THE TRAGIC + DIVINE

by MELODY FELIX-PRIETO

  I stared at the jacket, I’d never been the nosy type. What if I just tried it on? My curiosity aroused, I decided to put it on.

  Slipping the jacket over my shoulders, I ran my hand along the smooth leather, it felt so soft underneath my skin. I walked over to the dresser and admired my reflection in the mirror. I turned from side to side, even though the jacket was too long for my frame, I loved it.

  Milo’s scent was everywhere. I breathed in the leather and earthy musk to the point of dizziness. It almost felt like he was in the room beside me.

  I was so distracted, I barely heard my mother calling for me. I shoved the jacket back into my backpack, and rushed down the stairs, through the kitchen and down the hallway where I found the front door wide open. My mother was outside talking to Dusty from The Bone Yard who was lowering my car off his tow truck.

  I gasped astonished. The ‘Stang was fixed. The windows had been repaired, a fresh coat of black paint covered the body.

  “What’s going on, Dusty?” I asked.

  “A young man with long hair came by last week and fixed your car. He also paid your fees,” he said handing me a clipboard and pen. “Sign here, please.”

  Milo. It had to be. But how did he—I sighed—Dawn. Of course.

  “Which young man?” my mother asked, eyeing me suspiciously.

  “No one,” I replied brushing her question aside.

  Taking the keys, I ran to the driver side and opened the door. In the seat, there was a black walkie-talkie with a white tag that said TURN ME ON.

  I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t help but smile. Of course, it was Milo. He was the only guy who could make me blush even when he wasn’t around. I took a seat in the ‘Stang and turned the walkie on once my mother had gone inside the house.

  “I was afraid you weren’t going to answer,” Milo’s voice crackled through the walkie.

  I pushed the talk button and replied, “You’re distracting me.”

  “I hope it’s a good distraction.”

  I was grinning from ear-to-ear. “How did you know about my car?”

  “I heard it from a very chatty little bird.”

  “You didn’t have to do this, you know.”

  “I wanted to,” he said. “When can I cash in on the bet?”

  I shuddered thinking about the stupid bet. “I don’t know,” I said trying to find an excuse. “Sometime when my mother lets me out of her sight.”

  “How about now?”

  I almost dropped the walkie. “Like, right now, right now?”

  “Go to your room.”

  Oh no! He was here. I felt like I was going to be sick. I tucked the walkie into the back pocket of my jeans and rushed to my room. Taking a peek through the curtain, I saw Milo standing on the balcony. I turned to my dresser and quickly checked myself in the mirror running my fingers through my hair trying to untangle the mess. I grabbed a rose-tinted lip balm and applied it to my lips. My hands trembled as I tried to control my breathing.

  When I opened the door, Milo looked down at me and smiled lazily. I felt my face turn red. He looked good in black torn jeans and white v-neck that exposed his toned collarbone, but it was tough to keep his naked body out of my mind. I glanced away shyly trying to shake the image. The excitement returned inside my stomach. Why was I so nervous?

  “May I come in?” he asked in a deep rich voice.

  I hesitated a moment. I didn’t want to let him in. Not with my mother downstairs but my body involuntarily moved out of the way. Milo walked past me and strolled around my room examining every inch of it, almost like he was trying to piece together my personality.

  The room was a jumbled mess of teenage angst, random objects I’d found at thrift stores or art I made. The walls were covered in movie posters—Goodfellas, The Crucible, and Cry-Baby among my favorites. A collage of pictures of my friends hung on a cork board over my desk and posters of rock bands wallpapered my closet door. The floors were painted an elephant gray, and all the mismatched furniture came from yard sales or consignment shops. A string of Christmas lights zigzagged across the ceiling giving off a festive vibe.

  He stopped in front of a large bookcase overflowing with DVD’s. “Interview with a Vampire. The Lost Boys. Carrie? You’ve got bloody taste.”

  I blushed at his compliment, and proudly said, “Thank you.”

  He traced the spines of a few DVD’s with his fingers as I waited, holding my breath, my mind swirling with questions. What was he thinking? Did he think I was a dork for watching too many movies? And when did I suddenly care what Milo thought?

