Page 24 of Heavensent & Hellbent

He shrugged.

“So you live with your dad, too? I didn’t think angels had parents. Like, other than God being their parent.” As the words left my mouth, I wondered if that was the right thing to say. The issue here was that there was no right thing because this was not a conversation most people had.

“No, I don’t,” Zain said quickly, moving the conversation along. “Angels are born like normal people, with parents, and at least one of them has to be an angel for you to be one. It gets passed down through generations, but not everyone gets powers. You find out when you come of age at sixteen.”

Before I could inquire about said powers, our waitress interrupted, asking us if everything was okay. She was in her twenties with red hair and had tattoos up her left arm. We muttered that the drinks were great and were met with a half-hearted “I’m so glad to hear that” before she left.

“Cleo told me you went to school together and you were on the football team. How does that work with being an angel?” I asked.

“We live regular lives, to an extent. With our powers come responsibilities. And there are training camps we go to during school holidays to learn to harness our powers and strength. We have to live normal lives so we don’t raise suspicion.”

I had a million questions, but for some reason the one that rose to the top was “And what are your plans after summer?”

“I got accepted to University of Colorado–Boulder to major in political science, but I’m not sure if I’m going to go.”

“Why not?”

He sighed, like this conversation was more difficult than telling me he was an angel. “I live with my aunt, who wants me to go to college, to live a normal life and get a good job. She’s my mom’s sister, and my mom was an angel—my aunt isn’t. Meanwhile, my mentor, Castiel, seems to think having too many distractions is a bad thing. He and my aunt are always arguing about what’s best for me, but my aunt’s currently in Iran, so Castiel is looking after me, and he’s pretty persuasive.”

“Well, what doyouwant?”

His lips curled up so slightly I wasn’t sure if I was imagining it. “What I want doesn’t matter.”

“It does,” I said, before realizing I was being hypocritical. I was doing law in the fall because it was what my dad wanted, and I’d put London as my first choice because it was what Nic wanted. I wasn’t sure whatIwanted, but I knew it wasn’t any of those things. Zain and I were not so different, it seemed.

“I want…to see the world. Take a year off. Travel. But now isn’t really the time for that. Maybe when I’m older. Ormaybe never, and that’s fine because I’m here for a reason.” He spoke like he was regurgitating something someone had said to him.

My phone pinged with new texts from my dad. The sigh that escaped my lips was louder than I intended. Zain’s gaze followed mine to the device face down on the table.

“I left without telling my dad, so he’s going to be pissed,” I explained.

Zain’s phone rang then, and he gazed at it like he was debating whether he should answer.

“You can take it,” I offered.

He shook his head and silenced his phone. “It’s okay, but we probably should go.” He signaled the waitress for the bill, and before I could offer to pay, he put some money down, insisting that it was on him.

We walked in silence after leaving the coffee shop. Everything he’d said suddenly sank in, and my mind was trying to process it all.

As we made our way back to the diner, I asked, “If what you’re sayingistrue, why did you tell me about it? Surely you being an angel and jinn existing are things that are meant to be kept secret?”

“Honestly?” Zain asked. “I’m tired of hiding who I am. And…” He trailed off, his expression contemplative. “There’s something about you that I trust, even though I barely know you. Is that weird?”

“No. I know what you mean.” And it was true; there wassomething about him that was familiar, beyond the dreams. It was like we knew each other.

“And anyway, if you do tell people, there are beings that can erase memories,” he said, his voice cool. “Yours and whoever you tell, so…”

“What?”

“Don’t say you weren’t warned.”

I had no idea if he was being serious, and I had no intention of finding out.

“How can I know if you’re telling the truth?” I asked. “About being an angel.” For all I knew, he could be one of the jinn disguised as a human.

We were now right outside Cory’s. I overheard English tourists standing nearby, perusing the menu. Their accents made me feel warm, like I wasn’t so far away from home after all.

“I can show you,” Zain said. “Have you been to Red Rocks?”