Raphael took in his appearance once again. He ran his fingers across his skin, hair, and lips while staring into the mirror that adorned the wall of his bathroom. A feeling of slight familiarity filled him as he looked into his bright blue eyes. The almost ethereal glow in them was a slight reminder of what he was. Heād had the same eyes before, from the first time heād been human, but things were different then. Mankind wasnāt like it was now. Sighing, he rinsed his face.
Remember, why you were sent here again Raphael. Mankind deserves the same love that you have for the father. He constantly reminded himself of this, but it was easier said than done.
Going about his normal early morning ritual, Raphael washed himself and reluctantly got dressed. Having a human form was already a bit strange, but having to put clothes on it as well was the equivalent of putting on a rubber suit then pulling on leather over it. Nonetheless, it was necessary to humans, so he obliged. Now that he was dressed, Raphael headed to the world meant for mankind.
When he arrived, the streets were busy with morning traffic and people rushing to wherever they felt they needed to be. This, of all things, intrigued him. People would rush even when they had nothing to do, and it was ridiculous. He turned behind him, spotting a small shop with a vending machine outside of it. He inserted a small amount of money and got back a very cold bottle of water. He found that holding a beverage helped him to look more normal, considering his movements were still a bit stiff.
Raphael sat on a bench, water in hand, and observed his surroundings. In a taxi, a man hung out the window and yelled obscenities at another man who was also hanging out his window. Slightly wincing at the foul language, Raphael sat back and looked toward the sky, and suddenly he felt very homesick.
He turned to his right as he heard a very loud, very long stream of cursing to see a woman, covered in coffee and another one apologizing profusely. The first woman shouted at the second while she was squatting on the ground.
āIāmā¦ Iām sorry. Jesus. Look, I totally overreacted.ā She stood up, āItās.. just been one of those shitty days, you know?āWell at least that one apologized for the profanity she used. As he caught a glimpse of her face, Raphael recognized the second woman.
Oh Anaelā¦ He knew it was Anael the moment he saw her face. Her eyes gave it away; that gentel glow could be no one but Anael. Smiling slightly to himself, Raphael continued to observe the scene as another person approached. He spoke in a strange way as well, not completely blending into the conversation like a normal human would. Figuring it was another angel looked on even more curious.
"Perhaps I can buy you another cup of - coffee? As an apology? And we can have a look at that burn..."Raphael sat up a slight bit as an instinct triggered within him. A burn? Squinting his eyes at the woman, he tensed. As an angel of healing, he automatically wanted to help her.
āIām afraid we do not have theā¦Time.āRaphael barely heard the male angel speak to the woman as he was craning his neck to observe the womanās injury. As the angels stepped away, Raphael got a full look at the womanās burn. Her wrist was turning red from the scalding liquid. Gripping his bottle of water, he stood up and stiffly walked over to the woman, now being able to see the reddened skin on the womanās wrist. He walked directly to her and gently pressed the cold bottle to her wrist while holding her hand palm up with the other.
āCold objects work well to help minor burns. Here."
As he did so he glanced over his shoulder and saw Anael and the man. Once again, the eyes gave away the angelās identity. As Raphael realized he was looking at Gabriel, he also realized how strange his actions had been. Raphael put the womanās other hand onto the bottle and stepped back, embarrassed and smiling slightly to possibly help the situation.
Humans feel more at ease with smilingā¦right? Or does it just make it worse?