A 'Touched by an Angel' story

By: Yvette Jessen

Not intended to infringe on any previously held copyrights. This is an amateur story.

The Harrisburg, Michigan ice rink was filled to capacity. The city's annual figure skating competition was in full swing. Local sports reporters were mingling with the crowd waiting for the competition to begin. The skaters were separated by their genders for the final competition in the Novice division. 12-year-old Stephanie Zimmerman stood next to her mother, Teresa, and waited for the final four skaters in the group of 16 to be called. She was one of the favorites to win in the 'Ladies event', but after struggling in practice for the entire week with a triple toe loop, and touching the ice on it during the short program, she was now in second place behind a 13 year old named Patty Fischer.

Now was the time for her three-minute program. She had selected music from her favorite musical, My Fair Lady, and now it was the moment of truth. Her black and white skating outfit resembled the dress Audrey Hepburn wore in the movie, and it had a thin flowing skirt. She wore her blond hair in a tight bun and the make-up she wore made her look much older than she actually was. In five minutes the four skaters in the final group would take to the ice for their final warm-up.

Once the announcers voice was heard, the 100 or so people began to cheer. It was time for Stephanie to take her six-minute warm-up. She took off her jacket and handed it to her mother who followed her doggedly towards the ice.

She glided out onto the ice, and began to warm up. The three other girls were also there, and she wondered if they were thinking the same things she was. She was nervous, but not really about the competition, but about making a mistake which would send her mother into another tirade.

Ever since she was 5 and began to skate, one of her coaches made the mistake of telling her mother that if she worked hard enough, she could one day compete at the senior's level in a national competition. Now, she skated more for the satisfaction of her mother than for her own. She simply wanted to have friends and do the things other pre-teen girls did. This other girl, Patty Fischer, was the only friend she had, and her contact with the other girl was strictly monitored and controlled by her mother because two girls were supposed to be rivals.

Stephanie began to practice her footwork during the warm-up. She usually didn't do any triple jumps then, but waited until she would present her program to the judges. She used the time to get used to the feeling of the ice beneath her feet. Once upon a time, she had enjoyed the feeling of competing, but now she despised it, and didn't really care if she won or lost. All she cared about was giving a performance that wouldn't anger her mother.

Patty whizzed by Stephanie, "Good luck, Stephy," she called out.

Stephanie nodded and smiled, "You too, Patty." Here was a girl, who remained kind towards her regardless of the rivalry between them. It didn't even matter who the better skater was. Stephanie really envied Patty for other reasons, mainly because Patty had the freedom to be herself, and not be the molded ice princess that she felt like she had to be.

When Stephanie finally turned around, she saw her mother standing along the railing of the rink. She was scowling at her daughter, and Stephanie's brief smile disappeared. She sighed deeply as the announcer informed them that there would be only one minute left in the warm-up. When she looked back over towards her mother, she executed a perfect triple toe loop, which had been shaky all week in practice. This brought a small smile to her mother's face, but after a second, it disappeared.

The crowd cheered and Stephanie skated over to where her coach, Jake McCall was standing against the railing. He smiled assuredly at her, but what she noticed was about three feet behind her coach, there were three strangers leaning against the railing, and all of them were smiling at her. She blushed self-consciously and attempted to concentrate on the words of her coach, but her eyes again fell on the movements of those three people.

They must be important because the two ladies and one man were hanging around the 'kiss and cry' area. Not that that was anything major, she thought, the local rink had simply roped off a section near the concession stand for the skaters to sit as their marks were being read.

"What's wrong Stephy?" Jake was asking, his voice breaking into her thoughts.

She shook her head, "I don't know, I guess my mom's mad at me for speaking to Patty. But, Jake, she wished me luck, and I only returned the sentiment. I don't understand why my mother doesn't like Patty, she's nice."

"Concentrate on your skating, OK." Jake said to the girl, but he could see that her thoughts were about 1,000 miles away. He could see the troubled look in her eyes, and knew that there was something wrong with her. Instead of focusing on the problems she was having, he smiled reassuringly at her. "Try to block out those other things."

"Skaters please clear the ice!" The voice of the announcer brought Stephanie back down to earth and she looked up at the kind green eyes of her coach.

"Listen, Stephy, you're first, and that's the best position to be in. If you want to win, you have to concentrate, but above winning, you should have fun skating. Of all the things I have tried to teach you, enjoying yourself is the most important." Jake squeezed the arm of the girl, and watched as she skated to the center of the ring. Her three-minute presentation was about to begin, and for better or worse, this was it.

"On the ice, Stephanie Zimmerman!" This was her indication to move into position so that she could begin her routine.

The people in the stands began to cheer, but when she looked out at the crowd, she suddenly felt like a dot on a snowy mountain, and rather than feeling important, she felt insignificant and alone. She got into her starting position and waited for the music to start.

Once it began, she closed her eyes, and tried to remember the time when she really enjoyed figure skating. When she opened her eyes a second later, she began to skate.

Teresa Zimmerman approached Jake as Stephanie executed her first jump, a triple Salchow. The people politely applauded when she landed the jump successfully.

When the applause died down, Teresa spoke to her daughter's coach. "What do you think you're doing allowing Stephanie to talk to her rivals?" Teresa's voice sounded about as cold and chilling as the ice, which Stephanie was skating on.

"I didn't see anything wrong with her wishing Patty luck," Jake said. "Stephy is a 12 year old girl, and most of the girls I've coached have been friends with each other. It's important for these girls to have friends even if they are competing against one another. Not to mention, with her heavy training schedule, there isn't time for her to meet other teenagers and if they become friends with others in the sport, then they share something in common."

"Mr. McCall, I didn't hire you to be philosophical, I hired you to train my daughter to be a good skater. I don't like it that she talks to Patty Fischer when she is supposed to be skating against her today. And as her coach, I think you should at least be concerned about it." Teresa's voice became even icier, and she ended the exchange by diverting her attention back onto the ice as her daughter executed a double Lutz.

Jake said nothing. He believed that Stephanie's only hope to become a successful skater would be for her to have a coach who wasn't an arrogant snob like her mother. He had seen too many skaters have breakdowns because the parents tried to live out their own dreams through them and he didn't want to see that happen with Stephanie.

He refrained from answering Teresa's accusations with any facts. The woman was just impossible to deal with. If it had been any other girl but Stephanie, he'd have quit his job as her coach a long time ago.

He turned away from Teresa to see Stephanie finish her routine with a flying camel spin. He smiled broadly as she stood in the center of the rink and took her bows. A number of spectators tossed flowers onto the ice and Stephanie grabbed a bouquet that had slid over next to her feet. She waved the flowers at the audience.

Once off the ice, she headed towards the 'kiss and cry' area where she would be getting the rest of the flowers, which had been collected, and receive her marks for the performance. She glanced over and saw those three mysterious people again.

Once in the designated area, she sat down in the chair between her mother and her coach and waited for her scores to come up. As everyone guessed, she received fairly high marks for the performance and was now in first place. Once the scores were out, Teresa Zimmerman ushered her daughter quickly out of the area and behind a large curtain, which separated the rink from the lobby, which extended into a hallway, which would lead outside.

Stephanie looked back in the direction where she had seen the three people, but instead of making eye contact with the two women, her gaze came to rest on the soft green eyes of the man standing next to them.

*****

Andrew, the Angel of Death, was left staring as the young skater left through the thick curtain. His attention diverted back to the ice where another skater was about to begin her program. He returned quickly to the railing where Tess and Monica were watching. The three of them began to watch as Patty Fischer began her long program.

"How long do we have to stay here?" Monica finally asked, her feet beginning to tire from standing around. "I need to find a place where I can sit down."

"Why don't you go into the hallway behind that curtain? I saw some benches there when we came in." Tess said.

Monica sighed deeply, "I don't know if this is as much fun as it initially sounded. It's not that the skaters are unfriendly, but some of these other people seem rather arrogant."

Andrew nodded sadly. "I know what you mean. I am guessing you are referring to Teresa Zimmerman, Stephanie's mother. I heard someone say that her eyes could burn holes through solid concrete."

Tess nodded, "Yes, yes, are you two ready to hear what our assignment is, or are you just going to carry on with verbal exaggerations?"

"Come on, Tess, you saw her too," Monica said. "Wouldn't you say she reminded you of Snow White's evil step-mother?"

"Snow White?" Tess shook her head sadly, her attention returning to the ice. "You two are acting very un-angelic, now listen we have a serious problem here, and your comparisons aren't helping."

Monica nodded. "Sorry, Tess, but I did see her and this situation seems rather sad to me." Her attention diverted back to Patty as she continued to skate her routine. They watched as she executed her last jump, a triple toe loop. When she came to stop and the music ended, the crowd in the stands began applauding once again. Patty smiled gracefully at them, and bowed. Once the cheers died down, Monica made a suggestion, "Hey Andrew, why don't we go and get something to eat and we can meet Tess outside when the competition is over? I could use a cup of coffee."

Andrew nodded as Patty was skating towards the railing. "You get some coffee, I think I just want to sit down for now. I'll be on one of those benches you mentioned, OK?"

"OK, you know where we'll be, Angel Boy," Tess said as Andrew left behind the same curtain that he had seen Stephanie and the other two people exit moments before. Monica went to the concession stand to get a cup of coffee.

As Andrew made his way down the hall, his mind began to drift. He had never really had time to watch figure skating up close, and he really had never really thought that a girl who was still a child could be out there executing such complicating jumps. He never could tell the difference between those jumps, but he could tell that they must be very difficult. He sat down on one of the benches and watched as steady groups of people passed by him. After a few minutes he heard a voice break into his thoughts.

"Hi."

He looked up and saw the girl who was addressing him. It was Stephanie Zimmerman and she smiled weakly at him, as he returned her greeting. "Hello, Stephanie." he paused, "I saw you skate, you were very good!"

She smiled and nodded. "Thank you. I saw you when I was talking to my coach. You're a stranger here, aren't you?"

"Yes, I'm just passing through with a couple of friends. We're here to do a report for the local paper and I just needed to take a break and sit down. It's not always easy to be on one's feet an entire afternoon," he said softly.

"No I guess not. My coach said that there might be some press people here today." She shrugged her shoulders. "It's not so common for the press to come to this event. I've never seen any of them here until today."

Andrew shrugged his shoulders and smiled at her, "I don't know very much about figure skating, I must admit; I only know about what I may have seen on TV."

"The seniors, yeah, they're really good," Stephanie said softly.

"Seniors?" Andrew looked at her.

"Seniors are the ones that compete in the Olympics, then there are juniors, Novice and Pre-Novice. Patty and I are in the Novice division." Stephanie explained.

"This is like levels?" he asked.

Stephanie nodded, "Yeah, you could say that." She looked around, and when she saw no one nearby, she sighed with relief. "You know me, but what's your name?"

"Andrew." He said simply. Right as he was about to speak again the announcement could be heard as they posted Patty's scores.

"I have to see how she did, she's one of my friends," Stephanie said as both of them rushed towards the curtains at the end of the hallway where the scores were being announced. Stephanie smiled when she saw that Patty's score was about as high as her own. But, when they announced that Patty was in second place, she sighed deeply.

"What's the matter," Andrew asked when he saw the shadow cross her face. He didn't understand what was happening, until he heard an excited squeal coming from behind them.

Within seconds, the woman that he had seen in the 'kiss and cry' area rushed over to Stephanie and wrapped her arms around her. "You won, you won!" Her voice was high with excitement. Stephanie glanced over at Andrew who smiled encouragingly at her.

"But, Mom, there are still two more skaters that have to compete," Stephanie muttered hoping that the woman would release her from the embrace.

Teresa apparently didn't listen, and continued to hug her daughter excitedly.

"Congratulations, Stephy," Jake offered coming from behind them, "you skated very well, today. You should be really proud of yourself."

"You are making a blatant understatement, Mr. McCall, she was wonderful." Teresa finally released her daughter. Andrew could see the girl's expression completely change when her mother approached and he didn't like what he saw.

