Her cute little sister Jenny was a straight A student and openly religious. She knew that much without Swift’s help. It did, however, come as a shock to Sarah when Swift revealed the presumably honest girl had cheated on a test in school for the first-time last week. It bothered her little sister so much that she was praying tearfully for forgiveness from God several times a day. Sarah felt especially bad for her sister and vowed to choose some comforting words for her at dinner. She thought about it for a while at school, knowing it would be challenging to not reveal what she had learned in the process.
Jessica, Sarah's mother, was currently having some difficulty at work with a flirty boss. It had been going on for a couple years, but lately it was becoming notably more intrusive. Jessica apparently had not yet shared this information with her husband, Colton. Sarah was distraught over the news, but couldn’t figure out how she could help her mother in the matter. Perhaps turning to her husband for assistance was the best recommendation.
Sarah, couldn't help wondering how much her mother knew about her husband's past life. Did she know, for instance, that he was an angel before? Was she aware that he could sense the presence of spirit creatures? Did she also know exactly what her daughter had been going through lately? They seemed so unified recently when they asked her about seeing ghosts again. Was it also her mother that abandoned her in her time of need? Could it even had been her idea? The more she concentrated on the conflicts within her family, the more alone she felt. Swift was her only true source of comfort, as well as exploited informer.
The most useful information by far that she had obtained from Swift was that her friend Melissa was mostly insincere all the while. It was infuriating. Obviously, the girl had been freaked out when Sarah told her about her genuine problems, and effectively avoided Sarah ever since. Swift’s angelic observation helped her appreciate that the girl was adequately faking her compassion from the start. Wanting to sever all ties and dependency on the girl, Sarah made a stronger effort to avoid appearing schizophrenic since her last conversation with Melissa. No nurses, counselors, or teachers ever approached her regarding the subject of her strange behavior. In the end, she wrote it off as a good learning experience and became more comfortable with her solitude at school.
Sarah quickly completed her school work after returning home and decided to sit in the old tire swing in the backyard while Hunter kicked a soccer ball against the concrete wall of the garage. It looked as boring as hell, but he kept kicking it enthusiastically just the same. Eventually she called him over to talk.
"So," Sarah asked, "are you old enough to start liking girls yet?"
"No!" he replied hastily, exuberantly feigning offense.
"Are you sure you are not just pretending to not like girls?"
"Yeah, I'm sure," he answered in the same grumpy voice.
"I remember when I was your age that all girls would talk about was boys. But the boys just pretended like they weren't interested in the girls. I think they were afraid of what their friends would think of them if they that knew that they actually liked girls. Does that sound about right?"
Hunter stopped kicking the ball and stared at his sister, as if debating on how to respond. "I don't think all the boys are pretending," he finally responded.
Sarah laughed. "You may be right, but I bet most of them are. I believe I was your age when a boy kissed me on the cheek at school."
That caught Hunter's interest, but he just said, "gross!"
"Yeah," she continued. "He pretended not to like me when he was around his friends, but when they weren't around he treated me real nice. I liked him a lot, but I couldn't tell him, of course."
"Why not?" Hunter tucked the soccer ball under his arm and walked closer to the tire swing.
"Well, back then I wasn't sure if he was pretending so I was scared he wouldn't like me back. I also didn't know how my friends would react. Girls are much more critical of their friends then boys are, you know. So, anyway, we were talking one day in the stairwell as we went to our next class. I hadn't realized we were alone, but he must have been keeping track. Before we walked out into the hallway he planted a big kiss on my cheek and ran away."
"Really?" Hunter asked, obviously gaining interest in the story. "What happened after that?"
"Well, we got closer and kissed a few more times after that. I'm not going to bore you with all the gruesome details. Unfortunately, he let his friends convince him to stop spending time with me. A couple years later all the boys liked girls and I think he regretted letting his friends interfere. I know I did. But, you know, some things are difficult to go back and change later. If you ever like a girl don't be afraid to let her know. You don't have to kiss her or anything gross like that, but it's okay to talk nice to her. She'll know you like her then, and she won't want to embarrass you in front of your friends. It won't be long before you won't be afraid to have a girlfriend. The boys that start early are the ones that get the best girls."
Hunter stood there for a moment, possibly reflecting on her advice. When their sister Jenny came out the back door looking for them he tensed up. "I don't like girls," he said and returned to regularly kicking the ball against the wall. Sarah shook her head hoping that her advice would at least help him deal with his feelings a little better. For the girl's sake, as much as for his.
"What were you guys talking about?" Jenny asked as she merrily approached her siblings. Looking over at Hunter she watched as he put distance between them.
"Girls," Sarah answered in a low voice.
"Yeah, right," Jenny chuckled. "Hunter doesn't like girls, I think. He's been especially mean to me lately."
