Stand by me
By Deyse Magalhães and Gabriela Valenzuela
Prologue
Bourbon street was quite crowded that sunny day when Andrew and Monica were supposed to meet Tess and their new assignment. The two young angels were lost amid the waves of tourists that filled up the shops looking for any kind of souvenirs to take home back from New Orleans. They had arrived early and had spent a rare hour of free time just wandering hand in hand around the streets and the shops.
It had been quite a long since the last time Andrew had visited New Orleans and he had never been there with Monica, so he had found it the perfect chance to spend a little one on one time with his best friend. Walking with her, he found himself enjoying that time more than he had thought. He always loved seeing her so relaxed and happy: that child-like innocence that made her dark eyes sparkle with the most simple things, either a little boat inside a bottle or a coffee mug with a Mississippi landscape on it. He let her go and kept an eye on her as if she was a little girl he was taking care of.
They had gotten into one of the souvenir shops and he was just seeing her picking through the key rings when a voice startled him. "Is she your girlfriend?"
Andrew turned to face the owner of the shop with a shocked face. "N-no" he managed to answer.
"Why not?"
The blond angel looked at Monica once again, not knowing how to explain his relationship with her. He sighed heavily and his silence allowed the man to keep on talking. "You're in love with her, that's easy to see."
"It's not what you're thinking, sir; we..."
He was trying to explain himself when Monica came near them. "Look, Andrew," she said, interrupting the short conversation and showing him a key ring with a small angel hanging from it. "Don't you think it would be perfect for Tess?"
Her wide smile went directly to his heart and he forgot everything around them. "I guess she'd love it, angel. She looks just like you," he stroked her cheek gently and smiled back at her.
Monica chuckled and then turned to the man standing besides Andrew. "I'm taking this, sir, please."
"Sure," the man said. Both he and the angel saw her walking towards the cashier and before he left, he told Andrew: "If you don't risk to get her, you may risk to lose her, pal, don't forget that."
Minutes later the angels were walking hand in hand again on the crowded avenue. "What were you talking about with the man at the store?" Monica asked.
Andrew released her hand and wrapped an arm around her shoulders instead. "You, actually."
"Me? And why would he be interested on me?"
"Well... maybe because you were the prettiest customer down there."
He heard her giggling and felt her arm encircling his waist. "That's according to you."
"That's according to God, baby." He looked at her and felt his heart jumping of joy when he met her bright eyes. "Now let's go find Tess, we're a little late already."
Tess was observing a group of tourists walking along the old lane and taking every opportunity they had to register each part of the beautiful town. The dark skinned angel sighed deeply and glanced at her watch but, before she could even raise her head, she heard two familiar voices right beside her:
"Hullo, Tess!"
"Here we are..."
She looked at her two charges with a questioning face: "Well, isn't it a coincidence I was exactly asking myself where you two could be?", her voice had a slight stern tone, as well as her eyes. Monica and Andrew exchanged a quick glance and the Irish angel was quick to apologise.
"Actually, we're a wee bit late, but it was all my fault, I'm sorry, Tess. Andrew and I started to walk around the city and it was so beautiful and there were so many things to see... I lost track of time, you know. Besides, I wanted to buy you something and there were so many beautiful souvenirs I couldn't make up my mind so easily. But I hope you like this..."
She gave a very small present box to the older angel, and, as she opened it, the expression on Tess' face turned from stern to a surprised (and rather guilty) one. "Oh, Angel girl, it's beautiful!", she exclaimed, with a content smile. The other two angels looked at each other again, now a lot more relieved, and Monica wrapped her arm around the supervisor's.
"You can use this key ring to put your car keys and it matches with the hood Andrew and I gave you some time ago. I thought it would also remind you of us."
"We just wanted to make sure that you'll keep on always thinking about us!" the blond angel added, wrapping his arm around Tess' shoulder.
"I love it, babies, I really do. But you know I carry you two right here inside my heart and I would never forget about you, not for a single moment," she answered back, really touched with that sweet tiny act.
