Never Means Forever

Alexander is so lost. His head isn't in the right place and his soul is suffering because of it. It was almost to a point where he was putting himself in danger. 

He thinks he's not good enough which is so heartbreaking. Angels are assigned to guard their humans for a reason and I think I've just found Alexander's. There has to be a way to make him feel better, even if it is just for today. He doesn't deserve to feel this bad. His soul is pure, I would know. 

As a reaper, souls are my specialty. Telling the difference between a good soul and a bad soul is how I determine where to send them in the afterlife. Alexander's soul would be top priority to the pearly gates.

Something's bothering him and I have a feeling that I'll find out later. For now, finding Alexander is where my focus is. I follow the tugging sensation behind my navel and find him quickly, huddled against a set of lockers, face buried in his knees.

I crouch down on one knee and place a hand on his shoulder. He jumps about a mile in the air and looks up at me frantically. Alexander relaxes when he's sees that it's me and a soft smile settles on his lips.

"Alexander, please, trust me." 

"I do." He mumbles. "But you really shouldn't be wasting your time on me."

"I could not leave you even if I wanted to, and trust me, I have absolutely no desire to do so." I insist. 

His blue gray eyes sparkle and he nods slowly. "Okay."

I stand up to my full height and extend my hand. "I do not know what you usually do during your free block but maybe you'd like to spend it with me? Feel free to decline." 

Alexander takes my hand quickly and pulls himself up. "No, I haven't got anything better to do a-and I'd love to hang out with you. I wouldn't mind not coming back here for the rest of the day." 

I raise an eyebrow and place a hand on his hip, leading him out of the front doors. "Your education is important. And won't your friend, Brad, be worried?"

"I'll just text him or something and school isn't really where I want to be right now. Not with you around." He blushes.

"Well then, school won't be on the top of your list for quite some time." I chuckle, leading him around the corner and towards my guardians coffee shop.

We enter and the smell of freshly ground coffee and chocolate chip cookies wraps around us. Guardian Santos smiles at us from across the room and soon returns to serving a customer.

I lead Alexander over to the counter and step behind it. "Would you like something? The vanilla laté is pretty good with a chocolate biscotti."

"Lucian! You shouldn't be back there!" Alexander cries, eyes wide. 

"Do not worry." I laugh. "My guardian owns the shop. My home is right through the back. I can take you there, if you'd like."

"O-oh. Um, yeah, that'd be great." Another blush creeps up his neck and he shoves his hands deep into his pockets.

"But first, how about that biscotti?" I ask. He nods and smiles softly. I prepare his coffee and grab the crunchy treat before sliding it over the counter to him. He bites his lip and pulls out his wallet. "No, Alexander. You don't have to pay. You'll never have to pay, not while I'm around." 

Alexander smiles to himself and slips his wallet back into his back pocket. "Thanks Lucian, that's very... nice."

"That's my job." I smile. We chat about nothing in particular as he drinks his coffee and nibbles on the biscotti. Once he's done, I throw away his trash for him and lead him through the back into my home.

He's reluctant to enter but I wrap an arm around his waist and pull him into the living room. "It's not much but it's home." 

Alexander looks around incredulously before looking at me with wide eyes. "Lucian, this is amazing. I've never been anywhere so extravagant before."

"Extravagant? Well, I guess Guardian Santos has her... moments. She is an angel, after all." I shrug. "Would you like to watch a film or something? Or we could just sit and talk?" 

"Um, a film would be great." He mumbles, standing in the middle of the room awkwardly. I turn on the television and fumble with the Blu-ray player. In all honesty, I've never been good at keeping up with the technology but Guardian Santos' mate was always one to buy anything new. 

I finally manage to successfully load in a movie called The Mark of Zorro and settle back onto the couch. Alexander remains standing and I look up at him with an eyebrow raised. 

"Aren't you going to sit?" I ask.

He spins around and stares at me with wide eyes. "Yeah, uh..... yeah." Alexander lowers himself down onto the couch next to me and doesn't relax until halfway through the movie when he's asleep on my shoulder. 

I smile at his sleeping form and pull a shawl around him before wrapping an arm around his shoulders protectively. Maybe taking care of him won't be as scary as I thought. His well being is already my top priority.