The first time I met Adam, I was curled up in bed, watching Godzilla on a tiny TV in my dimly lit room. The muffled sounds of arguing downstairs mixed with the roars of the giant monster on screen, but I tried to drown it all out, hugging my pillow as if it could shield me from the world.

Then, without warning, a golden light flooded my room. At first, I thought it was the TV glitching—until I turned my head and saw him.

A tall, imposing figure stood at the foot of my bed, his golden wings outstretched, his halo gleaming like a crown. His Exorcist mask reflected the glow, its golden eyes staring right through me. He didn’t look like the kind of guardian angel I’d imagined. He was too sharp, too intense.

He tilted his head, arms crossed. “You’re supposed to be at school.” His voice was smooth, but laced with something cold. Judgment.

I gripped my pillow tighter, my heart pounding. “I—I didn’t feel like going…”

Adam scoffed. “Pathetic.”

My stomach twisted. Shouldn’t an angel be… comforting? Supportive? Instead, he looked down at me like I was something to be fixed—or discarded.

“Well?” he pressed. “Are you going to waste the day sulking, or will you get up and actually be worth something?”

I had always wanted someone to save me. But as I stared at the golden-eyed angel in my room, I wondered if I had just traded one kind of judgment for another.