Three

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Soon it was lunch and as usual, you sat by yourself. No girls wanted to be categorized with you, and no boys wanted to be seen near you — being with you was a negative to the female population. You quickly retrieved your lunch and sat at your table in the far corner. 

Out of nowhere, you remembered the boy server at the church who smiled at you. You began to feel yourself smiling at the thought. You felt foolish for getting happy over something so trivial, but it was the first time since you and your father moved after he remarried that someone had shown you the smallest sliver of kindness. Still smiling, you scooped another spoonful of rice and put it in your mouth. A hand slammed down onto your table, making you jump.

"Hey, idiot!" Gyumin yelled. "What are you smiling about?" You shook your head fearfully. He narrowed his eyes at you. He leaned in and spoke quietly. "Oh? Well, I could care less. What I came here to say was that my mom wants to talk to you after school, so after the bell rings, head home straight away, understand?" With a scoff, he left. From your spot you could see him deny your relationship with him and his to you when questions were asked to him.

Your eyebrows furrowed in confusion, wondering what she could possibly need or demand further from you.

-

After school, you headed home straight away. When you finally arrived, your stepmother was sitting on the sofa with a small sheet of paper in her hand.

"Took you long enough. Here," she stood up and handed you the paper. You looked at it curiously. On it, an address was written down. "It's the address of my sister's café. You'll be working there starting tomorrow."

Your eyes widened with slight happiness. This is the first time since your father's death that she hasn't yelled at you the moment you step into your house.

"And all your paychecks go straight to me, understand?! I don't need you being a greedy freeloader!" she barked.

Never mind.

-

"How sad," the angel you unknowingly met pouted as he watched you from heaven.

"What's sad, Kai?" a cutely chubby angel bounced over and placed his arm around the pouting angel's shoulders.

"Don't you pity her, Xiumin? I wish we could help her, but God got mad at me for insisting and told me to stop disobeying him," Kai sulked.

Xiumin gave Kai's shoulder a small squeeze. "Well that's the course of life. Everyone suffers. Pretty sure we already know that, huh?" He gave the other a knowing smile and left.

"But I don't want her to suffer."

-

The next day you went to school as usual, but after school ended, you pulled the sheet of paper your stepmother gave you from your blazer pocket and made your way to the destination of the address. When you arrived, you told the girl at the counter who you were, and she immediately brought you to the manager's office.

"So you're my sister's good-for-nothing stepdaughter, huh? Here's your uniform. Tell me if you need a different size," she handed you a bag, "There's a changing room in the employees' room. Go change in there and start working," she shooed you away.

You went into the changing room and opened the bag. Inside was a simple salmon dress shirt and a white skirt. In the changing room, aprons were hung by the door. You got changed and put one of the aprons on. Another employee gave you a nametag, introduced herself to you as Sujung and told you to come to her if you had any questions. You quietly thanked her and exited the employee room. As soon as you were out, you got orders from your step-aunt and began working right away.

While working, you seemed like an airhead. Getting orders wrong, serving the wrong customers, leaving some customers waiting a long time. You managed to annoy the other staff and customers, however. Sujung encouraged you anyway, and you two walked home together after work. Though you two had many differences, you got along well and quickly became friends.

When you got home, your stepmother was waiting. "Well? You didn't screw up completely did you?" You shyly shook your head and retreated to your small room. "Whatever keeps the money coming in," she muttered to herself.

-

Again Kai was hopelessly watching you from his room with a pout. 

"She seems to be doing well but that doesn't make me worry less," said a voice next to him. Kai turned his head to look at the speaker and met eyes with a baby-faced angel.

"Oh, Luhan. You watch over ~~~~~, too?" Kai asked the other boy.

Luhan nodded, "Ever since I died, I've been watching over her. When I first arrived here, I met her mother," Luhan smiled fondly. "They're both so pure and" he paused, "angelic." He met Kai's eyes again. "~~~~~'s a true angel. Her mother asked me to help watch over her, so I won't let anything hurt her." He pumped his fists with a determined look on his face.

Kai chuckled, "Are you sure you're older than me?" he ruffled Luhan's hair. "Besides, I want to be her guardian that will protect her from anything as long as she doesn't feel pain."

"Maybe we can ask God-"

"Can't," the tall angel interrupted as he entered the room, "He said no to loverboy here."

"Loverboy?" Kai retorted. "I am not 'in love' with ~~~~~," he claimed as he made air quotes around the words "in love".

"But Kris, maybe we can ask again," Luhan offered.

Kris shook his head, "You both know when the big man says things it's final."

"But Kris, we all know there's a way!" Luhan and Kai argued hopefully.

"Maybe if you'd talk to him," Kai insisted.

Kris, being the responsible one, shook his head. "No can do. I want to stay on his good side, you know."

"What good side?! You jump off buildings to prove a point to people, and it doesn't make sense! Please, Kris," Kai begged.

"Hey! You dared me! And I have my own way of doing things!" Kris pointed out with a cross of his arms.

"And you followed through! Don't you know what a joke is?!" Kai argued.

"But they treat her no better than trash! We have to help!" Luhan cried. 

Kris shook his head.

"But-"

Kris cleared his throat and announced in imitation of God, "No 'but's!" while a voice accompanied him from behind.

All three angels turned to the voice in shock to see God standing there, watching them.

"Maybe there can be an exception."