Excerpt: When Shadows Fall

The summer heat had snuck up on them, as he stood in the hot sun, watching. People waved at him as they headed towards town, nodding at him. He had not done public art for a very long time now, he sometimes thought back to the old days, his life.

He could feel Luka’s eyes upon his back, watching quietly, not saying a word. The quietness in their home had become more profound now, but it was a comfortable silence, one they both appreciated.

“You should go.” Luka’s voice cut through his thoughts, as he turned around to look at him. Luka was looking down at his feet, before he looked right back. “You miss it. Go.”

“What about you?” Azrael could not help but ask. Crowds had terrified Luka during the last few weeks, Luka always hiding behind him when he heard the conversations drifting in through the windows, never wanting to go out.

Luka smiled, just a quirk of his lips.

“I’ll go with you.”

-

He could feel Luka press close to him, as they walked down the familiar path. He would never know what it was like for Luka, having to look at everyone, everyone who had seen him at his most vulnerable. He adjusted his materials, but Luka took some from him. There was a ghost of a smile on Luka’s face, as he tugged the paint box away from his hand.

The stall had been empty for a long time; he had missed this place, it had been his hideaway as he dealt with issues that had cropped up in his life. Painting was his life, just as reading was for Luka.

There were familiar faces around him, as he felt the pat on the back by one of his very first customers. Jake had run up to them happily, and lunged towards Luka, who had staggered under his onslaught, before stiffening at first, but eventually hugging him back. Raelin had been less animated, walking up to them, smiling at them, before Luka allowed her to hug him as well.

It was good to be back, painting the streets, painting for the people. Luka was happy too, happier than he had been the past few weeks. There was a certain expression on his face, that Azrael had only seen once before, a long time ago, when Luka had seen for himself the beauty of spring.

To say that Luka had been able to wake up from his nightmare might be pushing the truth, but Luka had definitely managed to push it behind him. There were many qualities that Luka had that made him so lovable, but you had to know him, before you realized that, that Luka himself was the manifestation of the beauty of the world. All his suffering, all his sadness, his survival itself was more precious than all the riches of the world.

He had seen many things in his life, but he had never seen someone like Luka, and Luka had been the best thing to happen to him.

-

He saw the children run up to Luka, covering him, climbing all over his body. Luka laughed feebly, lifting them off, as he could hear shouts of “Luka” drift from behind him. The woman he was currently painting for smiled, tilting her head to see around the easel.

“They do love him, don’t they?” She mused, her lips curved in a smile, as she watched the children with Luka.

It was true. Azrael turned around briefly, watching the gimmicks behind, before turning back to his work.

“You should smile more, Azrael.”

He looked up, a questioning look on his face, as his brush continued moving along the lines. She had smiled at him, quietly.

“You haven’t smiled like that for a very long time, not since you lost your wife. I should tell you that when you smile, you look just like an angel.”

He had blushed at her words, looking back at his drawing. There were few things to smile over, but smiles were only reserved for those worth smiling over.