"Actually, that's probably because he is starting to like girls now. That's his way of dealing with it. Be patient with him."
"Okay," Jenny answered sincerely. She was a very considerate person despite her young age. Sarah decided it was unlikely that she would tease him about his new-found interest in girls. If she did give him a hard time, it would doubtless make matters much worse for Hunter. Yet, such was the way of boys and girls. Sarah couldn’t hardly even remember talking to her siblings over the last couple years. She couldn't very well jump in now and tell them how to live their lives. "Why are you so interested in Hunter all of the sudden?" Jenny asked.
Sarah knew that she deserved that. "I don't know. I guessed I have always been interested in both of you, I just went through a bad time and didn't show it well."
Again, Jenny answered sincerely, "Cool, well it's good to have you back. I hope you have all good times ahead of you. We all missed you, especially dad."
Sarah began to cry helplessly as she got choked up. She didn't see that coming. Her sister's comment just punched a big hole in her barrier and a tear rolled down each check before she could wipe them away. She struggled to maintain her composure but all control was lost when her little sister gave her a long warm hug, standing on her tippy toes to reach her older sister in the swing. "Thank you," Sarah whispered before Jenny slowly pulled away.
"Mom said supper will be ready in five minutes. Will you join us tonight?" Jenny asked softly.
"Sure," Sarah choked out. She took a huge breath as her heart swelled with the love that she always knew was there, just dormant and unspoken. Jenny's statement that their dad had missed Sarah the most had softened her resolve to confront him about his questionable past after dinner. She would have to see how it goes. "Love you, Jenny," she whispered.
"Love you too, sis," Jenny replied warmly, still facing Sarah as she began to walk back toward the house.
Dinner that evening was like nothing Sarah had seen in years. Every member of the family was so loving and considerate of each other. Even Hunter reciprocated to a degree. She wondered if her conversations with her siblings had put that in motion. Since she was the only one that appeared to be near tears she also considered the possibility that perhaps the others had always been that loving, and Sarah was just now noticing it. The scene played out like a proper family meal
in an old television show, back before people became more entertained by bad things than good. She decided to wait for another opportunity to confront her father, not wanting to ruin the evening. Unfortunately, her parents had other plans when they asked her to remain at the table after the rest of the family had cleared their dishes and went to their rooms.
"What's up?" Sarah asked, hoping that it was something minor. She worried that maybe that call from school happened after all. Looking on the positive side, at least she knew her dad would know that she's not schizophrenic.
"It's nice to see you so happy and getting along with your brother and sister," her mother said, sitting down across from Sarah at the table, waiting for her father to return. Sarah got the impression that he was checking to confirm that Hunter and Jenny were not listening in on the conversation. She considered that a bad sign.
When her dad took a seat beside his wife, facing his daughter he said, "I'm actually getting some mixed vibes from you lately. I need to ask you again if you are having any problems that you would like to share with us?"
Sarah tensed up noticeably at the question. "No," she answered, trying unsuccessfully to apply a convincing tone. Her parents waited to see if she would expand, but she didn't.
"Whatever is going on," Jessica said to her husband, "it seems to be helping her. I feel like we finally got our daughter back. Do we have to push her about this?"
"About what?" Sarah asked hesitantly.
"I think we should," Colton said to his wife, reaching for her hand. "Sarah, I get the feeling that despite your recent good mood there is something troubling you lately. If the hallucinations are returning you can tell us. We don't need to involve any doctors this time."
"I'm not having any hallucinations," Sarah replied in a low voice.
"I understand they don't seem like hallucinations to you. Whatever you call them, just tell us what is going on. I know for a fact that something is happening," Colton stated.
"Oh yeah?" Sarah snapped. "How do you know? Because you can sense them to?" Sarah instantly regretted her response. Both her parents jumped back in their chairs at either her demeanor or her words, she was not sure.
"Excuse me?" her father asked.
Sarah felt herself precariously on the teeter. She could either go back to denying everything, though her last ill-advised comment just made that much more challenging, or she could let the cat out of the bag. She was certain that her father knew the proverbial "cat" very well, but was unsure about her mother. She was betting that neither had any idea of how extensive her knowledge was about the situation. All the sudden she felt overwhelmingly tired of the secrets.
"Fine," she said through gritted teeth. Her father leaned forward in interest of her next words, but her mother just look plain scared. Looking back and forth between her parents, she asked, "Are you both sure the three of us are ready for this conversation?"
When her parents both eventually nodded, she asked her father, "Does mom know as much about all this as we do?"
That was the real question. Wide eyed Colton sat back in his chair and looked at his frightened wife as she swallowed hard. It was obvious that Jessica knew a good deal about it or her husband wouldn't even be considering having her there for the rest of the conversation. When her father looked back her way Sarah tried make sure he knew the extent of her knowledge with an ultra-serious expression, but he still looked unsure. Feeling sinister, Sarah leaned in low and said quietly to her father, "I know about your lengthy past."
