Chapter Six: The World That Pretended Nothing Happened
The first thing Eli learned after surviving angels, monsters, and judgment was this:
The world did not care.
The sky did not crack open.
The streets did not flood with screams.
No divine trumpet announced that something unnatural had walked back into the human realm.
Buses still hissed as they stopped.
Vendors still shouted prices at passing strangers.
Teenagers still laughed like nothing in the universe could ever touch them.
Eli stood across the street from the foster house he had once sworn never to return to, hands buried deep in his pockets. His shoulders were slightly hunched not because he was afraid, but because that was how he had learned to exist. Small. Quiet. Unimportant.
The house looked the same.
Peeling paint. Flickering porch light. A window upstairs that never quite closed properly.
It should have felt familiar.
Instead, it felt distant like something he had seen in another life.
He felt the world moving around him, brushing past without truly noticing him. A woman nearly bumped into his shoulder, blinked, murmured an apology, and walked on. Her eyes already looked empty, as if the memory of him had dissolved the moment she passed.
So this is what hiding really means, Eli thought.
Not invisibility.Erasure.
Even Heaven could not find him like this.
That realization should have brought relief.
Instead, it made his chest feel hollow.
He crossed the street and stopped at the front door.
For a brief moment just one he considered turning around and disappearing again. Vanishing into a place where no one expected anything from him.
The door opened before he knocked.
His foster father stood there, unshaven, eyes dull with exhaustion and alcohol. He looked at Eli the way one might look at an old chair recognition without emotion.
You're back, the man said.
Eli nodded.
No questions followed.No accusations.
No concern.No relief.
You eat? the man asked after a pause.
Yes. You going back to school?
Yes.The door opened wider.That was it.
Inside, the house smelled the same stale air, old food, cheap alcohol. The television murmured on about things that didn't matter. His foster mother glanced up from her phone briefly.
You're not staying long, right? she asked.
Eli didn't answer.
She didn't wait for one.
Don't cause trouble,she added, already scrolling again.
Eli walked past them and went to his room.
The door closed softly behind him.
Nothing had changed.
The bed creaked the same way when he sat down. The desk still had old scratches carved into it names and symbols from a boy who had tried to leave some proof that he existed.
Eli stared at his hands.
They looked normal.
Too normal.
The same hands that had torn through monsters, that had stood before angels without kneeling, now rested quietly on his knees.
He clenched his fist.
The ember inside him responded instantly violent, eager, alive.
The walls groaned faintly.
Eli relaxed immediately, breathing out slowly until the pressure faded.
Not here,he whispered.
This place had already taken too much from him.
Morning came the way it always had too early and without warning.
Eli moved through his routine automatically. Shower. Uniform. Backpack.
When he stood in front of the mirror, he paused longer than usual.
His face was the same.But his eyes
They were different.
They carried weight now. Not arrogance. Not confidence.Experience.
He turned away before he could think too much about it.
The school gates were crowded with noise and movement. Laughter, shouting, complaints about homework and teachers.
Normal life.Eli stepped through.
The change was subtle.But it was there.
Conversations dipped.
Eyes followed him briefly.
A group of boys who used to shove him aside without thinking stepped out of his path instinctively.
They didn't know why.
Neither did he.Eli kept walking.
His classroom smelled like chalk and dust.
Eli slid into his usual seat by the window
the back row where teachers rarely looked and students pretended didn't exist.
Behind him, three boys lounged across their desks, voices low and lazy.
That's him, right?
Yeah. Thought he dropped out.
He doesn't look scared anymore.
Eli stared out the window.
Clouds drifted slowly across the sky.
The classroom door opened again.
A girl stepped in quietly, holding a book to her chest. She scanned the room, eyes pausing when she noticed the empty seat beside Eli.She hesitated.
Then sat.
Hi, she said softly. Is this seat taken?
Eli shook his head.I'm Lina.
Eli.
She smiled not wide, not nervous. Just warm.
I heard you disappeared,she said after a moment.
So did I.
She laughed quietly, then looked at him again. I'm glad you came back.
Eli didn't know why that sentence hurt more than anything else that day.
Settle down.
The voice was calm but commanding.
At the front of the class stood the class president, clipboard in hand, posture straight. She spoke like she expected to be obeyed and the room complied without thinking.
Eli noticed her eyes.
Sharp. Observant.
When they landed on him, they lingered a second longer than necessary.
Not suspicious.
Curious.
Third period arrived.
The door opened.
The man who entered was too perfect.