"We know that, Tess. But I think that remembering the ones we love when they are not near us can be quite comforting too. At least it is for me!" Monica said, squeezing the supervisor's hand and shooting a loving glance at the blond angel, causing both of them to smile back at her.
"And how could we ever spend one second without thinking about our sweet angel girl, huh?"
"I don't think this would ever be possible, Tess!" the supervisor and the blond angel respectively said, causing their angelic friend to smile even more, feeling her heart filled with love for the two of them.
Completely forgetting about her previous annoyance, Tess looked again at the tourists that were near them.
"Now, if I can remember, there's an assignment waiting for us right across the street..."
The two angels stared at the group of people with questioning faces.
"So, who is our assignment, Tess?"
"The tourists aren't your assignment, angel girl. That woman is..."
They saw a middle aged woman guiding the group and, as they walked, she was providing all sort of information about the buildings, streets and any other monument that stood in their way. Although she had a friendly smile upon her face, it was possible to see a slight trace of sadness deep in her eyes.
"That is Judith. She has been working as a tourist guide for many years," the supervisor explained.
"This must be a very exciting job; there are so many new people and places she has the opportunity to know!"
"Not for Judith, angel girl."
"Why not?" Andrew wanted to know.
"Well, although she's surrounded by people most part of the time, Judith is one of the most lonely souls on this Earth. She's lost the ones she loved most in this life and, together with them, she also lost her faith in God."
"Oh, dear...", Monica murmured, immediately feeling sorry for the woman.
Andrew nodded his head. "We have to show her a reason to keep on living and, consequently, bring her faith back."
"That's it, angel boy. Your assignment is to help her to recover her faith and to show her God always has a plan even when we can't see it at the moment," the supervisor completed.
They looked back at the tourists, who were now passing by a beautiful ancient church, and exchanged a rather shocked and surprised look when the woman skipped the huge monument without even giving the group a single information about it.
By Deyse Magalhães and Gabriela Valenzuela
Prologue
Bourbon street was quite crowded that sunny day when Andrew and Monica were supposed to meet Tess and their new assignment. The two young angels were lost amid the waves of tourists that filled up the shops looking for any kind of souvenirs to take home back from New Orleans. They had arrived early and had spent a rare hour of free time just wandering hand in hand around the streets and the shops.
It had been quite a long since the last time Andrew had visited New Orleans and he had never been there with Monica, so he had found it the perfect chance to spend a little one on one time with his best friend. Walking with her, he found himself enjoying that time more than he had thought. He always loved seeing her so relaxed and happy: that child-like innocence that made her dark eyes sparkle with the most simple things, either a little boat inside a bottle or a coffee mug with a Mississippi landscape on it. He let her go and kept an eye on her as if she was a little girl he was taking care of.
They had gotten into one of the souvenir shops and he was just seeing her picking through the key rings when a voice startled him. "Is she your girlfriend?"
Andrew turned to face the owner of the shop with a shocked face. "N-no" he managed to answer.
"Why not?"
The blond angel looked at Monica once again, not knowing how to explain his relationship with her. He sighed heavily and his silence allowed the man to keep on talking. "You're in love with her, that's easy to see."
"It's not what you're thinking, sir; we..."
He was trying to explain himself when Monica came near them. "Look, Andrew," she said, interrupting the short conversation and showing him a key ring with a small angel hanging from it. "Don't you think it would be perfect for Tess?"
Her wide smile went directly to his heart and he forgot everything around them. "I guess she'd love it, angel. She looks just like you," he stroked her cheek gently and smiled back at her.
Monica chuckled and then turned to the man standing besides Andrew. "I'm taking this, sir, please."
"Sure," the man said. Both he and the angel saw her walking towards the cashier and before he left, he told Andrew: "If you don't risk to get her, you may risk to lose her, pal, don't forget that."
