Chapter Text
'I have descended from heaven to spread happiness with all of you. Stay tuned for my next release!'
She glanced at the girl's phone that sat beside her on the subway seat. The teenage girl was watching a video of the new rising solo J-pop idol, 'Angel_P.' The whole premise of the idol was that she was an angel who was upset with the depressive state of the world, so she came down from heaven to change that. She silently snickers as she remembers coming by an ad of hers with the ridiculous overused lore for the first time. Idols were not the thing Tashi was quite into, but she couldn't deny the fact that Angel's music was catchy.
Corstone Junction
The monotone voice of the robotic announcer called out the name of the station. The girl beside Tashi shifted in her seat and put her phone in her bag before standing up and leaving the train along with several other passengers.
Tashi yawned and rubbed her eyes. After a long day of work, she's returning home, although she doesn't feel relieved or happy. She remembers that her small apartment was still a mess from the weeklong period of neglect. Mounds of laundry still remain in the basket, groceries still need to be restocked, unwashed dishes lie in the sink, and her files and papers are still scattered around the whole apartment from yesterday's hunt for an important document she forgot where she put.
It's the weekend; I'll do everything tomorrow.
She put the back of her head against the subway wall and closed her baggy eyes. Hopefully she will get some deserved rest from the hectic week of trying to meet deadlines. Even with her team of incompetent coworkers, she still managed to finish up everything and submit it to the boss in time. Although a bit-- irritating, she couldn't care less about her coworkers stealing some of the credit; as long as she got the work done, she was satisfied. There is no benefit to her for reporting their incompetence.
She'd rather avoid trouble than face it head-on.
Tashi walked down the familiar streets of her neighborhood. The old, rusty streetlamps flickered as she walked past them. Tashi looked up. The night sky stared back at her lonely and tired eyes. She waited, as if she wanted it to talk to her. It was 8PM. Families ate dinner with their loved ones and told each other about their day. She huffed and looked back at the road and hugged her coat tighter.
Tashi lived alone. She doesn't have anyone to go back home to. Sometimes, she did wish that there was someone that would wait for her, talk to her, and comfort her. But she would quickly brush off that idea and tell herself it would just be a hassle. So she walked, taking her sweet time with her fatigued body, without the fear of making a waiting person angry for arriving late.
As much as Tashi was an expert at being an arm's length away from trouble and using her brain to find out several other pathways to avoid facing the issue head-on, she's not sure if she can avoid this.
A person lay there face first, in front of the door of her apartment. Their head was bleeding, and bruises were decorated all over their bare skin. They wore nothing but a plain white sundress. Along with them lying face first, their inconveniently long curly white hair did a marvelous job at hiding their face, which she assumed was black and blue as well.
She stood there, frozen, not knowing what to do next.
Call the police? Call an ambulance? Wake up the neighbors?
No no, what if I get framed for murder?! I'll be the number 1 suspect! I'll be forced to go to the police station and be late for work.
She shivered at the thought. Nonetheless, she took a deep breath and did what any normal person would do. Bring them inside and pray to God that they wake up and go back home.
but they didn't.
The mysterious person lay on her bed with clumsily done bandaging all over their injuries. A blanket covered their unseasonable clothing and kept them warm. Tashi walked around in circles in her small apartment, biting her nails nervously and sweating bullets. She is confused, scared, and nervous. It's been 2 days since she found the person, and they are still unconscious. They called over many people, but all of them called her crazy for some odd reason.
She tried calling the neighbors over, but upon looking at the bed, they seemed confused. They looked concerned for Tashi. Tashi was frantically pointing at the bed, telling them all about yesterday's encounter. The sweet old lady sweetly talked with her for a bit about her life as if she were a mentally challenged person and left. The messy apartment and her disheveled appearance definitely contributed to the fact that she looked like someone suffering from a mental illness.
Tashi was offended and confused, but she didn't give up and called a local doctor. They would definitely understand.
"There is nobody on the bed; is this a prank?"
