We've been outside for longer than I thought. The sun, slowly creeping up from behind the trees, is proof of that. Casting rays of warmth across the once gloomy sky.

The rain has shifted into a light drizzle, although the ground under our feet is still soggy. With every step we take through the forest, the mud squishes under our sneakers.

We move through the forest unhurriedly. The pain from the scratches on my leg becomes less noticeable as I walk on it. Until M and Tina don't have to help me keep upright anymore. But my ears still ring, and my head is still sore. What I wouldn't give to take a long nap in my bed, draped under the covers with M by my side. I wouldn't even get mad if his wing smacked me in the face occasionally, I would actually welcome it.

The ground beneath our feet shifts as we step into my backyard, the grass greener and taller. Luckily, my house still stands, but the closer we get, the more I can't help but let out a distressed whine. I forgot about all the damage Mørke and his beasts did to the inside.

Stepping through where the glass door to the backyard should have been, I hear nothing but the cracking of broken glass under my shoes. The floor is covered with thousands upon thousands of them. Now, there's just a gaping hole in the middle of my poor excuse of a living room slash dining room, the cold breeze finding its way inside.

Together, we all move further inside the room, taking in the utter chaos.

The dining table is broken in half, all the chairs thrown haphazardly around the room. Picture frames lie on the floor. All of them covered in spider-web-like cracks. Even the TV didn't survive, sporting a nice hole through its middle. How that's even possible, I have no idea.

I flop down on the couch. It creaks as I fall into it. But instead of going to stand up again, I just slide further into it. I honestly can't be bothered. It's the only thing that still resembles what the living room used to look like.

"How will I ever explain this to my parents," I groan, smacking my hands up to cover my eyes. To hide from the fact that my entire house looks like it's been hit by one massive tornado.

"Maybe the upstairs looks better," Tina offers, sitting down next to me. She makes a face at the broken sounds coming from the couch. "By the way, I don't think this couch is ok."

"I don't even wanna check the upstairs," I tell her, ignoring her comment about the couch. It will survive. And hopefully, I will too, when I finally gather the courage to tell my parents that a few things need replacing. I try imagining a scenario in my head where my parents won't kill me out of pure anger, but come up with none.

"We'll find a way to fix this, Caleb," M says as he sits down on my other side. The couch screeches as we all drop further down to the floor. The legs that once held up the couch, shooting out from under it. Turns out my parents might also have to invest in a new couch after all.

"Told you so," Tina speaks into the silence, leaning into the couch with a tired huff of her breath. "So angels, huh? I never saw that one coming. Vampires and werewolves, maybe, but angels?"

"It's bizarre," I offer her as I let my head rest on M's shoulder. "I guess I owe you an explanation."

Tina snorts. "Big time."

"Do you remember that time I helped you train for basketball?" I ask her, turning my head just enough to see her looking back at me.

"I mean, you weren't of much help, but I appreciated the try," Tina adds. I roll my eyes, almost able to hear them in their sockets.

"Well, that night during the storm, M fell face-first into my backyard. I didn't know who he was at first, and I was scared out of my mind. All I saw that night was just an almost naked man, smeared in dirt and blood, and with these large angel-like wings. I didn't know what to do, so I dragged him in, tried to take care of him as best as possible, and eventually, he woke up," I explain, letting my hands flop down on my thighs.

"And this Mørke guy, where did he play a part in this?" Tina cocks her head in question.

"He was the reason I fell down in the first place," M starts, licking his lips. "I couldn't remember a thing when Caleb found me. I didn't even know my own name. I guess Mørke didn't know exactly where I was in the beginning either, but ultimately he ended up finding me."

"This is all so crazy," Tina rubs her forehead with her palm. "So I was basically played with and used by Luke, who wasn't actually Luke, but this Mørke guy, all just to get to M."

"When you say it like that," I cock my head. Maybe I should keep a more careful eye on who Tina dates because It seems like every time someone has an eye out for her, they come with nothing but trouble. I can't really blame Tina for any of it though. I would never.

"He wasn't just after me," M speaks up. "There were more like me. The night I fell into Caleb's backyard, I was in a battle with him, my people fighting alongside me. But I let them down, and because of me, they're all dead."

That's the first I hear of that. "You can't blame yourself for something Mørke did," I state, softly touching his shoulder.

"But I am partly to blame for it too," M stands up in a huff, walking away from the couch.

I follow him. Leaving Tina sitting on the couch staring at both of us with curious eyes. I ignore her deciding to focus on M who's standing with his hands on his hips and a serious frown on his face.

"I failed them when they needed me the most," M lets his frustration show in how his shoulders wind up tightly. "Instead of looking out for them, saving them. I was playing human down here on earth. I should have done something sooner."

"And how would you have done that?" I question. "For starters, you didn't even remember who Mørke was or the other angels for that matter."

I walk over to him, taking his face in my hands and leading his glare towards my floorboards onto me instead. "You're alive, you fought and won. You have avenged them. They would have been proud of you."

"The things he did to them, Caleb," I can see the way M's eyes start to tear up, his voice slightly wobbly. "He showed me what he did to them. It was horrible."

The sad look on his face makes my stomach sink. My arms reach around his waist as I pull him into a tight hug. Resting my head on his bare shoulder. I open my mouth, ready to sprout out an apology when the house suddenly starts to shake. The lamp holding on for dear life above the broken dinner table falls to the floor with a loud crash.

"You guys weren't expecting guests, were you?" Tina pipes up from where the glass door to the backyard once was.

Both of our heads turn towards her. Sounding a quick no at the same time.

