Title: Every Season Under Heaven
Authors: Jennifer G. and Kimbre
Category: LOTS of drama
Rating: PG-13
Summary: What happens to angels that die? Will Kayla beat cancer when an angel couldn't? Sequel to "Through The Valley." This story will make no sense if you haven't read that one.
Disclaimer: As usual, I don't own them and I promise to put them back when I'm done, with minimal damage. Don't sue me, you won't get anything from this poor college student anyways, LOL. And my wonderful co-author Kimbre doesn't have any interests in lawsuits either, so there! ;)
Authors notes to follow the last chapter….
Ok, here we go…. Buckle your seatbelts… it's gonna be a bumpy ride. You have been warned….
Prologue
As the song went on, the beeps on Monica's heart monitor began to slow down. Silent tears rolled down Andrew's face as well as Tess's as they did their best to make the moment peaceful. Tess's rich voice finished the heartfelt song as Andrew whispered words of love to his dearest friend and Monica weakly squeezed Tess's hand as the heart monitor beeped one more time and then the line running across the screen went flat...
Andrew felt Monica grow limp and heavy in his arms and he knew that she was gone. He swallowed the lump in his throat as he stepped forward and gently placed her body back on the bed. She looked so peaceful, dark eyelashes resting gently against her porcelain skin, her small hands resting at her sides. The little Irish angel was so still, which was the only thing that gave her away to be anything but asleep, even though her fragile body still showed the signs of the illness that had ravaged through her.
Tess and Andrew flanked the sides of the bed as the doctor came into the room and turned off the alarm of the heart monitor. "I'm so sorry," Doctor Stanton said, her eyes flicking to the small body of her patient. The older doctor felt a twinge of pain in her heart as she looked into the faces of Monica's friends. This day wasn't the first one that caused the older doctor to question why disease happened to people like Monica, who had so much to offer, and so much life left. Doctor Stanton quickly turned off the oxygen, and disconnected Monica's body from the machines that had been trying to keep her alive. She pulled the shades down over the inside windows, so nobody could see into the room from the hospital corridor. "Take as much time as you need," she told the two grieving angels as she headed for the door, "have the nurses page me if you need me."
Andrew reached down and stroked Monica's hair back from her face, a gesture that he had done so many times before. "I can't believe that it actually happened, Tess," he whispered. "What happens to angels that die?"
"They go Home." A familiar voice answered. Andrew and Tess turned to find Adam standing at the foot of the bed, looking down at Monica's still figure. "I took her Home to be with the Father."
"How is she, Adam?" Tess asked anxiously, "How's my baby?"
Adam hesitated for a moment before answering, trying to think of the words that would hopefully give his friends some peace, "She's no longer in any pain, and she's back to her old self," mostly, his mind added. "She misses you though, and she wanted me to tell you that she loves you both very much."
"When is she coming back to us?" Andrew asked, his face pained.
Adam shrugged, "I don't know. I wasn't given any information other than to tell you where she was."
Andrew took Monica's limp hand in his and brought it to his lips. "I love you so much, sweet angel. I'll see you later." He straightened up and wiped a lone tear from his eye. "I need a few minutes," he told his friends, "I'll be back later." Giving Monica's hand one last squeeze, he stood up and walked out the door.
Adam looked at Tess worriedly, "Do you think he'll be alright?"
"I sure hope so, baby… But I don't think any of us will be until we see Monica again."
***
Andrew sat in the hard wooden pew in the hospital chapel, staring at the altar at the front even though he was seeing nothing but the events that had transpired in the last half hour back in his friend's hospital room. He had never seen an angel die before, and the fact that the angel in question was his dearest friend made his heart ache like never before. Andrew felt a presence next to him, and without turning his head, he asked, "How, Adam?" He asked, not expecting to get an answer. "How could anything hurt this much?"
"I don't know, my friend. But I do believe that there was a reason for this." Adam placed his hand on his friend's shoulder. The contact seemed to bring Andrew out of his trance, and he looked at him with eyes full of raw pain.
"A reason? Adam, did you get a look at her before you took her home? I've never seen anyone suffer like that before."
