The Way of the World

Chapter One

Do you remember the moment of pure excitement you felt when you tried something new? Your heart pounding in your chest, the rush of adrenaline in your ears? Or when you meet someone for the first time? Shy glances, awkward conversations, nervous words? The same heart pounding, the same adrenaline coursing through your veins. Humans crave change, they crave thrill. The simple call of life.

~••••••••••••••••••••~

A tall figure seemed to evaporate from the shadowy depths of the alleyway, unnoticed by any passerby's on the street. The young angel straightened the tie of his vessel. Today was the day, finally. It was one of those moments that all angels dream of when they're younger, finding their soulmate.

Angels are sent down to Earth for three reasons; either to save a soul worthy of being saved, punish a soul in need of a punishment, or to find their soulmate. The most common reason was to punish, and the least common reason was to find a soulmate. Soulmates were special. If there was a 'Hierarchy of Humans', soulmates would rank just above usable vessels.

The young angel ran a hand through his wispy hair, trying to tame it. He only had one chance with his soulmate, only one. He had a brother who was currently on Earth, protecting a supposedly worthy man in the eyes of Father ... the man also happened to be his brother's soulmate. His brother had still yet to tell the young human they were bound in such a way. The result was a lot of pain and a lot of sexually confused tension.

The angel emerged into the bright sunlight of Central New York, smiling widely. Today was the day, today he was finally going to meet his soulmate. It didn't matter that he didn't know their name, it didn't matter that he didn't currently know where they were, it didn't matter because the day was finally here! The angel looked around, completely ignored by the mass of humans. He was next to a small coffee shop that seemed to be roughly in the middle of town. Of course, he wouldn't know. He'd only been to Earth on the odd occasion.

The small shop would be a good place to wait . It was open, and, if he sat outside, easily accessible. Without bothering to order anything, he sat down at one of the small wire tables. Nobody else was bothering to stop outside, it must be cold for them. Angels had a protective layer of downy feathers that kept them warm. It was very efficient. The feathers kept them warm in the cold, and yet, cool in the heat. The angel sighed quietly and folded his hands on the table in front of him. Now all he had to do was wait.

~••••••••••••••••••••~

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Will groaned and brought his hand down on top of the annoying alarm clock. He sat up groggily and stretched a bit before carefully setting his woolly socked feet on the hard wooden floor. He was exhausted of this constant routine. His life was on a never ending loop. Wake up, get ready, school, dinner, bed, repeat. He wanted a way out of it, a way out of the stressful boredom.

Luckily, today was the first day of the Christmas break. A whole three weeks off of school and routine. A whole three weeks of absolutely no stress. That also meant nothing better to do than sit around the house or walk around town.

Alone.

Great.

Will combed his fingers through his hair, brushing it off of his forehead. "Into battle." He muttered to himself before standing and starting his morning routine. He dragged himself into the bathroom and splashed his face with water, glaring up at himself in the mirror. Dark circles hung under his eyes, highlighting the bright green color in of his irises in an unpleasant fashion. The past few nights he'd been having recurring dreams; his brother screaming at him, eyes alight with fury, often times he would hear a clean snap before, in his dream, he felt pain sear across his chest, he saw buildings crumpling to the ground, flames and smoke rising in the sky, blotting out the sun and leaving a dark wasteland of carnage. He had never been afraid or had nightmares after watching a horror movie, but Godzilla had really shaken him up, apparently.