The colour of Haraeya’s knuckles drains to a blanched white due to the intensity of his grip. They both slowly descend the pathway towards the car for a second time.

“I do not like this, Lee,” Haraeya whispers as if there are eyes and ears surrounding them.

“You’re fine, kid. I’ve got you, okay?”

Haraeya can be heard exhaling a loud sigh of relief at Levi's words.

By now, they are both in front of the car and Haraeya stares at it warily. “Is it sleeping?”

Levi can’t control the laughter that bubbles from his mouth. “No, it’s not alive, you muppet.”

“Oh.” Haraeya’s head lowers to face the ground.

“Don’t be embarrassed,” Levi backtracks when realising he has upset him, “Easy mistake to make…I guess.” His earlier amusement is promptly replaced with intense concern. This boy is clearly mentally ill and needs professional help as soon as he can get it. Or maybe he has some dangerous drugs in his system, Levi considers. What if he needs his stomach pumped or something?

Levi opens the door for Haraeya, motioning his hand inside. “Get in, buddy.”

Haraeya watches it for a few seconds, before crawling in and sitting up stiffly. His face remains forcefully neutral as if he’s trying not to throw up. Even as Levi leans over the boy to buckle his seatbelt, he remains frozen, staring straight ahead at a lamp post.

Falling into the driver’s seat beside him, Levi buckles his own seatbelt and puts his key in the ignition. The moment the engine splutters to life, Haraeya yelps and squirms wildly, smacking his palms against the window in his attempts to escape the vehicle.

Levi clamps his hand over the boy’s shoulder, holding him down securely in his seat. “Hey, hey, hey! Kid, calm down! It’s meant to do that!”

Haraeya stills, breathing heavily. Face contorted in distress, he hugs the blanket tighter around himself and bows his head to stare at his slippers. He still looks frightened, but not in a panicked, maniacal way anymore. He looks lost…defeated. It makes Levi's heart sad.

The drive to the hospital is silent and uneventful, with the exception of the man sending an occasional worried glance in Haraeya’s direction. Parking outside the hospital, Levi assists the boy out of the car and leads him into the building. Although Haraeya keeps trying to latch his hands to Levi's jacket, the man encourages him to, instead, use them to secure the blanket around himself. One hand resting on the small of the boy’s back, Levi guides him into the building.

Eyes wide and curious, Haraeya looks around the clinical room. His expression is cautious as they approach the front desk.

“Hey, so I found this kid passed out in my garden this morning,” Levi begins to the nurse, eyes flickering towards Haraeya to see him staring at a TV playing some soap opera rerun. Levi leans over the desk and lowers his voice so Haraeya can’t hear him. “I don’t think he’s…very well…you know, mentally. He thinks he’s an angel.”

“An angel?” the nurse clarifies, watching Haraeya with mild concern.

“Yeah, and he has a wound on his back. I tried my best to patch it up but it might be worth giving it a check over, init.”

With an understanding nod, her fingernails clack on keys as she types something into the computer. “Thanks for bringing him in. Do you know anything about him? A name, an address, some way we can contact his family?”

“Haraeya. His name’s Haraeya. That’s all I know.”

Smiling faintly, her fingers return to the keyboard as she types something else in and directs Levi to the waiting room. Guiding Haraeya with a gentle push towards the chairs, Levi has to physically pull the boy by the blanket so he collapses into the chair next to him. A few curious eyes flicker in their direction and mutters can be heard at the sight of this boy clad in nothing but an old plaid blanket and red slippers. However, their stares are quick to avert when Levi sends them a sharp glare.

Haraeya’s gaze remains on his feet, his hand gripping Levi's leather jacket. It makes Levi feel awkward, but he decides the boy’s comfort is his main priority at the moment. The way Haraeya’s legs jitter restlessly and his fingers knead into Levi's jacket makes it clear to the man that anxiety is absolutely consuming him. Levi tries to get into the mind of this kid; what can he do to help calm him down?

Something in his periphery catches his eye. A bead maze toy sits amongst a stack of grossly outdated magazines. Picking up the toy, Levi places it on his lap. “Hey, kid.”