When Sarah's mother gasped, and held her hand to her heart it was clear that she also knew. For how long, or how much, Sarah couldn’t guess. It was clear to her, though, that her mother had an idea of what her daughter had been going through. Her father looked shocked as well this time. He paused a few seconds to recompose himself, then took on a very credible serious look. "Okay," Colton said to his daughter. "What is it that you think you know?"
CHAPTER FIFTEEN: REGROUP
Swift shook his imaginary head as he listened in on Sarah's conversations with her siblings. He knew it was vehemently wrong for him to share those secrets with her about her family members. He had absolutely no right to interfere like that. So far it appeared that Sarah was only using the details he provided for good. Not that it forgave his transgression, but it did ease his embarrassment. He knew his human friend had a compassionate heart and hoped that the information would only help her reconnect with her brother and sister. Certainly, she was making a good start in that regard.
"You have a preposterous weakness for this girl, Swift," Watcher said to him. "You consistently give her what she wants without considering the consequences."
The statement was ringing undeniably true of late. He could inescapably see the control she was gaining over him. By the time he realized how far he had gone, it was already terribly embarrassing. He needed to put a firm stop to it. She was not purposely manipulating him, he believed. Well no more than most humans did in their regular friendships anyway. He could not be overly offended that she asked for secrets that he should not provide. Swift just needed to get his act together and be a responsible angel. If he messed up this assignment there would be no forgiving himself. This was the most rewarding work he had done in thousands of years.
"I know," Swift answered his spirit friend. "I promise to improve in that area. All the same, to my defense, it is helping her reintegrate with her family."
"Is this assistance part of the mission that you received from Hover?"
"No. No, it is not," Swift answered, slumping his imaginary shoulders. Human body language was beginning to become second nature, even when he was not around Sarah. He had no idea if Watcher could pick up on the gestures. Though it was often uncomfortable having the strict, observant angel around, Swift eventually realized the benefit. Usually, just having him scrutinizing your work was enough incentive to avoid mistakes. Now that they were conversing often Watcher was prone to provide this incentive verbally as well. This new friendship was incredibly valuable, and Swift was determined to respect it. It might be having a positive effect on Sarah's life as well.
Swift watched on during the tearful embrace that Sarah shared with her sister, Jenny. And then as the group had a nice dinner together. He barely noticed that Watcher had left the area as he got caught up in the happy human family time. This progression was very good for Sarah, and Swift was beaming with pride. He believed that his continued advice was at least in part responsible for the girl reconnecting with her family. Many, many times he had wished that he could convey his thoughts to people that were drifting away from their loved ones. The satisfaction he now felt was as comfortable as a warm embrace.
When things took a serious turn after the meal, however, Swift became concerned. It appeared as though Sarah was about to reveal what she knew about her father's past. That would not be good at all, he thought. He found himself getting closer to the dining room, though it was not required for his ability to hear the conversation. He knew he could not interfere this time. It would risk much more than it could possibly gain. Watcher would definitely not approve if he hindered the discussion.
When he finally noticed that his spirit coworker was missing, the angel noticeably returned. "Swift, you need to report to Hover immediately," Watcher said to him before he was even close to the house. Talk about bad timing. Or maybe it was the timing that required the report.
"Not now," Swift replied, uncontrollably agitated. "Sarah is about to confront her father."
"We know," Watcher said.
"We?"
"Yes," Watcher answered. "Hover is nearby."
Swift could not remember a time in all earthly history when his boss was near the planet’s surface. Though he didn’t have what humans would call eagle eye vision, the supervisory angel could see much from a distance. With two angels already assigned to the mission he had no idea why Hover decided to draw near. His curiosity, though, was virtually blocked by his irritation.
"But I need to be here
for Sarah. This is an important time." Swift was desperate to hear how things played out in that dining room. If Hover felt the need to get this close to the action, obviously, that indicated what an impactful moment this was as well.
"Surely you are not going to disregard a direct order from a superior?" Watcher asked. Swift knew that he could not. He wouldn't risk being pulled off the assignment.
"Watcher, my friend. I want so badly to be here for Sarah at this time. What should I do?"
"I will remain here for her, my friend," Watcher answered. "Perhaps it is better that you are not. Your temptation to get involved could be your undoing. I will share with you every detail after you return. I encourage you not to keep Hover waiting."
Swift wanted to grunt his disapproval, to curse and scream. He needed to have a fit like an angry human. He should be kicking stuff in his outrage. Yet, he knew nothing good would come from such a display, even if he could physically do it. So, he whisked away obediently to meet Hover directly above them, but far below the clouds this time. Hopefully the meeting would be brief and he could return before his precious girl desperately needed him.
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