The young doctor scoffed and raised an eyebrow at her.
"What? There's literally an unconscious and injured person that needs medical attention; why would I call over a doctor for nothing?" She pointed at the person lying on the bed.
The doctor was not convinced.
Tashi walked over to the person and picked up the limp arm of the person and waved it around. "Hello? Do your medical thingy! They have been unconscious since yesterday night."
"You're creeping me out, lady." The doctor shivered, wrote something down on a ripped page of a pocket notebook, and handed it to her. It had a number, with the word 'Therapist' next to it. "I don't have time to deal with undiagnosed schizophrenics; I have more appointments," he stated and left shortly after.
Next on her list was the police, but seeing the reactions from the doctor and the neighbors, she didn't try calling anyone after that.
Tashi sat down on the floor, resting her back against the edge of her bed. She pulled her legs to her chest, hugged them, and closed her eyes. She was frustrated and angry. People made a fool out of her when she asked for help. This is why she doesn't like to talk to people. She ends up being bullied one way or another.
She groaned and ruffled her hair aggressively out of frustration. She didn't know where to go next. She has a random stranger on her bed that clearly needs treatment, yet nobody can see or touch them except her. She was starting to doubt herself on whether they were real or not. Perhaps she did indeed overwork.
Maybe it's just her mind making shit up. She huffed and got ready to pick herself up from the floor and call the therapist the paramedic suggested. She is tired of everything that happened this week. Maybe this could be a nice change of pace—
"Are you crying?" a sweet and soft voice asked.
Tashi whipped her head to her side and saw a pair of big yellow and white heterochromic bug eyes staring back at her. The person lay upside down with their head hanging at the edge of the bed. Their face was dangerously close to Tashi's.
"WHAT THE FU—"
Tashi took deep breaths, scratching her head from nervousness and disbelief of the situation she is in. Talking to a possible figment of your imagination isn't something a sane person would be ready to do on a random Sunday. She dried her face after washing it with cold water in the sink in hopes of making this so-called vision of hers disappear.
She rubbed her eyes one last time. On opening her eyes slowly, she felt her heart drop when the person she generously saved was still there. They wore one of Tashi's jackets and politely sat on the floor, smiling at her like a dumb dog. The jacket being way too big for them.
Huffing and accepting her fate, she sat down on the floor in front of the person. She folded her legs and put her hand on her knees. The person tilted their head in confusion and blinked twice before smiling and copying her sitting position. Tashi raised a confused eyebrow but decided to stop ignoring the person's attempts to talk to her and finally opened her mouth to speak.
"Okay, so are you going to tell me who you are?" Tashi asked nervously yet still firm enough to get her seriousness through.
"I'm Linnet!" The person happily exclaimed.
Tashi uncomfortably shifted in her seat and cleared her throat. So it has a name…
"Last Name?"
The person looked unsure of what to say to that question but replied nonetheless.
"Lin...net...?"
"Linnet… Linnet?" The ashy blonde-haired woman closed her eyes, trying to take this seriously. She fixed her glasses that sat upon her nose and shifted her gaze upfront again. "Do you even know your own name?"
"That's what my friends called me up there." They put a finger up to their chin.
"Up where?" Tashi inquired. Is this supposed to be a variation of an 'under-where' (underwear) joke? If so, she doesn't get it.
The person—Linnet— looked upset, looking at the floor for a split second before shaking their head and going back to their cheerful self.
"Heaven!" They said with sparkling eyes. "Although it's been a while since I last was there..." they whispered. Quiet enough for Tashi to not pick it up.
Tashi scoffed, not sure if she heard it right. "What are you? God?" She folded her arms and rolled her eyes.
"Oh no no, I would never try to take up her glorious title!" Linnet clasped their hands together and shook their head no. "Although I am one of her subordinates." They paused for a second before continuing, unsure if the woman in front of them could take it well. "or what some of you like to call—an angel."
.
.
.
"You can stop roleplaying, bro."
"Roleplaying?" Linnet tilts their head. "Huh? Is that a dance? but I'm not dancing."