Haraeya looks up and his eyes instantly flicker to the colourful wires and beads next to him. They are spared barely a second of attention before the boy’s head lowers once more to stare at his feet.

Gnawing on his fingernail, Levi ponders to himself. Glancing at Haraeya, he begins to guide the beads over the wires. He chuckles quietly to himself with faux excitement. This causes the angel’s head to lift up once again and his big eyes watch Levi curiously.

“Oh, sorry, am I disturbing you?” Levi asks nonchalantly, “I’m just having so much fun with these…beads…and shit.”

A triumphant grin is bitten back as Levi watches Haraeya reach out a hand to tentatively slide an orange bead along the wire. The tiniest smile ghosts across his face. He sniffles, wipes the ski-slope tip of his nose and moves another wooden bead, a purple one this time.

Not five minutes later, a nurse with a tight, blonde ponytail and a hospital gown draped over her arm approaches them. It takes only seconds for Levi to see how artificial her smile is as she beams at Haraeya. The boy is too focused on the colourful beads in front of him to notice her bend down in front of him to match his height.

“Hello! Haraeya, right?” She speaks to him as one would speak to a child, voice over-enthusiastic and glazed with honey.

Shrinking back in his seat, the boy’s fingers curl into Levi's jacket once again.

“It’s okay, Haraeya, you have nothing to be afraid of. I’m Julia, it’s very nice to meet you! Would you like to put this on? You must be cold!” She holds out the hospital gown for Haraeya to take.

Haraeya glances at Levi. The man nods at him encouragingly. Hesitating, Haraeya takes the gown from her and holds it up in confusion.

“Here, I’ll take you to the bathroom so you can put it on in private on our way to see the doctor.” She smiles kindly and her eyes glimmer.

“Doctor?” Haraeya echoes, “What is doctor?”

“He wants to make sure you’re okay. Would you mind coming with me so I can make sure you’re not poorly?”

Haraeya says nothing; he just continues to stare at her warily and lean into Levi.

“It’s alright, kid,” Levi reassures, nudging him with his shoulder, “I’ve got you. I’ll come with you if you want.”

The boy’s stare alternates between Levi and Julia before he eventually swallows nervously and nods. As they stand, Haraeya squeezes the man’s thumb and watches the abandoned bead maze toy longingly as they turn the corner.

“Lee?”

“Mm?” Levi hums, glancing at the boy with a friendly smile.

“What is this?” he asks, holding up the white garment speckled with navy dots.

“It’s a hospital gown. You’ve gotta wear it to cover up.”

“Why?” Haraeya asks as all three of them stop outside the bathroom.

“I – what? You can’t walk around naked!”

“Why not?” Haraeya's forehead creases in perplexity.

“It’s just…not appropriate.”

“Why? We all have body, yes?”

“Yeah, I guess but–”

“So why do humans hide body when they all have body?”

Levi stares at Haraeya in bewilderment. The boy brings up a valid point, but the way he refers to other people as humans puts him on edge. What is he then?

With a sigh, Levi pushes the bathroom door open. “I hear what you’re saying, kid, but it’s just the way things are, init. Now get in there and put it on, yeah?”

Haraeya steps inside. He watches Levi with sad eyes as he begins to shut the door behind him.

“It’s okay, kid, I’m right here.”

Moments later, Haraeya retreats from the bathroom and Julia helps him tie up the back of his gown. They follow her into a doctor’s office where an Indian man sits in a chair.

He smiles curtly and motions his hand to the chairs next to him. “Please, get comfortable.”

Levi complies, approaching the chairs, but is stopped short in his tracks. He turns to see Haraeya frozen on the spot, refusing to move. Tugging him gently, Levi sighs when the boy remains rooted to the doorway.

“Kid, come on,” he huffs, “They’re tryin’ to help you.”

Julia watches on perceptively from the corner.

“Haraeya, please. For me?” Levi smiles softly at him.

The boy takes a timid step into the room, followed by another, until he is sitting with an unnaturally straight posture next to Levi, stare glued to the anti-smoking poster pinned to the wall in front of him.

“It’s nice to meet you, I’m Doctor Bhatt.” The doctor holds out his hand.

