I Have Friends In Both Places

Atlas wasn’t alone for long because in the next few seconds, another door in the room flew open, startling him a bit as it slammed against the wall. Alijah walked in, clad in a dark red suit that fit him perfectly.

Alijah’s eyes immediately fell on Atlas, and he hummed in approval to himself before moving to sit in the chair on the opposite side of the table to Atlas. He then raised his hand and snapped his finger. Atlas watched in wonder as the demons standing around swiftly moved to carts he hadn’t noticed before, laying out food on the table and placing a plate in front of each of the two, perfectly made. Another demon placed drinks in front of them. Then, as quickly as they had sprung to life, they moved back to wall, standing still.

“Leave,” Alijah commanded the demons, and they filed out of the room easily, shutting the door behind them, leaving the two in the room alone. Atlas watched as Alijah lifted a fork and knife and swiftly cut into the steak placed in front of him. He took a few bites before looking back up to Atlas, his eyebrows raised. “Are you not going to eat?”

Atlas broke away his gaze and mumbled out a yes, grabbing his fork and knife. His plate was filled with steak, mashed potatoes covered in gravy, and a bunch of vegetables he didn’t care to remember the names of. Slowly, he began eating bit by bit until his plate was half-empty, and he was almost full. It was delicious, he would easily admit, but it was easily filling.

Alijah was the first to speak again, and Atlas immediately lifted his head to the other boy as he began speaking. “So, tell me your story, since you obviously know mine.”

Atlas’s lips parted in surprise and his eyebrows furrowed as he tried to figure out if he actually wanted to know. Alijah lifted a cup and made a hand motion for him to start as he took a sip of what looked to be wine, at least that’s what Atlas hoped it was. “Uhm, where do you want me to start?”

“From the beginning of your life, I suppose.” Alijah’s voice was steady as he spoke, and Atlas wondered why he would care for such information, but he heeded Lele’s warning and began speaking.

“Well, I was born centuries again after the second angel war. I was created in the fourth sector of Heaven by an angel named Meredith. I was brought up and taught the way of angels in the same sector, and I was bullied most of my childhood because my soul was a different color than the others. They said I was tainted. I met my best friends Jameson and Jackson there. They saved me from the kids and kept me safe for a long time. As I grew up, they were always my shoulder to cry on, but they’re also the people who got me kicked out.” Atlas paused at that part, trying to make some part of himself feel angry at them, but he couldn’t. Nothing they ever did would make Atlas hate them, and that was just the truth. “After being raised for about a century, I was released to find my job. They didn’t really know where to put me, said I didn’t really fit anything, so they put me as a guardian angel. Jameson and Jackson were very happy about that as they were also guardians. I watched over seven humans, and they lived full lives and made it into heaven. Then, I was placed to watch after Galen Rabattre. He found a spell so he was able to see angels, and he became a friend better than Jameson and Jackson, but then I spilled it to them after about two years of being friends with Galen, and they freaked out. Jackson told his girlfriend who told the first, and they said my punishment was to fall to Earth, but I guess I fell too far, and I ended up in here.”

Atlas felt like his heart would fall out of his chest from how fast it was beating. His hands were clammy, and his face was crestfallen. “I guess I’m pretty boring,” he stated, chuckling a bit at the end.

Alijah sighed loudly and set his glass down, standing up from his seat. Atlas watched as he made his way across the room toward him. “You’re not lying to me. I can tell. I’ve had some of Heaven’s best spies come down here and try to cheat their way to know what I’m up to, but you’re not one of them. You just had the bad end of the stick, didn’t you? Plus, no angel would destroy their wings just for a mission.”

“What?” Atlas had forgotten about his wings, which was incredibly hard to do. It’d be like forgetting you had legs, but he hadn’t had to use them, so it was like they weren’t there. He didn’t know what they looked like. He didn’t know how much damage had fallen on them. He could see burn marks across his body, cuts and scrapes every now and then, but as he tried to flex his wings, he found them hard to move, a pain firing through his body that had him wincing harshly.