Seconds later, Patty came through the curtain and smiled when she saw Stephanie. "Congratulations, Stephy, you were really great." Appreciation was evident on Patty's face. But her smile vanished when Teresa hastily grabbed Stephanie's hand and pulled her away from Patty and Andrew. Stephanie sighed sadly and glanced back in their direction with an agonized look in her eyes. 'I'm sorry' were the words she mouthed at the other girl.

Patty looked at Andrew shyly. "I hope you don't think all skaters or their families are like this," she offered sadly as Stephanie was ushered away. "It's really shameful."

Andrew shook his head still trying to understand why Stephanie's mother was so mean to Patty when she had simply offered her congratulations.

Patty shrugged her shoulders, "Her mother is such a witch!" she grumbled to her coach, who had emerged from behind the curtain, followed closely by Patty's father, Brad. "What harm does it do to at least say hello or thank you?"

Andrew nodded, "I saw her before Stephanie skated. Do you have any idea why she acts this way?"

"It's no secret, Teresa Zimmerman doesn't like Stephanie to be friends with the other skaters," answered the coach, a young woman in her late 20's. "I used to be her coach as well, and she's a really good skater. Then about a year ago I got fired after Mrs. Zimmerman found out I had taken the job coaching Patty. She felt that I should devote all my time to Stephanie, and not to her rival."

Patty looked over at her father, Brad, who was standing near the curtain. "Skaters don't normally have as many opportunities to have friends as other kids do. It's part of the commitment that they make when they start skating. The thing is, Patty has always tried to swing friends and her skating." The man explained, and Patty nodded.

"I love to skate," Patty explained, "and one day I want to go to the Olympics. But, I also realize how lucky I am because my mom and dad are really great about it. I also know that if one day I would want to quit, they'd say OK." She smiled with pride, "they also know that it will take a lot of work, and I'm willing to try." She paused and after a second, she continued to speak. "Stephanie's mother isn't very nice to the other skaters, and I think that's totally stupid attitude to have." Patty put on the jacket her father offered.

"I don't understand," Andrew offered, "if a skater loves the sport, then what's wrong with being friends with other people who are active in it and love it as well?"

Patty's coach smiled, she liked what Andrew was saying. "You have a very idealistic attitude about it, but unfortunately, to some parents and also some skaters, winning is more important than anything, including having friends or sportsmanship."

Andrew shook his head adamantly, "I don't think Stephanie is like that."

"We all know that she's not," Patty answered, "but her mother's attitude, particularly, is beginning to show in her skating, and her expression on the ice."

"How so?" Andrew was curious. "I mean she looked a little tired out there, but that was about all I really noticed."

"That was stress, and that kind of pressure can be overwhelming on a young skater, particularly in the 'Ladies Event'. Over the past few years, this competition has become very intense." The woman answered. "I was a skater in the senior's division, and I remember competing in the Nationals. I placed near the end, but the pressure was unbearable. On top of the pressures of competitive skating, Stephanie has the added pressure of her mother's attitude and expectations. It's obvious that she isn't happy and she doesn't agree with her mother, but she's only 12 and no one can expect her to stand up to her mother. But, I'm afraid that one day, she's going to have a nervous breakdown."

Andrew shook his head sadly, he knew what this kind of stress could lead to, and he could feel the goose bumps going up his spine when he thought about how many suicide victims he had to take home. This was, by far, the worst part of being an Angel of Death.

"Gilda, would it be OK if he came to one of my training sessions, even if it's just for a little while?" Patty asked. "I mean, I know that normally we don't have outsiders to the practices, but it would be kind of fun and it'd give him the idea that it's not all fun and flair, but hard work."

"I never believed that it wasn't hard work. But wouldn't it be a distraction having me around during practice?" Andrew asked.

The woman smiled and nodded at Patty. Her attention diverted to Andrew, "you are welcome to come, but it's not as exciting as the competition. I think that Patty's right, it will give you the idea about how much work it takes for someone to reach certain levels as a figure skater. What's your name?"

"Andrew," he said smiling. He liked Patty and her coach, and it did sound like a lot of fun.

"OK," said Gilda. "Patty has a day off tomorrow, so we'll get together on Saturday, and then you won't miss school. Also, I usually take it easy on her on Saturdays".

Patty smiled and nodded, "yeah, it was actually my idea that I train on Saturdays as well as on Sundays."

Andrew looked at Gilda, who nodded. "Thank you," he offered, "I've always wondered about the sport, and I appreciate you going out of your way to show me."

"It's nothing, Andrew," Gilda said, "I learned long ago that young skaters sometimes need a break, and it's not often that Patty takes a break for fun."

The angel laughed.

"This is so cool." Patty said.

Brad walked over to the three of them. "Listen, I don't mean to change the subject, but after they announce the winners, why don't we go out to lunch? You're free to join us Andrew, if you'd like."

"That sounds really great, my friends and I were just talking about grabbing something to eat," Andrew said. "I'm supposed to meet them once it's over."

"I'm sorry, Brad, but I can't," Gilda said, "I have already made a commitment to meet with Sarah Bingham's family about her training. But, I will see you for practice Saturday morning, Patty. If you want to come, Andrew, be here at 10, and I'll inform the people here that you will be coming."

"You're not staying for the final announcement, Gilda?" Patty asked.

"Of course I'm staying." Gilda said, smiling. "This would be your first medal under my coaching, Patty, and I wouldn't miss it for the world. I just can't go to lunch with you guys."

Patty sighed with relief. "I'm glad that you're staying, Gilda and that Andrew can come on Saturday." She giggled, "I'll even find you a pair of skates then."

Andrew's eyes widened, "Oh boy, what have I gotten myself into?" he muttered.

Patty and her father chuckled.

"Well, if you want to come to training, you will have to put on a pair of skates and let Patty show you some simple moves." Gilda said.

Patty smiled at him, "Don't worry, Andrew, we'll go easy on you. The jumps will come later."

The four of them laughed.

*****

Back in the arena, Tess was still watching and taking notes when Andrew approached. "Hey Tess, I just got an invitation to go to lunch with one of the skaters."

Tess turned and her smile began to fade when she saw him. "You know we're supposed to stay here until the competition is over."

Andrew nodded, "Yes, I know, but Patty Fischer's father invited me to join them for lunch after they give out the awards in her division. She also told me some rather interesting information about Stephanie."

"I'm aware of that, Angel Boy," Tess said as she began to replace the small notebook she was carrying. "I also know that your assignment is Stephanie. Concentrate on her, she's going to need angels during the upcoming days. I just feel it."

Andrew nodded. "I know, and it makes me uneasy." Moments later, Patty Fischer waved at him and she approached them.

"Hello, Andrew," Patty said and when Tess turned and faced her, she smiled as she tried to introduce herself to Tess. "I'm Patty."

"My name's Tess," she said with a smile taking her hand and shaking it. "Nice to meet you, Patty. You skated very well and you made it look so easy."

"Thank you, this was my first competition here," Patty explained. "My family moved here from California last year."

Tess nodded smiling. "Did you skate competitively in California?"

"Yeah, but it was much harder there, because there are so many talented people. Not that the skaters here aren't talented, it's just that there, the competitions are more difficult and there are a lot more skaters." She smiled broadly, "When we moved here, my father found a job in his field, he's a Chemical Engineer. He wanted to have a job, which could help pay for my training. In California, there weren't too many openings and he was working as a Technician and we couldn't afford the training like I'm getting with Gilda." Patty explained fondly remembering the sacrifices her parents have made for her.

"That's really nice, that you have such a supportive family," Monica approached and spoke once she had heard the words of the teenager. "I'm Monica, a friend of theirs."

Patty nodded and smiled, "Nice to meet you," she offered, but then continued her story. "I know what you're saying, and believe me, in this sport, the more support one has, the better. I've seen a number of girls really lose it because they have overbearing parents or coaches. Gilda said that a lot parents and coaches try to live out their dreams through the kids, and that's not fair. My parents are great, they support but they don't push, they never have."

Andrew cocked his head to one side, "How is it that you became so determined to become a good skater if you didn't have that kind of pressure?"

"I don't know, Gilda said that it's probably my own stubbornness about it." Patty said, "I have a feeling that's the only logical answer, that and maybe because my coach in California wanted me to succeed so that he'd get more jobs."

Tess nodded, "Is that why you are concerned about Stephanie Zimmerman, and her mother's attitude towards you and the other skaters?"

"How'd you know about that?" Patty asked.

"I just have that impression, baby," Tess said gently. She could tell by looking at the young skater that she was worried.

Patty smiled and nodded, "Yeah, I guess it's pretty obvious, then. Anyway, I know that Stephanie's mother doesn't like me, and like I told you, Andrew, it's really stupid. I mean someone can skate and be friendly without it effecting their performance." She sighed sadly, "But I have a feeling that Stephanie doesn't like skating anymore I watched her performance, and even though it was better than mine, the energy wasn't there."

Andrew nodded; he had also noticed Stephanie's lackluster appearance after her scores had been read. He also noticed that most of the other girls tended to stay away from Stephanie whenever her mother was around. Instead of trying to determine what was going to happen, he simply smiled reassuringly at her. "I think that Stephanie is very lucky to have you for a friend."

Patty smiled, "Thanks."

Brad approached the four of them, "You're Andrew's friends?"

"Yes, I'm Tess and this is Monica," came the answer.

"Brad Fischer, nice to meet you. We were talking to your friend outside." He smiled and turned to his daughter, "Patty, you came in second, and Gilda wants to see you before you get your medal."

"I did?" Patty's eyes widened, "Wow!"

"Congratulations," Monica offered.

"That's wonderful, I'm really happy for you," Andrew said sincerely.

"I'll see you later," Patty said, her voice bubbling with excitement. She rushed away from the four of them forgetting to acknowledge any of their words.

"She's really excited," Brad offered. "Normally she says 'thank you' when she is congratulated." He laughed. "Sorry about that."

Tess smiled and nodded, "That's OK, your daughter has the same energy that my two friends here have."

Monica and Andrew looked at Tess, both with sheepish grins on their faces.

"Would you like to join us for lunch after the awards ceremony for Patty's division is over?" Brad asked.

"We'd love to," Tess replied sincerely. "Monica and I have to write a report about the next competition, and then when that's done, then we'd love to join you."

"Listen, it will probably take Patty an hour to change and everything, so by then the other competition should be over, and you can join us." Brad suggested.

"Does it really take an hour for a skater to get changed to leave?" Andrew asked.

"I can't say for sure about most skaters, but my Patty takes quite a while to get herself changed after a competition. She's a perfectionist, like her mother. She even does her own ironing, and polishes her own skates. She's a dedicated skater, and she adores the sport."

"Really?" Monica asked.

"Yeah, she has taken half of the video tapes at our house, and she tapes nothing on them but figure skating competitions. When she can't skate, she watches skating on TV."

"That is dedication," Andrew offered.

Brad nodded, "I remember last year some months after we moved here, she had the flu for about two weeks. She was so mad that her mother wouldn't allow her to go to training." He laughed remembering, "she was in her bathrobe doing footwork on the kitchen floor. I actually grabbed the Camcorder and secretly taped her. Three weeks later, I popped the tape in the VCR, and she just about killed me."

The three angels laughed. "What happened then?" Monica asked.

"I took the tape to Gilda as a joke, but after she watched it, she told Patty that if she ever overexerted herself when she is sick, she'd quit as her coach." Brad said. "I felt like a stool pigeon even though I initially did it as a joke," he paused taking a deep breath. "Anyway, Patty promised that she wouldn't do that again if she gets sick. Instead, she started taping the skating on TV and when she's sick, we set the TV and VCR up in her room and she watches it from her bed." Brad concluded.

Tess smiled, "I think that's really wonderful how you and your family remain so friendly even though the pressures of the sport can be quite stressful."