Minutes later the angels were walking hand in hand again on the crowded avenue. "What were you talking about with the man at the store?" Monica asked.
Andrew released her hand and wrapped an arm around her shoulders instead. "You, actually."
"Me? And why would he be interested on me?"
"Well... maybe because you were the prettiest customer down there."
He heard her giggling and felt her arm encircling his waist. "That's according to you."
"That's according to God, baby." He looked at her and felt his heart jumping of joy when he met her bright eyes. "Now let's go find Tess, we're a little late already."
Tess was observing a group of tourists walking along the old lane and taking every opportunity they had to register each part of the beautiful town. The dark skinned angel sighed deeply and glanced at her watch but, before she could even raise her head, she heard two familiar voices right beside her:
"Hullo, Tess!"
"Here we are..."
She looked at her two charges with a questioning face: "Well, isn't it a coincidence I was exactly asking myself where you two could be?", her voice had a slight stern tone, as well as her eyes. Monica and Andrew exchanged a quick glance and the Irish angel was quick to apologise.
"Actually, we're a wee bit late, but it was all my fault, I'm sorry, Tess. Andrew and I started to walk around the city and it was so beautiful and there were so many things to see... I lost track of time, you know. Besides, I wanted to buy you something and there were so many beautiful souvenirs I couldn't make up my mind so easily. But I hope you like this..."
She gave a very small present box to the older angel, and, as she opened it, the expression on Tess' face turned from stern to a surprised (and rather guilty) one. "Oh, Angel girl, it's beautiful!", she exclaimed, with a content smile. The other two angels looked at each other again, now a lot more relieved, and Monica wrapped her arm around the supervisor's.
"You can use this key ring to put your car keys and it matches with the hood Andrew and I gave you some time ago. I thought it would also remind you of us."
"We just wanted to make sure that you'll keep on always thinking about us!" the blond angel added, wrapping his arm around Tess' shoulder.
"I love it, babies, I really do. But you know I carry you two right here inside my heart and I would never forget about you, not for a single moment," she answered back, really touched with that sweet tiny act.
"We know that, Tess. But I think that remembering the ones we love when they are not near us can be quite comforting too. At least it is for me!" Monica said, squeezing the supervisor's hand and shooting a loving glance at the blond angel, causing both of them to smile back at her.
"And how could we ever spend one second without thinking about our sweet angel girl, huh?"
"I don't think this would ever be possible, Tess!" the supervisor and the blond angel respectively said, causing their angelic friend to smile even more, feeling her heart filled with love for the two of them.
Completely forgetting about her previous annoyance, Tess looked again at the tourists that were near them.
"Now, if I can remember, there's an assignment waiting for us right across the street..."
The two angels stared at the group of people with questioning faces.
"So, who is our assignment, Tess?"
"The tourists aren't your assignment, angel girl. That woman is..."
They saw a middle aged woman guiding the group and, as they walked, she was providing all sort of information about the buildings, streets and any other monument that stood in their way. Although she had a friendly smile upon her face, it was possible to see a slight trace of sadness deep in her eyes.
"That is Judith. She has been working as a tourist guide for many years," the supervisor explained.
"This must be a very exciting job; there are so many new people and places she has the opportunity to know!"
"Not for Judith, angel girl."
"Why not?" Andrew wanted to know.
"Well, although she's surrounded by people most part of the time, Judith is one of the most lonely souls on this Earth. She's lost the ones she loved most in this life and, together with them, she also lost her faith in God."
"Oh, dear...", Monica murmured, immediately feeling sorry for the woman.
Andrew nodded his head. "We have to show her a reason to keep on living and, consequently, bring her faith back."
"That's it, angel boy. Your assignment is to help her to recover her faith and to show her God always has a plan even when we can't see it at the moment," the supervisor completed.
They looked back at the tourists, who were now passing by a beautiful ancient church, and exchanged a rather shocked and surprised look when the woman skipped the huge monument without even giving the group a single information about it.