Alijah looked over. “That’s right. You haven’t gotten to see yourself yet. Follow me.” Alijah snapped his fingers and the chains on Atlas’s wrists fell off easily. He walked easily to the door and began walking out. Atlas didn’t have time to think about how he was able to do such a thing because he was running to follow him, falling into a jog behind the boy.

Alijah led Atlas to a large room full of mirrors, and Atlas immediately gasped at the image of himself. “This is the dance studio. A lot of demons and a few humans love dancing, so we have some set up around here. Figured it’d be the best place you could see all of you.”

Atlas stepped up to a mirror as tears gathered in his eyes. His body was nothing. Though his clothes were torn everywhere and cuts raked across him with blood splotched onto the material of his shirt and burn marks were all over his face, it was nothing compared to his wings. The once beautiful tawny brown wings with intricately designed feathers that he prided himself in were destroyed. Feathers were gone while others were singed beyond recognition. The once beautiful brown was incredibly dark, and spots of soot-covered any hint of the original color. As he tried to flex them a bit, another ripple of pain ran through him. He could see where they had broken the bone in the wing before.

Alijah stepped behind Atlas, his shoes clacking loudly against the wood flooring. “Now don’t look so sad. We can fix you up real nice. It’s just going to take a bit.”

Atlas felt a few tears run down his cheeks, a soft sob leaving him as he pressed his hands against the pole attached to the wall to steady himself. “I deserved this, didn’t I? I should have followed the rules. I also mess things up. I can’t do anything right.”

Alijah looked uncomfortable as he looked down at Atlas, his lips pressed in a thin line as he didn’t know what to do right then. “Atlas, no one deserves this. No one. I was surprised when I first saw you because I don’t think an angel has fallen in as much pain as you did. They’ll get thrown, but they’re never beaten like you obviously were. You looked so much worse when you first arrived. Your cuts and burns were worse and you had a black eye. It was obvious you had been through something terrible. Heaven’s gotten worse over the years. When I say it’s worse than hell, that wouldn’t even begin to describe it. You’ve only seen a small portion through your life, but the angels that fall, they’ve seen some terrible, terrible stuff, and now you’ve learned a bit more.”

“Please stop talking. I know they’re bad and corrupt, at least now I do, but it was still my home, and it was the only home I knew. I just can’t believe they did this.” Atlas’s voice wavered at the end as a new spout of tears fell down his face.

“I know. I felt the same when I fell, but you’ll learn and grow.” Alijah’s voice hardened a bit, and his eyes flashed a bright red before they fell back into their normal grayish-blue.

Atlas turned his head a bit, looking at Alijah with sad eyes. “I’m sorry, Alijah. You’re not who they taught me you were. I’m sorry I thought you were anything terrible. You didn’t deserve it either.”

Alijah’s breath caught in his throat at the sincerity in Atlas’s voice. How could someone he had just met feel so strongly about him? Though, his life had easily fallen apart in just a few days. Alijah guessed it had something to do with him just wanting a break. “Thank you, Atlas.”

Atlas nodded and looked back at himself before straightening his back. If he were to find a new life, even if it were here, he would have to get over himself. He’d heal himself, slowly and surely. He would make himself useful, and he'd prove heaven wrong. He’d prove that he truly could do something right, even if it was something as simple as fixing himself. Atlas would be a new man, that’s for sure.

“I don’t want to bother, but what are you going to do with me now, Alijah?”

Alijah looked a bit taken back by the question, but it seemed that Atlas had him constantly on guard. Alijah took a moment to think before nodding a bit to himself. “Well, I’ll be giving you a room and some time to heal. We’ll find you a job, something to do before long now, and you’ll find a way to fit in with everyone. I can get the doctors to see what they can do to fix your wings.” Alijah paused and nodded to himself again. “But your first room will be near mine, so I can keep a watch on you. I don’t completely trust you yet, but I’m sure you’ll prove yourself somehow.”

Atlas smiled a bit at that and wiped his face. “Thank you, Alijah. I’ll prove myself to you. I promise.”

Alijah let out a small grin at that and began leading the boy out of the room. “I believe you, Atlas. Don’t mess it up.”