Tall. Pale. Calm.
Good morning,he said pleasantly. I'm Mr. Hale.
The moment his voice filled the room, Eli felt it.
Cold.Ancient.Absolute.
The angel's gaze swept across the classroom.
It passed over Eli.
Paused.Returned.Confusion flickered.
Eli leaned back, heartbeat steady, expression neutral.
You're too late, he thought calmly.
Outside, clouds began to gather.
The angel smiled.
It was the kind of smile teachers practiced in mirrors polite, reassuring, empty.
Please take your seats, Mr. Hale said.
Let's begin.
Eli felt the cold presence settle into the room like an invisible fog. It wasn't pressure. It wasn't killing intent.
It was judgment.
The angel didn't know who he was looking for.
But he knew something was wrong.
And that made him dangerous.
Mr. Hale began writing on the board, chalk moving smoothly, precisely. His handwriting was perfect each letter identical in size and shape.
Too perfect.
As your temporary instructor, he said, I'll be observing how you learn.
Observing.Eli's gaze lowered to his desk.
He's not teaching, Eli realized. He's searching.
Mr. Hale asked questions simple ones at first. Names. Attendance. Easy problems designed to lull the class into responding naturally.
When students spoke, the angel watched them closely Too closely.Eli stayed silent.
Always.
Behind him, one of the back benchers chuckled softly.
Hey, Cross, a voice muttered. You mute or something?
A few snickers followed.
It was familiar.Eli didn't react.
Another voice joined in. Guess disappearing didn't fix your spine.
Lina shifted beside him.
Leave him alone,she said quietly.
The laughter faltered not stopped, but dampened.
The angel's chalk paused mid-stroke.
He turned slowly.
Is there a problem? Mr. Hale asked calmly.
The room froze.
N-No, sir,the boy replied quickly.
Mr. Hale nodded, then continued writing.
But Eli felt it.
That brief moment of attention.
The angel had looked toward the back row.
Toward him.
During break, Lina stayed seated.
You okay? she asked.
Eli nodded. I'm used to it.
She frowned slightly. That doesn't make it okay.
He didn't respond.
After a moment, she spoke again. You don't talk much.
I listen.
She smiled. That explains a lot.
Something about her presence felt
grounding.
Dangerous in a different way.
The class president stopped by his desk before the next period.
You're Eli Cross, she said, not asking.
Yes.
I'm Mara, she added. If you need anything school-related, come to me.
Her eyes flicked briefly to Lina.
Then back to Eli.
You've missed a lot.
I can catch up.
I'm sure you can,she replied calmly. Just don't cause trouble.
She walked away.Eli watched her go.She was observant That might become a problem.By lunchtime, the pressure returned.
Mr. Hale walked through the cafeteria like he owned the place, eyes scanning faces, senses probing deeper than they should.
Eli ate slowly, carefully, keeping his presence folded inward.
The angel stopped near his table.
So, Mr. Hale said conversationally, how are you adjusting after your absence?
Eli looked up.Fine.The angel studied him.
Something passed between them.
A ripple.
Mr. Hale's smile tightened slightly.
That's good,he said. Students like you often… struggle I don't, Eli replied.
A pause.
Then the angel chuckled softly. I admire confidence.He walked away.
Lina let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.
That teacher gives me a weird feeling,she said.Eli didn't answer.
After school, Eli walked alone.
Or rather he tried to.
The back bench boys followed him halfway down the hall.
Hey, Cross, one called. Think you're better than us now?Eli stopped.Turned.
They froze.Not because of fear.
Because something in his eyes told them this wasn't the same person anymore.
I don't think about you, Eli said calmly.
He walked away.They didn't follow.
That night, the foster house was louder.
Arguing. Complaints. Blame.
Eli sat on his bed, staring at the ceiling.
This place hasn't changed, he thought. But I have.
That difference was growing harder to hide.
Elsewhere, Mr. Hale stood alone in a dark classroom.
His smile was gone.
This shouldn't be possible, he murmured.
He pressed two fingers to his temple.
Target lost… but present.His eyes narrowed.
He's learned concealment.
Outside, the clouds twisted unnaturally.
Far above, Heaven listened.
Eli stood by his window that night.
The sky felt heavy.Oppressive.
For a brief moment, he felt something look back.Not the angel.Something older.
Larger.An eye opening somewhere beyond the clouds.Watching.Judging.Waiting.
Eli closed the curtain slowly.
If staying hidden won't save me…
Then maybe I need to decide what I'm hiding from.