An evening out
With a cute baby girl in her arms, the Irish angel walked around the living room wearing blue jeans, a purple turtle neck sweater and leather shoes. A cold front had arrived on the previous day, making that spring evening a bit chilly. For this reason, little Angela was dressed up with warm clothes herself: lilac sweatpants and funny looking socks, with cute kitties faces on their top. Like Monica, Andrew was also dressed up in blue jeans, black leather shoes and a green T-shirt, and his leather jacket was resting over the sofa. Apart from Angela, one could say they were ready to go out.
The little one was rather entertained and smiled at her mom's out of tune chanting - and it secretly amused her daddy as well, as he kept chuckling at Monica's highest notes.
"What time is it, Andrew?" the Irish angel wanted to know, noticing that he was glancing over his pocket watch.
"Almost seven." There was some slight concern on his face as he answered.
Sighing also with some slight worry, Monica frowned. "Do you think something might have happened to Tess?"
“No, angel, I don't think so. She's just a little late."
Not totally convinced, Monica nodded her head and turned to look at her daughter. "Well, then let's wait for auntie Tess to arrive, right wee Angela?"
A smile was her answer and then she turned her green eyes to Andrew as he came closer. The angel of death caressed her little auburn head and kissed her temple, now making the baby smile at him and melt his heart with another of her captivating smiles. "I'm sure she and auntie Tess will have lots of fun while her mommy and daddy go out on a date! Even if it’s an assignment-date!"
Angela’s giggle was made them both laugh too. But a second later, Monica and Andrew heard a familiar voice and a presence in the living room turned their attention to their dearest friend.
"Babies..."
"Tess! I was already thinking that something might have happened to you, you were..." The Irish angel stopped talking at the moment she saw the expression on her supervisor's face. Tess was frowning with concern and some annoyance.
"I am in a current assignment, babies, and I came here to let you know that..." she looked at little Angela, who greeted her with the usual sweetness. "’Tie Tess!"
"Oh, little angel girl... don't make this harder than it already is..." she said, with clear sadness in her eyes.
"You won't be able to stay with her, will you?" Andrew anticipated the facts, aware of what the supervisor was about to announce.
"You're right, baby, I won't. I know I promised you that I'd stay with her, but the Father gave me a last minute assignment and I'm supposed to be with two very stubborn people who decided to break up after 30 years of marriage!"
"Oh, Tess, you don't even need to apologize. You'll be there fulfilling the Father's work, and this is the most important." Monica was quick to speak, not wanting her friend to feel guilty.
"I know, but the truth is that I just love spending time with my little angel girl here!" The supervisor stretched her arms and took Angela, who gladly accepted her "auntie's" arms. “Besides, you two were out not just ‘on a date,’ you’d be fulfilling an assignment too! I don’t believe it you were sent to the movie theater without a reason, you see.”
“Perhaps there was a change in the plans concerning our going out too, Tess. You know that He always thinks about everything.” Andrew spoke, and he and Monica looked at each other feeling sorry for her friend, who she knew loved spending time with the little angel.
"You and wee Angela here will have a lot of time to catch up later, you'll see!"
"Well... yes, I suppose so, angel girl..." Tess replied, and then turned her attention to Angela, "You be a good little angel and have only sweet dreams, okay? Auntie Tess will miss you a lot but you're constantly in her heart!"
With a kiss on the cheek, the oldest angel bid Angela good night and also her friends. Once she was gone, Monica and Andrew looked at each other - their plans for the night were over now.
"Well, angel... We could always watch a movie on TV..." he spoke, kissing her cheek and receiving a smile back.
"Hum... Then it means that I'll replace popcorn for mocha?"
Laughing, he nodded his head.
But before they could say something else, a knock on the door caused the two angels to exchange a questioning look. "Are you waiting for anyone? Is Mrs Reynolds doing alright?" Andrew wanted to know, aware that in the short time they'd been living in that temporary home his talkative "angel girl" had made a lot of friends in that small building.
"Hum... no, I'm not waiting for her, Andrew... Actually, she's doing fine, you know, and I know she'll have a very calm pregnancy!" she spoke, with some enthusiasm and even forgetting about the door.
