Forbidden Love
 

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He's blind and stubborn. Although a musical prodigy, he has no friends since he's not the sort to trust or accept help easily. Even if he needs it. Age 19, he's not in school or employed, but lives with his parents.

Suki was walking amongst the humans, looking exactly like one of them. She kept her aquamarine eyes on the ground beneath her feet as she walked. At some point, she sighed and looked around the dull town. Wondering just how she was supposed to find the one she needed to guide... When her stomach growled, she frowned and walked over to a vender and asked for something to eat, but had no money to give him so he shooed her.

She hung her head and continued walking. How was she going to eat without any money? Suki ended up walking down an alley and stopped at the large dumpster. 'Really? This is what it's come to?' She thought to herself. Her stomach grumbled and she sighed. She looked around to make sure no one was watching before going dumpster diving for a meal- or something...

Once that was done, she climbed out of the dumpster, her belly full but not completely satisfied, and headed back into town to continue her search.

Gage was naturally a night person. Or unnaturally. It was hard to tell such things with him. He had a very well developed internal clock because he needed such things, but the days and nights looked exactly the same to him--like nothing. Despite being blind, he didn't walk around like he was. He walked like a seeing person without an animal or cane, or his hands clutched desperately at walls. No, he just clicked his tongue every now and then and listened for the echoes like only a blind person could do, relying on a highly developed sense of sound.

Like every Wednesday, his family went to the mall together in the hours between mid-afternoon and evening. In a place like this, he walked with total familiarity. After all, he'd been coming here his entire life. The little town may have had little to offer besides dry air, dirt, and the smell of sage on the westerly wind, but it had a mall. And a bowling alley that smelled run-down. He never went there.

Maria, Gage's seven-year-old sister should have been watching him. A part of him found that ironic since he considered himself to be without a doubt an adult. But she got distracted by a candy store and he lost track of her. Who would get in trouble later for losing who later? He shook his head so that his shaggy black hair lifted off his light brown eyes for a second. Rather than in the music store looking for CD's, he now pushed open the emergency exit door he knew wouldn't ring an alarm and rested on the roof of the mall. Up there, he could feel the wind, smell the air filled with the beginnings of dinner and cigarettes (undoubtedly the reason the door's alarm no longer worked), and hear so little and so much. The cars sounded distant and the people as well, but still he heard it all with his eyes closed. He both loved and hated it.

Suki stopped and looked around once again after walking for a while. Something inside of her told her to go the mall, but she didn't know what. She was told that when the time was right, she would have a feeling inside of her that couldn't be shaken. Was this that feeling? She wondered. Suki sighed and temporarily shook the feeling off. She needed to find a place to rest and clean up... So that's where she headed.

When every mile she walked away from the mall, the more of that feeling ate away at her. She stopped and looked up at the sky. She knew that she would be forced to walk around as a human until she found the one she was assigned to "guide" and the longer it took, the weaker she would get. If she waited too long, she would die as a mortal. Angels couldn't stay in human forms for long, it used up too much energy. She maybe had a week to find him, since she was still young compared to most Angels.

She sighed once again and headed in the direction of the mall.

For a good while, Gage laid on his back, 'staring' up at the sky. There was a strange energy to the night and he could feel it coming. The sun slid lower in the sky and he felt it on his skin, cooling by the minute. It was how he knew it was time to leave. His family got one hour to browse the mall by themselves and then they would meet at the food court at exactly the same time. He stood and gave the air one last sniff before clicking his tongue and finding the door again.

Gage moved slowly but surely down the halls. Few people were around so he made it to the food court in five minutes. His father and Maria were already there. The smell of vanilla bean strong and nearby told him his sister got herself some ice cream, to ruin dinner no doubt. He shook his head, but didn't care. "Are we going to leave as soon as mum gets here?" he asked.

"I was thinking of eating dinner here," his father's deep voice answered. "It's been a while since we did that and it feels right for today for some reason." Gage had to agree. It simply did.

Suki tripped a few times over her own feet as she headed to the mall. She hadn't time to figure out what she was going to do when she found the one, but she have time to waste. It took her at least twenty minutes to get to the mall. Suki stopped for a minute to catch her breath before entering the mall.

She continued to follow the feeling, around the large mall. Suki had gotten lost many times and had to turn around. She prayed to the heavens that the one she was looking for would still be there, if he/she was even there to begin with. All she could do was keep looking.

So that's exactly what she did, even if she was ready to drop from exhaustion.

It took another five minutes for Gage's mother to join them, rustling under the weight of multiple clothing store bags. He and his sister sat at a table with their things as the parents went to get some cheap chinese. They didn't each out much though so this felt special enough.

Maria leaned forward with a conspiratory whisper even though he could hear her just fine across the table. "I won't tell mum you went to the roof if you help me hide this." She pushed box into his hands from where she'd wrapped it up in a blouse she bought earlier with dad. He didn't ask what the object was and she didn't tell.