Brad nodded, "Gilda is really a good coach, very firm, and she doesn't take half-efforts. She doesn't like it when Patty's distracted with other worries when she skates, but she's also the most laid-back coach Patty ever had. Mandy and I get along well with her too, which I think is also important. Patty adores her, maybe it's because she's younger, and knows how teenage girls think. It's hard to say for sure, but the two of them are very compatible."

Andrew looked over at the rink and up at the stands where the people were sitting. After a few moments, he looked back over at Brad. "I think that your daughter is very talented."

Brad chuckled, "Me too, and even if she wasn't my daughter; I'd have to say that of all the girls I have met, she's probably the most level-headed." Brad changed the subject when he saw Patty waving him over to where she was standing, talking to Gilda. "Listen, when Patty's finished, we'll come back here, meet, and see if you're done."

Tess nodded, "OK."

Brad walked back over to where Patty and Gilda were standing deep in conversation with one of the other girls, Sarah Bingham. Sarah had come in third in the division. Stephanie stood off to the side away from the other two girls, and her mother eyed Patty disapprovingly.

Tess glanced back over at Andrew. "I like them." she offered.

Andrew nodded, "Yes, they're really nice."

"So, how did you happen to meet Patty Fischer anyway?" Monica wanted to know.

Andrew explained what had happened when he had left and added that he had been invited to attend Patty's practice session in two days. Monica laughed when she heard this and told Tess that she would love to actually see Andrew on ice skates. Tess agreed that it would be fun for them all to come even if the humans couldn't see them watching.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Andrew grumbled.

"Listen, Angel Babies, I think Patty is really nice, but we cannot forget the reason the Father sent us here. There's a little girl who is working on a nervous breakdown, and we're supposed to be here for her."

The three angels grew silent as the announcement of the winners resonated through the small rink. First Stephanie skated out and the people cheered. Second, Patty skated out and took her place next to Stephanie, as the cheers continued. Finally, Sarah Bingham came out to retrieve her third place medal. In her excitement, Sarah reached out and hugged Patty.

Stephanie looked at the other two girls, isolation evident in her face.

Andrew watched the events as they were taking place out on the ice, but when he saw Stephanie's face, he almost started crying. The poor girl, she looked as though she would have loved to be anywhere but where she was. It was at that moment that he realized that Tess was right, and that all he could do was offer her a compassionate smile. As he watched the events taking place, he sighed deeply as he reached the unhappy conclusion that Stephanie was, in fact, suicidal.

As the three angels watched the events on the ice, Teresa Zimmerman approached them, and it appeared as though she wanted to confront Andrew. None of them noticed that she had approached until her icy voice broke into his thoughts.

"You were the man talking to my daughter, weren't you?" She asked the usual iciness in her voice.

Andrew nodded, "Yes, I was."

"Why are you here? I've never seen you with any of the other skaters, so you can't be family or friends of anyone here?" The woman's voice was demanding.

"My friends are writing a report about the competition, and I came along with him," Andrew offered trying to keep the discomfort out of his voice. When he opened his mouth to speak once again, his gaze landed on Tess, who shook her head slightly. Understanding his friend's silent communication, he shrugged his shoulders and said nothing else.

"I see," Teresa nodded. "Write something nice about of Stephanie, she's the best skater out there, not Patty Fischer." She said coldly to Tess and Monica before walking away.

When Tess turned around to answer Teresa, the other woman was already making her way towards a man who was waiting by the curtain.

Andrew looked at Tess, "Even for an angel, it is sometimes hard to find something loving about Teresa."

Tess sighed deeply. "There's more to her than just someone Patty would call a witch." As she spoke, she turned away from the woman's retreating back and focused her attention to the events, which were taking place on the ice. She shook her head sadly as she watched the three girls on the ice. Once they had all come off the ice, she said a quick prayer for Stephanie.

By this time, Andrew had made his way over towards the group of people and waited for Patty and Stephanie so he could congratulate them once again.

Upon seeing him, Stephanie smiled weakly and came slowly towards him. She was smiling at him as though she could sense something about him, but seemed comfortable in his presence. He took a step towards her, but within a split second, Teresa came between them and grabbed her daughter's hand. "We're going home now, Stephanie. Go change."

Stephanie nodded sadly, and walked through the curtain without looking back.

Unaware to Teresa, Monica had seen the event take place as well and followed the young skater through the curtain. She was determined to talk to her.

"Look Mister, stay away from my daughter," was all Teresa said to him. She walked over towards the stands and waited.

Andrew was left looking after her with bewilderment in his expression.

*****

In the lobby, Monica had caught up with Stephanie. "Stephanie, wait," she called out. When the girl turned around, Monica could clearly see the tears brimming underneath her eyes. Monica rested her hand on Stephanie's shoulders and spoke again. "Are you OK?"

The girl nodded, but after looking into Monica's concerned and gentle eyes, she shook her head and sat down on the bench. The held back tears began to stream down her cheeks as she bent over to take her skates off. She couldn't bring herself to speak, and Monica could clearly see the sadness and hopelessness in her brown eyes.

"It's not easy for you, is it?" Monica asked softly.

Stephanie's lips trembled and the angel knew that the girl was trying to remain strong but also that her strength was wavering. Tears continued to stream down her cheeks, and the make-up she wore left black streaks on her cheeks and dark smudges under her eyes.

"How old are you?" Monica asked, reaching inside her pocket and pulling out a cloth handkerchief. This she handed to Stephanie.

"12," emerged from her lips as she wiped the make-up out of her eyes.

Monica kneeled down in front of her placed her hands on Stephanie's trembling shoulders to calm her. "You're just a child," she said compassionately and wrapped her arms around Stephanie's shoulders. "It's not easy to try to live up to other people's expectations, is it?"

"I have to go, my mother is waiting," Stephanie mumbled, not moving away from Monica. For some reason, this kind-hearted woman's touch to her shoulder and hug helped and she didn't want to go into the dressing room. There, she knew there that she would be alone again and she longed to remain in the company of this compassionate woman, who appeared to be the only possible person who understands the pain she felt.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Monica asked. "I'll listen, and maybe I can help."

She nodded, "but how can I...my mother?" Her voice reflected hopelessness.

"Come outside for a few minutes," Monica offered softly, "I think you need a few minutes away from all of this." She stood up, and offered Stephanie her hand.

She looked up, fear hidden in her eyes and it was clear that she didn't know what to do. Her fear was not of the kind woman who had offered her hand, but rather her mother. She knew that if Teresa found out that she was outside speaking to a stranger rather than getting dressed to go home, that she would get angry again.

"I won't hurt you," Monica offered, "My name is Monica. Andrew is a friend of mine, and he told me you spoke to him earlier today."

"I know, but you're not the person I'm afraid of," Stephanie said softly. She reached out and grasped Monica's hand. After a few seconds passed she stood up and allowed the angel to lead her outside.

Once outside, Stephanie sank to her knees, the feelings came out in a torrent of tears.

Monica came over and rested her hands gently on the young girl's shoulders. As she sat down on the ground near Stephanie, she spoke, her voice soft and gentle. "You don't like skating, do you?"

Stephanie shook her head, "no, I don't. Is it that obvious?"

"Only here," Monica said gently and pointed to the girl's sad brown eyes.

"I don't understand," she mumbled.

"You don't have the sparkle in your eyes that Patty has, and there's something else, you don't smile." Monica answered softly. "You didn't smile on the ice when you were skating."

Stephanie sighed deeply looking at her, "I used to like it, when Patty and I trained together, and were friends."

Monica nodded.

"Please, Monica, don't tell my mother any of this, she'd kill me." She looked back at the door leading inside.

"I won't, Stephanie, you can trust me. I would never do anything that would cause you pain. I want to help you in any way I can," she said gently.

Stephanie glanced back towards the doorway once again, and when she saw her mother walking through the hallway, she swallowed the lump, which formed in her throat and stood up. "I have to go. If she finds me out here, I'll get into trouble."

She stood up and once her mother's back disappeared behind the curtain, she slipped inside, and broke into a run to get to the safety of the dressing room.

Monica was left standing outside alone. She sighed deeply as Tess and Andrew appeared right next to her. "It almost looks hopeless, Tess."

"I know, baby," Tess said gently and rested her hand on Monica's shoulder.

"I feel like I failed," Monica said softly.

"No you didn't, you've just started, and it's going to take some time," Tess said and Andrew nodded.

"But, how are we going to talk to Stephanie if her mother is preventing her from doing so?" Andrew asked. "I don't want the next time I talk to Stephanie to be the time that I have to take her home. She's just a child, and she's living the life her mother wants of her, not the life God wants."

Tess nodded, and smiled comfortingly at Andrew. His gentle heart made it difficult at times for him to be an Angel of Death, but when it involved children, and suicide, it was almost too much for him.

Monica looked at Tess, "I have an idea. Maybe we can write a story about Stephanie for the paper, that way at least we can maybe talk to her one on one. It's obvious that she needs that."

"OK, Miss Wings, you go and arrange an interview," Tess said.

Monica walked back inside the ice rink and when she spotted Teresa Zimmerman sitting in the stands, she approached the woman. "Mrs. Zimmerman?"

"Yes," came her icy answer. Upon recognizing who had addressed her, her voice became even more demanding. "What do you want?"

"I want to talk to you about your daughter," Monica offered.

"What about her?" Teresa demanded with conviction. "We don't really have time for this, Stephanie has training."

"I understand, but as I said, this isn't about anything personal. It is, in fact, about a report that I would like to write about Stephanie for the paper. I simply wanted to get your permission," Monica said.

"Well, of course you can," suddenly her voice changed and she sounded as sweet as sugar. Monica backed up slightly she heard the change in Teresa's speech.

"Thank you, could you tell me when she has time?"

"Sunday morning?" Teresa offered.

Monica nodded with a warm smile, "OK, then I'll meet her here at 10."

"We'll be here," she answered assuredly.

"I don't mean to appear rude, but why can't she come here alone? We can conduct the interview while she's in training with her coach," Monica said softly. She knew that if they arranged the interview with Teresa present, there would exist no chance of her getting to talk to Stephanie about what it was that was spiritually and emotionally wearing her down.

"I am her mother, and I go where she goes." Teresa's voice was once again emerging icy and Monica could tell that his conversation was over.

*****

Andrew had reappeared in the near the railing and was looking around when a hand fell on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Patty; her eyes expressing the sympathy that her words could not.

"I saw everything," Patty said and could tell that this handsome man really did seem to care for her friend. It was the one thing they appeared to have in common. "It's so awful, that woman's got Stephy wound up like a spring," Patty grumbled noticing Andrew's worried expression. "It's embarrassing that she acts like this."

"What happened, Hon?" Brad asked softly, approaching the two of them.

"Stephanie's mother, what else? I think she's more afraid of her mother than she is of competing." Patty said wiping frustrated tears out of her eyes. "When we first moved here, Stephy was the first person to welcome me here. We both train here now, but at different times. You remember; Daddy, she and I used to have fun?"

Brad nodded as his daughter continued to speak.

"We would come here during 'free skate' and do jumps and stuff together." Patty looked at Andrew's bewildered face. "Oh, a 'free skate' is when they let the skaters practice and stuff. But, now, it's like she's skating for her mother's prestige rather than her own."

Tess approached them, "Hello."

Monica looked at her superior, her eyes unhappy. Tess could clearly see that her two angel babies were worried about both of the skaters they had met that afternoon, but rather than speak, she opted to remain silent. All three of the angels knew that there existed adequate reason to be worried, but when they looked at Patty, they decided to not verbalize their concerns.

Patty's face was still sad, "You know what really bothers me, Daddy? I'm supposed to be happy, I won second place, and I should feel really great about it."

Brad nodded, "You're a good friend, Patty. If Stephanie only knew just how good of a friend you are."

"But, her mother won't even let me within three feet of her," Patty said. "It's cruel to do this to someone, and I can't see why she tries to keep us separated."

Tess shook her head; "People sometimes mistake their love for others as blind expectations, Patty. People like Mrs. Zimmerman are essentially doing everything to enhance their own self esteem rather than the self worth of a child who desperately needs it." Her compassionate dark eyes sought those of Patty, "Your father's right, the best thing you can do is be a friend to Stephanie and right now, that's what she really needs."