"Oh come on." Tashi exclaimed in disbelief.
"Don't tell me you're telling the truth. If you're done with this crap, get out of my house." She got ready to stand up and whipped her hand up to point towards the door.
Linnet panicked and grabbed her by her shoulders and pushed her back down. "But I am telling the truth!!"
They're strong.
"Okay, sure, buckaroo." She ripped their hands off of her shoulders.
"Personal space, you weirdo." Linnet backed off and nodded, their head hung low. Tashi continued, "Where are your wings and halo then?"
"My halo has been floating on my head this whole time."
Tashi looked up. She squinted her eyes and saw a faint glow that resembled a halo. You probably wouldn't notice it upon one glance. The halo was that faint. She frantically blinked and then pinched herself, swearing her mind was playing games on her. "W-well… whatever. Moving on. I think I need some sleep after I deal with you." She massaged her temple and looked at the person's face again.
"Just show me your wings if you are so stubborn about your identity as an angel." Tashi brought up her hand to do an air quote gesture with her fingers at the last word.
"Uh..." The person played with their fingers. "Well... I would show you..."
"Well then, show me! Don't tell me you can't after all this bullshit of claiming to be an ange—WOAH WOAH, WHY ARE YOU TAKING OFF YOUR CLOTHES??"
She shut herself up and backed up against the nearest wall. raising a shaky hand and pointing at the so-called angel in front of her. Linnet paused, startled by the sudden screaming of the woman in front of them. Their hands still lay on the edge of their sundress.
"Huh? You wanted to see my wings! I'm kind of insecure about them since they have been clipped off, but I don't mind showing you..." Linnet said, shyly.
Tashi covered her eyes with her hands.
"I may be a 26-year-old virgin, but I will not be seduced by a random weirdo roleplaying as an angel—that's just weird! I am a grown woman. So this creepy-ass tactic won't work on me!"
The self-proclaimed angel lazily chuckled. "I don't know half of those words, silly. But your red face looks funny." They face their bare back against Tashi. "You can look now."
Reluctant yet curious, Tashi peeked through the gaps of her fingers. Her eyes widened at the sight that lay in front of her—small feathery clipped wings rested on top of the person's bare back. The torn wings had a dirty color of grey stained with a very deep red, almost brown-colored dried-up blood—very old blood. It was clear this person has not once cleaned their wings since, like, the start of human civilization. They softly moved their wings, showing Tashi that the wings were, in fact, real.
"What the actual fuck..." Tashi breathed out. "Does it... hurt?"
"Heheh... it used to, but not anymore… It kind of tickles when you touch it like that."
Tashi flinched and retracted her hand back and mumbled out a quiet "sorry."
"Wait… So everything clicks for her. "You are telling the truth. No wonder nobody could see you..." Tashi paused. "Wait. but why can I see you?"
Linnet frowned. They had a commiserating expression on their face.
Tashi nervously chuckled. "What?"
Linnet pulled themself together and adorned their face with the same dumb smile. "It's because you are special. Tashi"
Tashi put a hand up to her chin and looked them up and down. They thought for a few seconds before asking,
"Okay, so is that all?"
"Mhm~ I told you everything!"
.
.
.
"So, get out."
"What?"
"Get out."
"B-But why!!"
Tashi dragged Linnet to the door by their arm and unlocked the door for them.
"What do you mean, 'Why?' This is MY house; I don't allow random strangers to stay for free, whether they are angels or not."
Blood drained from Linnet's already pale white skin; they fumbled on their feet as they nervously tried to reason with Tashi.
"Wait… Don't kick me out! I don't have anywhere else to go! I'm going to get hurt again!"
"Not my problem. Not unless you pay me. And I assume you don't have money."
"Well, I—yeah—but—I can protect you…?" I can be your guardian angel… or something."
"You can't even protect yourself." Tashi mockingly laughed. "How will you protect me?"
"I..."
The door is shut quickly on their face before they get another word out.