CHAPTER 5

Arius glanced around the entryway, making sure to close the door behind him. He was rather fascinated really. After all, he had never seen a house quite like this. He had never seen a city this large before either. Human technology was interesting, and he realized that there was quite a bit he'd have to learn about. That or he could just pretend nothing interested him. That would probably be the safest way to go, but he knew he wouldn't be able to repress all of his questions.

"Hello Jaida," greeted her mother as she walked into the entryway. "I'm glad you're back. I was beginning to worry." Her eyes then fell on Arius, who was just standing there, glancing around. "Well Jaida, who's this?" she asked with a smile.

"His name's Arius," Jaida introduced, and he only nodded in response. Jaida's mother smiled brightly at both of them before Jaida took a step forward. "Actually mom, I need to talk to you about something. Arius, you wait here, okay?" She then took her mom's arm and pulled her into the living room. They both sat down on the couch, and Arius' mother gave her daughter a questioning look.

"What is it?" she asked, wanting to know what this was all about.

"Well," Jaida began, trying to find the right way to ask this. "You see…I have to ask you something. It's about Arius." She noticed that her mother was paying full attention to what she had to say, so she took in a deep breath, preparing to tell the biggest lie she had ever told. "Well, he…you see, his parents sent him here so he could go to school," she explained. "However, he can't find anywhere to stay, and they didn't give him enough money to stay in a nice apartment. So, I was wondering…if maybe he could stay here…in the guest room." Her mother crossed her arms, her expression showing that she really was thinking about this.

"I don't know," she began. "How do you know that's really why he's here?"

"I just do," she told her mother. "Look, he needs help. He's the boy I mentioned yesterday, the one Mr. Owens and I took to the hospital. Can he please stay here? Please mom?" She was really begging now, and her mother only sighed. Out of what, Jaida didn't know, but she smiled afterwards.

"Fine," she gave in. "For now, he can stay here, but if he causes us any trouble…"

"Thanks mom," said Jaida excitedly as she stood up. Her mother followed suit, shaking her head a bit.

"I swear," she began. "You and Mr. Owens are way too much alike, always helping strangers."

"He is a good teacher," Jaida joked as she ran out of the living room, finding Arius still standing in the entryway. She winked at him and then motioned for him to follow her up the stairs. He did so, not saying a word to her. They went down the hallway, and she stopped at one of the rooms.

"This is your room," she told him, motioning to the dark area before her. She flipped a light switch, revealing a very nicely kept room. The walls were a midnight blue color. In fact, everything about the room was dark. It seemed almost perfect for the way Arius was: dark and mysterious.

"I have a question," he began as he stepped into the room. This startled Jaida a bit, but she waited there for him to ask her. "That woman was your mother, right?"

"Yeah," Jaida responded, wondering what he was getting at.

"Well, don't you humans live in family units?" he asked. "Aren't you supposed to have both a mother and a father?" He watched as Jaida's bright eyes faded a bit, her smile switching from one of content to one that was forced.

"I suppose you're right," she answered, sounding insulted or maybe even hurt. "My parents are divorced, meaning my dad lives somewhere else."

"Why?" questioned Arius, probing her further even though he could see this wasn't one of her favorite topics. He was just too curious. He had never heard of this "divorced" concept.

"My mom and dad just didn't get along anymore," she explained. "So when I was seven, he left the city and moved away. I still see him though. On the longer school breaks, I go visit him, and I spend half the summer with him too." Arius watched as she fought back what appeared to be tears. "What about you?" she asked him. "What about your parents?" Arius just shrugged, giving a rather arrogant looking smirk.

"I don't have any," he told her. "Unlike you humans, we live alone. Family means nothing to me." With that said, he closed the door to his room, leaving Jaida standing outside. She sighed to herself and walked to her own room. Things were really starting to get complicated. It seemed that no matter how smart Arius was, there was still a lot he needed to learn. He knew basic knowledge, but human culture was anything but easy. She had a lot to teach him, and she was suddenly starting to dread school on Monday.

Jaida closed the door to her room and dropped her book bag. She began emptying its contents onto the floor. A bag was among her books, the one containing Arius' uniform. Along with it came his school schedule, and by her request, the principal had put him in all of her classes. It's not like he wouldn't have been anyway. Classes were arranged by skill, and he seemed just as smart as she was. She figured she'd have to help him with his homework though. It was a good thing that they didn't usually get too much, and the passing periods were long enough to get some of it done. Still, she'd have to try her best to keep him at the school. His grades wouldn't be allowed to drop, because there's no way he would be able to pay for it.

Jaida flopped down on her bed and stared at the ceiling. Things had suddenly gotten so complicated. Sometime over the weekend, she planned on asking him a few questions. It was a little hard to believe that he wasn't human. He looked like one, that was for sure. As far as she could tell, Deslyans were nothing but black winged humans who were strong enough to survive a fall that would kill any normal person. This made her wonder just why he was here. Who had sent him? What was his mission? Maybe he was there to destroy their world, to punish the human race that he seemed to hate so much. She highly doubted that though. If he had wanted to, he could have killed her and her mother so easily. Arius, just what are you after? Why do you hate humans…and the angels so much? With that last thought, she drifted off to sleep, in dire need of a good night's rest, because once she woke up, things would probably get even more complicated.