.”

Lucas hadn’t considered that in the slightest. “Not what I was worried about, Elyssa.”

“Oh. Then what? Did you want to boast to people that you had sex with an angel?”

He let out a shocked, choked sound, then sputtered for a few seconds while his mind tried to work out a response. “That’s not fair,” he finally said. “Not fair at all.”

She turned and fixed him with a knowing grin. “So you were thinking about that!”

“I am now, thanks to you.” Too bad they’re not real. That would be a pretty good notch on the bedpost.

Her hand moved to cup his cheek. “Spirit first, remember. If I’m going to love one of your people, then I want him to be strong.”

“Oh, I see how it is. Temptation isn’t really an angelic trait, last I checked. It’s not very becoming of you.”

Elyssa giggled, then kissed him, making it impossible to think about anything else. And he again heard her voice in his head, now saying, “This way is better for me. It’s so much more intimate than anything a body can do.”

His will survived the night, keeping him from doing something he would regret, and that was almost enough to get even Lucas to believe in miracles. As much as he would have loved to stay in Elyssa’s arms all day Friday, though, he had to get up early, because his schedule had one very important item that needed to be taken care of. “I’ve got the interview today,” he explained to her at breakfast. “Wish me luck.”

“You’ll do great,” she stated with a conviction he wished he could share. “Have faith, and I’ll be waiting when you get home.”

He could do without the first half of that last statement, but he’d gladly keep the second. If I can get hired and have her say that, this might be the perfect day. As he made to leave, Lucas gave Elyssa a light, quick kiss on the cheek. “There’ll be more of that later,” he vowed.

He was dressed in his best suit, one he hadn’t worn in almost a year. Alas, that length of time, along with a bit of excess on his part in the intervening months, meant that it wasn’t the best fit. As long as he could stuff himself into it, though, he’d take it, because he was well aware that appearances mattered. Only one shot at a first impression, he reminded himself. Gotta be the best one I can get.

The man who was to conduct the interview was older, close to fifty, and he introduced himself as the company’s information manager. He had a long list of questions for Lucas, starting with the basics. What were his specialties? Where did he see himself in five years? Lucas, remembering lessons he had learned long ago, didn’t give him full honesty. Instead, he tried to tailor his answers to the situation, to emphasize his pros while glossing over the cons, and that seemed to be working. The puzzles, on the other hand, were more difficult, and not as amenable to such trickery. But they were no less a part of the mental chess match that was a job interview. Twice, he had to admit that he was unsure of his solution; once, he couldn’t even come up with one. Luckily, that scenario was intended to weed out liars. It had no true good outcome, only bad and worse—mitigating the damage was his duty, in that case.

The whole thing lasted over an hour, including a period of twenty minutes where the interviewer had to leave the room due to an emergency meeting. When that was done, the man returned with a smile on his face and a folder in his hands. “You’re in luck,” he said, handing the folder to Lucas. “We are in need of a junior network administrator, and you meet all the qualifications. Can you start the Monday after next?”

Lucas looked at the papers he’d been given, finding them to be an employment contract, a nondisclosure agreement, and other assorted documents, all waiting for his signature. “Yes, sir,” he replied proudly, reaching for a pen. “Yes, I can.”

He jogged through the hallway of the apartment building and knocked at his door. No need for the key, not when someone was waiting on the other side. In his head, he began counting. One, two, three, four—in the space between four and five, Elyssa opened the door a crack, then threw it back the rest of the way. “Lucas!” she exclaimed, jumping into his arms.

“I got it!” he told her. “I got the job!” He lifted and carried her inside, kicking the door shut behind him.

“That’s great!”

“Yeah, and we’re going to celebrate tonight. How about another date?”

Elyssa needed only a second or two to agree. “I’d like that. Didn’t I tell you to have faith, and everything would work out?”

“Now’s not the time,” Lucas laughed. “Here, I know a way to shut you up.”

Covering her mouth with his didn’t actually serve to quiet her, as her voice echoed in his head. “Just this once,” she said in that weird way she had. “Your spirit is strong, Lucas, but your body deserves enjoyment, too. Tonight, I’ll give you that.”

