Snippet #2812868

By now, the sky had turned dark. Laila was slightly disappointed that they weren’t able to watch the sunset, a grand spectacle of colors, but she figured it would happen one of these days. The sky was always such a symbol of hope for her; a reminder that, despite the dark times, there was always a clear, blue sky at the end.

Laila didn’t say anything as she made their way down to the beach. On the street, they passed other buildings. The stores had closed down by now and, through the restaurants windows, you could see people. It was a rather small and calm town; Laila wondered if she would ever have to be sent here. Laila hoped not. She hoped that this, in this town, children didn’t have to worry.

As they came up to the beach, she noticed that there really weren’t any cars in the parking lot. She wondered how people, living so close to a beach, wouldn’t come to enjoy it at every moment but didn’t keep thinking about it as the ground underneath her changed from wooden boardwalk to sand.

Laila paused and took off her white sneakers and socks, putting them inside of her backpack.

"Take your shoes off," she told Lilith, holding her hand out to take them. "It’s much better to walk without them."

As they walked down the street, Lilith quietly hummed to herself out of excitement. The small town seemed quite quaint and cute and compared to how she viewed everything as so fast with human time, the town instead had a slow-paced vibe about it.

She saw the sandy beach ahead of her come closer and closer, and with a smile she had a sudden urge to run into it but kept herself from doing so. Lilith watched Laila as she took of her shoes and looked down at her own black heels. ”You’re right, I wouldn’t want to get them dirty,” she exclaimed, kicking them off one foot at a time. She leaned down to pick them up and handed it over to Laila.

”Feels better?” She raised an eyebrow before stepping further into the sand and wiggling her toes. Yes, there was something nice about the sensation of sand under her feet and she enjoyed. Lilith noticed the shore up ahead and released a quiet giggle like a child. ”Let’s go for a swim!” She yelled before running up ahead, clutching at her black dress so she could move without worrying about falling.

Laila took the shoes and put them in her bag. She heard Lilith and scream and laughed, surprised at how the Reaper’s cold exterior melted with something like sand and saltwater.

Laila Ram up to catch up with her, kicking up and behind them. She could hear the soft crashing of the waves as she came up to the shore. The beach was empty all around them. When she got close to the water, Laila stopped.

She looked at the dark water ahead and her eyes widened. She felt a wave of fear as she looked on into the darkness. Laila wasn’t necessarily afraid of the dark but, being a creature of light, the dark expense of water unsettled.

"I-" she gulped hard. "I don’t think I can."

Lilith was just itching to get into the water. Something about the waves fascinated her and since she’s never experienced anything like this, she wondered how it would feel. Her body felt like it was on a high, as Lilith felt her first experience of having an adrenaline rush as a human. However, as she looked back to see Laila, she noticed that she didn’t look as excited but rather Lilith saw an expression, she was well familiar with. Fear.

Stepping back so that Lilith was right beside Laila, she slipped her hand into hers and squeezed it. ”I thought you wanted me to experience how it’s like to be human…I can’t do that without you.” Although Lilith didn’t want to pressure her into anything, since that wasn’t who she was; she still wanted Laila to have new experiences and loosen up a little.

”The darkness isn’t always so scary,” she spoke softly, watching the waves crash. Lilith felt a strong pull towards the dark water, it was the closest she’s felt like she had belonged since being human. She released her grip on Laila’s hand and stepped forward, ”It’s okay, stay in the light,” she smiled ever so slightly.

With a deep breath in, Lilith calmly walked towards the water. She let the waves pull her in and before she knew it, she was walking further and further until the water reached her chest. Lilith looked up at the dark sky and released a breath of relief as she felt her muscles relax once more. A few moments went by before she felt the urge to go in further increase, and without looking back at Laila she dunked her head into the water and swam into the water. She’ll be fine, I’ll only be a moment.

Laila could hear her heart pound. Her eyes didn’t move from the waves as Lilith spoke. Her words echoed in her mind, almost like a sweet lullaby. The darkness isn’t always so scary.

Laila watched as Lilith moved ahead. With her back turned to her. Lilith’s black hair and dress blended in with the darkness around her. She would only see the brief outline and, a second later, Lilith submerged herself under water.

For a second, Laila’s eyes opened wide, her eyes searching for her figure. She’s okay, she’s safe, Laila told herself, taking a deep breath. The waves would never be strong enough to pull her down.

She put down her backpack, afraid of leaving it there but not wanting to bring it into the water. Keeping on her white t-shirt and shorts, she took a few steps forward. The water touched her feet, moving forward and retreating. It felt cool against her skin, oddly comforting in a foreign way.

With a deep breath, she took a few more steps forward to that the water was up to her knees.

"Lilith?" She called out.

The water was dark, but it was comforting to Lilith to be enveloped in such darkness. Being a human was getting to be a lot for her since it was always so bright. But even more so, she wasn’t used to interacting with humans and being on Earth for too long so that was tiring as well.

