Hidden Angels

Prologue
"Hey, girl, wanna play hid'n seek?" The blond boy asked with a knowing smile. He had bright blue eyes, like the sky, and a year round tan.
"Kay!" Willow called happily. "Who's it?" she asked.
The children stopped and looked at her. A few of the older boys grinned. "You are!" they all yelled, then ran off, except for the blond boy. He turned and looked at her. He frowned then slowly spun around and ran after the others.
Willow counted to 50 and went after the other children. She couldn't find anyone. 'They're really good hiders' she thought.
After about an hour she tumbled into of a big dark forest, confused, and sad. They had been making fun of her, again! She was the new kid, for the 3rd time this year. Her daddy was always making them move. And her appearance didn't help much. She's always looked different. Not like her mother or her father.
Willow has long orange hair with pink highlights. She has never dyed it. It was always in two pony tails. She is tall and thin and she's very pale. Her eyes clash with her hair. They're a bright green color. Her parents eyes are blue and brown. They both have black hair.
Willow came to a clearing. She ran towards the light coming from a split in the trees and fell. She had tripped over a tree root. She didn't bother getting up. A howling sound came from the trees. She whimpered and curled into a ball. The howling came again, closer this time, only a few feet away.
It was going to eat her. She didn't care. Let it. It's not like it mattered anymore. Mother and Father would just move away again. LIke always.
She heard footsteps coming from behind her. She just closed her eyes tighter. A man stopped a few feet away. "You can't just die ya know." his voice was deep. He sounded older than her, by maybe ten years. He sounded angry.
She looked up and gasped. The man had jet black hair that hung over his eyes a bit, and deathly pale skin. He was about seventeen. She was six. He was really tall. Like over six feet. But, weirdest of all, his eyes. They were the darkest eyes Willow had ever seen, black. He looked like an Angel of Death. "Will?" the man asked.
"Hmm?" Willow answered.
"Give me your hand. They won't stay back for long. I surprised them. We gotta go." He reached down and pulled her up onto his back. She didn't resist. He started running. Willow closed her eyes and pressed her tiny face into the man's back. He smelled weird. Like frost or mist. "Down," he ordered. She obeyed. He started walking away.
"Wait!" Willow called, "Who are you?" she looked around and saw that she was at home. She saw the familiar red Maserati, and the blue Ferrari. She saw the old oak tree daddy was going to have cut down. And lastly, she saw her new home. A five story mansion were she has a whole floor to herself.
"Let's just say I'm your shadow. I've been in love with you from the start."