"How'd you know about that?" But he took the box and stuffed it into the backpack he wore most days.

"Saw you coming down the stairs." It was a simple explanation. Maria always was mature for her age and they shared this relationship of secrets. The two devolved into silence and Gage stared out over the courtyard, though his sweeping gaze had no meaning.

Suki stopped to take a breather once again. She recovered after a moment and continued, now heading towards the food court. She walked for about fifteen minutes before the court came into view, and one family stuck out the most to her. One of the family members had to be the one she was told to guide. She began walking into the food court with some random guy deliberately tripped her. Muttering the words "stupid street rat, watch where you're going." Suki yelped in surprise when she fell face first into the cold hard tile. She slowly sat up and rubbed her head, she didn't even notice that her nose was bleeding a little.

Suki didn't quite catch the man's words, but she had a feeling that she was being insulted. She was also being laughed at by some kids surrounding the food court area, that froze her. She couldn't move or anything. It wasn't the first time she had been laughed at, so it triggered a memory of the other angel's teasing her reluctantly.

A sound of laughter floated to the ears of the two sitting at the table. Gage faced the scene, but other than the laughter, he didn't know anything. Maria on the other hand huffed and crossed her arms. "How mean. Those teenagers are always messing with people. It's Billy and Joshua. You know them right? They tripped a girl," she explained. Gage gave a grim nod. He knew those two boys and their other pals well. A memory of being 'led to class' early in his school experience, and being locked in a storage closet for half a day came to mind. They laughed because the blind kid would surely not be able to point out the bullies. They didn't realize he recognized one of their voices though. He still didn't say anything, but it taught him not to rely on help from others. People mislead him too often on purpose.

The smell of fried rice and cheap mall shrimp pulled his attention away. "You two look hungry," their father said. "Ah...hey!" Before they'd finished setting the food down, Maria fled her seat and ran toward the tripped girl. Gage had to explain the situation before his parents had a fit. Despite being seven, that girl had all the spunk to stand up to people twice her age.

"Hey, don't let those stupids be mean to you!" she explained to the strange girl. Maria looked right at the teens when she said 'stupid'. They looked like they wanted to mock her, but enough parents had turned their eyes to them so Billy and Joshua just said a whatever and turned away.

Suki rubbed the blood off of her nose when she noticed it. She blinked a few times and looked at the young girl before her. Her head was pounding, the girl's voice seemed to bounce right off. Suki rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "To be honest..I didn't even see him until he tripped him." She said to the girl quietly as she slowly stood. Suki's vision blurred as the room began to spin and she staggered back a little, but soon recovered and held her head. "What're these tiles made out of? Granite?" She asked herself. Soon after that, her stomach growled at her, causing her to quickly cover it up and her cheeks turned a light pink.

"Maria!" her father yelled and the girl said a quick goodbye before running off, turning a little pink in her cheeks herself. It took until after running off to face down teenaged bullies for her to feel embarrassed and a little frightened. She sat back down and ignored her parents' piercing glares. "Well...she seemed alright anyway," Maria muttered.

"That's good," Gage responded, mostly for her benefit. Not being able to see made it easy to ignore the rest of the world, but it wasn't like he didn't care about it. He just preferred to sit in the corner and eat his food, no conversation necessary.

Suki waved a little before Maria ran off to join her family. She sighed softly before running off before anyone else had a chance to trip/ laugh at her again. Besides, she now knew what the boy looked like but she was also broke. So she had to go find another dumpster to dive in. She would figure out how to approach the boy later...

((crappy post... x.x))

The family ate mostly in silence, or at least Gage didn't participate. He drifted off into his head where he usually was. In the blackness of his world, he could conjure up melodies and listen as if he had his ever present CD player on. He loved those sounds. Violins, electric guitars, bagpipes, and drums all flitted through his mind. He didn't realize it, but toward the end of dinner, he started to play the piano parts with his right hand against the table. "Gage dear, stop doing that," his mother intoned. "We'll leave in just a minute so you can play the piano when you get home." Although she chastised him, her time remained kind. Gage knew his family tried their best to deal with his condition and they really did. He could never know how oddly he acted though. So if his mother stuck very close to his side when they left the table, he'd accept it no matter how much he hated to be helped.

Suki left the building and went to find another dumpster to crawl in, to dig for food. There was actually quite a bit of edible food in there. After she was finished with that, she began looking for a place where she could clean herself up. She was beginning to look like a homeless person. She sighed and began her search for a somewhat clean bathroom.

By the time she made it back to the mall area, the boy and his family were leaving. She had to come up with something, and fast! While meaning to simply approach the family, the world around her began to spin- due to exhaustion from the girl running around like a mad man since she arrived, and she fainted. Falling unconscious onto the hard concrete beneath her.

The air outside felt cool and Gage felt the change in temperature the second they walked outside. The area's climate left most of the day's heat coming from the sun so the nights cooled considerably. The dryness of the air left hairs prickling on his arms. Behind the smell of the city, beyond the wind carried all the notes of the wild country—mountains, hard packed earth, and wildflowers. All the wonderful things that bloomed in the spring.