"So who can it be?"
Andrew had the caution to look through the peep hole and once he saw who was paying them a visit, he chuckled with surprise and amusement. On the following instant, he was opening the door, to reveal Adam and Rafael standing at their doorstep.
"Hey, you two!" the angel of death greeted his friends, and like Monica, happy to see them.
"Hey, buddy, I heard you guys are experiencing some of the married human life!" Adam was the first to enter, shaking hands with his long time partner.
"Well, you can say so!"
"Though it doesn't seem that hard at all, judging by the look on your eyes!" Rafael joked, also shaking hands with Andrew. The recently arrived angels came closer to Monica and Angela, grinning at their dear Irish friend and her little daughter.
"Hey, hello you two beautiful ladies!"
"No wonder Andrew is always smiling whenever I meet him!" they exclaimed.
"Hullo, Adam, Rafael! What a good surprise to see you both!"
"Well, we were working on an assignment close to here, and we've got the rest of the night off, so we've heard that you guys were also near here and decided to pay you a visit!" Adam explained.
"And it's been a long time since we last saw this little angel here!" Rafael gently tickled Angela's belly and he and his friend were greeted with a lovely toothless smile.
"Well, I can say this wee one also missed her 'angel uncles' a lot!"
In between laughter, the Spanish angel stretched his arms. "Could I hold her?"
It didn't take a second before Angela threw herself in her 'uncle Rafael's' arms. "Here she goes!"
Monica and Andrew exchanged an amused glance watching their two friends practically drooling over the little baby girl. They tickled her belly, took her tiny hand and spoke to her as if she could really understand what they were saying - and as a matter of fact, she kind of did. They finally acknowledged their friends' presence again.
"She's really growing up to become a very beautiful little girl - little angel girl, I should say!" Rafael exclaimed, as he passed Angela to Adam's arms.
"Yes, and soon we'll be watching her running around the fields of Heaven!"
It was then that Rafael noticed something different about his two dear friends. "Were you guys going anywhere?" he wanted to know, noticing their clothes.
"Well, we were actually... Tess was going to watch after wee Angela for us because we had an assignment to fulfill ourselves but she had a last minute assignment, you see, and our night out had to be cancelled." The Irish angel explained.
"Which is okay because we had the opportunity to spend the evening with our little one." Andrew added.
"Oh, but then I guess we can help you!" The Spanish angel spoke, and Adam nodded his head.
"Yes, sure we can! Rafael and I could watch over her! We don't have any assignment right now!"
"Oh, no... you two, you should take this time to rest a bit as I know you've been working nonstop..." Monica was sincere in her words, not wanting to bother her friends.
"Monica is right; you guys should use your time to take a break from your duties."
"You're kidding me! Staying with Angela won't be a problem at all!"
"Adam is right. Besides this, we haven't found a place to stay until tomorrow and were told that you two were here!"
The angelic couple looked at each other: perhaps their angelic friends weren’t there just by mere coincidence – they knew better than anyone that coincidences didn’t exist. And as Tess herself had said, their going out to the movies was a lot more than just a date.
“Oh, Rafael, we would be very happy to have you two here but you don’t need to stay with Angela just because of this.” Monica was quick to say, she Andrew were genuinely glad to be able to help their friends, as they knew what it was like to be on assignment on Earth and not having safe shelter to rest their human form.
“No, he’s right, we can stay with this little one here, it won’t be any trouble!” Adam also agreed with his friend. And then he turned to Angela. “I’m sure she’ll behave with uncles Adam and Rafael!”
A smile was Angela’s reply, and Monica and Andrew looked at each other smiling.
X
“Angel, they’ll be fine.” Andrew spoke. They were inside Tess’ Cadillac and he was driving to the nearest shopping mall.
“I know…” she let out a slight sigh. “Besides, Angela had already had dinner when we left and she will be in bed soon.”
The angel of death nodded his head in agreement. “And Adam and Rafael are angels too, our little one couldn’t be more protected.”
That statement made the Irish angel’s smile grow wider. “You’re right.”
Andrew searched for her hand and took it to his lips “And so far I’m enjoying working with you!”