The silence from just being under the water was calming. The noise of the human world had its fun and exciting moments and whilst Lilith enjoyed it, she also realised she wasn’t meant for it. She kept her eyes closed and felt as if she was being swept away as her thoughts started to become hazy.

Lilith had never questioned her role as a Reaper like some of her colleagues. She would hear them talk about how they’d got into the position, questioning how bad their human life must have been for them to end up a Reaper after dying. She never truly cared and perhaps that was why she was so good at her job. But recently she was getting more and more migraines which were uncommon for Reapers who didn’t necessarily feel anything. Although she never spoke out about it, she heard rumours of Reapers who had regained their human memories going through a similar process and immediately picked up more cases to keep her distracted.

It was no surprise that Reapers were simply broken humans who had died and couldn’t end up anywhere; whether that meant purgatory or moving on with the help of Angels. Their souls were apparently too fragile, too broken for anything of value to be done so they got the choice to disappear forever or be reborn as a Reaper. If this was true, which no one truly knew, Lilith must have chosen to become a Reaper.

As her thoughts quietened down, she couldn’t help but feel an ache in her chest and worse, her lungs feeling as if though they were on fire. Lilith quickly opened her eyes and gazed up at the surface of the water in confusion, not knowing what she was feeling. But her body had weakened under the water and so she couldn’t push herself upwards no matter how hard she tried.

Laila was trying to keep calm but the seconds were passing and Lilith was not resurfacing. Should Laila have explained to Lilith that human bodies couldn’t stay underwater for too long? Her fear for the darkness began to disappear and, instead, it was replaced by the fear that the Reaper was taking too long to come back up for air.

Her adrenaline kicked in, similar to when she had seen Alejandro’s body fall. Without another thought, Laila quickly moved farther from the shore, towards where she had last seen Lilith, her voice calling out once again. She submerged herself as soon as the water reached her elbows but she couldn’t see anything.

Coming back up again, she closed her eyes. Summoning her light wasn’t something she often did in a human body but, almost immediately, her body began to glow from within, her skin emitting a white light.

Laila summered herself again and saw Lilith a few feet ahead, struggling to reach the surface. Immediately, Laila swam and took a hold of her, her legs kicking up to the surface. She didn’t think twice as she took Lilith in her arms and walked them back to the shore, gently setting her down on the sand. She was glad that Lilith was still breathing, thankful that she hadn’t been long enough for her body to shut down.

Laila briefly looked up, seeing that her wings had appeared, the gold-tipped feathers dripping with water. Laila shook them to get the water off before pulling them back, the wings disappearing into her back and her body going back to normal.

"Lilith," Laila said softly, her fingers brushing against her cold cheek before wrapping her arms around the Reaper. "Are you alright?"

After a quiet struggle, her body began to relax again. Lilith didn’t feel the need to struggle anymore and once more she felt like she was closer to the darkness that enveloped her. As her subconscious slowly started to fade away, there was something familiar about the whole process, but she couldn’t put her finger on what it was. There was an odd sensation of déjà vu that started to make her feel uncomfortable and all of a sudden there was a painful sensation around her neck.

Internally Lilith was starting to panic, she felt at peace with the darkness but there was something else. She thought she could see something flashing and her headache was making her ears ring. Stop!”

As this was all happening in her head, Laila had grabbed a hold of her and brought her back to shore. The black dress clung to Lilith as she lay still in silence for a few moments. A voice calling her name had made the ringing in her ears stop and her fingers started to dig into the sand. The flashing lights had faded away and it seemed as though her lungs had realised that she was out of the water as with force she sat up, coughing up water. Lilith blinked, taking deep big breaths in and clutching at her neck as she slowly started to come to reality.

”This…” she mumbled, her voice straining as she continued to cough, ”weak human body”,” she hadn’t looked up at Laila and continued to wheeze. ”No wonder they die so easily.” She added in annoyance.

Lilith’s answer struck a cord at Laila and she pulled back from her embrace. Yes, human bodies were physically and emotionally susceptible to pain but it didn’t mean that they were weak. In fact, for being mortal, their bodies could sustain so much. Their resilience was something Laila admired.

"It’s not a weak body," Laila said, gently pushing the wet strands of hair away from Lilith’s face. "Your human body is still here, breathing, after almost drowning. You’d be surprised what they can survive through."

"Now, I’m surprised you didn’t know humans couldn’t… breathe under water," Laila added, raising an eyebrow. Her tone was a mix between stern, which she used whenever children misbehaved, and amused. "I’m sure there’s something on that in your training."

Lilith wouldn’t truly die; the human body she took on would disappear and Lilith would go back into her original Reaper form, whatever that was. Still, the scene had triggered her guardian side.

Taking a seat beside Lilith, Laila looked up at the moon. "You should be more careful," said with a soft sigh. "If you ever want to go into the water again, I promise I will go with you. Make sure you’re not… drowning yourself again."