But Gage didn't ever let himself wander far into his head when moving. No, he had to be alert if he wanted to rely on himself. Every sense actively searched, so when the wind changed direction and brought him the pungent scent of decaying things, used coffee grounds, and just trash, it made him sharp. The dumpsters lay in the other direction. His sharpness came too later though. One slightly off-kilter pair of footsteps appeared quite suddenly in front of him. "Gage!" His mother's voice. A second later, he ran right into something and sprawled across the ground.

"Baby, are you alright?" He was. A few mutters served as he answer. "Oh my, she's not moving. Should we call 911?" She?

"No, Honey. She looks famished. Poor thing must be homeless. Let's just take her home and figure things out when she wakes." No one ever did explain to Gage what happened. He just knew the trash-scent came home with them.

Suki heard voices, and caught the name of the son before everything went black.

Suki awoke about a couple of hours later. Her eyes fluttered open, then slowly closed. When she realized that she was in an unfamiliar area, her eyes opened wide and she sat up. Holding her head shortly after. Her head was throbbing. "Where..where am I...?" She asked quietly, hoping that someone was around to answer her question.

The parents were downstairs talking in the kitchen at the time, but his father left a bowl of soup and bottled water on the bedside table. Since the girl didn't seem to be running a fever, they just left her to sleep in Maria's. The young girl already ran off to play at a friend's house so she'd been happy to volunteer her room. Stuffed deer crowded the bed, but it was a neat space for someone Maria's age. Despite no one watching over their guest, the sounds of the house showed clearly that others were nearby. Over it all, the sounds of violin playing Vivaldi's Summer filtered out from Gage's room just one door down from his sister's. Since coming home, he'd been playing and playing with little break. Only the music brought him solace.

Suki glanced at the bowl of sou on the bedside table and gladly accepted. She sucked it down like she hadn't eaten the entire day. After that, she slipped off the bed and gently picked up the bowl and left the room. She stopped to listen to the sweet sound of the violin coming from the room just down the hall. Suki slowly walked to the door and used her foot to gently knock, since she didn't want to drop the bowl. She just wanted to apologize for running into him, and ask him where the kitchen was.

The music stopped abruptly when Suki knocked. Gage froze, his violin still tucked against his chin and the bow hovering over the strings. He knew the way his family knocked and a quick listen told him his parent's still talked so quiet. That meant...a stranger. He swallowed hard before forcing himself to respond. "Yes? Do you want something?" he asked. His voice bellied his hesitation and how unused it often was. He didn't make a move to open the door, nor turn the stranger away.

Suki blinked a few times when he responded. "I um... I just wanted to apologize for running into you earlier..." She began to say in a soft voice. "And someone made me some soup..and I was wondering where the kitchen was so I can put the bowl in the sink..." Suki said to the boy, hoping that he wasn't too upset that she disturbed his violin playing. "That song..was amazing..by the way..." She said quietly, her cheeks tinted by a light pink blush.

"No..." Gage mumbled. "I'm the one that ran into you. It...happens a lo...er, I'm sorry." He never just came out and said he was blind. Couldn't he just pretend sometimes? Pretend to be normal? He set his violin in the case pressed against his leg and took the three steps to his door. Finally he pushed it open with a gentle touch of his fingertips. His ceiling fan still had the light bulbs in on the off chance someone visited, but as usual, the light stayed off. "Just follow the noises." He paused. Or were they too quiet for the people who didn't bother listening. He could never be sure. Gage cleared his throat and slipped into the hall. "Er, it's this way." Not looking at her, he felt for the wall to make sure she wasn't in his way, then took the seven steps to the top of the stairs and headed down.

Suki blinked a couple of times when he responded. Then she smiled. When he opened the door, she took a few steps back so that he could come out. 'Noises...?' She thought to herself curiously. As she watched the boy, the one she was to guide, it hit her. He was blind! Suki followed Gage quietly. How was she supposed to tell him that she was guardian angel? What if he rejected her? So many things could go wrong it made her head spin. "I'm.. I'm Suki." She said to him quietly.

"Gage," he replied back with another clearing of his throat. For someone born blind, he didn't show any hesitation on the stairs. Rather, he took them at the same speed as a seeing person. The stairs ended in the foyer and to the left sat the dining room, marked by a grand piano under a large window. He turned to the right, heading into the kitchen. The conversation stuffed and Gage said hello to them without turning to them where they sat at the table. "She woke up. Brought the bowl down." He himself headed to the fridge and got himself a bottle of water. He hesitated in the corner, not sure if it would be rude to immediately leave again.

Suki followed Gage down the stairs and into the kitchen, where she carefully put the bowl into the sink. She then turned to the parents, smiling kindly. "Thank you very much for the soup... It was delicious." She said to them in a soft voice. She looked at Gage. "..and thank you for showing me to the kitchen." She said to him quietly.

(short x.x)