Monica inched closer and kissed his cheek. “I’m enjoying it too!”
A few minutes later, Andrew arrived at the shopping mall and, hand in hand, the couple headed to the area where the cinemas were. And when they got there, both angels saw a wide range of film options. In a normal situation, this fact wouldn’t worry them a lot, but they were there on assignment, and how could they know what to choose without interfering on their mission?
“Andrew…”
The blond angel looked at his beloved valentine and frowned with slight concern. The expression on her face was adorable most of the times, but it could also mean trouble sometimes. There were 20 rooms available, each of them showing a different movie. And picking one, judging by Monica’s face, would be difficult.
He ran his hand through his hair. “Well… I guess any movie room we choose will lead us to our assignment…”
“Yes, probably…”
They were in silence for a while, and then both spoke again, at the same time:
“How about a comedy?”
“How about a romance?”
Monica looked at him with slight worry, but Andrew tried to smile. “Kids would say you own me a soda!”
She eyed him even more confused. “A soda?”
Chuckling, he cupped her chin up. “Never mind… Actually, I’d rather you own me a kiss!”
The Irish angel smiled, despite the fact that she remained clueless about Andrew’s little joke. But it didn’t matter to her as a second later, he brought his lips closer to hers and gave her a small, tender kiss.
“Let’s see your romance, angel…” Andrew spoke, still lost in those brown pools.
“Oh, no, it’s alright if we watch a comedy, you see. I’m sure I’ll enjoy it just the same!" Monica was quick to reply, sheepishly. The Irish angel held his hand in both of hers and tilted her head, eyeing him adorably. "Next time I pick the movie!"
Smiling, Andrew nodded and took her hand to his lips. "I guess some popcorn would be nice too, don't you think?"
"Oh, yes... And, Andrew..."
"What?"
"I wonder if the sell mocha too..."
Chuckling, he bent down and kissed her temple. "Why don't you go and check this out while I buy the tickets then?"
"Okay then, I'll be back soon!"
The blond angel watched as she happily made her way towards the cafeteria, just a corner away. And once she was disappeared amongst the people who were in the large hall, he moved away to look for their tickets. There was a short queue there and while Andrew waited, he looked around him – the angel of God smiled glad to see his Father’s children were happy and enjoying one another‘s company without wars or any other kind of disputes. And he wished, for the centuries to come, that this was the normal behaviour of human beings.
But sudden voices took him out of his reverie and he turned his head to see that the couple behind him was starting a fight.
“I told you I hate these kinds of movies, Alan! We could have gone to a restaurant or stayed home instead!” the young lady spoke, and she had an angry tone in her voice.
“Well, you know what? I’m tired of you telling me what to do, Jennifer! You don’t wanna see this movie ? Well, fine with me! You’re free to go, no one is forcing you to see anything!”
The woman looked at him slightly shocked by his last words. “You’re telling me you’re leaving me here?”
“I’m telling you, Jenni, that right now you’re not the company I’m looking for and we should split up before things start to get serious...”
“I can’t believe it I’m hearing this from you... not from you...”
The young man ran his fingers through is dark hair and let out a sigh with frustration and a bit of impatience. But before he could say something else, they both heard a third voice interrupting their argument.
“Erm... excuse me...”
Andrew was a bit unsure of what to say of even if he should interfere, but something deep inside told him that it was the best to do. “I couldn’t help overhearing...”
The couple lowered their heads, embarrassed and not really in the mood to have someone to scold them about their personal matters; Andrew, however, went on speaking, suddenly feeling he had the right words to tell them.
“Has it ever occurred you that something so little such as an argument about which movie to see might ruin what could become an entire family?”
X
Meanwhile...
“What will it be?”
The café attendant didn’t even look at Monica when she asked what the Irish angel wanted for a drink, but her coldness didn’t affect the eager costumer. “Oh, I’d like a large double mocha latte, please, and a large cup of chocolate...”
The woman, who appeared to be in her late thirties, looked at her with a questioning face, but Monica was quick to speak again. “The mocha is for me, but Andrew, my husband, he’s not very fond of it I’m afraid.”
“I see... Well, we don’t have chocolate.”