Chapter one
"Willow, child? Wake up. It's the first day of eleventh grade. Today you're officially a Junior." A little old lady called from outside the door. Her name was Matilda, but I called her Nannie. She was like a mother to me. Since my mother died when I was young, I never really knew her. Father say's I don't want to. I just think he misses her. He's always so grumpy. He's never told me how she died. Nannie says from an animal attack, but I don't believe her.
I get up and get dressed. I looked in the mirror and saw a little blood on my shoulder. I gasped but kept going, forcing last night's dream out of my mind.
School starts today. I get to see my "friends" again after a long summer. I go to a boarding school. School doesn't actually start today. Today we move into our dorms. Classes start next week. I've already packed my bags. I have two suitcases and two duffel bags a lot less than the rest of my classmates.
I grab them and head down stairs. I walk into the kitchen to see Nannie cooking eggs. If father saw her he would be furious. The cooks cook, not the maids. I don't really care. I prefer her food, although, if Chef Xuqiu [it's pronounced Zeque] heard me say that he would have a heart attack.
I sat down at the table and Nannie set a tray in front of me. It had a glass of orange juice, a glass of milk, a plate of bacon, two sonny-side-up eggs, a pile of pancakes, and a blueberry muffin. "I can't eat this all," I complained.
"You can, and you will. You're a tooth pick child. You need some meat on those bones." Nannie exclaimed in her weird French accent. Her grey hair was a mess. It was piled high in a bun that was falling out. "You need to get your things ready, the limo'll be here soon."
"Alright, I'll hurry." I downed the milk and grabbed the muffin. "See you at Thanksgiving. Bye!" I gave her a hug, picked up my bags, which were at once taken away by Markus our butler, and ran for the door. As I passed through the hallway leading from the kitchen to the sitting room, I noticed the door to my father's study was ajar. I crept closer.
"Eli, I need to speak with her now, before she leaves."
"Cartyer, you know it's forbidden to tell her." a man, presumably Eli, hissed.
"But, she's in danger!" my father all but yelled.
"She'll end up like her mother when you decided to 'slip up'," Eli sneered in his raspy voice. When he said that I risked a peak into the room. I saw my father, back to, siting the chair across from his desk. I could just see the top of his head. Eli was sitting in my father's chair, he really must be important if he's sitting there. He had black hair, smoothed back with hair gel. There were a few strands across his forehead. He was wearing squared glasses. He glanced up and I ducked. Apparently he didn't see me because he didn't say a word.
I heard someone getting up out of a chair. Maybe he did see me? I started scrambling backwards, but it was too late. A head poked out of the doorway. My eyebrows shot up. Eli grabbed the door knob. He leaned down and whispered, "You had better hurry, the limo is here." Then he abruptly slammed the door shut. It took a minute for my breathing to slow.
"Mistress Hill," a servant called from down the stairs. "Mistress Hill, the limo is here to take you to school!" I sprinted down the hallway, and nearly fell down the stairs. "Careful Miss," The young boy said respectively as he bowed.
"Kay," I ran to Markus and grabbed my coat. He bowed to me and said, "You have a good day Miss." I was stunned. Markus never talked. Oh, well. No need to dwell on the details. I gave Nannie another hug and stepped up to the door. As I went to open it I stopped short at the sound of someone clearing their throat behind me. I turned and saw my father. He was dressed as usual, in his black trousers, white button up shirt and a black overcoat. He barely ever talked to me, let alone come to see me off. He looked very uncomfortable.
"Father?" I asked, surprised. He rarely left his study.
"Willow." He stopped, looked nervously down the hallway, then continued as he carefully walked down the stairs. "Reginald will be accompanying you to and at school."
"But, I don't need a bodyguard at school. Don't they have, like hundreds." I complained. I really didn't care if a bodyguard came along, just not Reginald. He's creepy, and he spends most of his free time out by the maids rooms! I've tried to tell my father before, but he doesn't listen, just like he isn't right now.
"Yes, yes, but you need extra protection. You're my little girl," with that he awkwardly leaned foreword and kissed my forehead. He spun and hurried away, all the while sneaking glances up the stairs.
I frowned and walked outside to the awaiting limo. I thought about what had just happened. Why do I need extra bodyguards, who was that Eli guy and why is my father so frightened him?


