Cast & Fall (41 page)

I
stared at Tristan once again, as he finished the last portion of
chicken from his plate. He then, proceeded to work on dessert. He
seemed to really enjoy it as well—more than I expected he
would. I had focused my attention on him now more intently as I
continually chewed on the idea, dissecting every morsel of
information.

Unusual,
I thought, since I knew he couldn’t really fully appreciate
food the way humans do. There was something that told me that this
wasn’t necessarily for Steve or my benefit. I kept the thought
to myself, latching the idea in my head for future analysis.

“
What
do you like to do for fun?” Steve asked, looking at Tristan.

“
Oh,
I have a lot of hobbies. I play instruments, I like to shoot. I
pretty much like anything.”

‘
Hobbies!…such
a human thing to say'…
I
laughed silently as I mimicked his voice in my head.

“
That’s
great. Maybe we’ll go to the range sometime.”

“
I’d
love that.” Steve had always been an easy read. If he didn’t
like you, you’d know it. But then again, who wouldn’t
like Tristan. Besides the fact he came from heaven, he also had an
insight that only angels possessed. He can sense human emotions,
which meant, it wouldn’t take long before he really knew what
you were thinking.

Steve
and Tristan talked about many things. Steve felt comfortable enough
to talk about his childhood, his job, pretty much everything. I’ve
never seen Steve this engaged before, especially with someone who was
much younger than him. Of course, Steve didn’t know that,
Tristan, being immortal and had lived as long as he had, he might as
well had been older than my dad. Wow…that seemed really old.
But then of course, his mind didn’t age, just his knowledge.

Krystal
Clear

“
A
nd
they lived happily ever after…The End.”

“
Did
you like the story?” I asked Krystal.

“
Yes,
that’s my favorite book,” she said, as she placed the
colorful pages of
Sleeping
Beauty
,
next to her side. We were both sitting on the hospital bed. Her feet
warmly tucked in her pink blanket and mine extended across the bed.

“
I
love that book, too. Why is that your favorite?” I curiously
asked. We’ve read the book a gazillion times already.

“
You
see, the beautiful Princess fell asleep because she was sick and she
was waiting for something…she was waiting for the prince to
come find her and make her feel better…a miracle…I
hope, I get one too. I hope a prince finds me and make me well
again,” her voice was full of hope. Her small, rounded, pale
lips stretched, revealing tiny white teeth.

Her
round, blue eyes with dark circles underneath looked up at me in
anticipation. She had thin, almost nonexistent hair where her soft,
blond hair twisted into soft curls used to be. She hadn’t had
any hair for months now. The only reason I knew she had curly hair
was because she had a family photograph taken on their last trip to
Disneyland just months before she knew she had neuroblastoma, a brain
cancer. She wanted to keep the photograph in her room next to
her—remembering the happy times before the illness had taken
over. And also because, I used to baby sit her before
it
all happened. Her
parents were friends with Steve, and I had baby sat her in numerous
occasions since she was two.

“
Can
you read some more?”

“
Absolutely,”
I said eagerly while holding my emotions further from the truth I was
feeling. I couldn’t let her see me breakdown. Not when I knew
how strong she’d been these last few weeks or even the time she
had learned of her condition. Her small, frail hands handed me
another book from a pile next to her.

“
Cinderella…good
choice Krystal,” I said, as I flapped open to the first page. I
felt glad this was a good day. She had just finished a set of
aggressive treatments a couple of days ago—something that no
child at the age of four should ever have to endure. But as frail as
she was, she had a strength that many people would envy. I adjusted
myself from my seat as I leaned toward her to read our next story.

“
Once
upon a time there was a girl named Cinderella…” Tristan
came in.

“
An
angel,” Krystal yelled…I froze. I looked at both of
them. As shocked as I was, Tristan nor Krystal didn’t seemed
fazed by their meeting.

“
Hi
Krystal…how are you feeling today?” Tristan’s
voice was soft, angelic and very
calming.

“
I
feel okay…you know, you’re a very handsome angel. Isn‘t
he Ms. Katheryna?”

“
The
most handsome angel I have ever met.”

T
he
hazy cloud peeked in. I blinked my eyes open, excited about the day
that lay ahead. Tristan picked me up and we headed to the café
to have breakfast. Well, I had breakfast and as usual, he watched me
fascinated as always. I had asked him if he’d prefer to eat but
he quickly turned down the idea. Of course, I hated forcing
unnecessary food on him, realizing he didn’t really need
sustenance. The wasting of food is a concept that I’m very much
against, realizing the many people who suffer from starvation every
single day. As I was finishing my crepe, I looked up at him to ask a
question that had been circling in my head since several nights ago.

“
Tristan…how
did Krystal know that you were an angel?” I asked
casually—hoping he’d disclose more and he didn’t
need to worry about possibly scaring me. Though, there was something
about the idea that made me hold my question for a while. I continued
chewing as I waited for his response. He looked at me reluctantly, as
if he’d wish I didn’t ask it. He was silent for a brief
moment. “She’s transitioning…” he said
vaguely, his tone flat, but his eyes were deep.

“
Transitioning?”
The word sounded big for some reason.

“
I
wanted her to feel at peace…to comfort her.”

“
You
mean?…she’s dying?…I mean of course, I know she’s
dying but…” Then, it clicked.

“
She
passed this morning…I’m sorry.”