Monica frowned in a way that would certainly endear her beloved Andrew. “Oh... I suppose this might be a problem then. I wonder if you perhaps have some ginger ale, please?”
“Coffee, straight and simple, that’s what we got at the moment. Now what will it be? I don’t have all night long.”
Only then did Monica realise the woman’s distress, and a second look right through her tired dark eyes was enough for the sensitive little angel notice that there was much sadness in that apparent bad humoured expression.
“I can see you’re alone here...”
“Yeah, you’re a real genius, sweetie. Now, as you can see I got plenty of work to do, so what will it be?”
Monica looked towards the queues and saw that they were long so Andrew would probably take a while to buy their tickets. Then, she looked back at the grumpy woman and crossed the counter. “What are you doing?”
“I think I haven’t decided yet and while I do it, I will give you a little help!”
The woman kept on staring at Monica with a confused look in her eyes. “I don’t get it...”
“In ten minutes, everyone will go to their respective cinema rooms and things will be calmer here, but while it doesn’t happen, let me write down the orders.”
Even though the woman didn’t understand why the young lady was doing it – offering help when she was supposed to be having fun out there, she had no choice but to accept it.
X
“She was here just a second ago! How can she just disappear, Adam?!”
“Yeah, I saw her but she disappeared when I went to the kitchen!”
Rafael’s and Adam’s worried voice and the way they searched in every corner of the small apartment didn’t leave room for doubt: Angela was nowhere to be seen.
“Did you look in the bedroom? She might have crawled up to her room to look for a toy...” The angel of death suggested, running his hand through his hair.
“No, she’s not there! Angela! Hey, sweetie, where are you?!” the Spanish angel called, he and his friend on the brink of despair.
But it was then that they heard a small baby giggle, and looked at each other with haunted eyes. “Did you hear this, Adam?”
“You bet I did!”
They scanned the living room trying to figure out where it had come from. “I think it came from behind the sofa...”
When they heard that sound for a second time, Adam shook his head. “She’s playing with us!”
“Playing?! Well, I say this is not funny at all!”
“That’s not what she’s thinking, buddy!”
The two angels immediately searched behind the couch, in an attempt to find the little girl, but found nothing.
“How can such a little creature just disappear like that?!” Rafael was even more nervous with Angela’s naughty tricks.
“She’s an angel, that’s how!” his friend said, and they looked around them, thinking about where that adorable angel could be hiding.
X
“I... I don’t know what to say...”
“And I guess I never saw things this way...”
The couple that was having the beginning of a fight right behind Andrew in the queue for the movie theatre was now staring at the ground, without knowing what to say after the words they had just heard from the angel in human form.
“I guess an apology would be nice.” He replied, crossing his arms in front of his chest and aware that the people in the queue had already entered the movie theatre.
The young man turned his eyes to his girlfriend and she could see genuine regret written on them. And truth to be told, Jennifer had to admit that she had been difficult to deal with lately – the loss of her job and the lack of money made her wonder if she had made the right decision to marry him even being so young.
“Jenni... please don’t take my words to your heart... I... I didn’t really mean them.” He finally said, after a long sigh.
“I... don’t blame you... I haven’t been such a nice person myself.”
Andrew checked his pocket watch and was a little worried about Monica, wondering if her poor sense of direction had led her to another part of the shopping mall. But he knew that she too was probably working on an assignment and their strong connection told him she was alright. He turned to look at the couple again, sensing that his little mission was over.
“Look, I’m sorry if I was a bit harsh but sometimes it seems that young people can’t bear anything less than happiness. Life will always test you guys, and you can’t just give up on everything you have because you’re not willing to let go of things that, in the end, shouldn’t have any importance.”
Alan held his young wife’s hand and, even though still embarrassed, he smiled. “Well, Andrew, we’ve only known you for ten minutes but we already feel we shouldn’t disobey you!”
“Alan is right... I suppose we should thank you for scolding us.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
They smiled and Alan squeezed Jennifer’s hand. “And Jenni... There’s a place I’d like to take you rather than the movies...”
She looked at him with questioning eyes. “Where?”
“The restaurant where we first met...”
He could see how her eyes were immediately filled with tears of emotion. “Really?”