Levi shakes it. “Levi. And this is Haraeya.”

“So, Haraeya,” Doctor Bhatt begins, adjusting his glasses, “I hear you’ve sustained a little injury to your back. Would it be okay if I take a look at it?”

For the first time since he sat down, Haraeya’s gaze moves from the wall and he watches Levi.

“It’s alright, kid,” the man encourages, “We wanna help you.”

Refusing to even glance at Doctor Bhatt, Haraeya continues to apprehensively stare at Levi.

“Can I pull down the gown, Haraeya? Show the nice man your back wound?” Levi's voice is soft.

The boy nods smally. “Okay, Lee,” he whispers.

Gently, Levi pulls the white gown off Haraeya’s shoulders and it pools at his pudgy hips, exposing his back. The moment Doctor Bhatt peels the bandage from Haraeya’s back, Levi can almost feel the blood circulation cut off from his thumb at the tightness of the boy’s grasp.

A few seconds later, Doctor Bhatt lets out a relieved chuckle. “Nothing too bad, I see.”

Levi stares at him in disbelief. “Not too bad? Are you joking?”

“No, not joking, it’s healing well. No sign of infection and it won’t need stitches from the looks of it.”

“Are you having a laugh?” Levi says, standing from his chair and moving around to see Haraeya’s back for himself, “It’s like an inch de–” His mouth clamps shut, only to open again moments later as he gawks at Haraeya’s back in baffled awe.

Not only has the blood dried from the tunnels of jagged flesh, but the deep crevices of the wound have scabbed over and scaled across his back. It has healed. Levi's heart hums against his ribcage. No. That’s impossible.

“I…maybe it’s not as bad as I remember it being?” Levi chews on his fingernail. Maybe his memory had grossly exaggerated the seriousness of Haraeya’s injury?

“It wouldn’t be surprising.” Doctor Bhatt smiles, reaching for the saline and gauze that Julia hands him. “Our brain tends to…blow things out of proportion in moments of panic.” He soaks the saline in the gauze. “I’m just going to clean the wound, Haraeya. Is that okay with you?”

Haraeya peers over his shoulder at the two men behind him. His eyes seem to brighten. “Lee cleaned my back ouch. Are you going to clean my back ouch like Lee?”

Doctor Bhatt pushes his glasses up the bridge of his hawk nose and nods. “Yes, Haraeya. We all want to help you like Levi did. May I please clean your wound?”

For the first time, Haraeya’s eyes meet Doctor Bhatt’s and he smiles smally. “Okay.”

After soaking the gauze in saline and gently applying it to the boy’s wound, Doctor Bhatt attaches the dressing to his back and Haraeya is soon back in his gown.

Levi and Haraeya follow Julia out of the room and down the corridor back towards the main entrance.

“Wait, so what now?” Levi asks her as they walk side by side. Haraeya trails behind them, gripping onto the back of the man’s leather jacket. “What do I do with him now?”

“We’re just gonna give him a little psych test to make sure he’s not…” she lowers her voice and leans into Levi, “You know, a threat. To himself or others.”

The man nods slowly as they enter a different ward and stop outside a door. Julia knocks twice, before turning the handle and encouraging them both into the room. Telling Levi she’ll wait outside, the door clicks shut. The room is bland, white. Impersonal, Levi thinks. The only splash of colour is a painting on the wall and a black sofa in the corner. Chairs are littered around the room, two of which are already occupied. A man and woman sit in front of them, a clipboard in each of their hands. The man is young – he can only be a few years older than Levi. He’s bald, dark-skinned and sharply dressed.

Although significantly older, the woman has youthful eyes and shares the man’s kind smile. Silver streaks through her ginger hair and her pale arms are mottled with freckles.

They both smile as Levi stares at them, Haraeya peeking timidly from behind the man.

“Haraeya?” the man in the chair asks, “Hey, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Seth and this is Linda.” He motions to the redheaded woman beside him. “Would you like to sit with us?”

Both Haraeya and Levi settle into the chairs opposite them. Although Haraeya still has his guard up, he appears visibly less nervous since first entering the hospital. His eyes remain fixed on the painting on the wall to his right.

