The sun was setting on the ocean, pink and gold hues flooding the sky. Aiden and Ashley clamored up the steps of a lifeguard watch station.

“The little girl asked me if she could be an angel”

Aiden let out a chuckle, “They all want wings”

Ashley frowned, “I never know what to say”

They both stopped at the edge of the railing. On the ground stood hundreds of figures dressed in black trench coats. All of them stood watching the sun as it disappeared below the horizon. “Tell them the truth, angels aren’t human … we were never human” he replied.

The brunette sat quietly for a moment thinking, “What if I just make her a little pair of wings out of paper?” she asked hopefully.

The dark haired boy looked at her pointedly, “Tell her the truth”

Ashley shrugged her shoulders in defeat, “I told her”

“And?” he asked, “How did she take it?”

“She said ‘What good would wings be if you couldn’t feel the wind on your face’ ”

—————————————————–

Spencer sat at the bar. It was 6 pm on a Tuesday evening and perhaps too early to be drinking. However her sleep schedule had been so out of whack the past couple of weeks she couldn’t have told you if it was morning or night at the moment.

She swirled the remainder of the drink in her glass, watching the liquid bubble and foam. Beer. She didn’t know when she had started drinking it. She had never been a big fan growing up. Her first girlfriend Lucy had tried to get her to drink it all the time when they had been dating. Lucy had been a big sports fan, and always had a couple Heinekens next to the couch as she watched what she deemed almost daily to be the “big-game”. Spencer hated sports, god did she ever hate sports. While she was physically fit, team activities had never been her thing. Her days as a child had been spent with her head hidden in a book. Her over-sized glasses and obtrusive retainer hadn’t done much for her social life during high school. Always the class nerd her self-esteem was in a perpetual state of disarray even after she had stopped hiding behind her black frames. She was beautiful, your classic all American wholesome girl. The kindof person everyone wanted to take home to mom. Smart, attractive, successful. She was the epitome of the perfect woman. So why didn’t she feel like it?