Rafael

...

Isn't it a beautiful feeling when someone you love reciprocates that feeling? Isn't it wonderful that if you love someone, you can be with them through thick and thin? And if you can't be with someone you love, can you love someone who's unattainable? Wiktoria did it. She loved someone even though she knew it was a mistake. Even though the world hated her, she managed to pour even a drop of affection into them.

For nine years, Wiki lived with her aunt, who hated her. At school, Wiki wasn't particularly well-liked and rather unpopular. Nothing worked for her except her dreams. Ever since her mother's death, Wiktoria had imagined that some special angel was watching over her. But certain events in her life eventually stopped believing it...

The next day, she went to the park. Without thinking much, she sat on a bench and started reading a book.

"Those scare…!" she heard someone shout from behind her. When she turned, she saw a gang of bullies from her school.

"Get out of here..." Wiki snarled and returned to her book.

"What if I don't...?" asked one boy from the group, taking the book from the girl.

"Mom, if you can hear me, help me," Wiki thought.

"What...? Are you speechless?" another hooligan laughed and threw Wiki off the bench.

"Mom, please..." Wiktoria kept begging silently.

"What, scare the girl away..." asked one of the boys, pulling the girl by the hair. "

Leave her alone..." they heard a voice from behind them. Behind them stood a rather tall, dark-skinned boy dressed all in white. "Didn't your mother teach you not to hit a girl, even with a flower...?"

"And even if you did, what do you care...?" shouted Tomek, the leader of the gang. "Get out of here, or you'll get it too!"

"Yeah...? And what if I'm not afraid of you..." The stranger smiled slightly, and Tomek lunged at him. Tomasz didn't even have time to touch the stranger before he was thrown three meters away. Suddenly, the entire gang attacked the stranger. However, they couldn't handle him either. When the entire mob was lying on the ground, the savior approached Wiki and helped her up.

"Are you okay...?" he asked calmly.

"No...thank you," Wiki said quickly and ran toward the house.

That night, Wiktoria didn't sleep well. She kept wondering who the stranger who had saved her was. The moment she closed her eyes, she saw him standing over her with that mysterious smile of his.

Suddenly, she heard a sound… It was the flutter of wings. Wiki got up and went to the window, but saw nothing there except a white feather on the windowsill. The moon gave it a silvery glow. Wiktoria carefully took the feather from behind the window. As soon as she touched it, she immediately felt a strange sense of peace and joy. This feather, however, was different… It was soft as velvet and smelled delicately of lilies. The girl placed the feather on the nightstand and immediately fell asleep.

The next day, Wiki calmly walked to school. As soon as she entered, she immediately felt someone grab her and throw her against the wall. When she looked up, she saw Tomek standing over her with a split lip…

"What…? Your friend is gone…? And who's going to protect you now?" the boy was clearly furious.

"Get lost! I don't even know him! Besides, I can defend myself…" At these words, Wiktoria gave Tomek a kick in the gut and ran away.

"Thank God the end of the year is tomorrow..." she whispered to herself and entered the classroom.

When she emerged, Tomek and his gang were already waiting for her at the school...

"Scar them off, come here!" Tomek waved her off. Wiki started to run away, but this time she failed.

"So? Will you apologize to me..." Saying this, Tomek grabbed her by the hair.

"You're welcome..." Wiki gritted her teeth.

"Will you apologize?" Tomek pulled her even closer.

"You're welcome!" the girl insisted.

"Apologize..."

"I already told you to leave her alone!" Suddenly, just like before, the same stranger from yesterday appeared from nowhere.

"It's you! What do you want again?" Tomek asked with a scowl. "You really want to get..."

Tomek suddenly let go of Wiki and, approaching the stranger, pulled a rather large pocketknife from his pocket. The rascal was about to strike the stranger, but the man took the knife from him.

"So what now?" the dark-skinned man asked with a mysterious smile, and Tomek and his friends practically ran away.

"Are you okay...?" the boy helped Wiki up.

"No..." Wiktoria complained. "Why did you do that?!

"But what's your point...?" the boy was slightly shocked. "

You want to pretend to be Mother Teresa, don't do it here! Tomorrow I'll be in trouble again because of you!" the girl was now screaming.

"But...

" "I don't care about any 'buts'! Leave me alone!" Wiktoria said through tears and ran to the park. She sat there for a long time. She didn't even notice when it got dark.

"Mom, help me... I have nothing but problems," Wiki thought and started to cry. Suddenly, she felt someone sit down next to her. When she lifted her head, she saw her savior.