Linda notices. “You like the painting, Haraeya?”

He glances in her direction for a mere heartbeat before his attention is, yet again, turned to the picture on the wall. “Yes.”

“Do you like the beach?” she asks, voice soft.

“What is beach?” The boy turns to look at Levi.

“The beach. It’s where you to go to see the sea. Build sandcastles and shit, init.” Levi shrugs, scratching his wrist.

“See the sea,” Haraeya echoes, returning his gaze to the painting, “It is very beautiful, Lee. I would like to see the sea.”

Levi can hear the pencil scribbling as Linda takes notes on the paper attached to her clipboard.

“So, Haraeya,” Seth begins, his smile matching the white room, “How are you feeling?”

The boy sits up and his hand moves to clutch onto Levi's sleeve. “I am feeling…scared and happy and sad.”

“That’s an interesting combination,” Seth chuckles, “Why are you scared?”

“I do not like hospital.”

“I see,” he nods, leaning back in his chair. “Why are you happy?”

“Lee.”

“Lee?” Seth repeats, puzzled.

“Lee makes me happy.”

Flustered, Levi's face heats up and he shuffles uncomfortably. More scribbles are heard from Linda’s pencil.

“Why are you sad, Haraeya?” Seth continues.

“I miss my Eema.” Haraeya’s eyes flick to the ground.

“Eema? Is that your friend?”

“My family,” the boy elaborates, leaning into Levi.

“Tell me about your family, Haraeya.” Seth clicks the end of his pen, hovering it over his paper as he waits for Haraeya to speak.

The boy lights up, but there’s a bleakness behind his smile, making it appear as almost a grimace. “My Eema, she is in Heaven.”

“Heaven?” Seth echoes, “Did she pass?”

“I do not understand.”

Sighing, Levi leans forward in his seat. “He thinks he’s an angel.”

“I am an angel!” Haraeya huffs, ripping his hand from Levi's jacket sleeve to angrily cross his arms. More scribbles can be heard from Linda’s pencil.

“Tell me about that, Haraeya. About you being an angel.” Seth smiles kindly.

The softness of his words and the warmth behind his eyes seems to appease the boy. He sits up straight and radiates sunshine as he speaks. “I am an angel and I come from Heaven and I am training to be a Guardian to my Human and my Eema is helping me study!” he pauses and his face falls, “But the Serpent tricked me and now I am banished. I have had my wings stripped and I am stuck on Earth.”

“I see,” Seth says as he and Linda both take notes, “Haraeya, have you ever taken any form of narcotics?”

The boy’s forehead creases and he vigorously shakes his head. “I do not understand.”

“Any illegal substances? Drugs?” Seth pushes.

“What is drugs?”

“Have you ingested any alcohol recently?”

“I do not understand.”

“Have you ever thought about harming yourself, Haraeya?”

“I have thought about a lot of things.” The boy frowns.

Linda glances up from her notebook and peers at Haraeya over her glasses. Her expression is difficult for Levi to decipher.

“Have you ever thought about harming anyone else, Haraeya?” Seth continues.

“I–I have thought about a lot of things.”

“Have you ever hurt yourself, Haraeya? Or anyone else?”

“N-no! I would never hurt anyone!” The boy’s distress is clearly evident as his eyes widen and his chest begins to rapidly rise and fall. He desperately looks to Levi for help.

“Stop,” Levi's voice is calm but firm as he turns to Seth, “He’s harmless, trust me.”

Seth is quiet for a moment and sits back to give Haraeya a chance to calm down. Uncomfortable silence clouds the room in a heavy fog; the only sound to be heard is the constant scribbling from Linda’s pencil. Levi wants to spring from his seat and snap the damn thing in half. The two psychologists are clearly making Haraeya panic; it feels more like an interrogation than a psych test at this point.

“Haraeya, would it be okay if we talked to Levi alone for a moment? You can wait outside with the nurse if you like?” Seth leans back in his chair and smiles at the boy.

“But, I–” Haraeya stutters, latching onto Levi's thumb, “I want to stay with Lee!”