"Do you think that's what Mrs. Zimmerman is doing to Stephanie, Tess?" Monica asked.

Tess nodded, "Yes I do." She didn't go into any lengthy explanations.

"I happen to know for a fact that Stephanie does want to be friends with you, Patty. When we were talking in the lobby, Stephanie interrupted me to check the scores. She said, 'she's one of my friends'. Then she walked to the curtain and listened. If I interpreted her actions correctly, I think she wanted you to win," Andrew said honestly.

"Really?" Patty's eyes became moist with tears.

Andrew nodded, "yes, it was right before you came through the curtains and congratulated her."

Patty smiled through her tears, and looked from her father, to the three angels. "Thank you, I feel at least a little better now." She was still worried, but at least she knew that she and Stephanie were friends. For now, that had to be enough.

"That's my girl," Brad said. "Are you in the mood for some lunch?"

Patty nodded, "Yeah, I need to eat something."

"Me too, I could eat a house," Brad said laughing. "Besides, we gotta toast your good finish today. You realize now that this means you're going to the regional competition, don't you?"

"Oh my gosh! I totally forgot about that, I just wanted to have a good finish. Then we have to celebrate." Patty's smile returned, as she began to pull bobby pins from her hair. "But, I think I'd rather get changed into something more appropriate and wash this guck off my face."

Andrew looked over at her hot pink skating dress and laughed. "I don't know; you would probably create a new fashion trend walking into the restaurant wearing that."

They all laughed.

"We have to get back inside for the 'Men's competition', it's about to start." Monica said refraining from mentioning anything about her conversations with Stephanie or Teresa.

Brad nodded, "I have to call my wife and arrange when we're going to meet."

"She's not here?" Tess asked.

"No, she had to stay home and take care of Patty's little sister." Brad explained. "Normally, we get a baby-sitter so we can both attend the competitions, but little Erika has been having the sniffles, and Mandy didn't want to leave her."

Andrew nodded as he watched his friends making their way back over towards the railing of the rink.

"So what about you, Andrew?" Brad asked. "I haven't seen you or your friends around town, you new here?"

"Yes, we've been on the road because our work keeps us going from place to place," Andrew said honestly.

"What kind of work makes you do all this traveling?" Brad asked.

"Well, we sort of counsel and help people," Andrew said softly.

Upon noticing that the angel was not really willing to go into specifics about his work, he stopped this line of questions. "Sorry if I appear too nosy, I was just curious."

Andrew nodded, "It's OK, Mr. Fischer."

"Call me Brad, please, we're pretty informal around here," he said. "Listen, I have to go call Mandy. I'll be back in a few minutes." He stood up and made his way towards the door leading outside.

Andrew nodded and glanced over towards the dressing room where Patty had gone. He hoped that she would be back soon, with her around, he didn't have the chance to contemplate his extreme worries for Stephanie. All he could do was pray, but the longer they were there, the more hopeless this situation became. "Dear Father," he began to pray. "Please don't make me have to take Stephanie home. Give her the strength she desperately needs to overcome this situation. Please, she's only 12-years-old. It would break my heart to see her try to end her life as the only way out of this situation."

As he finished his prayer, he opened his eyes to see that Brad was coming back over to where he was sitting.

"OK, that's all taken care of," Brad said cheerfully as he sat back down on the bench. He could see the worried look in Andrew's eyes. "Is something wrong?"

"No, I'm OK," he said after a few moments of silence had passed.

"You sure you're all right? You looked as though you were really deep in thought."

"Yes, I'm all right," Andrew answered.

"Well, if you don't mind me saying so, you just look a little pale," Brad said.

Andrew nodded, this time not saying a word.

"Sorry, I sound like an overbearing parent," Brad offered with a chuckle. "Patty would have scolded me for that."

"Really?" Andrew looked at Brad. This was ironic to see two people who appeared to be as close as Patty and her father were.

"Yeah, she's the type that doesn't like people to make a fuss over her." Brad said, "She's like her mother. You know what, sometimes I wonder who you take after, your mother or your father. You know I always took after my mom."

Andrew stifled a sarcastic grin. "I like to think I take after my father."

"You know, Patty would probably strangle me because I'm not watching the competition in there. Normally I do, but today I don't feel like it. Unlike Patty, I have my limits on how much skating I can watch." He laughed.

Andrew smiled, "I must admit I have only seen skating on TV, so I don't really know much about it. I suppose I don't get to watch too many things on television because of my work."

"It's a good sport, but me, I like a good soccer match, or basketball," Brad said. "You into sports?"

"Not really, though I did help some boys in a baseball team once," Andrew said.

"I was on swim team in school. My coach said I swam like a fish. Then three years later in college, one of my buddies said I should drink like a fish, and swim like a dog." He grinned sheepishly.

Andrew smiled. He really liked Brad, he was nice, easy-going, and really seemed genuine when he would talk with people.

"I don't drink alcohol myself, probably because I'm allergic to it, not to mention I can't stand the taste of it," Brad offered continuing his story, "but in college a lot of guys do."

"You studied Chemical Engineering, right?" Andrew asked.

"How'd you know?" Brad asked.

"Patty mentioned it to my friends, I just happened to listen." Andrew said.

"What about you, did you go to college?" Brad asked.

"No," came the simple answer. "But, I like many subjects, History, English Literature, and Physics."

"Yeah?" When Andrew nodded, he continued, "that's great, I guess what people call that is universal knowledge, in that you know a lot about a lot of things and have the aptitude for various subjects. I must admit; my biggest disaster in college was trying to get through this one Physics class. The professor taught like we were all Einstein reincarnated. It was an absolute nightmare." Brad chuckled, "Getting a 'C' in that class must have been the biggest miracle of my life."

Andrew laughed opting to change the subject. "How did Patty get into figure skating?"

"Her mother was at the mall with her one day, and she couldn't have been any older than five, and they were doing a skating exhibition there, and there was a skater there who was a senior level skater. It was a young man about 20 years old." Brad began warming up to the subject. "This man did an exhibition program and according to Mandy, Patty was star-struck. But, I think what put the icing on the cake, was when he skated over to Patty and picked her up in his arms and skated around the rink with her on his shoulders. That evening when Patty and Mandy came home, Patty begged us for skating lessons. We agreed and she started skating."

"She was only five years old?" Andrew asked.

"Yeah, but keep in mind, most kids who are involved in the sport, started skating when they were five or six years old. As I told you in the hall, this is a commitment that young people make and a lot them drop out before they even get out of the Novice divisions because their interests change."

"I had no idea," Andrew offered. "I suppose it never occurred to me that a five or six year old child could make such a commitment."

"Yeah that's true, but keep in mind that a lot of times these kids are pushed rather hard into it by their parents. Like with Stephanie. I have seen her mother fly into rages when Stephanie would miss jumps in practice." Brad said sadly.

"But I thought that Patty and Stephanie practiced at separate times?" Andrew asked.

"Not always. When we first moved here, Stephanie and Patty both had their training under Gilda. Later, Gilda told me that she had been fired as Stephanie's coach. I remember the events before she had been fired; I'd come into the hall to pick up Patty after practice and would hear Teresa Zimmerman screaming at Stephanie about missing jumps or something. Then, Mrs. Zimmerman hired a new coach, Jake McCall, and they completely changed her practice times so that Stephanie and Patty couldn't even train at the same times."

"How did Patty react to it?" Andrew asked.

"At first it scared her, but later she admitted to me that it really made her angry. She told me that she couldn't understand a parent yelling at their kid over something like a double flip." Brad shrugged his shoulders, but continued speaking, "but then Patty would see Stephanie take it like a soldier. She confided in me that she wanted to scream back at Mrs. Zimmerman, but I told her that she'd better not. I had a feeling that Patty's emotions were strong, but I didn't know how solid Stephanie's were and I feared that if Patty had said anything, then it would only be worse on Stephanie."

"From watching the sport, one would think that it was all glitter and glitz," Andrew said.

Brad shook his head. "I know what you mean, but after watching Patty immerse herself into it, I learned quickly that there's a lot of blood, sweat and tears to it."

Andrew nodded, but finally spoke again. "Gilda said that the pressures Stephanie's under are going to cause her to have a nervous breakdown, what do you think?"

"I think it's much worse than what Gilda said, Andrew," Brad said. "I think the pressure that Mrs. Zimmerman is putting on her daughter, could be considered abusive, and that if someone doesn't help her soon, then Stephanie may look for a drastic way out."

Andrew shuddered, he couldn't imagine anything worse than that and the worst thing was, he knew exactly what Brad was implying. "What about your wife, what does she think?"

"Mandy hasn't heard all of what I have and I haven't told her. Like I said, Patty and Mandy are cut from the same mold," Brad said. "I know both Mandy and Patty well enough to know that if they were to yell back at Mrs. Zimmerman, the results fall on the shoulders of Stephanie. This woman has outrageous expectations for her daughter and tries to live them out through her. I couldn't do that to Patty, that's why we never pushed her to be more than what she is. She has pushed herself far more than any of us ever could have."

"I think the way you are handling this is really wonderful. Patty's very lucky," Andrew offered.

"Thanks, but listen, I may have said too much here, so please don't tell Patty any of this OK? I mean, maybe I'm trying to protect her, but I know she's concerned. I also know how she is, and I believe that if she had to, she'd give up the skating if it meant saving her friend." Brad said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I don't want her to give up anything she loves because of the actions of others."

"You believe that she would really give it up, just like that, if it meant saving Stephanie?" Andrew asked.

Brad nodded, "I'm almost certain that she would."

Andrew nodded numbly. "I won't say anything to her, but I'd like talk to my friends about this later, I think between the three of us, maybe we can find a resolution."

Brad nodded, "I don't see why you can't."

By this time, Patty had emerged from the dressing room. "Daddy, why aren't you watching the competition?"

Brad looked up and blushed, "Sorry Princess, we're just having guy talk."

Patty giggled, "yeah, I guess living with three women, you probably need that sometimes."

Andrew looked up and when he saw her, he barely recognized her. The first thing he noticed was that her wavy hair was out of the bun and brushing against her shoulders. The make-up she had worn during the competition was gone and she wore a beige skirt and a turtleneck sweater. The girl standing before him looked like a completely different person than then skater that he had seen an hour ago.

"Daddy can you hold this for me for a minute?" She handed Brad a clothing bag, and moved the duffel bag strap up on her shoulder closer to her neck. Once the bag was comfortably hanging from her shoulder, she took the bag away from her father.

"Your mom and baby sister are going to meet us at the restaurant in a half an hour," Brad said, and then he turned to Andrew. "Why don't you go and see if your friends are ready to go, and we can head out? It's gonna take some time to get there with the traffic."

Andrew nodded and headed back through the curtain. The last of the skaters were beginning to take their skates off, and he knew that the competition must be over because the Zamboni had returned to resurface the ice. He glanced over and saw Monica and Tess were packing their things.

"You're done?" He asked as he approached them.

Tess nodded, "Yes, it was an interesting competition."

"I suppose we'd better hurry," Andrew said. "Patty and Brad are ready to go and they're waiting in the lobby."

"OK, but we need to drop our notes off at the paper," Monica said.

"Maybe we can meet them at the restaurant, then," Andrew suggested.

"Let's see what Brad has in mind," Tess said.

Monica and Andrew nodded as they made their way outside. Patty and Brad were standing on the sidewalk in front of the entrance.

"Did you enjoy the competition?" Patty wanted to know, as soon as they joined them outside.

"We sure did, right Tess?" came Monica's bubbly answer and Tess nodded.

"Who won?" Patty asked.

"Daniel Jenkins," Tess answered.

"Oh, yeah? He's really good; I've seen him during practice. He can land a triple loop in competition with no problems. After regionals, he'll probably move up to the junior level. The hardest jump I have successfully landed in competition was the triple toe loop." Patty grinned and continued, "I've tried to land the triple loop so often, but the problem is I can't seem to get all the way around on it. I told Gilda once that I did it once successfully, but I also admitted to having my eyes closed." She laughed, "but still, she's been really working me on it."