I spot the two women in my backyard fairly quickly. They're standing tall, hands on their hips and white feathery wings spread out behind them. My eyes widen at the realization. They're angels, just like M.

I feel M's hold on me loosen as he rushes outside, heading straight towards the two women. I follow him, confusedly. Stopping right next to Tina.

"Gabriella," M rushes over to the older-looking of the two women, enveloping her in his strong arms. "I thought you were dead."

The woman, slightly shorter than M, smiles from within his grasp. Her smile is just as perfect and pearly white as M's. When they finally let go of each other, I can see her face more clearly. They share the same strong features, all muscled and sun-kissed skin.

"We thought the same of you," The younger-looking girl standing next to them speaks out. M puts his hand on her shoulder, giving her a friendly jerk. "It's good to see you."

"We've been looking for you," The woman, Gabriella, states. "We thought we had lost you, that Mørke got to you. If it hadn't been for the blast we would have never known. We came as fast as we could."

"He's gone," M takes a step back from the pair of women. "I killed him. He's not coming back. But he showed me things, he told me he had gotten rid of all of you."

"And you believed that?" The young girl pipes up, smacking M's bicep softly.

"I didn't know what to think," M defends himself. "When I came down here, I didn't remember a lot." M points over to where I'm standing awkwardly listening in on their conversation. "That's Caleb, he helped me back on my feet, he did much more than just that too."

The two women both give me a short acknowledging nod before going back to M. "You let humans help you," The young woman hisses.

"What matters is that we've found Michael," Gabriella rests her hand on the young girl as a way to calm her down. "And we can't stay here for long, there's business to attend to. We need our leader back, Michael."

"Are we just going to ignore that those humans now know about us? What if they go around telling everyone," The young woman yells up again, starting to frown at the dismissiveness of her partner.

"I won't, I promise." Tina interrupts. "This is all really cool and weird, but no one would believe me." The same goes for me. If I ever dared, people would just look at me like I grew an extra head.

"They would never tell," M defends us. "Trust me."

"Very well, then I don't see a problem with us leaving right now," Gabriella gives him a curt nod.

"I-" M pauses. "I can't just leave them."

"I'm sorry," Gabriella says and means it, putting a comforting hand on M's shoulder. "But we need you with us. We can't afford to be apart any longer."

M looks down at his feet.

"I understand," M rubs his chin thoughtfully. "Will you give me a minute to say goodbye?"

The two women give him a curt nod as he turns towards me. Eyes soft, an unspoken apology hiding in there somewhere. I leave Tina to follow M over to a more private area of the backyard. A bit further away from the others.

"So you're leaving," I start when it's clear M doesn't know what to say. "Are you going to come back?"

M frowns. "I don't know. I can't say."

I try to keep the tears away. But my vision blurs before I can do anything about it. I try to avoid M's eyes, but my sniffing exposes me.

"Hey, don't cry," M says as I let him dry the few tears on my cheeks with his thumbs.

A short glance into his brown eyes has me looking back down to the grass under our feet. My cheeks start to warm as I feel the embarrassment creep up.

I understand that he needs to go. He's the leader, which makes a lot of sense considering his massive hero complex. So I can't just be selfish and beg him to stay, even if I want to. I don't think he would either. Not when they're here, alive and asking him to go back with them, to go home.

I've barely known him for a month and I'm crying over him leaving. I scold myself internally. This all feels like one big joke. A fantasy that isn't so fantastic anymore.

"I'm going to miss you," I admit. "I know we haven't known each other for long, and to be honest, I don't know a lot about you. But it still feels like I've known you for years."

I let M's fingertips grace my own before tangling our hands together. His grip is tight. His hands, warm.

"I wish we had more time to get to know each other. I'd tell you everything about me, now that I remember," M smiles sadly. "And I would have loved to get to know you better too. And to kiss you more."

"You can kiss me," I chuckle, which slowly dies out as my stomach starts doing flip-flops, awaiting his touch. I close my eyes as I feel him pull me into him. Our lips touch, probably for the last time.

I savor his taste.

When M pulls away, he lets his forehead rest on mine.

"Lucy is gonna be sad that you're gone," I break the comfortable silence. Feeling M let out a breath with his laughter.

"I'm going to miss her too, she was my favorite."

"Rude," I say, punching M's arm lightly.

"I'm joking," M chuckles, pulling me into a final hug. I hear Gabriella call out for M, making him let go of me.

"It's time to go," He says. I can feel my stomach sink as I follow him over to the women once again. Something pulling at my heart, tightly.

"It was nice knowing you," Tina says awkwardly as she wraps a comforting arm around my shoulders. We both look as the angels prepare themselves for take-off. Gabriella offers M her hand, probably to steady him on his still not fully recovered wing.

"Say goodbye to Lucy for me," M takes the hand that Gabriella offers.

"I will," I reply.

And with that, they dash upwards. Swiftly and with enough speed that when I look up into the sky, there's no trace of them. Nothing to see and nothing to hear. They're really gone.

I'm thrown back into a panic when suddenly there's a shrill scream coming from within the house. I really can't catch a break. Not even to mourn the loss of M.

"What the hell has happened to the house?" I can hear my mom cry out inside as my dad lets out a continuous string of hell no's in disbelief. I didn't even hear them pull up to the house. Not that that would have changed anything. The house is still a wreck.

When I was younger, I would usually always listen to any evidence of my parents coming home. The tires on gravel or the smacking of the front door. But now, all the excitement of knowing they're home is gone. Instead of that happy feeling whenever they came back to me. The only feeling I get now is the plummeting feeling in my guts.

"Caleb!" I hear both of them scream.