My Angel

Chapter One

The day was cold and the clouds dark, the sky veiled by overcastting weather with promise of snow and chilly winds nipping the air. It was the normal weather for the month of December, weather to be expected of every year, especially around Christmas, which was to many people's liking. A blizzard Christmas Eve was the so called "perfect weather" and many of the citizens in Japan loved it. In addition, a peaceful snowfall on Christmas morning was approved of as well.

Tsuzuki Asato was also one for this kind of weather. When Christmas came, which he shared with his friends and co-workers, he liked to watch the falling crystals outside as they made their slow journey down to earth. It seemed ironic that snowflakes were like sakura petals from the sakura trees he saw bloom every year in the nearby park. He liked the comparison and wondered how it differed from leaves that came from Japanese maple trees. He did not have an answer for that as of yet.

Right now, he was walking home from work, wrapped up in his trench coat and a scarf, braving the freezing winds and the few snowflakes that had just begun to fall in his path. Others were around, also trying to get home as he was, some of them greeting as they passed, to which he returned their gestures with a smile. He liked Christmas a lot, mostly because the people on this day and mostly throughout the month were very kind to one another, even if bitter rivalries normally tore them apart.

Tsuzuki knew he was not too far from his apartment, only a few blocks, if he was going in the right direction. Everything seemed familiar and he knew he was heading right where he wanted to go. He had considered stopping by a small café on the way, to get some ho chocolate, but figured that it would be cold by the time he got home, so he decided against it, instead thinking about making it at home instead.

He reached his apartment in better time than he thought he did. The only thing he did not like about his apartment, besides the fact that it was too quiet and lonely, was that it was right next to an alleyway. The alleyway seemed to have a dark feel around it and it scared Tsuzuki when he had to walk past it to get to the front door. Normally, he'd take the long way around to avoid it, but this time, he was more desperate to get inside and turn on the fireplace than to face the dreadful alleyway.

There was always something lurking in the alleyway that gave Tsuzuki goosebumps, but the part of him that would normally be scared to think about it told him to go in it once before going inside the house. After all, the alleyway shielded and anyway, it wouldn't hurt, but it was odd to hear it straight from the side that least wanted to think about it.

He peeked into the alleyway as he walked past slowly, hoping to see nothing, but he was amazed and surprised to see a small figure huddled against the wall, their body shaking violently, even though no wind made it inside the secluded area.

Concerned as he always was, he ran over to the figure, surprised to see it was a boy, around in his teen years with dirty blonde hair that caught the mall snowflakes as they landed there. His head was down and his body, Tsuzuki saw, was clad in only a pair of white Capri pants and a black tank top, certainly not made for this weather. There was also a glittering golden sash around his waist.

Tsuzuki gently placed a hand on the boy's cheek, nearly withdrawing it in shock. His pale face was as cold as the ice that fell from the sky and he did not respond to the touch. A little frightened now, he gently shook the boy's shoulder and put his fingers to the boy's neck, relieved to be getting a pulse. He tapped the boy's cheek, and then placed his hand upon it.

Ever so slightly, the head moved, lifting up to see who it was that had disturbed him. Startling emerald eyes that were very wide looked up through a hazy veil of tiredness, meeting Tsuzuki's amethyst eyes. The green eyes of the unknown boy blinked for a few moments, before they closed again and head rolled off to the side, unconsciousness claiming the fragile youth once again as a barely audible moan released from those dusty pink lips.

Worried that the boy would get sick and possibly die out in the cold, Tsuzuki took off his coat and wrapped it around the boy's shoulders, picking him up off the snowy round around him, slipping the boy's arms into the long sleeves of the trench coat. He cradled the boy in his arms and walked out of the alleyway, pulling out his apartment keys and inserting the single silver key into the lock. He opened the door, closing it behind him with his foot.

He walked into to his bedroom, placing the unknown youth on his bed, unraveling the cold coat from around him. He did not think that the boy would be warm in a coat that had been on him while he was out in the snow. He tucked the covers of the bed around the boy's shaking form, pausing only once to see a necklace around his neck. It was beautiful.

