waiting for superman | book three

twenty one

She's talking to angels

As Chloe stumbles down the narrow, turning roads of her suburban neighborhood in the direction of downtown, many people stop and stare at her. They don't recognize her as the reclusive girl who lives just down the street from them. They see a girl wearing raggedy and dirty clothes, hair flying out in every direction, and eyes as red as a beautiful rose. 

It would be impossible for anyone to realize that she is Chloe Lukasiak, the girl who would rather read in her room than go to a party. The girl who hardly ever talks, let alone make trouble. The girl who is always neat and put together, not this crazed woman. She continues on her journey downtown, taking the mile walk in stride.

It is about 8 o'clock when she finally arrives in the heavily populated area of Pittsburgh. Here, she receives more disturbed looks. A mother pulls her young child in the opposite direction of Chloe, a man stops walking and moves out of the way, and an elderly man begins to fiddle with his Rosary beads, mumbling a prayer for the troubled teen under his breath.

Still, Chloe does not notice the people. She just keeps walking. She walks and walks and walks with no destination set in her mind. She has no sense of direction or her whereabouts. She just keeps walking.

That is until she sees a boy, maybe three years older than herself, sitting on a bench. There is something about him that is different. He is glowing a bright, yellow light. It radiates off every square inch of his body, drawing Chloe towards him.

She approaches him and sets herself down next to him on the bench. She continues to look at him, as if he is an exotic animal that has been brought to a zoo for the first time.

"E-excuse me?" Chloe mumbles.

"Yes ma'am?" he replies, a southern twang in his voice.

"A-are you an angel sent to take me to heaven?" she questions, looking into his light brown eyes.

"Yes ma'am, I am," he sighs.

"I'm ready to go. I'm not needed here anymore. Just take me away and nobody will ever miss me or realize that I'm gone. Not my mother, not Zach, not Cody, not Josh. I'm ready to see my father again," Chloe explains.

"It's not your time to go yet Chloe," the angel coos.

"But what if I want it to be?" she asks quietly.

"You don't want it to be ma'am. You just wait and see why," the angel states before vanishing into thin air.