"Is that what one would call a one hit wonder?" Tess asked.

"Yeah something like that. I've been really trying to land it solid, too. Gilda said that with a solid triple loop in competition, I could compete in the junior division because my other jumps are solid, but I know it's going to take a lot of practice to perfect it, and I still have to get more experience with that particular one before I move on to juniors."

"Are you going to compete as a junior any time soon?" Andrew asked.

"Probably next season, but I would have to wait and see." Patty answered, "I want to be good enough to qualify or I'd be biting off more than I can chew."

Tess nodded, "we need to drop off our notes at the paper. Can we meet you at the restaurant?"

"How far away do you have to go?" Brad asked.

"Not far, maybe three or four blocks," Monica answered.

"Well, why don't we follow you and then after you drop it off, we can go to the restaurant? It's not far from here, but kind of hard to find." Brad explained as he dug around in his pocket and pulled out his car keys.

"OK, that's will be fine." Tess answered and the three angels walked over to Tess' prided red convertible. They could see Brad and Patty climbed in a small blue mini-van. Brad started the car and followed them out of the parking lot.

Once Tess and Monica had dropped the notes off, they followed Brad's car to the restaurant where they would be having lunch.

Upon arriving, Tess parked their car next to Brad's mini-van. Brad and Patty were already out of the car and they saw Patty waving her hands at a woman standing by the door of the restaurant, her hands rested on the curved handles of a stroller. A small girl sat inside.

As they were getting out of the car, they could hear the excited voice of Patty as she approached the woman. "Mom, I placed second!" Patty said as she reached her mother, and showed the silver medal she held in her hands.

"Wonderful!" The woman wrapped her older daughter in her arms, "I'm so proud of you, I wish I could have been there." She looked up at her husband, as he approached, "Who was first?"

"Stephanie was," Patty said.

Her mother's face darkened. "I guess Stephanie hasn't gone over the edge yet." Mandy Fischer glanced over to see two women and a man standing behind her husband.

Patty's smile disappeared, "Mom," she whined.

Mandy sighed and nodded, "I'm sorry, Honey. I just feel sorry for that girl."

Brad thought it best to change the subject, "How's Erika doing?" he asked.

"She still has the sniffles, but I think she'll be OK." Mandy said. "Won't you, honey?"

The small girl grinned as Tess greeted Patty's mother.

"Oh, Mom, this is Tess, Monica, and Andrew. We met them at the competition and Daddy invited them to come along for lunch," Patty said.

Mandy nodded and smiled warmly, "Nice to meet you all, my name's Mandy."

"Why don't we go inside and see what we can get to eat?" Brad asked. "I smell a steak with my name on it."

The angels smiled and followed the family inside the restaurant. It really was a nice opportunity for the three of them to get to know these people better.

Once inside they sat down at a large table.

"So, you never told us what brings you into town," Patty said as she reached for a menu which was in the center of the table.

"Well, there's not much say, our work brought us here," Tess answered smiling as she reached for a menu.

Patty seemed to accept this answer and didn't say anything else.

Instead Monica spoke up, "We're happy to be here though, Harrisburg is a very nice town and it has some very nice people."

Patty smiled warmly. "I'm glad you’re here, there's something very unique and special about you. I can't place it, but I know that there's a lot of love at this table."

"Are you getting into politics, honey?" Brad asked with a smirk.

They all laughed, but Tess smiled. "Those are nice sentiments, Patty."

Patty smiled, "I guess that does sound kind of cheesy, but it's true, I mean, it's odd that a practical stranger would see the pain Stephanie had been through. It's comforting somehow, because we all know that she needs help."

*****

That evening, the three angels arrived at the apartment where they were living for the duration of this assignment. The afternoon with the Fischer family had been really great.

"Tess, do you have any ideas what we can do for Stephanie?" Monica finally asked.

Andrew came over and sat down across from his friend. "All that I can sense is that she is experiencing a deep sense of pain."

Tess nodded in concurrence, "She's very unhappy, and it's effecting everything about her."

"Brad was right," Andrew said. "When we spoke earlier today, he mentioned that it could get much more desperate for Stephanie than just a nervous breakdown. I fear she will try something drastic because she sees no other way out."

Tess nodded, "I'm afraid so. The fact is; if someone doesn't find a way to break through this wall her mother has built around her, she will look for a way out. Stephanie is in a lot of pain right now, and she doesn't have too much strength left. Unfortunately, she does not yet know that God loves her, and that He wants to help her. She's so frightened, and as you know, fear is something that evil thrives on."

"A way out," Monica sighed sadly. "Oh Tess, what can we do?"

Andrew shook his head sadly. "Brad asked me to not mention anything about this to Patty. She's very worried about her friend."

Monica sighed sadly. "I tried to talk to Stephanie for about five minutes and all I could surmise was that she's petrified of her mother, and I even tried to find a way to talk to her without her mother being present, but I failed. Stephanie desperately needs to talk to someone, but because her mother is so obsessive about her, the chances of me getting another opportunity isn't too likely."

"Did you have any luck arranging anything?" Tess asked.

Monica shook her head, "Teresa expects to be everywhere her daughter is, and the only way to talk to Stephanie would be in the presence of her mother."

"That means; we can't do anything?" Andrew asked.

Tess nodded. "Yes, all we can do is pray for Stephanie, and ask the Father to give her the strength she lacks."

Monica sighed deeply. "Sometimes I wish I could go up to Teresa Zimmerman and just tell her the truth."

"You know we can't do that, Miss Wings. It might make things even worse for Stephanie." Tess said. "Besides, Teresa doesn't appear to want any of us to have contact with Stephanie."

"Why?" Andrew asked.

"Teresa saw you speaking with Patty at the rink, and she thinks that you would distract Stephanie's attention from her skating, and then Patty would win the next competition," Tess said softly, "Teresa would never admit it, but she's afraid that if her daughter has any contact with Patty, that Patty would conspire against her and win."

"That's absurd!" Andrew said sadly. "It doesn't do any harm to talk to someone, Patty's no more a conspirator than I am."

"I know, Angel Boy, and as absurd as it may sound, this is how things stand. We all know that this is a foolish idea, but that is how Teresa Zimmerman sees things." Tess said. "There are sadly, humans who are rather fanatical about things such as this. Teresa is trying to keep these barriers around her daughter so that she will have the glory if her daughter is successful."

"That's crazy," Monica said with compassion in her voice. "She should let her daughter live her life."

Andrew's eyes brimmed with unshed tears. "We have to help her, if this goes on much longer I will have to take Stephanie home. She is a prisoner of her mother's desires, and I don't think it's right."

Monica nodded sadly, "I know, when I talked to her, Stephanie was more concerned about her mother's reaction than she was about her skating."

"Can someone really be so afraid of someone else like that?" Andrew asked.

"Humans do fear it, they want acceptance by their parents, it's hard for them if they feel they fall short of that," Tess said.

"You're right, and when I talked to Stephanie I felt her fear for her mother. She wanted to come back inside and said that if she disobeyed her mother, that she would kill her," Monica said softly. "I suppose whether this is right or wrong, this fear does exist in her, and she has lost the courage to confront it."

"Yes, but she's also 12-years-old, and it's like Gilda said, we can't expect Stephanie to stand up to her mother like this," Andrew said.

"That may be true, but right now, Stephanie will have to, or else she's going to live her life imprisoned by her mother's desires," Tess said softly.

"Yes, and when I spoke to her this afternoon, I realized that she believes, she is a prisoner and feels that she has no way out," Monica said sadly.

"You're basically saying that she has a sort of emotional or mental imprisonment," Andrew said. "So how will we break through that?"

Tess shook her head, "I don't know yet. The Father is the only one who knows, and perhaps through his guidance, we will be able to help those two special girls."

Andrew nodded, stood up, and walked into the kitchen.

*****

Andrew arrived at the ice rink early Saturday morning. As nervous as he was about putting on a pair of skates, he had really looked forward to the morning with Patty and Gilda. He hoped that something wouldn't ruin his morning with her, and in the back of his mind, he could not stop thinking about Stephanie.

As he made his way towards the door, which would lead inside, he saw Brad's mini-van pull into the parking lot and watched as Patty got out.

Upon seeing him, she smiled and waved.

He waved back and approached the mini-van. "Hi, Patty. Hi Brad."

"Good morning, Andrew. I see you're ready to take the plunge," Brad offered from inside the van. He made sure that Patty grabbed all of her things before he started the engine. "I'd stick around for awhile, but I've gotta go to the hardware store and pick up some things for the upstairs bathroom. Your mom will be here at two to pick you up."

Patty nodded, "You've already told me that three or four times already, Daddy. If she isn't here, then I will call a cab and see you later at home."

"If nobody's here, I'm sure I can drive you home," Andrew offered smiling. "Tess let me borrow the car, and she and Monica are working at the paper this morning. It's not far from here, so if your mom isn't here, I can take you home."

Patty nodded, "See, Daddy, you don't have to worry."

"It's my job to worry, you should know that by now." Brad said with a good-natured grin. "Have fun, and I'll see you later."

Patty turned to Andrew as her father drove away. "My dad, he's trying to play plumber. The sink in the upstairs bathroom has a drip, and he's gonna try and fix it."

"Do you think he can?" Andrew asked.

Patty shook her head, "I don't know, Mom and I have placed wages on whether or not he can. If he can't then I win and she's gonna boy me this really pretty green skating costume for next season." Patty grinned, "Actually, I hope he can, then I will have my own bathroom, since it's the one connected to my room. Right now I have to share a bathroom with Erika, and that's no fun." She laughed good-naturedly, "Oh well, let's go inside, Gilda probably isn't here yet and we can get you a pair of skates and I need to warm up. Gilda normally arrives 10 minutes or so after I arrive."

Andrew nodded and followed her inside.

"What size are you?" She asked as she approached a counter.

"I usually wear 11 and 1/2, I think." Andrew said.

Patty nodded and once she saw an older man approach the counter, she smiled at him. "Good morning, Mr. Guthrie."

"Patty, how are you?" The man broke into a huge grin upon seeing her.

"I'm fine, this is my friend, Andrew, and he's going to train with me today, can he borrow a pair of size 11 and 1/2 skates?" Patty asked.

The man's eyes fell on Andrew, who was standing a few inches behind Patty. He chuckled to himself, turned around, pulled a pair of skates from the shelf, and handed them to Andrew. "This is your first time skating, young man?"

Andrew nodded.

"Then you might want to wear socks, sometimes beginners get bad blisters."

Andrew nodded, "OK, thank you."

Patty grinned at the man, "You always look out for everyone, Mr. Guthrie."

"Well, that's just because you're my darlin'." The man began to laugh and Patty and Andrew joined him. "Oh yeah, I nearly forgot, Gilda called. She said that she's going to be a few minutes later than usual and you should do some warm up calisthenics, before you get on the ice. Not like I should be telling you that." The man smiled good-naturedly at Patty.

"You know me too well." Patty said giggling.

The man nodded, "My wife and I have owned this rink for the last 18 years, and Patty is the only girl we've seen who has more ambition than her coach and parents combined." He smiled fondly at the girl standing before him. "Yes sir, talk about a nice family. Martha, that's the missus, she's always talking about those nice Fischers and what a great group of people they are."

Patty Blushed. "Mr. Guthrie, you are always bragging about that."

"Yeah, but it's the truth, Patty." The man answered.

"I noticed that about them too," Andrew said honestly.

Thomas Guthrie beamed, "See, even your friend is observant."

Patty giggled and Andrew decided to change the subject. "I saw the competition two days ago, and it was really good."

"Yes, the competition was one of the highlights of the season. Usually this rink is used only for training." Mr. Guthrie answered with a smile. "But, they are renovating the rink where they usually have the competitions across town, and so we got lucky."

"How many people train here?" Andrew asked.

