The A in Angel

8

By the time Aziraphale woke up, he was overwhelmed with pain. His whole body felt like made of stone, he could barely move. As he tried to blink, something hit him in the face - again. No...someone stroke him. And then - something warm touched his bruised skin, washed the blood away. He could hear a soft voice next to his ear, a voice that couldn't be real. But yet, so familiar. 

"Angel..."

Aziraphale reached out to the darkness surrounding him, hoping to see Crowley. He was nowhere to recognize, he only could hear his voice going back and forth. 

"Angel. I miss you more than ever, I hope you know that. I wouldn't be there if I wouldn't have met you. I am so glad and I wish we could spend more time in the future. Maybe...maybe, we could build a house. You become a gardener and I would learn to play the piano for you...maybe we could have pets. Children. Or even more plants. Wouldn't that be nice?" 

Nice. 

There it was again, this foolish little word. This word Aziraphale hadn't believed him to be. This word had brought him here, only for trusting a demon. A fool. A fiend. And yet, it was the nicest thing the angel had ever heard him say. 

Tears rolled down his cheeks as Aziraphale replied, wanting him to show. 

But the demon remained a shadow. 

"Crowley, I miss you too. You can't imagine what I've been through, I want nothing more to see you again. Remember the days we had before Armageddon, before all this trouble? Remember the months we had after all, all the kisses and cuddles? Remember I wanted to confess my undying love to you? We can have this forever, Crowley. We can move together, we can have a better life. We...we can have us. It's not over yet, Crowley...it's not over..."

Silence fell. 

Aziraphale waited for him to answer, but nothing came back. 

"C-Crowley?", he whispered, his lips sobbing. One minute passed. 

Two. 

Three. 

Then, soft feathers wrapped around his back. A golden light came flashing from nowhere and the whole cell was gone, instead of it Aziraphale found himself in a shimmering place. Massive clouds were gathered around him and a golden gate stood in front of him, leading to a white throne. 

On this throne, an angel sat, looking bored in the distance. He had a crown on his head and his long ginger hair seemed like made of spaghetti, his blue eyes were glowing. According to his large, white wings he wore a long dress, almost touching his naked feet. 

He was the most beautiful angel Aziraphale had ever seen. 

He wanted to walk up to him and say Hello, but all of a sudden, the scene changed. Aziraphale saw Gabriel and his minions, pulling him out of the throne and dragging him to the edge of the clouds. The unknown angel screamed in horror as they pushed him, without even hesitating. 

Before even realizing what had just happened, Aziraphale jumped after him. He wasn't flying, he was falling with super speed, no stopping. He tried to open his wings, but they resisted, making everything slow down. 

He didn't realize that the angel he tried to save was actually Crowley. He didn't realize he had travelled back in time by accident. He didn't realize this was just a dream. 

He didn't realize that the end was near.