It was a silver metal chain with a silver clasp, attaching a cross pendant with a rose imprinted on it in the middle, surrounded by what looked like to be ancient words that Tsuzuki could not read, nor could if he tried, because the print was too small. Nevertheless, they did indeed look like letters. He wondered where a boy had gotten such a beautiful necklace. It seemed to suit him, Tsuzuki noticed, in many ways, many more than just one.

He tucked the covers around the boy to ease the shivering and sat back in a nearby chair, watching as the shivers died down, the cold feeling seemingly beginning to vanish and calm, even breaths escaped the teenager. Tsuzuki sighed in relief before placing a hand to that pale forehead, checking for fever, which he was relieved not to find. At the simple contact, however, he watched as the head moved and a pained groan escaped the small mouth. Elegant eyelashes fluttered as the eyelids slid back, revealing the green eyes again that were veiled with the same tiredness as a few minutes ago.

"You're awake," Tsuzuki said gently, causing the head to whip around in his direction, confusion playing across that pale face. "I'm relieved."

The face turned from him to look at the ceiling, eyes blinking as though trying to focus, trying to figure out the surrounding he had been placed it. For him, it was strange not to see the alleyway wall, as it had bee the last thing he had seen before he had been knocked out and then found by this mysterious man.

"Where am I?" he asked quietly, his voice like the coo of a dove, soft and wavering, hesitation in asking such a question shining through all emotions. Tsuzuki smiled gently at him.

"This is my place," he answered the boy. "I found you outside in the cold and decided that you'd be better off in here rather than out there."

The boy shakily tried to sit up, but his body wouldn't cooperate, as his limps were still somewhat frozen from outside. He cringed as he slipped back, hitting his head against the headboard. Tsuzuki rushed over and helped him sit up properly, handing him two painkillers to help the headache. The boy did not seem to want to take the pills; instead, he placed them on the nightstand, not looking at them.

"Are you all right?" Tsuzuki asked, concerned for boy's health. The teen looked at him for a moment before glancing out the window, watching frost collect at the edges of it, as though he had never once before seen it.

"I'm all right," he answered quietly, his voice still carrying the soft heavenly tone that seemed to make the room warmer each time he opened his mouth to speak. It was incredible. "Who are you?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Tsuzuki apologized, releasing he hadn't introduced himself. "My name is Tsuzuki Asato, but you can just call me Asato if you'd like. And your name is…?"

"Hisoka," he answered, not breaking his gaze from the window. "Just Hisoka."

"Well, Hisoka, you may stay here as long as you'd like while you recover from the cold," Tsuzuki offered kindly. "By the way, may I ask you why you were out there?"

For a moment, a flash of fear crossed the angelic features, the green eyes widening a fraction and a frown displaying itself upon his lips before it was gone as though it were never there. He shook his head slightly before answering, "I got lost… sort of."

"Hmm, I see," Tsuzuki mused, leaning back in his chair as he seated himself again. "Do you live around here?"

Hisoka shook his head again, a bit faster this time. "No, not exactly."

"Where do you live? Because maybe I can take you back home when you feel better," Tsuzuki suggested, wanting to know more about this mysterious boy by the minute.

Another shake of the head was the answer. It seemed to be a reflex; something the boy was used to doing when answering questions directed at him. "It's too far, but thanks for your offer."

"Well, would you like to stay here, then?" Tsuzuki offered for the second time that night. "I can't really let you go out on your own in the cold."

Hisoka turned to stare at the amethyst-eyed man with a look that plainly was wondering why he would offer something like that. His emerald eyes clouded over in a hazy confusion and a pure dumbstruck expression fixed itself on his face. Tsuzuki smiled at the expression. He couldn't help but admit it looked cute on the boy.

"Are you sure?" Hisoka asked hesitantly, the calming angel voice wavering in its words as the boy returned to looking back out the window. "I won't be a burden, will I?"

Tsuzuki shook his head, his smile almost reaching from ear to ear. "Of course not! Besides, I wouldn't mind the company. In fact, I prefer the company. You can stay as long as you'd like."

For a second, a flicker of a smile was seen on the boy's face before it vanished. "Thank you…"