Jariel followed Isaac out, unsure what to do now. Truthfully, he didn’t want to be around him any longer than necessary. His odor was beginning to get the best of him. They walked down the street in silence, the sound of cars and people around them keeping them company. Isaac starting humming an unfamiliar melody and Jariel began to think about why he was still following this loon. He still had yet to figure out what had happened.
“If you need some place to stay, I can help you with that.” Isaac said, breaking the silence. Jariel looked at him, confused. If he was homeless, first of all how did he afford the food, and second of all, a place to stay?
“How can you afford things like food?” Jariel asked, ignoring his offer for a moment. “You’re homeless.”
“Yes, I am homeless.” Isaac nodded. “I recycle old cans for money. Every now and then I get lucky and find something valuable in the trash, and then I sell it to whoever will buy it. When you’re homeless, you’re forced to do things you don’t like doing, like dumpster diving for example.”
“And not bathing.” Jariel said under his breath. If Isaac had heard him, he sure didn’t act like it.
“So, like I said earlier, I know an abandoned mill around here. ‘lots of homeless people sleep there at night, ‘cause it’s warm. I can show you where it is, until you get better situated.” Isaac mentioned again. Jariel couldn’t help but smile.
“Thanks.” He said. He had to admit, he was begging to grow fond of Isaac, but only a little. He had been the only one that had even bothered to help him. Jariel began to think that he may be wrong about humans, but it was only a passing thought and he soon corrected himself. No, humans would never be anything more than scum to him.
Isaac led him past building and stores, still humming the unfamiliar tune. They didn’t really talk much, and Jariel preferred it that way. He liked the silence; it gave him time to think. He just didn’t understand why this was happening to him, he hadn’t even done anything. It must have been the fact that he had been the favorite. It had to be. Elise wouldn’t have bothered him otherwise. She just had to be the favorite. She was petty and he couldn’t believe that she would sink that low to get what she wanted. At least, that is what he used to think. Now he knew that she was capable of anything. He suspected that she was the cause of the other angels being thrown out of heaven all those years ago. If she wasn’t the favorite, it was a problem in her book. She had become so obsessed with being the center of attention that she had even begun to change. Her once pure white wings were now black. It didn’t suit her and her golden blonde hair.
They reached an old, abandoned, warehouse. Most of the windows were broken, paint was chipping off, and there were no doors. It didn’t look warm, or safe for that matter. Jariel knew that he didn’t have a choice though. From a warm and beautiful place, surrounded by love and gold, to this. Jariel thought to himself. He hated being reduced to this when he knew he deserved so much more. The inside wasn’t much better. Old, dried up, leaves covered the floor in a blanket of dull colors. A breeze came in through the windows, making him shiver a little. In some spots, lying against the wall, were rolled up blankets, showing evidence that people slept here. Jariel looked up and saw holes in the roof, and wondered what they did when it rained. Isaac led him to the back corner of the warehouse and told him that this was where he usually slept, and there was an empty space in the other corner, not too far away. Isaac gave him some extra blankets and he went to go set up what he hoped to be a temporary bed.
* * * * *
Dawn woke up the next day, wrapped in her purple comforter with Michelangelo looking at her from his basket, the look on his face telling her to feed him. She groaned, got out of bed, put on her purple slippers and got up, putting her blue robe on as she left her safe haven. She dragged her feet to the kitchen, Michelangelo quick on her heels, and opened a can of cat food, setting it on the floor and watching him scarf it down. She didn’t have work today, and she was thankful for that. It meant she had more time to finish the painting and give it to Sam later today.
She quickly took a shower and got dressed, then went in to what was meant to be the office space, but she had turned it into her art studio. Her paintings hung on the wall, after her many attempts to sell them. Each attempt had failed, and so they hung against the pale, lime green, walls, staring back at her and remind her how much of a failure she was. She didn’t let her downfalls hold her back though; she knew that one day she would get her big break. It was only a matter of time.
She spread out her paint supplies, all of her brushes and paints, brought over the painting and started to work on it. Each stroke made her smile and reminded her why she loved being an artist, even if she was a struggling one. She was painting a beach with a beautiful red and gold sunset in the background. Sam had always wanted to go to a beach to see the ocean, but had never gotten the change. Dawn guessed that was part of the reason she was moving to California. She wanted to see the ocean. That and the fact that she had a better opportunity at becoming an actress down there than she did up here. Sam was moving to Hollywood to try and catch her big break. Dawn hoped and prayed that she would make it. She knew the feeling of waiting to get your big break.
Dawn continued to paint. Michelangelo came and joined her later, but she was too caught up in her painting to notice. When she finally finished, she stood back to look at it. She felt proud as she looked at the sunset that she had captured in the painting. She let it dry for a couple of hours, going to read the rest of the book that she had started over a month ago, and then wrapped it up. She excitedly ran to the phone, called up Sam and told her to come over right away, telling her that she had something to give her.
The smell of strawberry shampoo brought her back to the good old days. She welcomed Sam in and gave her a hug, hoping that this wouldn’t be the last hug she ever gave her. She hoped to see her again. Sam’s blonde hair, as usual, was tied back in a ponytail. Sam loved her hair long, but hated the fact that it got in her face too much. Dawn led her to the living room, where she offered Sam something to drink, and then went to receive the painting.
“What do you have for me?” Sam asked, as though she didn’t already know.
“Open it up and you’ll find out.” Dawn said, laughing. She smiled when Sam unwrapped the painting to discover the beach. Her eyes filled up with tears as she put the painting aside and stood up to hug Dawn.
“It is absolutely beautiful.” Sam said, trying her best not to cry. “I love it. I really, really, do.”
“I’m glad you do.” Dawn said, returning the hug. “I am going to miss you so much.”
“I am too, trust me.” Sam said, failing at holding back her tears and letting a couple slide. “You had better call me, like, every single day.” She laughed, stepping away from Dawn. Dawn wiped away a few of her own tears and smiled.
“Of course I will!” Dawn laughed. “As long as you promise to come back and visit sometime.”
“I promise.” She said, straitening her green camisole.
They talked until they had no choice but to go their separate ways. Dawn hated to say goodbye but knew that it was going to be good for Sam. One day she hoped to see her on the big screen, doing what she loved to do most. After Sam left, Dawn cried a bit to herself. Silence echoed throughout the apartment, except for the bell around Michelangelo’s neck that rang whenever he moved. Dawn popped in a movie, hoping for it to cheer herself up, and wrapped herself in her blanket. She sipped some tea and thought about what her next project would be. She thought about doing nature again, but she hated doing the same subject twice in a row. The thought of people crossed her mind, but she had no one to paint. She had already painted Annette too many times to count, plus she was never around anymore. She was always with Derek, so the only time they truly saw each other was at work, and even then they were so busy that they barley had any time to talk.
No, people were out of the question. She thought about painting pottery, but then thought about how she was never great and painting that. She decided to just wait for the inspiration to come to her. Meanwhile, she would focus on doing her job and trying to sell her paintings. Michelangelo purred quietly as she ran her hands through his orange fur. Sometimes she wished that she could be as carefree as a cat. No worries, no problems, just living life.
YOU ARE READING
Change of Heart (NaNoWriMo 2011)
Random**In The Editing Process!!** Jariel, a once favored angel in Heaven, has been thrown out. Not by his own accord, however. He was tricked, made a fool of, by an angel named Elise, bent on being the center of attention no matter what. Jariel is now s...