Chapter two
"Willie!" several prissy voices called as soon as Reginald opened the door for me.
"Oh, my, gosh! It's that guy!" Mercedes cried excitedly. She has had a huge crush on Reginald since the day I met her and I don't blame her. He's tall and slim, really strong, and has floppy black hair. Mercedes calls him Reg. I've tried to warn her about him but...she's got a thick skull, like most of the girls here.
I tried to act casual, "Hey Mercedes, Waverly, Kristin, Harley-May, Ash. How have guys you been?" Crap, shouldn't have said that. All these girls wanted to talk about was clothes, and which boy they were going out with this time. I've been spending too much time with Ash. He's my best friend, and the only other person at school that I can have a decent conversation with.
Ash's got short cut ashy blond hair, hence the name "Ash", and bright blue eyes. The others think he's kinda creepy because he normally has a crush on the same people as they do, but I'm not as shallow as them. I don't care if he likes guys. I think he's really amazing.
I climbed in and Reginald closed the door. I slide over next to Ash and listened in on the gossip floating around the car. Mercedes and Harley were talking about Reginald. How cute he was, if he would go out with them, (even though they would never think of dating him. He's a bodyguard after all,) the works.
Waverly and Kristin were talking about Jonah, a guy Kristin just started dating. I listened in because they were closest.
"His last name's Parks. He's really adorable, and he's got this accent I've never heard before." Kristin admitted, in her annoying high pitch voice.
"That's funny. You've been, like, everywhere." Waverly said. Her voice was normal, but she irritated me. She was a total witch.
"I know. He won't tell me where he's from, I like that. Mysterious..."
"I do, too. But Jonah sounds kinda freaky. But hot, definitely hot! Tell me again what he looks like!" Waverly pleaded. Ash groaned. Apparently he had already heard. "Oh shut up, Ash." she sneered, "I would'a thought that you of all people would want to hear more about Jonah..." Kristi and Waverly both burst out laughing. I frowned and Ash just stared into space as he always did when someone made a gay joke or insulted him in any other way. They looked at him and giggled some more. I glared at them. They stopped giggling and resumed talking about Jonah.
"Yes, of course I'll tell you what he looks like. Jonah is really white, and he has bleached blond hair, he's like, albino or something." Kristin gushed.
"Really?"
"Yeah. I'll probably dump him soon though." Kristin sighed.
I just couldn't help myself, "Why?" I asked.
They both turned to me. "Well he's not famous of course!"
"Of course..." I sighed. They haven't changed at all. I risked a glance at Ash. He was staring at nothing. Either he was still insulted, or was too bored to participate in the Jonah discussion.
I looked out the tinted windows and saw a park. The grass was green, or so I assumed, it all looked grayish. I saw a group of people, all about my age. They were laughing and joking. One of them looked up at the passing limousine. It felt weird. I could see them, but I knew they couldn't see me. I didn't like it, so I rolled down a window. I got a few glares from the girls for that. The wind was messing up their hair. Oh, well. The window was staying down.
They started talking again.
"Jonah has the best eyes. They're bright blue and gorgeous!" by now I sort of have a picture of the guy in my head. He looks kind of familiar... "And here's a pic of him! Isn't he dreamy."
"I thought you were breaking up with him?" Ash asked, but curiosity got the better of him, and he leaned over to see Jonah. Kristin pulled the picture away and glared at him.
"I will later. Right now, I think I love him!" she said as if he were stupid. "Willie, wanna see him?" she asked me. She sounded annoyed, but she put on a smile. I knew if I wasn't the richest girl at school, Ash would be my only friend. Even if he was rich. Ash in only at my school on a Scholarship. His family is really poor. I've had to help with the bills before. Normally Ash is too proud to except anything, he barely takes the birthday, and Christmas presents I give him, but this was an exception. They were going to loose their house, Ash, his mom, and his sister, Mary. He wouldn't let them live on the streets, and neither would I.
"Sure," I answered. She passed me the photo.
"Don't ruin it."
"No need to worry." I said.
Kristin shot a look at Ash, "I wasn't talking about you." she sniffed. He sighed and leaned back, but he kept his eyes in the photo.
I slowly turned it over and gasped. "Isn't he amazing." Waverly cried as Kristin yanked the picture back. I turned and looked at Ash. His eyebrows shot up as he gave me a questioning look.
"It's nothing," I whispered to him, but I knew he didn't believe me.
I didn't even believe me. I've seen Jonah before, actually, I've seen him a lot. All throughout my childhood, and...in my dream last night. I'm not sure exactly who this guy was, but I'm sure of one thing...he doesn't age.