“It’s alright, kid, it won’t take long.” Levi subtly detaches Haraeya’s hand from his thumb and ushers him out of his seat. “You like Julia, don’t you? She’s nice, yeah?”

Hesitant, the boy nods. “Julia is nice. I like Julia.” He approaches the door and slowly opens it, watching Levi with pleading eyes.

“We’re just a door apart, kid,” Levi assures, “Do it for me, yeah?”

Swallowing nervously, Haraeya leaves the room and the door clicks shut behind him.

Every tick from the clock on the wall is like a hammer caving in on Levi's skull. Combing his fingers through his feathery hair, the man sighs slowly and leans forward in his seat. His finger drums against his knee.

“There’s no need to be nervous, Levi.” Linda looks up from her clipboard and smiles briskly. “We just want to hear your side of things away from Haraeya.”

For reasons unbeknownst to himself, Levi is relieved. “So I’m not, like…in trouble, then?”

“Trouble?” Linda quirks a thin brow. “Why would you be in trouble?”

The man’s mouth opens to answer her, but then closes. He hesitates. “I dunno.”

“Did you do something wrong?”

“No. I mean…I don’t think so? I’m just…used to, you know, getting in trouble and stuff, init,” he shrugs, the drumming on his knee getting faster.

Linda’s inquisitive stare flicks to his hand, before quickly returning to his eyes. “I see.”

“Oh no, no,” Levi waves at her dismissively, “Don’t do none of that psychoanalysis shit on me. I’m here for the kid.”

Smirking almost knowingly, Linda nods to herself and leans back. “Did Haraeya mention anything to you that might contribute to his mental health? His financial situation? Family issues? Medication?”

Racking his brain, Levi shakes his head. “No, nothing.” He pauses. “What’s gonna happen to him?”

“He’s a very troubled young man, I think we’d like to keep him in. He needs to be kept in a safe environment with professionals who can give him the help he needs,” Linda says solemnly, tucking a stray strand of red hair behind her ear.

Panic stirs in the depths of Levi's stomach and he almost chokes on the lump forming in the back of his throat. “Keep him in? You mean, like…section him?” Gut-wrenching images of the boy strapped into a strait-jacket invade the man’s mind. Secured to a bed, limbs bound, Haraeya screams for Levi as electric shocks convulse through his body and fry his brain to a burnt crisp.

“It’s a possibility,” Linda’s soft voice jolts Levi from his thoughts, “Seth and I need to discuss it and come to a decision on what would be best for him.” Both Linda and Seth stand in unison and approach the door together. “We’re going to go and talk about it privately, we’ll be about twenty minutes.”

As the door clicks shut, Levi leans forward and rests his chin on his knuckles. He’s worried for Haraeya. Sure, the boy is mentally ill, but is that enough to have him sectioned? He doesn’t pose any immediate threat to anyone – even the mere notion of him hurting anyone is laughable. But then where else would he go? He could hardly rejoin society in the state he’s in.

“I like Julia! She said my hair is pretty!”

Levi had been so wrapped up in his own thoughts, he hadn’t even noticed Haraeya entering the room. It was nice to see the boy back to his old self again. Exuberance and pure, childlike joy surrounds him like an aura.

Bounding towards the man, Haraeya collapses into the chair next to him enthusiastically. “Can we visit hospital every day and see Julia?”

A tiny, tiny orb of hope illuminates the back of Levi's mind. Maybe Haraeya would have no problem being sectioned here after all? Maybe he’d actually enjoy the constant socialisation?

“You like it here?” Levi clarifies, eyebrows raising with hope.

Haraeya nods vigorously, beaming.

“Would you…like to stay here? Like, permanently?”

Levi didn’t think it was possible for Haraeya’s eyes to brighten even more but he was quickly proven wrong.

“Live at hospital with Lee?! Yes! Yes! I like hospital and I like Julia but I like Lee the most of all!” Barely containing his excitement, the boy is bouncing with unequivocal glee.

“No, not me. Just you.” Levi gnaws at the jagged curve of his thumbnail.

The excitement seems to physically drain from Haraeya’s body as he slumps into his seat. Smile faltering, his voice is small. “I do not understand.”