"About 10 girls in Patty's division, but we have all together over 60 who train here. The others train at the rink across town," came the answer.

At that moment, a woman's voice was heard, and Mr. Guthrie smiled at the two of them, "Gotta go, my wife is calling me. Have fun you two."

The man turned and walked away from the counter, but not before Patty called out once again. "OK, see you later, Mr. Guthrie."

Andrew nodded towards the man and followed Patty to the stands. Once there, he sat down, watched her lay her bag on the stands, and begin stretching. "I have to warm up every time I skate. That way I can do the triple jumps and stuff," she explained.

Andrew nodded untied his tennis shoes and pulled them off. He reached for one of the skates hesitantly and as he put one on, he spoke. "I haven't ice-skated in a long time."

"Don't worry about it, once you're out there, it'll come back," she said as she continued stretching. Andrew continued watching her for a few minutes and after about 10 minutes; she sat down next to him and untied her tennis shoes. Within seconds, she had her skates on and looked over at him as she tied the laces on her skates. "Come on, we all have to start somewhere."

"How many pillows am I gonna need for my bottom, then?" Andrew grinned at her and attempted to stand up.

"Oh, come on, how can you say that? Besides, it's not that hard." She looked at him, and smiled. "I'll show you how easy it is."

Andrew stood up and hesitantly followed her to the edge of the ice. "Where's the shallow end?" He asked jokingly.

Patty laughed out loud, "You chicken, come on, it's fun." She glided out onto the ice, and Andrew followed, a little wobbly, but finally he managed to skate out onto the surface of the ice keeping his hands holding onto the railing of the rink. He glanced over and could see Monica and Tess watching him. Both were in angelic form, and Patty could not see them. He flashed them an embarrassed smile as he grasped the rail, his fingers holding so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. "Father please give me the ability," he pleaded under his breath.

"This feels really different," he offered gritting his teeth and using his hands on the rail to push him along the ice. His hands refused to let go of the railing.

Patty skated over to him, "first of all, you have to let go of the rail, or you'll never get anywhere." She reached out her hands to him and he accepted them. As their hands touched, he gulped as she pulled him away from the railing and into the center of the rink. She released his hands and skated away from him. He was left standing alone in the middle, not knowing what to do next. "Come here, Andrew," she called out to him.

"How?" Andrew asked.

"Use your feet. Instead of taking off using the rail, you have to use your feet, one in front of the other." Patty demonstrated what she meant by gliding across the ice, one foot in front of the other.

Andrew started by walking slowly towards her, but his first attempt caused him to fall backwards and he fell on his rear end. "You said I didn't need any pillows for this, but I think you're wrong." He rubbed his bottom and looked over at her, "how do I get up?"

Patty started giggling uncontrollably when she turned around and saw him still sitting on the ice. "Use your hands to push yourself back onto your feet."

Andrew nodded, and did as she instructed.

Once he was back on his feet, Patty called out to him. "Now, try again, and this time, don't take such choppy steps. Pretend like you're intentionally shuffling your feet across a carpet so you can shock your friends with the static electricity."

Andrew nodded and tried it like she said, and was surprised when he reached the railing without falling. "I did it!"

Patty nodded. "Actually, some say it's much easier to skate backwards than it is to skate forwards. It's just harder to learn."

"One thing at a time, thank you." Andrew laughed and when he glanced over and could see Tess and Monica still watching. Monica's eyes were practically dancing as she watched her friend struggling across the ice.

Seconds later, a voice called out, "Good morning, you two."

Patty turned around, "Gilda, I got your message."

Gilda sat down in the stands and started taking her tennis shoes off. "I figured. How are you, Andrew?"

The angel nodded, "fine, I think."

Gilda continued to put her skates on as Patty and Andrew clowned around on the ice. Once she was finished, she skated over towards them. "OK, enough monkey business, you two. It's time to get to work. Did you do your warm-up, Patty?"

Patty nodded and grinned, "Of course, now what should I be working on today?"

"We need to do a lot of polishing up of your program to get you ready for the regional competition. We only have a month until then, and you should try to replace the double loop at the beginning with a triple loop, or at the very least, a triple toe loop," Gilda said.

Andrew listened attentively hoping that Gilda would explain the distinguishing characteristics of each jump. When she didn't, he finally asked, "I don't understand, what's the difference between a Salchow and a toe loop?"

Gilda turned to Andrew, and smiled. "All jumps are determined by the take off. A Salchow's take off is from the backward inside edge of the blade." She positioned her foot on the ice; in the manner that one would in order to execute the jump. "Your take off foot has to be on the ice in this position, to execute the Salchow." Her attention diverted to Patty. "Patty, show us a double Salchow."

Andrew watched as Patty executed the jump taking off from one leg, and landing on the other. Once she landed the jump, she skated over to her coach.

"Very good, this is one of her best jumps, but of the six jumps, it's also one of the easiest." Gilda explained. "When I give the word, do a double toe loop."

Patty nodded as Gilda began to speak again, "OK, Andrew, the toe loop is actually a variation of the loop. But, let me explain the loop first. In executing the loop, a skater has to start the jump on same foot they land on. The toe loop is much easier because a skater would take off from the toe of the skate, thus the name." Gilda glanced over at Patty and nodded.

Patty executed the jump.

"Now, I want you to do a triple toe loop," Gilda called out.

Patty nodded and after a few seconds attempted the jump. This jump, she landed on both feet. "Sorry Gilda, that one didn't come out so good."

"Yeah, you double footed the landing. Concentrate, and make sure you get a good take off and height in the jump." Gilda called out. "Try again."

Patty skated around the rink in order to get momentum and attempted the jump again, this time she landed it perfectly.

"Did you see the difference between the two jumps?" Gilda asked Andrew, but before he could answer, his smile disappeared and he sighed sadly as he glanced over towards the edge of the ice.

Monica was now in human form and was waving towards him. "Could you excuse me for a minute?" As he clumsily reached the edge of the ice, he knew that he was needed. "Stephanie, right?" he asked weakly.

"Go, Andrew, I'll explain to them," Monica said sadly. She already had a pair of skates on her feet and she skated out onto the ice as Andrew removed his skates quickly, returned them, raced through the curtain and outside. Once there, he disappeared.

"Gilda, my name's Monica, I'm a friend of Andrew's and he wanted me to tell you that he had to go take care of something but that I would stick around and drive Patty home if the need arose."

Patty skated over. "Monica, where's Andrew?"

The angel smiled compassionately at the young girl. "He had something he needed to attend to. You'll see him later. You don't mind if I stay, do you?"

"No, not at all," Patty said. "We were just explaining to Andrew the differences between the jumps."

"Then you can tell me, because I'm also interested in learning," she said.

Gilda nodded. "OK, where were we?"

"I think you were explaining the difference between the Salchow and the toe loop," Monica said. "I was paying attention from the railing, so I did notice it. But, how do the people on TV know what moves a skater is going to make when they are moderating events?"

"You mean in the seniors competitions?" Gilda asked.

"Yes," Monica answered.

"Well, they get a list of the routine as to what jumps will be executed. Also in the short program, a skater has to execute certain jumps, and if they miss it, or fall, they don't get a second chance to do it." Gilda explained, "When I performed, I missed the double Axel in the short program, and then messed up the triple loop and after that I was so distracted, I fell during the footwork in the long program. That's why I finished near the end."

"An Axel?" Monica asked.

Gilda nodded, "Yes, it's one of the more difficult jumps, because there is an additional half turn so that the skater can land going backwards. Not to mention you have to take off from a forward edge."

"Can you do one now?" Monica asked.

"OK, hold this," Gilda handed Monica her clipboard, and skated away from her. She executed the jump and landed successfully. She skated back over to Monica. "Did you see the difference?"

"I think so," she answered.

Gilda looked over at Patty, who was skating around the rink. "Patty, why don't you show us a double Axel?"

Patty nodded and once she got the momentum she needed, she executed the jump and smiled when she landed it.

"Very good," Gilda said when Patty skated back over to them. "Why don't you try a triple Salchow, Patty?"

She nodded and skated away from them and attempted the jump. During the third revolution she landed on the ice and lost her balance and fell on her bottom.

Monica made her way over to Patty, "Maybe you need a pillow."

Patty burst out laughing, and it took a couple of seconds for her to get up off the ice from the hysterical giggling that overcame her.

"I think I missed the joke," Gilda said skating over to the two of them. "You weren't concentrating, that's supposed to be one of your better jumps. Why don't you try again?"

Patty nodded, "OK." She skated around the rink, but as she looked up, she saw some movement over by the entrance. Her smile disappeared when she recognized whom it was that had come in. Rather than attempting the jump, she skated back over to where her coach and Monica were standing. "Hey, isn't that Stephanie's coach?"

Gilda looked up and nodded, "Yeah, that's Jake McCall, but I wonder what he's doing here. Usually he and Stephanie train here during the afternoons."

Monica looked up and saw the man. "Yes, I saw him here on Thursday."

Gilda nodded, "Listen, I'm going to go over and see what is going on. He wouldn't normally show up at this time here unless he had to cancel a student's training for the day." She laid her clipboard on the railing and skated away from the two of them. "I'll be right back, Patty why don't you explain to Monica the flip and the Lutz?" Gilda said as she made her way towards the edge of the rink so she could talk to the other coach.

Monica looked at Patty, "I wonder what's going on."

Patty sighed deeply, "I have no idea. Do you think something's wrong?"

Monica shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know."

"Oh well, let me explain the other two jumps, and then when Gilda comes back over, we can ask her about it." Patty said. "A flip is done from an inside edge with the toe pick in the ice to help with taking off. My dad called it a pole vault on ice, actually. Let me show you." Patty dug the toe pick of her skate into the ice.

Monica nodded, "It's a little bit complicating, why don't you do the jump, and let me just watch how it looks?"

"OK," Patty skated away from her and executed a double flip.

When she skated back over to Monica, she spoke. "Did you see what I did?"

"Yes," Monica answered.

"The Lutz is like the flip, the only difference is the take off is from the outside edge. The jump is really difficult. The triple Lutz, I can't do without biting it. It's the hardest triple jump aside from the Axel, which most senior women can't land anyway, so I don't stress much about it. The triple Lutz is really hard, but I can show you a double Lutz, I can land them pretty well."

"OK," Monica said.

Patty nodded, and skated off to execute the jump. Once she did it and two-footed the landing, she skated back over to the angel. "That one wasn't good, I wasn't concentrating and I two footed the landing, but you get an idea about how the jump takes off."

"Two footing, what's that? I heard Gilda use that term, does that mean that you land on both feet?" Monica asked.

Patty nodded, "exactly. In competition, if you land a jump on two feet, then you lose points. When I did the triple toe loop earlier, I had to do it again because I landed on both feet."

"Thanks for explaining that," Monica offered glancing over to see if Gilda was going to be returning to them in a few moments.

Finally after some time passed, they could see Gilda skating over to them.

*****

Stephanie was lying in bed that morning, her face pale, her eyes closed. She had taken three of the sleeping pills the night before. The pain had to stop; the deeply embedded hurt she felt would not go away. She closed her eyes, but after a few moments, she could see some light and it was coming closer.

Stephanie, a voice, gentle and soft was addressing her.

She opened her eyes and looked up and into Andrew's gentle eyes. He was glowing, the halo of light surrounding him and she could see that he was dressed in a beige suit. I know you, she whispered.

Yes, my name is Andrew, and I'm an angel sent from God to help you, he said gently.

I didn't want to do this, I didn't want to disappoint God, she said softly, her voice cracking with emotion. I'm just so scared.

I know, and you're never alone, sweetheart, Andrew said compassionately. I won't leave you alone, and God is always there for you when you need Him.

I don't want to die, Andrew, she said softly. I just want my mother to let me live and to do the things other girls do. I want to have friends, and be accepted.

He brushed his hand gently through her hair. I know you do, but you have to fight, Stephanie, you're in a coma now, but you can fight, all you have to do is ask God for the strength you lack. I'm here for you, and I will do whatever I can to help you.