She certainly did. After dinner and an hour-long set by a blues rock band that wasn’t that great at either, Elyssa spent the ride home lost in thought, not once initiating conversation. But when Lucas pulled the car into a space near the front, she was quick to jump out, almost yanking him out of the driver’s seat in her haste to get him inside.

He barely knew what was going on after that, and his inner thoughts quickly ran out of ways to describe what they were seeing. If the touch of Elyssa’s lips was like a burning brand, then seeing her nude form revealed before him was staring at the sun. He had heard people describe sex as rapturous before, but now he truly understood what they meant. He didn’t know how she did it, but it was as if every touch, every movement, every sensation was magnified. Not to his senses—no, he felt this on a much deeper, more innate level. Eventually, it became too much to handle; seconds after the deed was done, he passed out, his last thought thanking Elyssa for having the foresight to get on top.

Some immeasurable time later, he woke to her shaking his shoulder. “Lucas,” she hissed. “Lucas, get up!”

“Hmm?” he said groggily.

“Somebody’s here.”

At that, his eyes shot open, scanning the bedroom in search of an intruder. A burglar, maybe, or a home invader. Even a raid was possible, though he couldn’t come up with a reason to make it likely. Yet he saw nothing. “Go back to sleep,” he mumbled.

“I can’t. There’s somebody in here.”

“There’s not. I looked.”

He heard her groan. “You can’t see it. It’s a creature of spirit.”

Briefly, he wondered if she’d had a nightmare. Then he realized he didn’t much care, not at this hour. “Oh. Okay. You take care of that one.”

“I want your help.”

It’s too early for this. Or too late. Whatever. “How can I help you with something I can’t see?”

“Hold me.”

He could do that easily enough. “Here you go. Now, get some sleep. We’ll need it.”

But Elyssa wasn’t listening. She spoke to what he perceived to be thin air, “I did.”

What? Lucas wondered. He strained his eyes, yet there just wasn’t anything there. Did she finally lose it completely? Was that because of me? I’ve heard people talk about mind-blowing sex, but I didn’t think they meant it literally.

“Reveal yourself to him,” she said aloud. “We’re bound in spirit. In love.”

Well, at least she admits that much. Lucas sighed. Now it’s time to clear out the spooky ghosts, so we can get back to sleep. “Yeah, show yourself, whatever you are.”

The voice he heard in his head was not Elyssa’s, and it was not directed at him. “I will do this,” it said. “It shall be upon your head, however. As you bound your spirit to this man, so it shall be bound to this world of body. Until his own spirit leaves the world, yours cannot. Unless you choose now to sever the bond and return to us.”

Lucas’s mind was racing. What in the world is going on here? Is this some kind of trick? Is this where the camera crews show up, or whatever kind of reveal this is building up to? He saw nothing that could be the source of the mysterious voice; it spoke in a low, neutral tone that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once, and he could almost believe he was imagining it, except that Elyssa clearly reacted to its presence.

“Men don’t live forever,” she said to the supposed stranger. “Even a century is little compared to those I’ve already lived, and nothing against an eternity of spirit.”

“You will be a part of this world,” the voice argued. “Contained in a physical vessel.”

“I know.”

“Um, do I get a say in this?” Lucas interjected.

The stranger paid him no heed, but Elyssa looked back and said, “You already did. You’re why I can do this.” She then turned, her eyes focusing on a point on the wall that, to him, contained nothing more than a reflected glint of light. “I’ll stay. For him. With him.”

About the Author

Michael H. Potter is a programmer and general computer fix-it man who lives outside of Chattanooga, Tennessee. He is self-employed, and he writes in his copious free time. You can visit him on the web at his blog, Prose Poetry Code, or support him on Patreon.

Cover Credit

The cover art for this work comes from a photograph posted on Pixabay by user Trixieliko, made available under the CC0 license. I added a colored background, as well as lettering and cropping.

Copyright

This is a work of fiction. All names, places, and events are fictitious, and any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is coincidental.

Copyright © 2018 Michael H. Potter All rights reserved.

No portion of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form except with the author’s permission, or as permitted by law.