CHAPTER 9

Monica, Hanna and John were now sitting in a comfortable couch, in front of a warm fireplace as the rain kept on pouring outside. The flashlights followed by the noise of the thunders and the howling wind still scared them deeply, despite the fact that now they were all safe inside the cozy cabin and wearing warm and dry clothes. Their hair was still wet but now the Irish angel had put on a lilac sweater and blue jeans while the siblings were dressed with sweatsuits appropriate for their size and which were made in their favourite colour. "Amazing!" they might have thought.

They waited until Andrew came from the kitchen bringing a tray with four cups and many cookies and the smell of the recently prepared hot chocolate and mocha latte filled the air and cheered them up a little.

"Here we go!" he placed the tray on the coffee table in front of them and before each of them grabbed their corresponding mug, another loud thunder made them tremble with fear - even Monica, who was supposed to be the "adult" of the group. The blond angel felt sorry for them but could not help finding her childlike manners quite adorable. As she held the two little ones protectively, he was quick to speak. "There, it's okay... it's just the electricity up there, you don't need to be afraid!"

"Andrew is right, we are safe now. Plus, I'm under the impression that it will soon be over, you see..." she said, caressing their hair as they relaxed a little. "Please, take your chocolate..."

"Yummy... it's delicious!" the little boy exclaimed as he took the first sip.

"Johnny is right, it's really good, Mr Andrew." His little sister politely added, both kids shooting him and Monica a grateful look.

"Oh, Andrew here is a great cook, ya know!" she said, winking at them and making Andrew's heart melt with the cute smile that appeared on her face. "And you'll have the chance to taste it!"

They smiled back at them - their first smile since the dangerous and rather scary adventure in the woods had started. And anyone could tell they were really hungry judging by the way they devoured the snack Andrew had so gently prepared them.

And once the meal was over, the blond angel took care of Hanna's sprained ankle by placing an ace bandage around it. He also cleaned the children's small cuts and bruises as Monica held their hands and assured them it wouldn't hurt. It was then that the Irish angel noticed how tired they were, as they kept on yawning and rubbing their eyes.

"I guess someone could really use some rest for a little while, you see..." she said, feeling sorry for the two little ones.

"You and Andrew remind me of mommy and daddy... I miss them..." Hanna's statement broke her heart, and the two angels exchanged a moved glance.

"Oh, sweetie, I'm sure that soon you will all be together again, you know..."

"Monica is right. I cannot go outside right now because of the storm, but as soon as the weather gets better I'll go tell the police you two were found. The most important is that now you're both safe." Andrew stated, receiving sleepy smiles in return.

"And now you're coming with me, you two can stay in my old bedroom and rest a little. I'm afraid it's been a busy day for all of us!"

Monica held John's hand while Andrew carried little Hanna in his arms upstairs, and the Irish angel was happy that her old room was now sheltering two innocent children who could have even lost their lives outside in the woods. Once they were comfortably settled on her cozy bed, she covered them with a warm blanket and caressed their heads. "Now try to sleep a little, okay? Nothing is going to harm you."

"Could you stay with us, Monica? Please?" Hanna's pleading voice and the look in her eyes left no room for a negative answer, and the Irish angel looked at her beloved Andrew, who nodded with a smile.

"Well, I guess I'll take care of tonight's dinner as we have guests!" he said, and quickly caressed Monica's hair, leaving the room afterwards. The Irish angel remained sitting on the chair next to the bed until Hanna and John fell asleep. Deep inside, she wondered if Andrew was upset with her but she could not deny the joy she was feeling for finding the two siblings lost in the woods.

"Thank You, Father, for guiding me to those wee children... I'm so honoured that one way or another You use me to perform small miracles such as finding two of your children in the woods... Thank You so much..." she prayed, and once she was certain they wouldn't wake up so soon, Monica also left her old room.

But a slight frown appeared in her forehead as she descended the stairs. Was Andrew mad at her for her incautious excursion in the woods?

She found him cleaning the small crumbs of cookies out of the sofa and the coffee table and remained still at the bottom of the stairs, debating on the best way to approach him. But the blond angel soon felt her presence and her indecisive look right behind him and stopped the small task to face her. "Monica? Do the kids need something else?"

She shook her head with a serious expression on her face. "No... They finally fell asleep..." Monica bit her lip and rubbed her hands nervously as he walked towards her. "Andrew... I-"

A loud clap of thunder echoed throughout the mountains at that very moment, interrupting her and making the angel forget about her previous worry. With one quick step, she threw herself in his arms and held him tightly, closing her eyes against his chest as he too wrapped his arms around her small form.