Chapter3
I take that back. He ages, only really slowly. The first time I saw him he looked about 14. Come to think of it. It was the same day I met that guy. My "shadow". That's really weird. Anyway...in that picture Kristin has, he looked about 17. The same age as me and Ash. The other girls are all seniors, meaning they're 18/19. If he was 14 when I was 6, he would be 8 years older than me. Not 17! He should be 25! There is definitely something wrong with him. I should tell Kristin. No! She'd think I was crazy then see him more often to prove me wrong.
He must know my "shadow". I wonder if they're friends, or enemies.
Jonah doesn't seem like a very good guy, if my dream if correct. It was kinda weird. Both Jonah and my "shadow" (I really need to find out that guy's name!) were there.
Willow’s Dream
"Willow, wait up! Slow down! Don't worry, I'm your friend!" the man chasing me yelled. I only ran faster. I had no clue who this guy was. He's like a rapist or murderer or something. Oh, I wish (and I'm only ever going to say this once, never again, ever,) Reginald were here. He is a bodyguard, right? He should be protecting me!
"Ugh!" I grunted as I tripped over something. I fell and couldn't get up. Something was holding me down. I slowly, and painfully, turned my head to see what was on top of me. "Jonah!" I gasped, barely able to breath.
He grinned wickedly; then bent down and whispered "Willow..." an erie silence followed in which the man/rapist/murderer caught up. He was holding a knife.
"It's alright," he murmured. "Calm down. I'm Clarke."
I screamed, and trashed, but Jonah just wouldn't let up. I don't think Clarke could see him because he was rambling on without even noticing the large man standing on top of me.
Clarke suddenly stopped and turned towards me. The look on his face scared me more than the knife in his hand or the sound or Jonah's hysterical laughter. I screamed at the top of my lungs, a name that I've never heard before, "Miles!"
Jonah stopped his laughter and looked around, hurriedly, turning this way, and that way. Finally he stopped and looked at me. "Where did you learn that name." he demanded in a stern, scared voice. I shook my head. "Where!" he screamed.
"I don't know!" I sobbed.
"You don't know what sweetie?" Clarke asked holding up his knife. Moonlight glinted off the edge. My eyes went wide. He knelt down and laid the tip on my neck...then pressed. I felt blood run down my shoulder and onto my arm. I didn't dare move with the blade so close.
"Don't you touch her!" I heard a strong, familiar voice yell. Suddenly there was no weight on me. The man, Clarke, was gone, and Jonah was rolling around on the ground with...my "shadow"/Miles.
I jumped up and backed away. I leaned against the wall and watched the battle unfold, eyes wide the whole time. Miles was definitely winning. Jonah grabbed for the knife Clarke had dropped, (where did he go?) and I screamed "Miles!" He reached for the knife, but missed, and Jonah threw it. I stared in horror as the knife neared Mile's side, then it flew right past. My eyes widened even more (if that's even possible,) as I realized who the intended target was.
I squeezed my eyes shut and waited for the pain. I felt something, but it wasn't a knife in my gut. It was Miles. He had tackled me! The knife had hid him because he jumped in front of me.
We fell to the ground and I heard Jonah run off, swearing. Clarke was still nowhere to be seen. Thank god! I heard Mile's ragged breath. "Miles?" I asked.
He slowly turned his head to look at me. "I'm fine." He looked just as he did 8 years ago. He even had the same desperate look on his face. "You need to wake up. I'll explain later. Try not to sleep until then, please. Dreams can be deadly."


Chapter 4
"Willow...what's wrong?" Ash asked me for the millionth time since we got to school.
I groaned and said, hopefully for the last time, "Nothing!" It was a total lie. I shook my head and started towards the girl's dorms with Ash at my heels. He grabbed my hand and pulled my to a stop.
"No! Stop saying that. You can fool those prissy rich girls who claim to be your friends all you want, but you can't fool me! Something is wrong..." He looked over my shoulder and frowned.
"Just drop it Ash....and let go!" I yanked at my hand. It didn't come free. Ash looked over my shoulder again and I heard a man's footstep behind me. Who was he, and why was Ash looking so startled.
I turned just as he said, "You heard the lady, let her go!" He grinned when I looked at him.
"Miles!" His grin widened. He stepped forward.
"You remember," he smirked.
Ash let go, but persisted. "Is he the reason you're so....quiet?" he asked.
"Umm....." I racked my brain for a reasonable explanation. I couldn't tell Ash that I'd had a dream about Miles and Jonah fighting and that Miles told me he would come see me. Then the very next day, he showed up. Thankfully, Miles beat me to it.
"I doubt it. It's probably her father. He's been acting very strange lately." He lied so smoothly. It was amazing though, I bet he's had plenty of practice.
"Willow?" Ash asked uncertainly.
"Uh...yeah. Father's been acting strange, uh, very...weird."
"How so?" Ash continued after a moment of thought.
I eased my way past Miles, trying to get away. He wasn't having that, he slowly situated himself so he was in front of me. He did it so well that Ash didn't even notice.
"Umm..." I decided to tell the truth, "He's been spending a lot less time in his study and he's had these odd visitors-"
"What! Visitors!" Miles exclaimed. I used his confusion to get past.
"Umm...bye!" I jogged to the entrance of my dorm, both boys following, and went inside. I was greeted by the familiar scent of roses and Marcie's cheap perfume. I inhaled the sweet smell and quickly ran to give her a hug.
"Oh, darling! How've you been?" Marcie asked in her English accent, which wasn't uncommon. We were in London.
"Fine. I'm glad to be back." Sort of.
"And I'm glad to see you. It's been quite boring without you girls running about." She smiled and went back to dusting. Marcie was the house mother. She takes care of us when we're here. "I see you've brought friends. Hello Ash, and whose this, I've already met Kristin's new bo. Is he yours?"
"No!" I yelled, "You've met Jonah?" I said his name venomously. Miles' eyes widened at the name, but he said nothing.
"Oh yes, sweet boy. He changed schools just to be with her. Young love...." She smiled faintly, not even registering the fact that Kristin will probably ditch him by next friday. Miles froze. Then grabbed my arm. "We're going upstairs, ok?" He didn't even wait for an answer from her, he just dragged me along.
"Mmmhmm...see you at dinner." Miles dragged me up stairs, but I yanked my arm away and took out my key to open my door. I opened it and slammed it in Miles and Ash's faces.
"Oh well, guess she doesn't want to see you." Miles turned around and started walking to the stairs.
"Hey! Wait a minute! Since you got here you've wanted to talk to Willow, but you just walk away now. You're not even going to try to get in, like knocking, or yelling, or something?" Ash demanded. "You're just walking away."
"Yeah, I guess, if you think that's what I'm doing." Miles walked off, a grin on his face.
Ash frowned and exclaimed, "What?!"