The nausea curled in the depths of Levi's stomach begins to crawl up his throat. He swallows it down. “Look, kid, you’re gonna be…going away for a while.”

“I do not understand. Where am I going away?” The boy’s forehead creases and his posture sinks with his expression.

“You need help, kid, you need people that can look after you–”

“–Lee can look after me! I can live with Lee!” Leaning forward, the boy lunges for Levi's jacket and he holds onto it for dear life. The desperation in his eyes pains the man.

Sighing, Levi tentatively uncurls Haraeya’s fingers from his lapel. “You ain’t living with me, kid. I can’t help you the way you need to be helped; the people here can! They can make you well!”

“I am well!” Haraeya’s voice rises in both volume and pitch, “I am well when I am with Lee and I want to stay with Lee forever!”

He makes another lunge for Levi's jacket, but the man dodges him and stands from his seat. Folding his arms, he scowls at Haraeya. “You sound like a spoilt brat. Be grateful I’m even tryin’a help you in the first place. People around here ain’t all that nice, you know. If you’d been in Ronnie-next-door’s garden this morning, he’d have beaten your naked ass with a broom!”

Bottom lip quivering, Haraeya glares ahead at the wall in front of him. Despite the deep frown, tears begin to brim his waterline.

Levi's expression softens. “Ugh. Kid, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. I just…this place knows what you need, they can make you happy, init.”

“But Lee makes me happy!” Haraeya wails, tears spilling over his dark lashes and streaming down his rosy cheeks, “I do not want to stay at hospital without Lee!”

As his strangled cries echo through Levi's head, all he can see is the boy screaming for him in a white, padded cell. Levi tugs at his coily hair, trying furiously to repel the images.

“Please do not leave me here, Lee!” The boy continues to sob, bolting out of the chair to stand in front of the man and gaze at him with pleading eyes.

Despite the array of thoughts darting through Levi's head, he struggles to focus on any one of them. Panicked, stressed and completely fucking lost, he grabs Haraeya’s wrist and tugs him towards the door. “I’ve got you.”

Ignoring Julia’s calls, Levi drags the bewildered boy down the corridor. He hurries out of the hospital and, without a second glance at the receptionist, they run into the car park together. Unlocking his car, the man urges Haraeya into his seat and straps him in before jumping behind the wheel. It takes three turns of the key for the vehicle to finally splutter to life, but once it does, Levi wastes no time speeding out of there. He half expects to see Julia, Seth and Linda racing after them but, to his relief, the hospital entrance remains vacant.

There’s a ringing in Levi's ears that he chooses to focus on instead of the pulse humming frantically under his skin or the voice in his head screaming at him to turn the damn car around, you stupid asshole.

“Are we going back to our home, Lee?” Haraeya asks, gazing at the trees passing them out the window.

Tapping furiously on the steering wheel, Levi's eyes remain fixed on the road. “My home. You’re not living with me, Haraeya.”

Haraeya’s head shoots round to face the man. “But I do not want to live at hospital, Lee!” he wails.

“Well, you’re clearly not staying there either, are you, else we wouldn’t be driving away from the fucking place, would we?!” Levi snaps as they turn down a desolate road isolated by a thick forest.

Flinching at the man’s harsh tone, Haraeya lifts his feet onto the carseat and hugs his knees to his chest. “Where am I live then, Lee?”

“You’re gonna go back to wherever the hell you came from in the first place. Back to your family, init.” Levi is still yet to even look in the boy’s direction. Anger is weighing down his chest, clamping around his windpipe and tingling at his fingertips. What exactly he is angry about, Levi is unsure. All he knows is his heart is probably beating at twice the speed it’s supposed to be.

“But my family is in Heaven!” Haraeya cries, stare fixed on the blackbird flying alongside the car.

“No they’re not, Haraeya! Your family don’t live in fucking Heaven, okay?!” Levi raises his voice, knuckles tightening on the steering wheel.

“Yes, they do!” Haraeya’s lip pouts in anger and a deep line creases across his forehead.

“No, they don’t, Haraeya!” Levi exclaims, finally turning to face the boy, “You’re ill, you need help!”