“Yes...”
With a pleased expression on his face, Andrew watched as the young couple left the movie theatre, and nodded with satisfaction. An assignment had just been accomplished. Now it was his Monica he had to wait for – and a message right to his heart sent by his loving Father told him he should wait for her exactly where he was.
X
“Cups in their right place, cupboard clean, and mocha beans inside the appropriate machine!”
The “temporary café attendant” happily announced, looking at a still confused Robyn Gibbs. “Actually, if you ask me, those mocha machines are one of the cleverest inventions in the last hundred years!” Monica exclaimed. “Even though when I’m at home I prefer to use those pretty teapots of the eighteenth century; the flavour is a wee bit different you know...”
Frowning even though she was in a better mood, the woman placed a dish towel over the counter and stared at her. “Who are you after all, Monica?”
“Well... a coffee fan, in between other things!” She said, winking at the woman. Then, realising that the customers had finally left, the Irish angel picked the mocha cup she had paid for. “And I guess your work has finished here, right? Now you can go home and stay with your son, he’ll love to see his mommy coming back home earlier!”
Quickly, before that woman made any more questions, she walked away, but could still hear her voice. “Hey... Thank you!”
The Irish angel walked fast along the now empty corridors wondering if the film she and Andrew would see had already started. It didn’t take her too long to find her beloved angel sitting on a bench and waiting for her. And when he saw Monica approaching, the angel of death rose to his feet with a slight smile.
“I’m so sorry, Andrew... I... I was...”
“Let me guess: you found your assignment?”
She bit her lower lip sheepishly. “Yes... Can you believe it she works exactly at the coffee shop?”
Laughing and with his heart filled with tenderness, Andrew placed a strand of her behind her ear. “Well, the Father has always a perfect plan! And let me guess again: besides helping her out, you got yourself a small gift?”
She looked at her cup of coffee and then back at him with slight disappointment. “Oh, I’m sorry but there wasn’t hot chocolate there, you see...”
“Oh no? And what about this coffee of yours?” he was pretending to be a little mad, but she didn’t notice it at first.
“The coffee? But I thought you wouldn’t like to have it...” was her worried reply.
“I do, angel!”
Only then, a playful smile returned to his face and he cupped her chin up and brought his lips to hers, in a soft kiss that made him feel the sweet flavour of coffee mixed with her perfume.
X
“I found her!” Rafael announced, with relief written all over his face.
Adam rushed towards Angela’s room and found the little angel standing behind an armchair next to her crib, holding onto her small stuffed frog. And when the two found her, she gave another funny giggle, smiled at them and let go of her little toy to clap her hands.
“I’ll tell you, little angel, life with you is anything but monotonous!” Adam spoke, crossing his arms in front of his chest and looking at her with mock annoyance.
“And I bet she thinks the same thing about us, Adam... After all, we’ve entertained her all night long!” Rafael took Angela in his arms and she shot them one of those smiles that would melt even the hardest of the hearts. It was far too clear that she had become very fond of the two during that evening, despite the mess and all the worry she had caused.
“Yeah, but now the fun is over cause it’s high time little angels were in bed!” The angel of death stated firmly, as if she could really understand his command.
X
Andrew opened the apartment door slowly and allowed Monica to enter first. And what they saw made them feel sorry: Adam was lying on the bigger couch; Rafael on the smaller one. Both of them were fast asleep and once could see there were traces of exhaustion on their faces.
“Oh, poor them, Andrew...” Monica said, approaching Rafael slowly, careful not to make any noise.
“Yeah, they look really tired!” The blond angel chuckled with some amusement with such a rare scene.
“I’ll go check on Angela...”
Monica headed to the baby’s room and quietly opened the door: there was soft light coming from the lamp near the window, creating a cosy atmosphere. Smiling with tenderness, she approached the bed to see little Angela sleeping quietly in her crib, covered by a warm blanket and surrounded by her favourite little toys.
“Ah, wee Angela... my precious little angel...” she whispered, gently caressing her daughter’s soft hair. “I’m sorry I couldn’t put you to bed tonight, but I wish you only good dreams, sweetheart...” Monica bent down to lay a gentle kiss on the baby’s temple, and then she felt Andrew's hands over her shoulders.