Just talk to me, she whispered, her voice emerged filled with sadness.

I'm here, he said softly as Teresa came into the room and found her daughter.

"Stephanie, you have training," she came over and shook her daughter, but when Stephanie didn't wake up, she glanced over and saw the bottle of sleeping pills on the nightstand. Teresa screamed, and ran out of the room and down the hall to call an ambulance.

Andrew, will God forgive me? She asked once her mother had left the room.

Of course He will, Stephanie. He loves you so much, and He shares your pain in the most profound way. Why didn't you ever ask Him to help you before now? Andrew spoke gently.

I was afraid that he would be angry if I went against the will of my mother. I'm supposed to honor my parents, she said softly.

Don't worry, Stephanie, God knows everything that has happened here, and whether you want to fight for life or give up, you must know that He will help you with those choices. For this reason, He sent my friends and me to help you.

You mean, those two women who were with you? She asked.

Yes, Monica, Tess and I are all angels, Stephanie, and we'll do everything we can to help you, Andrew said softly and squeezed her hand gently.

You don't hate me for what I did?

No, I think I understand why you did it, and though it makes me sad, I realized that you felt trapped and alone, he said gently. Stephanie, as long as you allow God to help you, you'll never feel alone again and those feelings will disappear.

But, I've felt this way ever since I was five years old, Stephanie said softly.

I know, but there exists no reason for you to continue feeling this way, he said gently. You must never stop believing that God cares for you and He will carry you through.

She nodded and reached for his hand. Once she held it, she could feel the love of God encompass her in the embodiment of this wonderful angel. Through this experience, Stephanie Zimmerman learned a profound lesson that she was never alone.

As Andrew watched over her, he prayed that this lesson would not be learned too late. "Please Father; let her live. She knows her mistake, but now she must be able to really live, not as her mother wishes, but through the plan you have for her life. Please; give her the strength she lacks. She wants to live; I know she does."

As the paramedics entered the room, she realized that he was with her and that he would stay with her through the greatest challenge of her life, and for that, she was grateful.

*****

Back at the rink, the first thing Monica noticed was that Gilda's usually happy face looked troubled. "What happened, Gilda?" Monica and Patty asked almost simultaneously.

"We have to stop training early today. The Guthries said they are going to close the rink for the rest of the day," Gilda said softly.

"Does this have anything to do with Stephy's coach showing up here?" Patty asked.

Gilda nodded, "I'm afraid it does." The woman looked at Patty sadly, how could she even begin to explain what she had learned? She sighed deeply, and finally the words came out, "Jake came by to cancel her training for an indefinite period of time. Patty, Stephanie tried to kill herself last night. Teresa Zimmerman called Jake this morning in hysterics and told him that Stephanie had been taken to the hospital."

"What?" Patty's eyes widened. "That can't be true, not Stephy." She looked into the sad eyes of her coach and back at Monica. When Gilda's gaze didn't falter, Patty knew it must be true. She covered her face in her hands and began to weep. "I knew that something like this would happen, I just knew it.

Monica was still standing next to her, and she wrapped her arms around Patty. "What exactly happened, Gilda?" Monica asked as Patty continued to cry on her shoulder.

"Teresa said that she had gone into Stephanie's room this morning to wake her up and found a bottle of sleeping pills by the bed. According to Teresa, she shook Stephanie a few times in hopes of waking her up, but Stephanie was unconscious, though still breathing. She called 911 and the ambulance came and picked her up and took her to the hospital. At the hospital, she called Jake, and he came here to tell the Guthries," Gilda said softly. "Jake just left for the hospital and I'll be going there as well. You two can come, but if you do come Patty, we need to contact your parents."

Monica nodded numbly. Patty was still crying, though by this time, she was no longer holding onto her. She sniffed and wiped the tears off her face with the back of her hand.

"I'm sorry, Patty," Gilda said, "I knew that this would be hard to tell you, but I had to let you know. I don't think you would have forgiven me if I hadn't been honest with you about this. I realized long ago that you wanted everything to be like it used to be, and I wish I could make it that way."

Patty nodded, "I want to go with you," were the only words to emerge.

"OK, then I'll call your parents and they can meet us there." Gilda said. She turned to face Monica. "Please stay with her, Monica, she needs your friendship." She sighed once again. "Did you want to come to the hospital with us?"

"I think I should, Gilda," she said.

The coach nodded as she reached for the clipboard she normally carried. Without saying anything further, she skated away from the two of them and over towards the railing. Once she disappeared through the hallway, Monica wrapped her arms around Patty's shoulder and led her gently towards the edge of the ice.

I'm so glad that after Andrew left that I could stay here, she thought to herself as she glanced over at Patty and saw that she carried an agonized look on her face. Finally, she spoke trying to comfort the young girl, "Everything is going to be OK, Patty."

She nodded numbly and allowed Monica to help her sit down once they reached the stands. Monica sat down next to Patty and began to untie the laces on her skates. Patty was still sitting motionless next to her and once Monica had her shoes on, she glanced over to see that Patty was still wearing her skates.

Monica finally reached over and untied the laces on Patty's skates and removed them from her feet. She opened the bag, put the blade protectors over them, and gently laid the skates inside. Once her skates were in the bag, Patty finally reached over and began to put on her tennis shoes.

The young angel looked at Patty as she sat with her head still in her hands. "I'll be right back, Patty, I have to return these to Mr. Guthrie." She nodded as Monica grabbed the skates and returned to the counter.

"Is she OK?" Mr. Guthrie asked accepting the skates.

"She's taking the news pretty hard," Monica answered honestly.

"I suspected that she would, she and Stephanie used to be really good friends, before..." his voice trailed.

"I know," Monica said, but her voice emerged sad and she sighed deeply.

"Far be it from me to judge anything Mrs. Zimmerman has done, but when I think about what that little girl has been through, it completely makes me sick." Mr. Guthrie sat the skates on a shelf, and spoke again. "I suppose you should go back to Patty, I think she needs you."

Monica nodded and walked numbly back over to the stands where Patty was still sitting. She was slumped over and still holding one of her tennis shoes, which she had yet to put on.

Monica put her hands on Patty's shoulders. How she wished that she could find the right words to say to Patty that would help her, but she just didn't know. Dear Father, please take care of your child Patty, and please watch over Stephanie, she needs your love and guidance now more than ever. Thank you.

As Gilda was making her way back over towards them, Patty had managed to get her other shoe back on. "Your parents are on their way to the hospital, Patty, and they're going to meet us there. I told them that I would drive you there." Gilda grabbed Patty's duffel bag and swung it over her shoulder. "Let's get going, the Guthries have to lock up and they will be meeting us there as well."

Monica and Patty nodded and followed the young woman. Before they exited, Monica looked back towards the rink as a shiver cursed through her body. To think that before this week, I thought it was all show, she thought glumly. The dramatic turn of events had left all of them in shock, and when she glanced over and saw the pale features of Patty Fischer, she had a feeling that the exact same thoughts were cursing through her mind as well.

*****

A half an hour later, Patty, Monica, and Gilda arrived at the hospital. The white walls, and the people wearing white everywhere made Monica feel an indescribable sense of sadness. After walking through the corridor, they found a cheerful, orange painted room, and walked inside.

Upon entering the large waiting room, Patty ran inside when she saw her father standing in the room. She began to cry as soon as she could feel the comforting arms of her father around her shoulders.

Monica sat down in a chair next to Gilda, "I heard that you had said on Thursday that Stephanie was working on a nervous breakdown, but who would have thought?"

Gilda spoke softly, "I know, in this case, I wish I had been wrong."

Monica nodded. "Sometimes this all seems like a really bad dream."

The coach sighed deeply and nodded, "Or a really bad Soap Opera."

Monica didn't answer. Instead she looked towards the entrance of the waiting area, and saw Tess coming in. Monica approached Tess and spoke her voice soft. "Is Andrew with her?"

"Yes, baby, Stephanie is not alone," Tess said comfortingly and put her arm around Monica's shoulder and led her over to a chair next to where Gilda was sitting. They sat down and Tess turned to face the coach. "I came as quickly as I could, my name is Tess."

The coach nodded. "Thank you, and it's nice to know you, but definitely not under these circumstances."

Tess nodded in affirmation.

After about 15 minutes, Thomas and Mabel Guthrie arrived followed by Jake McCall. "The doctor is speaking with Mrs. Zimmerman right now," Jake informed the group assembled. "As soon as I find out anything, I'll let you know. I wish Stephanie had a chance to know what good friends she has."

The others assembled in the room nodded, each one consumed with his or her thoughts about the entire situation. Tess looked at Monica, and it was clear that both angels knew that Andrew was with Stephanie and he would make sure that the girl would never be alone.

Jake glanced over to see Tess and Monica seated in the room, and when he didn't recognize them, he looked over at Gilda with a question looming in his eyes. "Tess and Monica met Stephanie at the competition on Thursday," Gilda offered.

Jake nodded and walked over to shake hands with the two angels. "Jake McCall, I'm Stephanie's coach. I'm really surprised to see someone who doesn't know Stephy very well here, but I think you being here is very nice."

"We couldn't have done otherwise, Jake," Monica offered gently.

Jake nodded and sat down.

Patty was still sitting next to her parents when Teresa Zimmerman walked into the waiting room. Her sad expression turned to that of anger when her eyes landed Patty and her parents who were now seated in the corner of the room. An uncomfortable silence loomed in the air as she spoke, her eyes blazing. "How dare you show up here? Haven't you done enough? If it weren't for you, my daughter would be OK."

Patty looked up, her face covered with tears as the mother of her friend yelled at her. Patty sat in shock for some moments and finally the tears began to once again stream down her face. She reached over and sought the hug from her mother who was seated next to her.

Mandy patted her daughter's shoulder and glowered at the other woman. The anger was evident in her eyes, but she realized that if she had been in the other woman's position, she wouldn't be able to deal with someone yelling at her any better than Teresa was doing. However, it angered her to see the woman taking her anger out at her daughter. Mandy looked at Patty, "It's not your fault," she whispered. "Mrs. Zimmerman is just angry, and doesn't realize what she's saying."

Patty nodded at her mother but remained in her arms.

Tess however did not think this way, and she looked up. "You really have no right to accuse Patty of this, she's been nothing but a good friend to Stephanie."

Monica nodded as she looked over at Patty who was still wrapped in her mother's arms, back at her supervisor, and finally over at Teresa who was now sitting alone. Finally, she asked a question of her own. "Why are you angry at Patty? She did nothing to harm your daughter."

Teresa Zimmerman looked at Monica, "It's her fault that my daughter's here!"

This time Brad stood up. "How dare you blame my child for this? She didn't cause Stephanie to try to kill herself. If anyone did, it's you, your damn arrogance and high expectations of her, which did this. Couldn't you see that Stephanie wasn't happy anymore?"

"Brad!" Mandy spoke up, "No..." Her voice trailed off as another voice was heard.

"Do you really believe that it's Patty's fault that your daughter did this to herself?" Gilda asked, defending Patty. "I trained Stephanie for a year before Jake became her coach, and of all the girls I have worked with, not one of them was as petrified of her mother as she was of you."

Teresa glanced over at Jake who could do nothing but nod slightly.

Tess watched the events taking place. Finally, she stood up and approached Teresa Zimmerman. "Please no more hurtful words, we're all here for Stephanie, not to place blame." She placed her hand on Teresa's shoulder sympathetically. After a second passed, she removed her hand from Teresa's shoulder, and sat down in a chair near her.

Patty wiped her moist eyes and looked at Tess, "You're right." She crawled out of her chair and walked over to where Teresa was sitting. Her eyes were soft as she addressed the woman, "Mrs. Zimmerman, I'm sorry this happened, but Stephy is my friend, and I care about what happens to her. My dad is defending me where I cannot. If you hate me, fine, but one day, I hope you realize that I am Stephanie's friend and she is mine and your controlling isn't going to change that."

Teresa looked up to see the young girl speaking to her. She closed her eyes, and when she finally opened them, she spoke, her voice angry and hurt. "Just go away. Get out of my sight."