  “Pride and Prejudice? Romeo and Juliet?” he asked with one eyebrow arched I wasn’t sure how to interpret. Was he impressed? Confused?

  “What can I say? I’m a sucker for complicated and tragic love stories,” I replied. “And Leonardo DiCaprio was so hot as Romeo.”

  I observed Milo as he continued to look around, he picked up the Super 8 Dawn gave me, admired it for a while then gently placed it back. Milo crossed over to my bed, sat down, his dark eyes staring at me, I couldn’t help but feel nervous again. I really hated the way I felt around him. Anytime he was around, I acted like a love-struck school girl with no control over my emotions no matter how cool I tried to appear.

  “You have my jacket.”

  “Right, yes…” I scrambled for my backpack on the floor and handed him the jacket. “I have your pants also, and your boots.”

  “Leave them here. I might need them later,” Milo said with a smooth smile.

  For what? I wondered. Slumber parties with the opposite sex in my room—not happening.

  “Do you want to go somewhere?”

  “Uh…” I stalled. “It’s a school night.”

  “I promise to bring you home by midnight.”

  I stood there hesitant to go anywhere with Milo. I was afraid he might take me straight to Skinny after leaving the races last night without paying. But my curiosity piqued.

  “As long as gambling or police chases are not involved.”

  “Don’t worry,” Milo chuckled. “I promise we’ll be alone.”

  Alone? Oh boy. The butterflies returned.

  Milo walked out the door and swiftly climbed onto the roof. He extended his hand for me to follow. His wings unfurled spreading larger and taller than the first time I saw them. My eyes dazzled in awe at this beautiful creature.

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa! We’re flying there?” I stared wide-eyed in horror.

  “It’s the only way to get there.”

  “This is crazy!” My breathing picked up. “I’m afraid of heights.”

  “And all this time I thought you were fearless,” he teased.

  Swallowing my pride, I carefully stepped on the balcony railing then took Milo’s hand. He lifted me up effortlessly. I stood next to him but made the mistake of looking down.

  “Whoa.” I let out. The ground began to move, I almost lost my footing. Milo quickly grabbed by hand and held it firmly.

  “So, how do we this?” I asked. “Do I climb on your back?”

  Milo slipped his arm around my waist and turned me, so my chest was against his. He grabbed my hands and wrapped them around his neck then slowly traced his fingers along the curve of my armpit Dirty Dancing style. My skin vibrated with the heat of Milo’s touch. My mind kept screaming to stop him, but I was weak. I wanted Milo to touch me. He reached down and picked me up. Instinctively, I wrapped my legs around him and held on to his neck. My forehead grazed his, our noses almost touched.

  “You can trust me,” he murmured. “I won’t let you fall.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of,” I whispered. But I wasn’t talking about falling to my death.

  Panic and fear flushed throughout my body as we took flight. My house quickly disappeared below us as we flew over the mountains ascending higher into the golden sky. The wind sailed past us, and even though it was chilly, the warmth of Milo’s body kept me from shivering. His heartbeat remained at a steady beat. I held on tig
htly to Milo’s neck too scared to look down. Instead, I focused on his dark wings, gracefully and effortlessly gliding through the clouds like an eagle. The gentle flap of his wings became soothing.

  After a while, I relaxed my body, and it suddenly felt like I was floating. I was literally on top of the world open before me, mine for the taking. All of my problems seemed to melt away. And for the first time in my life, I experienced a strong sense of peace. Never in a million years did I think I’d be flying with an angel! It was surreal. I didn’t want to land. I didn’t want this feeling to end. If this is what heaven was like, I wanted to stay forever.

  It wasn’t long before we began our descent. Milo pulled my body closer, his wings drew back preparing to land. With a soft thud, he hit the ground. I slid off Milo and took a look around. I stopped at the sight of the stunning view. We were on top of Stone Mountain. The sun was setting, its wild orange rays ablaze in crimson behind Atlanta’s skyline. Shades of violet and pink began to form. It was incredible.

  “Wow,” I sat down and hugged my knees. “The view up here is beautiful.”

