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I DON'T SEE SANDALPHON for the next two days. The last time I saw him, he said I'd earned a break, but I don't think that's entirely true. Either he's busy with Archangel stuff, or he overheard my thoughts and now he's totally creeped out. I kept wishing he would ask me out, but he never did, and now I feel like a total fool.
On my first day off, I hung out with Leigh and Alyx. The latter played Call of Duty with me, while the former texted her boyfriend the entire time. I finally met Taishi, who looked as handsome in real life as he did in his photos. Leigh seems a little obsessed with him, but I guess that's cool. If I had a hot boyfriend, I'd probably be obsessed with him too.
On my second day off, I ran into Grandma and Jacob, cuddling on the couch. My first instinct was to flee, but Grandma insisted I need to get to know him better, so I crashed on the couch with them, three seats away, for all of five minutes. We barely started a conversation before I was rescued by a text from Alyx, and I head to her place for more pizza and games.
I should be supportive of Grandma's relationship, but I can't warm up to the idea. That's probably childish of me, and I do want Grandma to be happy, but I can't get used to this newer, younger man. I keep thinking that Grandpa's heart would be broken if he saw her with someone else. Even if they split up before she died, it's still weird.
On the third day, I get a message from Sandalphon, asking me to join him at the Edgy H cafe—which is a lot of miles from Grandma's house. I think he forgot that I can't actually warp, and every time I've done it, it's been an accident. I don't want to refuse his invitation, so I ask Alyx to take me.
As soon as we arrive, Alyx says, “Dude, this is where Beggar's Tongue performs. I've always wanted to see them live, but I haven't had the chance.”
“What's Beggar's Tongue?” I ask.
“It's Archangel Haniel's band. Some of her music is actually pretty good,” Alyx says.
We're blasted by rock music when we enter the cafe. The band on stage is dressed like cowboys, and according to Alyx, they're from a different era.
“Those guys were literally cowboys once,” she informs me. “They used to wrangle horses... now they mangle music.”
“Ouch,” I reply, wincing at her opinion. I don't think they're so bad, but it's not my kind of music.
Hard rock seems to be Alyx's thing, though. She starts naming a ton of bands she loves, with the exception of Regal Crimson, who apparently, “really really really suck.”
Sandalphon is sitting at a table near the stage, and when he sees me, he waves us over. He's sitting with another blonde guy, whose lip curls with disgust as we approach. Fortunately, his sour expression seems to be aimed at Alyx, not me.
I guess their disgust is mutual, because Alyx says, “Eww. It's Jophiel.”
“Eww?” Jophiel's disgusted expression morphs into an exaggerated pout. “It's good to see you too, Alyx. Am I still worthy of an eww? I'm flattered.”
“I think you'll always be worthy of an eww,” Alyx says.
“But I apologized to your little friend,” Jophiel replies. “Shouldn't that count for something?”
I ignore their confusing banter and drop into the chair next to Sandalphon. “Jophiel... he's an Archangel, right?” I ask.
Sandalphon confirms his friend's identity with a nod and a monotone, “Right.”
“So, basically... I'm sitting next to two Archangels. That's not intimidating at all.”
“We're not as intimidating as we look.” Sandalphon winces at his answer. “Or... I should probably say, we're not as intimidating as we sound. I've been told that I have a very harmless face.”
His face is kind of harmless, but I've seen what he can do. He's tougher than he looks.
“So, Mikayla... how did you enjoy your break?” Sandalphon asks.
“It was good,” I lie. To be honest, I spent most of my time missing our missions, and wishing I could see him again. In the corner of my eye, I can see Jophiel watching me, so I slowly turn my gaze to him. “Hi. You're... Jophiel.”
“Indeed. And you're the girl who's pretty enough to make Sandalphon break the rules,” Jophiel says. “I couldn't understand why he would actually want to be an instructor, but now that I've seen you, I guess it makes sense.”
Is he complimenting me or not? I can't tell.
