Chapter II "An Invisible and Ephemeral Encounter."

Melanie

Once again in the

hospital, she couldn't get that girl out of her mind, the one who had greeted

her as if she had truly seen her. Since it was very late, there was hardly any

staff in the area, but as usual, she decided it was better to go unnoticed.

Most of the rooms

were closed, and she didn't know what to expect. Since she had been living on earth,

that aspect was what fascinated her the most. Perhaps she just wanted to check

what was so special about that girl or if it had simply been a product of her

imagination, although she didn't believe she was delusional.

As she walked with

her hands in the pockets of her jacket, she stopped when she saw an open door.

A middle-aged woman was sitting next to a girl with her hair tied in a braid,

reading her a story out loud. The girl was lying among pillows on the bed, hugging

a teddy bear, and she watched the woman with fascination, paying attention to

every word.

"And then the

wolf locked the rabbit in a box when he saw it, and he sang excitedly about his

excellent hunt," the tiredness of the woman was evident in the bags under

her eyes and the wrinkles on her cheeks and around her mouth, "but from

inside the box, the rabbit begged to be set free..."

"The wolf is

cruel. Why would he do something like that?" the little girl interrupted.

"If you let

me finish, then you'll know why he did it," the woman said, nodding her

head.

She stood at the

entrance of the room, listening to the rest of the story, while admiring the

scene of the mother and daughter sharing a special moment. At one point, she

took a few steps inside and noticed the girl glanced at her, but quickly

refocused on the woman.

"Hey, Mommy,

can you bring me some cookies from the vending machine?"

"It's too

late for you to be eating, sweetheart," the woman said, closing the book.

"I know, but

the food was really bad. Please, I'm very hungry," she pouted. Without any

other choice, the woman got up with a sigh.

"Fine, but

this better be the last time you ask for sweets at this hour," she planted

a kiss on the girl's forehead and left, passing by me, closing the door.

"Why doesn't

Mommy see you?" the soft, sweet voice caught her by surprise and made her

turn her head towards the bed. "In all the time you were there, she didn't

notice you."

It was real, and

it was happening: the girl was staring at her and speaking to her.

"Because

nobody is supposed to do it."

 "But I do it. Why are you invisible to

others? Is it your superpower?"

"I don't like

people, and I don't let them see me," she wouldn't explain to an

eight-year-old girl that she was an angel; it was enough that she knew of her

existence.

"That's

really cool," she smiled, "I wish I could do it sometimes. Could you

teach me?"

"I don't

think that's possible. People like you are not capable of that."

She lowered her

gaze to the floor, her dark circles and dull eyes denoting a weariness

uncharacteristic of a girl clinging to her stuffed bear.

"Hey, what's

your name, girl? I like your plush toy, I wish I had one like that," she

approached the bed with a smile, wanting to change that expression, unable to

bear seeing her like that.

"My name is

Leila," she took the bear and lifted it up. "His name is Lupe, he's

my best friend." She took the plush toy's paw and greeted it.

"Pleasure to

meet you, Lupe. My name is..." she stopped, unsure how to continue. Her

name couldn't be pronounced by humans, so she blurted out the first name that

came to mind. "Melanie."

"Your name is

very pretty," the girl extended a smile that lit up her face.

She wanted that

smile to stay, and before she knew it, the conversation had extended longer

than she expected. By the time her mother arrived, she already knew why she was

there.

Over the next few

days, through the whispers of the nurses, she learned that Leila had

cardiopulmonary problems and that no treatment had been effective.

She had never

emotionally connected with a human before, but for some reason, she always

ended up talking to Leila. She found her perspective of the world fascinating,

her persistence in being happy despite her diagnosis. What others saw as a lost

battle, she saw as a reason to enjoy every moment and smile whenever she could.

But, as expected,

the day came when the illness consumed its bearer. One night, while walking

through the empty hallways, she heard a nurse calling for help as she rushed

into Leila's room. Without pausing to think, she reached the girl's room. The

woman was trying to help the girl, but she moved clumsily in the midst of

panic. She held Leila in her arms, her face red and her mouth open, struggling

to breathe, making grunting sounds as she clung to her chest.

"Help,

please! I need a doctor!" the desperate woman exclaimed, pressing the

emergency buttons with trembling fingers.

She was aware that

no help would be able to do anything in that moment. The hairs on her arms

stood on end in the presence of death drawing nearer.

No, she didn't

want it to end this way. She couldn't bear to see those eyes, once filled with

joy and excitement, fade away. She reached out her hand, touching the woman's

back, and beneath her fingers, she felt the tension dissipate. She turned her

head to see where that contact came from, but her eyes wandered around the

room.

She whispered

words in her native language, a soft and melodious chant. She used the woman as

a conduit to transmit healing to Leila.

The grunts began

to fade slowly, replaced by the sound of deep breaths. When the doctor and

nurses arrived in the room, she realized what she had done.

She had broken one

of the most important laws in Heaven.

She turned around

and hurried to leave the hospital, venturing into the streets below, her heart

pounding. Why? Why did she decide to risk so much for the life of that little

girl?

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