“Seems like a certain little angel is having a peaceful night sleep!”
The Irish angel turned to him and her smile grew wider. “Look at her face... Serene, calm... and with a slight smile on the corner of her lips... Exactly like her daddy’s!”
Chuckling, Andrew wrapped his arm around her waist from behind and spoke very close to her ear. “Well, she has a lot of reasons to sleep with a smile on the corner of her lips!” he said, and kissed her cheek, “And so is her daddy!”
Monica stifled a small giggle at his words, and the two stood there for a couple of minutes. The wind blowing outside reminded her of something. “Talking about sleep, let me take a blanket for Adam and Rafael, they might feel cold.”
She gently disentangled from his loving embrace and went to look for two warm quilts for their angelic friends. Andrew stood by Angela’s crib for some more time, admiring their little one and offering a silent prayer for her and for the beautiful family he was granted with.
Monica returned to the living room and covered them with a warm blanket. “Father, thank You for sending Your two angels to watch over Angela... and thank you for the chance to give them a safe shelter while they’re here on Earth.” She prayed in a low voice, and then left the room towards her bedroom.
X
Later on that same night...
“I can hear you thinking...”
Using Andrew's chest as a pillow and now wearing a comfortable flannel pair of pyjamas, Monica stared at an invisible point ahead of her while his fingers caressed her auburn hair. But the sound of his voice brought her back to reality and she turned her head to look up at him.
“I was thinking, you know...”
“About?” He always found it endearing the way she elaborated her thoughts before voicing them to him.
She propped up her chin on her two hands, folded on the top of his chest. “... Your assignment was to teach a young couple about selflessness and the importance of being together... Tess’ assignment was to stop an old couple to break up... Adam and Rafael’s was to stay here and watch over wee Angela...”
“Yes...”
“I wonder about Robyn... I helped her at the café but it seemed so little to do for her... You see, she had something in her eyes... exhaustion and some sadness...”
Thinking about what to say, Andrew placed a strand of hair behind her ear. “As angels we know that smallest actions can huge consequences... Maybe your small action helping her showed this woman that there are good people in the world. Maybe you managed to touch her heart someway...”
“Hum... well, that might be true as she was a wee bit grumpy when we first spoke.”
“Or maybe, your helping her could also allow her to get home and be with her son, you said she has a son, right?”
A smile appeared on her lips and her eyes shone with joy as she imagined the eight-year-old little boy greeting his mother. “Oh, yes, you are right! And I can also imagine how happy she will be to hold him tight after a tough working day!”
Also smiling, Andrew kissed her forehead and tightened the hold around her. “Well, she had a very charming helper!” He pulled her closer a bit more and now and kissed her lips softly at the same time he caressed her cheek.
“Well, it was nice to think that there was a charming ‘councillor’ waiting for me!” she spoke, playfully rubbing her nose against his. Wrapped up in each other’s embrace, the angels in human form fell asleep to the promise of eternal love and thanking their Heavenly Father for such a blessed day.
X
On the following day...
“Monica... Angel?”
Confused, the Irish angel opened her eyes for the first time and saw Andrew's face on that Saturday morning. “Andrew?”
“Are you fully awake?” he wanted to know, bending his head and chuckling at the expression on her face.
He helped her to sit down in bed as she spoke again. “I think so... What... what is it?”
“Tess bought the newspaper this morning and I thought you’d like to see what’s on the first page...”
Still very confused, she took the newspaper in her hands and in a blink of an eye, Monica was in full alertness due to what she saw: the headlines were announcing that a mother had managed to save her eight-year-old son from a fire in her apartment on the previous night. They also said that if she had arrived a little bit later, the boy would have died because he was asleep when the flames started and didn’t know where the keys were.
“This is your answer, angel.” Andrew spoke, sitting next to Monica and wrapping his arm around her shoulders.
“Yes... And you were right about God’s smallest actions, Andrew... You were perfectly right.” She said, resting her head against his chest; joy and gratitude all over her face as a white dove flew by the window in the beginning of a sunny spring day.
X
To be continued.