"It's okay, angel... it's okay now..." His gentle voice and loving embrace immediately put her heart at ease. Andrew knew how she didn't like thunderstorms and he also knew that her poor sense of direction had made her go through two scary experiences. Yet, he could not help smiling, feeling glad that he was there to protect her and once again cherishing her childlike meekness.

He kissed the top of her head and caressed her still damp long auburn strands, while his other arm remained around her waist, keeping her close to him.

"Will you forgive me?" she said, once the echo of the thunder faded in the distance.

The blond angel frowned and pulled away just a few inches, and looked down at her. "Forgive you? Forgive you for what?"

"F-for disappearing like that... I know my outing in the woods resulted in saving two wee children but I should have told you where I was going..." She explained, still feeling bad about her latest actions. "It was wrong of me. Please, forgive me."

He let out a small sigh and gently cupped her face. "Angel, I'm not mad at you. I don't think I could possibly be..." Those words brought her some relief, despite the fact that they didn't cast away her guilt. "I was worried, it's true, but I imagined you were out somewhere in the forest and I knew our Father was taking good care of my beautiful angel." He said, running the back of his fingers against her cheek.

But not even his smile and tender gaze were able to make her feel less guilty. "Yet, I could have at least waited until you woke up before I left... or I should have woken you up with a good morning kiss other than making you wake up without knowing where I was..."

A slight smile appeared on the corner of his lips as he playfully touched the tip of her nose. "You're the most adorable creature I've ever met in my whole existence, angel. And just for the record, I won't be upset if I get this good morning kiss right now, you see..." He was glad to see a slight smile finally appearing in her pretty face, and never stopped stroking her cheek. "Besides, I've just noticed I haven't kissed you today, and this cannot be possible!"

He enjoyed seeing her blushing, it was a fact. And when her smile grew wider Andrew knew that he had finally managed to put her worries away. "I love you so much..."

When Andrew crossed the small distance between them, Monica's eyes closed as she felt his warm breath tickling her skin, and his lips touched hers a second later. The kiss that followed was sweet, long and filled with love and much tenderness. He dared to tighten the hold around her a bit more as that sweet caress continued, and only a while later did it become small loving kisses.

"I noticed something while I was in the woods, you know..." she told him, as if she was revealing a secret.

"And what was it?" he wanted to know, never tiring of looking into those brown pools, nor caressing her pretty face.

"I missed you... And I mean I missed you as if I had last seen you a long time ago... even though I had kissed you just an hour before..."

The angel of death narrowed his eyes in a playful way. "You mean you've been kissing me in secret?"

Even though he managed to elicit a small giggle from her, on the following second she was serious again. "It made me wonder what it will be like when... when our days here are over and we have to go back to our work..."

"When this happens, I'll be certain that sooner than we expect we'll be together again, Monica. There's nothing I'm more certain in my existence, because my existence and yours are meant to be only one." He kissed her forehead and smiled. "A very happy one!"

There was a small hint of smile on her lips and he kissed them until she was smiling fully again. "And I don't want to think about leaving our cabin for a while, as we still have many days to enjoy in here! And I'll have many opportunities to tell you how much I love you!"

Deeply moved, and feeling the presence of tears, she raised her hand to stroke his handsome face. He soon took it and kissed her palm, and it was then that he noticed the bruises on her delicate skin.

"Monica..." Andrew was frowning with concern as he immediately took her other hand and saw her two palms were hurt.

She sighed with some resignation. "Oh, well... I guess being in human form has many advantages... especially when those who we love are in human form too, you know!" she said, in a playful way, not really minding those bruises and not wanting him to worry so much. "But it also has some drawbacks..."

"I'll take care of this right now, angel. Take a seat here."

Andrew walked into the living room carrying a bowl of water and a washcloth and placed them on the coffee table, before taking a seat next to her. He dipped the washcloth in the water and pausing to frown at the angry red grazes on the palms of her hands. "This might sting a little, okay?"

"Okay..."

Sighing, he began to carefully bathe the grazes, hating when she flinched slightly. Eventually Andrew picked up the tube of antiseptic cream and spread some over the grazes, satisfied with his work. "There you go." He looked up and smiled reassuringly at her.

The younger angel blinked, looking into Andrew's eyes and marvelled at the immense protectiveness and affection she could see in those green pools. When he kissed both her hands before rising to his feet, she grabbed his arms. "I think I could use some more hugging!"

Chuckling, he decided to leave the cleaning material on the table and held her tightly, kissing the top of her head as one more loud thunder made her shudder. Thanks to their loving Father, the busy day had a happy ending and nothing could feel more perfect other than being in each other's arms, in that peaceful place, surrounded by God's wonderful creations and by much love.