  “I like to come here every day and watch the sunset,” he said. Milo sat down on the ground beside me, his knee brushing against mine.

  “Must be nice,” I said then a silence fell over us. We watched the sun disappear.

  “Thank you,” I said to Milo. “For the car. No one’s ever been so kind to me.”

  Milo smiled. “So, tell me about your comic book.”

  I almost slapped him for calling a years worth of hard work a comic book. “It’s not a comic book,” I shot defensively.

  “Then what is it?”

  I looked out over Atlanta, conflicted for a moment wondering if I should tell him. Opening up wasn’t my strength, I hated feeling vulnerable and all the feeling and emotions attached, but something deep inside me wanted to confide in him.

  “It’s a storyboard for a screenplay I’m working on,” I finally whispered without looking at him.

  There was a long dreadful silence that felt like an eternity. My body was warming up with embarrassment and regret. I could already see the stupid grin playing on Milo’s face.

  “A screenplay?” His voice sounded surprised. When I turned to him, his lip was slightly curved into a smile. My defense system shot up like a watchdog. I couldn’t believe I told him.

  “You think it’s stupid,” I said quickly.

  “No. I’m impressed.”

  “Impressed?” I asked taken back by his reaction.

  “Every girl I’ve met wants to be a model or a YouTube star,” he snorted. “This is the first time I come across a writer.”

  “Well, filmmaker-writer,” I corrected. “I want to write and direct my own movies someday.”

  “A filmmaker, uh?” Another breathtaking smile. “Why movies?”

  I looked out into the distance in thought. “I like escaping my reality.”

  “It’s that bad?”

  “It can be,” I said looking down at the ground. “I planned to go to film school, but I don’t know anymore.” I looked at Milo, his eyes were still glued on me. “What?” I asked with a little too much attitude.

  “You’re nothing at all what I expected.”

  You’re not what I expected either.

  I thought back to the cocky Milo I met at Eve’s Paradise and compared him to the laid-back, generous, Milo in front of me and realized how wrong I was about him. I misjudged him. A terrible trait I inherited from my mother. She was the type who eyed you from head-to-toe and based her judgment on appearance.

  “What’s stopping you from going to film school?”

  “Money and my mother. She’s not exactly supportive of anything I do.” Milo listened attentively as I spilled my family drama. “When I was nine, I started writing stories after I watched The Goonies. So I went online and found behind-the-scene clips. Obsessed over the filmmaking process. But I didn’t know where to start. So I thought maybe if I started acting I could work my way to being a screenwriter or a director. I just wanted to learn from people in the industry. So I asked my mother if she would sign me up for an acting class, but she said, ‘you have to be pretty to be a movie star.’ I was bummed.” I put my head down remembering the painful memory. “Imagine her response if I told her I wanted to be a filmmaker.”

  “You’re beautiful,” Milo blurted sliding closer to me.

  My lips parted in surprise. “What?”

  Milo kept one hand on the ground as he twisted his body toward me. With the other hand, he brushed a strand of hair off my face and traced his fingers down my jaw leaving a tingling sensation behind.

  “I think you’re talented, smart and so…damn…beautiful.” He held my gaze with such intensity, the nervousness returned.

  I knew I was pretty, but I never thought of myself as beautiful. Growing up, my family made fun of my plump lips, thin underdeveloped body, and the fact I hardly spoke any Spanish. I thought the name calling would end after I reached high school and my body filled in, but instead, the girls in my school became jealous. I got a lot of negative heat for dating Eddie, and soon I was hearing ‘why is he dating her?’ and ‘Savannah is so much prettier than her,’ in the girls’ bathroom. For a very long time, I had self-esteem issues until I decided to look beyond the mirror and realized beauty was skin deep.

  Milo leaned in closer to me. This time, I waited ready to be kissed. My breathing stopped anticipating the moment…that never came.

  Milo grazed his thumb over my lip wiping off the tinted lip balm I applied earlier. “I like the color of your natural lips better.”

  I hunched back disappointed.