After a moment, Laila couldn’t help but ask, "What happened though? You were so excited to get into the water."

Lilith had finally stopped panting and felt the natural rhythm of her breathing come back to normal once more. She looked down at herself and felt the sand cling onto her whole body and sighed, it wasn’t a pleasant feeling. As she glanced over at Laila who she felt like was telling her off, she rolled her eyes and mumbled a [i] yes whatever.

”I knew they can drown!” She huffed, ”just didn’t realise how quick it was.” Motioning towards her body she added, ”I’m a Reaper remember.”

Lilith looked over at the sea and still felt that longing to go back to the darkness, but as she glanced at her body she knew that wasn’t an option. She released a quiet laugh as she joked, ”I mean, if I died it wouldn’t it be good for you? No more having to make sure I don’t steal Alejandro’s soul.” She wondered what would happen once she’d return back to management without the soul in her hands.

Laila’s question caught her off guard and frankly speaking Lilith didn’t want to think about it. Yes, she was initially excited and just floating on the water for a while was relaxing. But as she swam in deeper and deeper and let herself be enveloped, her human body shutting down made her mind react in a way she wasn’t comfortable with. There were flashing lights and images, but they were all a blur now. The one thing she could remember was the squeezing sensation around her neck. As she remembered the feeling, her hands instinctively went for her throat.

Sure, Lilith couldn’t breathe because she was under water but something about her throat slowly closing up didn’t seem like it was due to the drowning. She felt something, something she knew all to well, fear. But this time, she felt as if she was feeling it because of something else. She wasn’t scared of the deep waters at all, and even when her body was shutting down due to the drowning she was completely at peace. It was only when Lilith was on the brink of death that something had changed. Something oddly yet dangerously familiar.

”I think it must have just been the human body reacting to whole drowning thing,” she shrugged, raising her knees up for her head to lean on.

Lilith’s question made her think. What would have happened if she had gone? She supposed that another Reaper would’ve been sent down to collect Alejandro’s soul, eventually. Surely, something would happen to Lilith.

Perhaps it would’ve made her job easier, perhaps not. However, Laila didn’t care; something told her this journey wasn’t one for her to take alone.

Something told Laila that the event had much more to do than just... drowning. At least for her, being in a human body amplified emotions. Perhaps Lilith was going through a similar process although she couldn’t know since they were different.

There was a moment of silence between them.

"I suppose," Laila sighed, finally replying to Lilith’s question. "That it would’ve made things easier for me. Maybe. You have a... strong personality.."

After another seconds, Laila gently took Lilith’s chin and turned her head so that she could look at her. Her hand moved to Lilith’s cheek, caressing it with her thumb. "But I wouldn’t want to do this alone, without you."

Laila pulled her hand back and looked up at the sky. "You said the dark was not scary. Angels are not creatures of the night, but maybe you’re right. It’s in the greatest darkness that we can best see the stars shine."

Lilith laughed quietly at Laila’s remark about her personality and nodded in agreement. Her fellow Reapers either hated her or feared her but regardless, they respected her so Lilith never truly cared.

It took Lilith by surprised when Laila caressed her cheek and smiled. The warmth from her fingers felt even better since she was still dripping and Lilith was glad that she didn’t feel the cold otherwise she was sure she’d be freezing right now. Regardless, her human body let out a quiet cough.

The darkness had been her only friend but perhaps Lilith could learn to enjoy the company of others, at least for the time being. She rolled her eyes at Laila’s cheesy remark but smiled,”thats such an angel thing to say,”

Lilith took one last look at the dark sea and stood up. Looking over at Laila and then at her own body, she shook her head suppressing a laugh. ”It would be a good time for that bath you promised me you know.”

"I am an angel after all," Laila chuckled as she reached into her bag and pulled out a towel. "I can’t help it."

She softly patted down Lilith’s hair in order to get rid of some of the excess water before wrapping it over her shoulders. The cough didn’t alarm her too much but she would have to tend to it. Some medicine, a hot drink, a new dry set of clothes would help prevent the cough from developing into something bigger or more concerning.

Laila raised an eyebrow at Lilith’s last comment. Ah, yes. Laila still couldn’t believe she had acted out that way.

"I promised you what?" She asked innocently, reaching into her bag in order to check her phone. Hopefully, the boys had found a good place. "A warm bath would help you. We need to make sure you don’t get sick."

Lilith smiled knowingly at Laila’s innocence and shrugged, ”Do Angels not keep their word?” She asked challengingly. She glanced down at Laila’s phone and nodded towards it, ”I want one, that must be an amazing device since all I see is humans looking down at that all the time, or embarrassingly posing. Not to mention the steady increase in phone - related deaths.

The mention of the boys draws Lilith back to the mission as she had almost forgotten about them. As she sighed loudly, she too hoped that they had found somewhere nice to stay, especially after the luxury she had the previous night.