Chapter 5

Willow

The first thing I did when I got into my room was take a shower. Once I was under the steaming water I thought about things.
My first problem was Jonah. I mean, Miles was scary and all, but Jonah had tried to kill me. And if what Miles said was true, and I’m not saying it is, I could really die in a dream. Also the blood that was on my shoulder when I woke up this morning was in the same spot that Clarke, the knife guy from my dream, had cut me. The thing that confused me though, is that there was no cut, only blood. There wasn’t even a scar.
My next problem is definitely Miles. What am I going to do with him?
Is he some kind of stalker? Why is he here? Why did he save me from the wolves when I was a kid? Why doesn’t he age? Who is he?
All questions that I need to answer.



Miles

After Willow had slammed her door, Miles immediately ditched Ash. He slunk around the side of the building until he was looking up at Willow’s 2nd story window. He looked around, making sure no one was watching. If he got caught, it was all over.
When he’d convinced himself that no one was near enough to see him. He unfurled his big black wings and jumped into the air.
He gracefully landed on the ledge outside Willow’s window. He looked in and saw steam coming from under the bathroom door. She was in the shower. Good. Makes this easier for him.
Miles pulled up on the window. It didn’t budge. Locked. “I’ll just have to fix that.” Miles said aloud as he closed his eyes. He was never any good at telekinesis, but sure enough, the window clicked and opened without a touch. He slipped through.
Miles smirked when he saw Willow’s room. It was nothing like her personality. First off, it was purple. Willow hated girly colors. She preferred green or blue. Second, the curtains. They were pink with white trim.
“I’m guessing you didn’t pick these out.” Miles frowned as he sat back in Willow’s computer chair to wait.
~
The door slammed out, nearly hitting Miles, and Willow strode out, fully clothed. She didn’t see Miles until she had reached her bed. She flopped down then screamed.
“What are you doing here?” She demanded, but left no time for him to answer, “How did you get in? The door was locked. Did you pick it? I-”
“Will, shut up.” Willow closed her mouth, a small frown on her face. Did he just call her Will? “I came to see you. I came in through the window. Yes, the door is locked, but as I said, window...I really don’t need to answer the last question.” He looked at her with raised eyebrows, daring her to say something, anything.
She was silent, her expression pondering.
Finally she found the right words, “Why were you in my dream?” Miles winced.
“You called me.”
“What? How? What’s with Jonah? Please, Miles!” Willow asked desperately.
“I can’t tell you.”
“But you said-”
“I know what I said!” He snapped, sounding as cruel as he could without breaking. All part of the act. If he told Willow anything the Elders would forbid him from ever seeing her again. No, they would destroy her, breaking the curse.
That’s why Miles was here. To make sure Willow doesn’t die. When the job was done, he’d leave, and never see her again.