Alyx suddenly says, “Just so you know, Jophiel is a turd. He's like... the worst.”
“Oh, come on!” Jophiel chides her with a click of his tongue. “We both know you're just jealous because I hit on Leigh instead of you.”
Alyx dismisses his claim with sputtering lips. “I feel sorry for your girlfriend,” she says.
“And I feel sorry for you. We both know that Phineas is an annoying, pompous tit.”
Their squabble ends when Archangel Haniel takes the stage. The crowd cheers so hard, I'm tempted to cover my ears to drown out the madness.
Sandalphon shouts a question to Jophiel. I doubt he could hear him otherwise. “Where's Chris? It's rare for him to miss one of her performances.”
“He's on a mission,” Jophiel says. “Well... more specifically, we are on a mission. I left him with one of our charges.”
I don't know who they're talking about, so I tune them out and focus on Haniel's performance. She's really hot. I'm not gonna lie, she's the kind of girl who could make a straight girl question her heterosexuality.
Jophiel taps my arm, stealing my attention from the woman on stage. “Aren't you a singer, Miss Frost? I believe that's what Sandalphon said.”
“Uhhh...” I don't know why I'm hesitating. Jophiel makes me nervous, I guess. “I... am.”
“Then you should take the stage as well,” Jophiel suggests.
Can I refuse an Archangel's request? I want to, but I don't want to sound rude, especially if Jophiel is a friend of Sandalphon. “I don't think that's a good idea,” I tell him. “I don't think I could sing anything that would appeal to this crowd.”
“Nonsense! The Edgy H audience enjoys all sorts of music,” Jophiel says. “If your voice is as good as Sandalphon claims, I'm sure they'll love you.”
I'm confused. How would Sandalphon know I'm any good? He hasn't heard enough of my singing to arrive at that conclusion. “Eh... I'm not that good,” I insist.
Unfortunately, Jophiel isn't going to let me out of this. As Haniel's band exists the stage, he insists on a performance from me. Even Alyx is on his side, and Alyx seemed to hate him. I have a hard time saying no to people, so I let them peer pressure me into the spotlight.
I'm totally unprepared for this, and the fact that Sandalphon's watching makes it even harder. I close my eyes, blocking out the expectant faces of my afterlife audience.
I choose the song that secured my victory in a high school talent competition: Someone to Watch Over Me by Ella Fitzgerald. My voice is deeper than hers, and I add more vibrato—which, in my humble opinion, makes for a decent version. By some miracle, I haven't forgotten any of the lyrics.
“There's a saying old, says that love is blind. Still we're often told, seek and ye shall find. So I'm going to seek a certain lad I've had in mind.”
Later, my gaze locks on Sandalphon as I sing, “There's somebody I'm longing to see, I hope that he, turns out to be... someone to watch over me.”
I almost omit the “some girls might not think of him as handsome,” line, but it's not like this is a ballad about Sandalphon. I wouldn't want him to think that. This was just an impromptu and totally random song choice. It's not like I planned it.
Still, the song kind of fits. Alyx says he's not the most popular Archangel, and like her, I can't even begin to understand the reason. To me, he's handsomest of all.
When my performance is met with a roar of applause, I exit the stage with blushing cheeks. It's always nice to get compliments, but I have a hard time believing them. A few years ago, I put some videos on Youtube, and I still remember that one troll who killed my confidence. He commented on all my videos, saying I sounded like crap. I took all my stuff offline after that. I would never want to be that mean person who makes someone give up a dream. People should encourage each other, not tear each other down.
Alyx is on her feet and whistling when I return to our table. “Girl, you slayed!”
I accept her compliment with a weak, wavering smile. “I don't know about that, but... thanks.”
I'm already embarrassed by all this attention, but a comment from Sandalphon makes it even worse.
“That was beautiful, Mikey,” he says. “I mean that. You're blessed with a rare gift, and we're all blessed to enjoy it.”
Embarrassed as I am, his compliment makes me giddy. I wouldn't be surprised if I was grinning forever.