"And what are you doing here again?" Wiki quickly wiped her tears. "

You were crying because of Mom... because she died..." The stranger looked into Wiki's blue eyes, and a strange shiver ran through her.

"First of all, how do you know about my mom? And secondly, why do you care why she's crying?"

"I know about your mom from your classmates... and I care because I don't like it when girls cry...

" "Are you spying on me?" Wiki asked reproachfully.

"No... I was walking the dog and I noticed you..." the boy stated calmly, pointing to the white haski. Suddenly, Wiktoria felt incredibly embarrassed.

"I'm sorry for what I said today... I was angry.

" "It doesn't matter...

" "You know... I really didn't mean to... Thank you so much for helping me, but I just might get in trouble tomorrow because of you..." A tear appeared in Wiki's eyes. "

Why are they picking on you...?" the boy had an exceptionally calm and pleasant voice.

"I don't know..." Wiki felt like she was about to burst into tears. She pulled her knees to her chest and looked into the stranger's brown-gold eyes. Just then, she felt the same feeling when she touched the feather. "Who are you anyway?"

"Let's assume it's Superman," the boy laughed warmly. "Although it's better to go home now, because it's getting late..."

Wiki got up and headed home with the boy. They were silent the entire way.

When Wiktoria entered the staircase, she suddenly remembered that she didn't even know her savior's name. When she jumped out of the staircase, he was gone...

The next day, Wiktoria dressed in her formal attire and headed towards her high school. When she emerged after the assembly, surprisingly, it wasn't Tomek waiting for her with her report card, but the boy she'd talked to yesterday. "

Where's Tomek?" Wiki asked the stranger. "

I scared him a bit..." the stranger smiled. "Now come on... I'm inviting you for ice cream to celebrate the end of the school year."

"But I..." Wiki was a bit reluctant. After all, she doesn't even have money for bread, and she certainly won't get any ice cream from her aunt. "...I don't have any money." "

Don't worry, I'll pay." The boy smiled even warmer. Less than half an hour had passed and they were already sitting in a small café.

"What's your name anyway?" Wiki finally asked.

"Rafae... Rafał." The boy probably didn't know for sure himself.

"Nice to meet you... Wiktoria," the girl said with a smile. It was her first smile in weeks.

"You have a nice smile," Rafał said, and Wiki blushed. "

Thank you... oh my, what time is it?" A terrified Wiktoria glanced at her watch. "My aunt will kill me! I'm sorry, but I have to go..."

"Wait, and I'll walk you..." Rafał got up from his chair and followed Wiki. However, they made their way back in silence...

When Wiktoria reached the top, she was immediately punched in the face by her aunt.

"What are you thinking, you little brat?!" her aunt was furious. "Go to your room! You won't get anything to eat until the day after tomorrow!"

Wiki wasn't particularly concerned about her aunt... She kept thinking about Rafał and his brown eyes. The girl entered the room and threw herself on the bed. She began playing with a feather she'd found...

Wiki didn't even notice when she'd fallen asleep. But when she got up, her aunt wasn't home. Wiki quickly dressed and quietly slipped out. She went to the park to read, hoping to meet Rafał. She sat there until evening, until she heard the flutter of wings. When she turned around, she saw Rafał behind her, dressed in white as usual... The moon reflected beautifully in his brown-gold eyes. Wiki didn't know why, but Rafał made her feel so calm, happy, and safe... "

Why are you sitting here alone at night?" the boy finally said. "Won't your aunt scold you for being gone so long?"

"She doesn't even know I left." And I'm sitting here because what am I supposed to do…" Wiktoria looked up at the starry sky…

"Definitely not sitting here… Do you know what kind of guys hang out in the park at this hour?"

"Definitely less grumpy than you…" Wiktoria started laughing, but Rafał's face wasn't exactly happy. "Okay… Cool… I'm going home now…"

"Well…" the boy said with obvious relief, "I'll walk you home…"

This time Wiki decided she wouldn't stay silent. She started talking to Rafał about him. It turned out he was 17, a year older than Wiki, and that he'd come to Poland from some distant country. Wiktoria was having such a pleasant conversation that she didn't even notice when she reached the house. Resigned, she said goodbye to Rafał and disappeared through the gate. Of course, as soon as she entered the house, her aunt started hitting her. Wiktoria ran into her room, crying, and threw herself on the bed. She couldn't stay there any longer… She waited until her aunt fell asleep and began quietly packing. When she had gathered all her things, she left the house. She had run away and would never return... Without a second thought, Wiki walked forward until she reached the dark allotment gardens. Luckily, one of the houses was open. Wiktoria decided that was where she would spend the night. No one would look for her here... If they even did...