Haraeya thumps his fist against his slipper in frustration. “I am not ill, I am an angel!”

“You’re not a goddamn angel, Haraeya!” Levi yells, taking one hand off the wheel to grip at the roots of his hair, “You’re acting like a fucking nutter! You’re gonna get chucked into a bloody madhouse at this rate and there’s nothing I can do to–”

“Lee!” Haraeya screeches, pointing ahead of them.

The man’s head snaps forward to focus on the road. To his horror, he sees what Haraeya is pointing at and he slams down on the brakes even though he knows it’s too late. The car collides into the deer and it falls to the ground with a sickening thud.

The silence that follows is deafening. Both the man and boy sit there, motionless and completely stunned.

A few more heartbeats pass, before Levi slowly turns to look at Haraeya. “You okay?”

The boy nods frantically, his eyes wide and ghostly. “Yes, Lee.”

Combing his fingers through his hair, Levi sighs and lies back. “Fucking airbags didn’t even go off. Stupid fucking pile of junk car!” He smacks the centre of the steering wheel with his palm.

The sound of a strained bleat from outside his window makes Levi's heart sink. Taking a deep breath, he steps out of his car to reluctantly assess the damage. A deer lies in front of the vehicle, collapsed onto its side. Back leg soaked with blood, it cries out another panicked, pained bleat as Levi further approaches it. He looks down at it and reaches out to touch its ear. To his surprise, it barely flinches. Although its huge, dark eyes are wide with terror, it’s as if it has already accepted its grim fate. Chewing on his fingernail, Levi ponders over what to do. Leaving it to die on the side of the road seems like a cruel and undignified death. Dismally, Levi realises the kindest thing to do is put it out of its misery. Sighing once again, he looks at the deer with sympathetic eyes, hoping it knows that what he is about to do is for its own good. He reaches the passenger side of the vehicle where Haraeya still sits with his legs tucked to his chest. “Stay in the car, alright? And don’t look at what I’m about to do.”

The boy watches him in confusion and says nothing.

Twigs snap under his boots as the man treks into the forest in search of a particularly large and heavy rock. He feels cursed, like some sort of magnet for bad luck. What are the odds of him hitting a deer that just happens to walk out in front of the car in broad daylight? Cracking his knuckles against the nape of his neck, Levi surveys the forest in front of him and his gaze settles onto a rock the size of his head. Just as he’s lifting it, he hears the car door slam shut behind him. He heaves the rock into his arms and returns to the dirt path, only to find Haraeya crouched over the deer in an almost protective stance.

“Kid, I told you to stay in the car!”

Stare remaining on the deer, Haraeya holds a finger to his lips. “Shh, Lee. She needs silence.” When he places his hand on the deer’s bloody back leg, Levi recoils.

Pace quickening, he storms towards Haraeya. “What the hell are you doing, you’re getting blood all over–”

The man stops in his tracks, mouth snapping shut. As Haraeya’s hand rests against the deer’s fur, a low, amber glow illuminates from under his palm. Levi watches on, speechless, as the large gash sliced across the deer’s leg begins to fade. The blood dripping from its skin seems to evaporate into the air like a crimson steam. Finally, the amber light from Haraeya’s palm begins to dim and he removes his hand from the deer. Levi still hasn’t had a chance to register what has happened as the deer rises to its feet, seemingly unharmed. Haraeya strokes the fur between its eyes with his thumb and it bows its head before turning around and disappearing into the depths of the trees.

Haraeya stands up and wipes the dirt from his bare knees. He turns to look at Levi, beaming. “She forgives you for hitting her, Lee!”

The rock in his hands drops to Levi's feet. Attempts to reassure himself that all this is completely preposterous begin to simmer from his mind. This isn’t real, he tells himself. This can’t be real.

But Levi doesn’t need to look twice at the dent in his car’s bumper, the unscathed deer trotting back into the forest, and the ethereal glow that has only just died in the boy’s palm. He doesn’t need to look twice, because the horrifying realisation has already crashed down on him in a suffocatingly heavy, bone-crushing blow.

The realisation that the boy stood in front of him with the heart-wrenching smile and enormous eyes, is an angel.