Kai's POV

I rush to Raziel's side while Mel slips from my neck and slithers over to Zorander. "Raz! What happened! Are you okay?"

His skin has a sickly yellowish cast, yet his bloodshot dark brown eyes seem to be trying to tell me not to worry. Every wheeze and cough that spills from his lips is like a punch in the gut, and my hands flitter over him as he clutches his chest.

"What happened?" My voice is strained and barely above a whisper. A whimper escapes me when I hear nothing but coughs in response. "I'll get you some water."

I scamper to my feet and out of the room, returning moments later with two glasses of water. After giving a glass to Zorander, I rush to Raziel's side. I wipe his mouth and help him sit upright so that he can drink.

"Kai, I'm okay." Raziel offers me a weak smile before a fit of coughs attack him.

"You can't go back to Hell."

"I'm okay."

"You haven't stopped coughing!" I glare at him as he tries to suppress another cough. It finally slips past his lips, shattering the thick wall silence building around us. "You said it would be harder once you take Lance with you. If this was just the trial run and you're like this..."

I can't bear to see him hurt.

Raziel's lips curve up into a smile but it doesn't reach his eyes. "I should be alright in a few hours. Don't worry."

"Is there really no other way?" Just the thought of him having to go through pain like this again has my stomach churning.

He gives me a sad smile but makes no further attempt to respond.

Silence falls upon us like a humourless joke at a funeral. I was worried about their plan before, but now, I'm even more worried. Zorander has already started to recover, but Raziel still looks sick and vulnerable. Still, without this plan Lance would wither away into nothingness, and I couldn't let that happen either.

A still wheezing Raziel opens his arms to me, and I sigh and crawl onto his lap. He buries his face in my neck and my hand taps his back in a calming motion.

My eyes follow Zorander as he mops up the gross goop that spilled from Raziel's stomach earlier. He then sprays and wipes the floor before dredging up the tarp. As he exits the room, he calls over his shoulder, "They're new toothbrushes under the sink in the bathroom."

I nod and Raziel murmurs a thank you, giving me a whiff of his pungent breath. Nonetheless, we stay cuddled in each other's arms for a few more minutes.

Once Zorander is finished cleaning and Raziel has brushed his teeth, Zorander begins putting all of his furniture back into its rightful place. He declines my offer to help, and Raziel is still feeling too under the weather to be of any assistance. Instead, the two of us stay on the couch; Raziel with his eyes closed and head resting in my lap and me, gently massaging his temples.

Mel, who has been quietly curled up in the corner since their return, moves towards us, slithering over Raziel's legs and coming to a stop on his chest.

"Raziel, former head warrior of Heaven." He squints his eyes open and gives Mel a lazy smile. "Nice to meet you too." He yawns and closes his eyes before gently petting Mel with one hand.

"Why haven't we met Mel before?" I ask Zorander.

He smirks. "Well I can't have you thinking I'm a good demon." I giggle and roll my eyes in response and his smirk turns into a smile.

Zorander, Mel and I chat for a while; they tell me stories of their time in Hell and their earlier years on earth while Raziel falls asleep on my lap.

"Raz? Hey, wake up," I say sometime later. I gently shake his shoulder and he stirs. "Let's get you home."

He nods and we say bye to Zorander and Mel before I drive us home. Raziel falls asleep on the short drive home, and I find my gaze wandering over to him, my concern growing with the beads of sweat gathering on his forehead.

Once we get home, I manage to get him to eat half a bowl of soup, and I give him some fever medication. I'm not sure if it will work on an angel but it's worth a shot. While Raziel sleeps, I decide to call Declan.

"Hey, I haven't heard from you since Saturday and you weren't at school today. Are you okay?" I ask Declan when he answers the phone. I take a deep breath, looking up at the stars and enjoying the cold night air as I sit on my balcony wall.

Declan sniffles and sucks in a shaky breath. "Lance told me that he's leav...," his voice cracks and he breaks into a sob, "What am I going to do without him?"

"Oh, Declan, I'm so so sorry." I wish there was something I could do.

A mournful wail escapes him, and I hear him blow his nose. "I can't lose him again. It... It almost killed me the first time."

"There's nothing I can say that will make it better, but I want you to know that you won't be alone. I will be here to help you through it." It's not much but it's the best I can offer.

"I know. I just...," he sniffles, "Can... Can Raziel bring him back alive? He's an angel."

"Declan-"

"I'll do anything! I know I don't deserve someone as great as Lance but fuck, he's one of the best things in my life. I can't... I don't want... I... I need him. I'll do anything. Anything at all. Please."

Tears run down my cheeks as I hear the sheer devastation in his voice. "I'm sorry." I asked Raziel this but he said it wasn't something he could do. Only God could fully reverse death, and when He did, it was not without consequences and never after the soul had been dead for so long. "I'm really sorry, Declan."

"I gotta go." A cold edge creeps into his voice.

"Do you want to come over? We can talk and-"

"No."

I flinch at his harsh tone. "Okay," I mumble. A fresh set of tears rolls down my cheeks. It wasn't about me. I know that, but I can't help the hurt I felt when he snapped at me.

"Sorry. I just want to be alone."

Before I can say anything else, Declan hangs up the phone.

"Hey," a voice suddenly whispers from next to me, and I almost fall from my seat on the balcony wall. "Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you! Are you crazy! Why are you sitting up there!" Lance yells, not helping my pounding heart.

I turn towards him and my heart breaks. His eyes are puffy and red, his cheeks are bloated and even the tip of his nose is a deep red colour.

"I shouldn't have left Declan crying alone, but I couldn't watch his tears fall anymore." Lance's arms curl around his torso as thick tears spill from his eyes. "All I've ever wanted was for him to be happy, but it seems like all I do is hurt him more."

"Just give him some time to accept it. He'll come around," I say, resisting the urge to squish him into a hug.

Lance nods, suppressing a whimper. "He was really upset and mumbling to himself when I left." He clutches his chest. "I broke him."

"No, it will be okay," I say, but I'm not sure I can convince even myself of my words. My arms reach out to embrace him, but they stop hanging in mid-air as my tears fall, soaking through the thick cardigan I'm wearing. "How about some tea?"

I don't know what else I can do.

A smile plays on Lance's lips and he nods before we head inside.

"Raz?"

The bedroom is bathed in a light pink glow, seeming to radiate from Raziel's body. "Kai! I was hoping to find you before I was pulled away. Don't worry, I'll be right back," Raziel says in a rushed voice as he stumbles out of bed and slips on his dark grey bedroom slippers.

"Wait, where are you-" He disappears in a flash of pink light before I can finish my question.

Ignoring the part of me that is filled with questions and starting to freak out over my boyfriend's sudden disappearance, I focus on Lance. "I promised you some tea."

Raziel said not to worry so if he's not back within the next two hours, then I can start worrying. Right now, this weeping ghost needs my attention. 

Thank you for reading! ❤

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