  “There’s something I need to tell you,” he said. Before he could finish, laughter from above and the sound of flapping wings cut him off.

  We both shot up when we saw Dylan and the rest of the angels from Eve’s Paradise land with a loud thud. They were all distinctively dressed in black leather, studded belts, and an array of jewelry. One, in particular, stood out, only because he was wearing a long black trench coat over dark brown buccaneer boots, a beige peasant top, with a silver cross dangling from his right ear. His skin was a deep shade of walnut, and his eyes glowed bronze. He flashed a perfect set of pearly white teeth when he smiled.

  “Will you lookie here. Are we interrupting your date?” Dylan asked.

  I shook my head but Milo answered, “Yes.”

  Dylan looked confused darting his eyes back and forth between us. “There’s a party down there—” he pointed a finger down Stone Mountain—“if you’re interested.”

  “On a Tuesday?” I asked stupidly.

  Dylan and the rest of the angels laughed. “We’re not confined by rules the way humans are,” Dylan said. “Or labels.”

  “Time doesn’t exist for us,” the angel with the bronze eyes said with a British accent, “We choose who we want to be, and do as we please. I’m Eli, by the way.”

  Eli’s facial features were just as attractive and defined as the rest of the angels, he was well above six feet, and his dark hair coiled smoothly around his shoulders.

  “What about rules or laws?” I asked.

  “Laws are meant to be broken,” Dylan said with a look of excitement—one of a thrill-seeking junkie—before diving off Stone Mountain. The insides of my stomach bundled in nerves making me dizzy as Lee jumped off with a massive grin on his face, followed by Trent.

  Eli stood at the edge of the mountain watching Milo and me. He was eerily calm for someone who was about to dive off a 1,600-foot mountain.

  “Come down. Experience what it’s like to be free,” Eli said before falling back letting out an explosive laugh.

  Freedom. The sound of the word was intriguing. It was what I’d longed for since I moved here. Freedom to do whatever I wanted, whenever, with no one breathing down my back over broken curfews, rules, or unfinished chores.

  “Don’t listen to them,” Milo said. “You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”

&nb
sp; “I want to go.” Now more than ever, I was curious about the angel world.

  Without argument, Milo unfurled his wings. He wrapped his arms around my waist as I wrapped mine around his neck. This time I was determined to keep my eyes open and enjoy the ride.

  CHAPTER

  15

  Eyes were on us the moment we landed. Some curious, others unwelcoming. Some of the angels gave Milo a nod of recognition while they scowled at me. A few of the quill lovers straightened their boobs and fixed their skirts at the sight of Milo. I stiffened, not wanting to move any further. I was in their territory where very few had wandered. Milo must have sensed my anxiety because he laced his fingers with mine bringing them together.

  There was a sprawling field made up of small rolling hills that went on for about two acres. It was filled with mostly angels and few humans gathered in large groups. They were smoking, drinking—partying wildly. A DJ was in the middle of it all playing dark industrial techno in the background. Blue laser lights danced behind him as the crowd moved hypnotized by the music. Most of the angels wore leather jackets and dark colors—black being the most prominent—and the groupies, well…they barely wore anything.

  I noticed every single angel we walked past had long-hair, a symmetrical face, and none looked old. It became clear to me like at Eve’s Paradise, every angel I’d encountered was just as beautiful as the next, and all of them were the essence of vitality. I wondered if the similarities in their looks was a coincidence. The idea fascinated me, and I wanted to know more.

  “Eli mentioned you choose who you want to be? What exactly did he mean?” I asked Milo.

  “You ask a lot of questions,” Milo said as we approached a hill, the tallest in the area, where we had a good vantage point.

  “I just realized I don’t know anything about you.”

  “Then ask me something personal, like what’s my favorite color. It’s blue, by the way.” Milo playfully nudged my shoulder with his.

  “Black or gray would’ve been my guess since that’s all you ever wear,” I teased.

  “What’s your favorite color?” It’s been a while since anyone had asked me that question. It felt like I was back in elementary school filling out an About Me questionnaire or something. I was about to reply with my usual current favorite—rose gold—but then I thought back to my childhood. I remembered.