Shock
suddenly gripped me. I couldn’t wrap my mind around it. I just
saw her…she was so young…she was so alive…how?…why?

In
an invisible speed, Tristan was next to me, cradling me in his arms.
I was sobbing silently in the curve of his neck. I couldn‘t
seem to find a way to stop. I was in an endless pain.

Waves
of tears continued to flood my eyes. “Shh…it will be
okay,” he brushed his lips on top of my forehead and stroked my
hair. I didn’t know how long I’ve been like that when a
sudden feeling of calm washed over me.

I
immediately looked up. I realized that Tristan must have calmed me
down. “I’m sorry, It hurts me too much to see you in
pain,” he murmured. “But if you choose it, I will never
do it again,” his voice was certain, full of compassion. He
wiped the wet stream from under my eyes. I was silent. I wasn’t
sure how I felt about it. I stayed in his arms longer until time
forced us to leave.

The
ride was fast, even though Tristan kept the speedometer much slower
than the speed limit required. I didn’t want to leave him and I
figured he felt the same. When we finally got to the entrance, he
leaned to kiss me and wished me another pleasant day. By noon time,
Steve had called me to let me know about Krystal.

The
day passed slowly. I couldn’t seem to make the clock run
faster, so I consciously consumed my thoughts on paying attention on
everything that was necessary while I was in class. I knew I couldn’t
focus much more into anything once the final bell rang.

Breathtaking
as always, he came to pick me up in front of the school. I hurried to
meet him as curious eyes followed us, and we disappeared into an
early afternoon traffic. We headed to Andrews so I could catch up on
homework. We headed to the Botanical garden and found a small patch
of grass to sit on. My time with Tristan was more than productive,
because of course, he was a great tutor and he knew all the answers.

“
I
wish we could stay here long but I actually have to go to work
tonight
.
TGIF
isn‘t
exactly
a cause for celebration for some people,” I complained.

“
Well,
as it turned out, you’re actually off tonight and another
weekend next month.”

“
What?…I
am?” my eyebrows curved—wondering how Tristan had pulled
off a last minute change. “When were you planning to tell me?”

“
Now!…Stephen
had volunteered to take your shifts. He said, he needed the hours.”
My eyes curled up in suspicion.

“
I
actually didn’t do anything. I asked him and so as it turned
out, he actually could use the money…Lonnie is fine with
it…unless…you don‘t want to spend time with me?”
His expression was susceptible. His eyes blazed in a sexy way.

“
Hmm…let’s
see, work or be with you…that’s a tough one,” my
face was serious. He eyed me blankly. “Couldn’t you read
my emotions?” By then, he was grinning.

“
But…why
do I need two days next month, though?”

“
Well,
it’s a surprise,” he blurted with enthusiasm.

“
I
actually, don’t like surprises,” I lied, though I knew
he’d probably figure anyway.

“
You
don’t?” he asked as if it was a revelation to him.
Maybe
this is a good time to see if those abilities are really accurate.

“
Well,
I just want to be prepared. It‘s a girl thing….just a
hint?” I was more than excited now.

“
Okay,
I get it…how about I give you clues,” he compromised.

“
Dress
casual, maybe a light sweater and walking is optional.”

“
Is
that it?”

“
Yeah…that’s
it.”

That
clue wasn’t much of a help. But it seemed like that was all I
was going to get. “Okay then…in this case, I like the
surprise.”

T
he
following couple of weeks, I had been busy with work, helping and
attending the funeral and preparing for the holidays. It seemed too
crazy to have all of it happening in the same month. Christmas was a
quiet event. We visited mom’s grave and had dinner. I couldn’t
bring myself to cancel Christmas altogether, even though, I knew
Tristan didn’t celebrate this
human
holiday.
Mom
loved Christmas and so did Steve and in more ways, I did too.

Despite
the significance of the occasion, I could tell that Tristan got into
the holiday spirit. Tristan helped base the turkey, helped pick up
the tree to surprise Steve and even helped me wrap presents. The time
that we didn’t spend time together, Tristan had been occupying
himself with
clandestine
meetings that
involved everything that I’m much too scared to really know
about, so I usually kept my questions to the bare minimum, and I
could tell, he’d prefer not to really involve me.

S
aturday,
the day started early. I was extremely excited about the surprise and
my anticipated date with Tristan that I woke much earlier than
necessary. I showered and couldn’t settle on what to wear, so I
gave in to wearing my usual tee and jean. I couldn’t be sure
that a dress would be comfortable and if it would be too cold for
shorts. I focused more on make up and had plenty of time to even
clean my room.

I
was sipping my coffee when I heard the doorbell. And there he was.
Nobody could look as good as him in black t-shirt and black jeans.
And that hair is just too darn amazing to ignore.

“
Are
you ready or should I come in?” he questioned excitedly.

“
Actually,
I’d been up since dawn…thanks to all the secrecy,”
I complained. I
grabbed
my purse and came out. We slowly walked out. My eyes scanned for the
truck. It was nowhere in sight. “Well…I have to tell you
that…part of the surprise will be our unconventional
transportation,” his voice was too casual.

“
What
do you mean?” My eyes focused and refocused on his reaction.
“
I’d
like to keep everything a surprise, so if you trust me, I’ll
need you to close your eyes. Only if you feel comfortable, of
course,” he added. His eyes were full of excitement, his smile
too big, I couldn’t disappoint such a face.