Chapter 6
Miles didn’t leave. No matter how many times I told him to. He just frowned and shook his head. He never offered any explanations, never said a word. He just sat and stared at me. It was kind of unnerving.
At around ten there was a knock at the door. Miles’ eyes widened and he jumped up to block me.
“No.”
“Move.” When he didn’t I said, “Now, Miles. I’m not kidding. Move or else.”
“Or else what.” He was back to himself, the shock wearing off. Whoever was at the door, Miles definitely didn’t like them. I’m pretty sure I won’t either. I shoved past him, ignoring my feeling that something bad was behind the door.
When I opened the door, what I saw wasn’t very encouraging.
“Hey, hey, Willie!” Kristin whined. “Wanna go out with us?” I stepped out of the room.
“Us?” I looked around. No Waverly, Mercedes, or Harley-May in sight.
“Uhhum.” A man cleared their throat behind me. I spun and gasped.
“Yummy, isn’t he!” Kristin slipped her arms around him. He smiled devilishly, showing his perfect teeth.
“Jonah.” His eyes widened and he took a step back. He quickly gained back his composure.
“Miles. Fancy meeting you here.”
“Oh, Jonah! Who’s that?” Kristin purred. “A friend?”
Jonah took a step forward and reached his hand out to me, completely ignoring her. “I’m Jonah.”
Miles put a possessive arm around my shoulders and pulled me back into my room. Jonah continued to smile, and Kristin pouted, seeing Miles leave with me. Before the door shut Jonah gave me a little wave and I shuddered.
Miles frowned at me. “Why can’t you listen!” He demanded. “Why do you have to be so stupid!”
“I’m not stupid, and why should I listen to you?” He opened his mouth, but I wasn’t done. “You won’t telling me anything. Why you’re the same age as you were when I was a kid! It’s the same with Jonah. Why you’re annoying as hell and...why you won’t just go away...” I was embarrassed when I realized I was crying, but I couldn’t stop. I just glared at his shoes, not daring to look at his angry face. I don’t want to be yelled at.
He reached his hand up, then froze. He was like that for a few seconds more, then he turned and before he left he whispered, “It’s not safe.”
I ran to my bed, crying, and collapsed, slowly drifting off to sleep.


Willow’s Dream
“Sire, is this the right girl? If so, we must act soon. ” a raspy voice asked from the tall man kneeling in front of the throne. Strangely, I can’t see the man on the throne’s face.
“No! He’s guarding her.” Jonah!
“But, Sire, can’t we just dispose of him?”
“Silence! I must be cautious. We can’t underestimate him.” Jonah roared at the cowering man.
“But-” Smack! Jonah hit the man across the face and I took and involuntary step back and gasped. Jonah looked up.
“She’s here...” He whispered.
“Watching us?”
Jonah ignored him and stepped toward me. He smiled kindly, “I see you...” I turned and tried to run, but he grabbed my arm. “He’s more stupid than I thought. He didn’t even tell you anything, did he? Miles, Miles, Miles.” He tsked, shaking his head. “You’ve sent her into the lion’s den,” Jonah smiled wickedly and squeezed my arm tighter. I grimmest. “Call him.”
“What?”
“Call him! Say his name! I don’t know! Just do it!” Jonah yelled angrily.
“I gulped and whispered, “Miles,” After a shake from Jonah I said louder, “Miles!” He stormed into the room, all but steaming.
Jonah must have seen my confused face because he explained, “This is your dream and Miles can’t enter without permission.” He sang.
“Why can you then?” Jonah grinned and opened his mouth, but Miles flung his shoe at him. “No!”
“I see...” Jonah mused after dodging the shoe. “You haven’t told her anything!” Jonah laughed. He was still clutching my arm. “Do you want to know?” He asked me. “Do you want to know why I can enter your dreams and Miles can’t?” I nodded.
“No!” Miles screamed as he bounded forward. The man from before grabbed him from behind.
“Well,” Jonah started, “How should I put this...? We’re angels!” He cried happily. I gasped and Miles groaned. He looked very very angry. He broke free from the man’s grasp and started toward me.
Jonah grinned and let go of my arm. I ran into Miles’ arms. He held me to his chest and glared and Jonah, then he looked at me, “You idiot!” I jumped back and whacked him.
“Enough with the lovers’ quarrel,” Jonah laughed, “She doesn’t seem to like you much, too bad...I’ll prove it to you that we are...angels!” With that he thrust out his wings. They were pale yellow with gray specks. “Now, as to why I can enter your dreams and Miles can’t. Simple. He has to follow the rules. I don’t.”
“Why?” I whispered.
“Because I’m a fallen angel.” With that he snapped his fingers and everything went black.


I shot up in bed and gasped. Miles was gripping my shoulders, shaking me, trying to wake me up probably.
I threw my arms around him and started crying for the second time today.