Adam nodded his head, "Yes you have, Andrew. You've seen suffering like that thousands of times. It just seemed worse this time because you love Monica so much."
"Of course I love her, Adam! She's my dearest friend, and she didn't do anything to deserve any of what she went through. You weren't there; you didn't see how scared she was, and how much it hurt me to not be able to take that fear away for her. I couldn't do anything! I couldn't stop her from being afraid, and I couldn't stop her from dying!" Andrew looked his friend dead in the eye, and the pain and confusion Adam saw in his friend's green eyes was enough to make his own heart hurt.
"Andrew, stop for a second and think about what you've just said." Adam kept his hand on his friend's shoulder, forcing eye contact. "This whole situation has given you a chance to learn something as an angel, if only you'll take the time to see it."
Andrew's eyes clouded over with confusion, "What?"
"Monica's death was senseless, slow, and full of suffering, right?" When Andrew nodded, he continued, "And, you don't think anything could hurt so much, and you can't seem to understand why I said you've seen suffering like hers a thousand times over, because to you it seems so much worse." Andrew nodded again, not really following his friend's train of thought.
"I don't understand, Adam. What are you getting at?"
Adam paused for a minute, hearing words only audible to him, "Andrew," he said gently, "Isn't that how all of your assignments feel? They see suffering on the news and all around them, but it never hurts as much as when a loved one is doing the suffering. They can't see God's plan in the midst of all of it, because all they can see or think of is how much their loved one didn't deserve what happened to them, and how helpless they felt not being able to stop it."
"Oh, my God," Andrew uttered, finally understanding what Adam was trying to say, "But, Adam, it still hurts so much. To watch her go through all of that, and not be able to stop it."
Adam squeezed his friend's shoulder, his eyes full of compassion. "I know, my friend, but even though you don't see it now, you've been given a gift. You have an entirely new understanding of what the loved ones of the people you take home are feeling, just as Monica has a whole new understanding of what humans facing death are feeling. I know it hurts, and God knows it hurts. And you know where to take that hurt, Andrew. You take it to the same place you tell your assignments to take it to."
Andrew nodded, his eyes glassy with unshed tears. Adam squeezed his shoulder once more and rose from the pew, heading for the chapel doors as Andrew got to his knees and bowed his head to speak to the Father, just as he had told countless assignments to do.
***
Tess stood outside Kayla's room, looking at the door and trying to figure out how she was going to tell the young woman about Monica. "That young baby's going to be heartbroken, Father," she whispered, "Just give me the right words to say to her."
The older angel opened the door and entered quietly, in case Kayla was sleeping. She looked towards the bed and found that the young woman was awake, and watching television. "Hello, baby."
Kayla turned at the sound of the familiar voice and smiled, "Tess." Her smile faded as she looked into the angel's eyes, seeing the pained look reflected in them, "What happened?" She asked quietly, hoping against hope that the answer wouldn't be the one she feared.
Tess took a seat on the edge of Kayla's bed, "Baby, I don't know how to tell you this…"
Kayla cut her off, "She's gone, isn't she?" She asked tearfully, "Monica's gone." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.
"Yes baby," Tess said, "We lost her about an hour ago." A choked sob escaped Kayla and Tess reached out to gather the young woman into an embrace, partially to comfort the young human, and partially to fill a need within herself. "It's okay, baby. She's not in pain anymore, and she's with God."
"I know," Kayla said, still wrapped in Tess's arms, "But she was one of the best friends I ever had." Tears rolled silently down the young woman's face as Tess stroked her hair. "What if I die too?"
Tess pulled away slightly and looked Kayla in the eye. "Listen to me, baby," She said sternly, but gently, "You are not going to die. You're a fighter, and you are going to beat this."
"But Monica couldn't beat it, and she was the strongest person I ever met!"
"Yes, baby, she was strong," Tess agreed, her heart contracting as she spoke of her baby in the past tense. "But, her body just gave out on her. Your body is still strong, and your spirit is even stronger. You can beat this baby; you just have to believe that and remember everything Monica told you. Even though she isn't here in body, she's still with you. She's still with all of us."
"I hope you're right, Tess," Kayla said weakly. "because right now, I feel anything but strong."