After a week, Wiktoria found a job as a waitress and realized the house was abandoned. With the first money she earned, she bought a castle and furnished the house a bit. It was her new home... Wiki also went to the park every day to meet Rafał. When she told him one day that she had run away from home, he flew into a rage.

"What do you think you can do on your own!?" Rafał shouted.

"Yes. I have a job... I'll earn a little more and I'll be able to buy that house..." Wiki was rather pleased with herself.

"You won't be able to...! You're underage!" Don't you fucking understand?! Wiki felt tears welling up in her eyes. It was the first time she'd heard Rafał curse, but also the first time he'd shouted at her… "Wiki, I'm sorry, I… I didn't mean to…"

Wiktoria felt tears streaming down her cheeks. She buried her face in her hands and ran home without a word. When she entered the cottage, she saw Rafał...

"What are you doing here?" The girl was quite surprised.

"I really wanted to…

" "Get out!" Wiki cut the boy off. "Who let you come in here?! You have to get out immediately!"

Seeing Wiki's tearful face, Rafał approached her and hugged her to his chest.

"I'm sorry… I really didn't mean to yell at you…" He began stroking the girl's hair. Wiki looked into Rafał's eyes with her tearful blue eyes and began to cry even harder. The boy continued to stroke her. Wiki tried to kiss Rafał gently, but he suddenly pulled away. Wiki just looked at him questioningly, and the boy left without saying goodbye. Now Wiktoria was even more hysterical... The only person… The only one who understood her… He left her…

With that thought, Wiki ran out of the cottage. She headed for the nearest bridge, intending to end her life.

"No one cares about me anyway..." she thought. Standing on the railing, she was still tormented by doubts.

Suddenly, she heard a boy scream behind her... When she turned, she saw Rafał running towards her. She smiled at him through her tears and jumped... As she fell, her entire miserable life flashed before her eyes. She was already waiting for the moment she would hit the water, but it never came. She kept her eyes closed... She only felt something lifting her up... into the heavens... When she opened her eyes, she saw herself flying above the water. Looking around, she saw Rafał holding her in his arms. He was shirtless at the moment, and two enormous, snow-white wings were growing from his back. Wiki, unaware of what was happening, fainted...

She woke up at home, with Rafał sitting in a chair next to her, holding her hand. His wings were still out, but they had taken on a slightly grayish color...

"Who are you...?" Wiki's voice was laced with bitterness.

"Your guardian angel. My real name is Rafael..." the boy replied calmly, still holding Wiki.

"Who...?" she didn't want to believe it.

"Your angel...

" "Wait... so what are you doing here and not in heaven?" "

He's watching over you...

" "Oh, great... I've fallen in love with my own angel...

" "Unfortunately, I can't reciprocate your feelings..." Sadness was visible in Rafał's eyes.

"And why aren't your wings white anymore?" Wiki asked worriedly.

"If an angel stays on Earth too long, that's what happens...

" "Then why don't you go back there..." Wiki yanked her arm from Rafał's grip. "

Because I'd have to leave you, and I don't want to..." the boy said sadly.

"But you can't stay here! You have to go back there..."

"What if I don't want to come back, but just stay here?!"

"But I don't want you to stay..." Wiki had tears already in her eyes.

"Don't lie to me!" Rafael shouted, and his gray wings flapped. Wiki stood up and gently kissed Rafael.

"Get out!" she screamed, burying her face in her hands. "Now!"

Rafael stood up without a word, walked out in front of the house, and flew away. Wiki cried for a long time. Only the gentle song of the nightingale cheered her up...

Wiki had to shake herself. Start living again... She went back to work, cleaned, read... She did everything to forget Rafael. But nothing helped... She often went to the bench where they had met... One day, lost in thought, she heard the flutter of wings. When she turned around, she saw Rafael. She immediately stood up and threw her arms around him.

"What are you doing here?" she cried with joy. "I told you to come back to heaven and watch over me."

Rafał looked at her with amused eyes and kissed her passionately. It looked beautiful... Rafał covered Wiki with his large, white wings...

"But an angel can't watch over an angel..." he whispered directly into Wiktoria's ear and nuzzled his face into her neck... The feathers in his wings began to darken until they turned jet-black and slowly began to fall out... The boy moaned quietly in pain.

"What's wrong with you?" Wiktoria asked, terrified.

"But an angel can't love..." Rafał said, standing up without his wings. "...and I'm not one anymore..." he explained, then kissed Wiktoria again...

That night was special... full of magic, peace, and joy... When a night like that comes, it means that a heavenly being has fallen in love with a human...