Patty looked up and made eye contact with Tess who was sitting opposite of where she was, her eyes were shadowed with concern for her.

After some moments of silence passed, Patty sighed deeply and stood up. She wanted to break down and cry, but she knew that she couldn't cry in the presence of Stephanie's mother. She finally walked slowly out of the room, and closed the door behind her. Her head was down as she walked and her eyes staring at the white tiles of the hallway floor.

Monica's eyes followed Patty's movements, and she stood up. "I think she needs a friend," she whispered to Tess. The truth was she had no desire to stay in the room for another minute. Not when Patty was alone and coping with her grief about Stephanie. She smiled reassuringly at Patty's parents, and opened the door and walked out into the hallway.

Back inside the room, Tess looked over at Teresa who was sitting alone. She finally came over to where the distraught woman was sitting and sat down next to her. Her hands came to rest on her shoulders once again causing Teresa to look up. The iciness, which was usually prevalent in her eyes, was replaced by a look of hopelessness. "Teresa," she said purposefully calling her by her first name. "I know you're hurt, I can see it in your eyes, but these people are all here because they care about Stephanie as much as you do."

"They couldn't possibly understand. She's my whole life," Teresa's eyes brimmed with tears. "Everything I ever did, I did because I love her."

"I know," Tess said softly.

The other people in the room watched as the angel wrapped her arms around Teresa and held her in a comforting embrace. Jake McCall looked over at Gilda, his eyes wide. "I never thought in a million years that I would ever witness her hugging anyone," he muttered to Gilda.

The woman smiled weakly and placed her finger over her lips.

*****

Outside in the hall, Patty was aimlessly wandering through the corridor. Finally, she stopped and leaned up against the wall. The tears she had held back in the waiting room were now streaming down her cheeks.

Seconds passed and she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Monica standing beside her. "You look like you could use a friend."

She looked up and nodded allowing the angel to lead her down the hall. When they reached the front door, which would lead outside, she felt the warm sunshine on her face. Once they made their way across the street to a park, she finally spoke. "You know, I guess I knew for a long time that Stephanie would eventually break down, but I never thought in my life that things would happen like this."

Monica nodded, "I know," she said softly. "I don't think anyone really knew. Sometimes God works in mysterious ways, Patty."

"I never really thought about praying for her," Patty said softly. "Now, I think it might be too late."

"It's never too late, and God will always listen, that's why He's there, because He loves you and he loves Stephanie so very much," Monica said gently.

"I sometimes wonder if we've used up all our good luck," she said weakly, the tears welling up in her eyes once more.

Monica wrapped her arms around Patty once again trying to offer her some sort of comfort. "Maybe not," she replied looking deeply into her eyes.

Patty looked at the angel. Although they were both worried, Patty couldn't help but feel love and compassion radiating from the young woman. Oddly enough, she had felt that way from the first moment she had seen Monica and her friends at the rink. They were always so kind, and when one of them spoke to her, there was kindness in those words and comfort whenever one of them hugged her. She could still see Monica's gentle brown eyes even though she was still wrapped in her arms. It came as no surprise to her that even after she had stopped crying, she didn't have any desire to end the embrace with the angel.

Patty sighed deeply once their embrace ended. "Do you think she'll be OK, Monica?"

Monica shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know, but she's never alone."

Patty sighed, "You mean, God's with her, right?"

"Mm-hum," Monica said gently. "In knowing that, Stephanie will have no reason to fear."

Patty nodded, "yeah," was all she was able to say. She looked away after a minute, and her attention was drawn to the flowers, and statues, which were scattered throughout the area, and she could see other people walking around the park. Finally, she looked back over at Monica, waiting for her to break the silence.

"What's on your mind?" She asked softly.

"I'm scared," Patty whispered feeling somewhat ashamed that it wasn't completely about Stephanie, but rather herself and the mixed up feelings she had about the entire situation with Teresa Zimmerman.

"I know, Patty, but you must keep the faith that everything will happen for a reason," Monica said gently. "As long as you believe that Stephanie's going to be OK, then that will help to strengthen her."

"I know you're right, but to convince my head of that, isn't easy. I'm afraid, Monica, I don't want to lose my best friend," Patty said sadly.

"Oh, Patty, you won't," Monica offered. "No matter what happens, Stephanie will always know that you're a good friend, and a lovely person."

"But how would she?" Patty asked.

"Because, I believe there's someone with her right now, as we speak, and you can rest assured that he will tell her," Monica said gently.

"Should we go back inside?" Patty asked.

Monica shrugged her shoulders, "Perhaps we should, but it made me sad to see Teresa verbally attack you. I'm afraid that she might do it again and I hope that you will be able to cope with that."

"I know, I felt so horrible when she did that to me. I know I didn't make Stephanie do this, but it hurts to think that someone would believe it."

Monica nodded, "I understand."

"It's strange, because actually, I didn't really notice anything in there, except that she blamed me for what happened with Stephanie." Patty said trying to block the tears. "I guess I'm used to hearing her screaming at someone. But, I never imagined that she'd scream at me. Added to that, she said that I was at fault. I don't believe it, but it does hurt. I just don't have the ability to scream back."

Monica nodded and sighed deeply. "It saddens me to see you in pain."

"Really?" Patty asked.

The angel nodded. "Yes, it really bothered me that she was accusing you of what happened when you have done everything you could do to have a friendship with Stephanie. Her attitude towards you is a complete mystery to me."

Patty nodded. "I know, and then when Andrew wanted to talk to Stephanie, she dragged her away from him. I guess you and your friends are just here for Stephanie," she mused sadly.

Monica looked over at her, surprise shadowing her features. "Do you think we're just here for Stephanie? No, Patty, we're also here for you. That's why I came to find you. During difficult times, everyone needs to have a friend they can trust."

"Thanks, that really means a lot to me. I've never really had very many friends who weren't involved in skating. I guess I have missed out on a lot of things, but I have to admit, if it hadn't have been for the skating, then I probably wouldn't have met you."

Monica smiled. "A friendship is a gift from God."

After some moments of contemplation, Monica and Patty stood up and walked back across the street, into the hospital, and down the corridor, which would lead back to the waiting room.

When they walked in, Brad came over to Patty, "Are you OK, Honey?"

Patty nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine." She glanced over and when she noticed that Teresa Zimmerman was now gone she looked at her father, "Where's Mrs. Zimmerman?"

"The doctor called her into his office a few minutes ago." Mandy said softly.

"Did he say anything about how Stephy's doing?" Patty asked.

Brad shook his head, "No, since we're not family, we're not allowed into his office during consultations."

"Don't worry, Patty," Tess offered, "She'll tell us when she comes back."

Monica nodded; somehow hearing Tess say those words was a direct indication that it must be the truth.

"Will we have the chance to see her?" Patty asked.

"That depends on Stephanie's mother. The doctor said that as long as Mrs. Zimmerman agrees, we'd be able to see her." Brad said. "But, none of us really know if she's going to agree to allowing us in the room."

"Doesn't sound too likely," Mandy offered, "I'm sorry, Honey."

Patty nodded, and she and Monica went to sit down as Teresa Zimmerman walked slowly into the room.

The woman looked pale and weak. She held in her hand a fistful of wadded up tissues. Numbly, she walked over to a chair, which was in the corner and collapsed in it, crying.

Tess was next to her within seconds, her hand coming to rest on her shoulder, "What is it, Teresa?"

The woman looked up with tears in her eyes, "The doctor said that he believes Stephanie doesn't want to wake up. He said that he thinks she has lost her will to live."

Monica looked at Tess in shock. The older of the two angels shook her head.

Gilda looked at Jake, who sighed deeply. Few words were spoken, each person sat with his or her own thoughts. Patty sighed deeply and looked helplessly at Monica, and finally after some time passed, Monica's voice could be heard. "Teresa, please, allow me to see her. We talked on Thursday at the competition, maybe I can help."

Teresa shook her head, "No, I don't think anyone can help her."

"Mrs. Zimmerman, please, let Monica at least try to talk to her," Patty pleaded. "I mean it wouldn't hurt." She could not describe these feelings, but she was somehow convinced that Monica would be able to get through to the girl. At the very least, she deserved a chance to try.

"But, I'm her mother. I should be closer to her than anyone else, I should be able to get through to her." Teresa mumbled as the tears began to stream down her cheeks once again.

Tess nodded. "We know this, Teresa, but sometimes a friend has a way of making a difference where the parent cannot. No one is doubting your love for your child, but there should be a way to make a difference here."

Mandy Fischer nodded as she stood up and walked towards the distraught woman. "Mrs. Zimmerman, please, at least let one of us in to see her. No one can go through life with only his or her mother; they need other people too. I mean, I love my daughter very much, but I can't see being the only support that she has. I don't want her to expect me to be the only one from which she gains her strength. I would hope that she would use the strength she gets from others as well."

Patty's defenses broke down, and she began to sob uncontrollably. Monica rested her hand on the teenager's shoulder. After a few moments of silence passed, Patty glanced up and she could see that her parents appeared to be very proud of her.

Monica started to stand up and walk over to Teresa, but before she reached the distraught woman, Teresa's tearstained gaze fell on Patty, who continued to cry. The others in the room held their breath as Teresa Zimmerman's eyes met Patty's. Upon seeing the girl's face, she sighed deeply and she looked around the room.

Her words were barely above a whisper, but they emerged and she pointed to Monica, "I don't believe you can do anything to help her any better than I could, but I'll tell the doctor and you can go into her room. But no one else."

Patty looked at Teresa, "Thank you."

Monica walked over towards Patty and her hand came to rest on the girl's shoulder. She looked up, the tears were still streaming down her cheeks, but as she met the angel's gaze, she realized that of all the people in that room, Monica probably possessed the ability to reach Stephanie, though she couldn't really explain why.

*****

Twenty minutes later, Monica had obtained permission from the doctor to enter Stephanie's room. She was about to leave the waiting room when Tess came over to her. "You will have the guidance in doing this, if you ask for it, Miss Wings."

Monica shrugged her shoulders, "I don't really know how I will do, but I believe you. I guess I just thought maybe I could try to communicate with her. Stephanie seemed to want to talk to me the other day, and I figured that I would see if she has the ability to project thoughts when she's asleep."

"Andrew's with her, Angel Girl, so I would guess that she can," Tess said gently. "Perhaps you can help encourage her to fight."

Monica shook her head, "I'm not sure anymore. I think the doctor had spoken the truth, the only way I can do anything is to convince her that life is worth living, and try to encourage her to come back to us." Monica sighed deeply, "I just know I have to try."

"You're going to try, no one can ask for more," Tess smiled gently at Monica. She was not sure exactly what Monica could do either, but she had a lot of faith in her Angel Girl. "Miss Wings, don't forget to tell Stephanie that Patty is thinking about her."

Monica nodded and when the doctor returned to get her and bring her to see Stephanie, he motioned to Monica, and she stood up. The doctor led the young angel through the corridor and to the elevator without saying a word. Once they came upstairs, he led her to the room where Stephanie lay. As she slowly came into the room, she could see Andrew sitting next to the bed and holding Stephanie's hand. "Andrew how is she?" She asked her friend once the doctor had closed the door.

The Angel of Death shrugged his shoulders as Monica looked over and saw the still figure of a girl lying on a hospital bed. Her gaze fell on the instruments, which were set-up alongside the bed and after some moments of silence, her gaze fell back onto Stephanie. Although the girl had been unhappy two days before, she was now only a mere shadow of the child she had briefly met. Her face was ghostly white and her eyes were closed.

"Andrew, is she going to die?" Monica asked weakly as she sat down.

"I don't know, she's fighting, but it's clear that she doesn't want to return to the life she had before," the Angel of Death spoke. "She feels badly for what she tried to do, so maybe that is the hope that we should all hold onto."

Monica nodded; she knew that in human form, she only had 10 minutes with Stephanie.

Sighing deeply, she hoped with all her might that this girl would not die before she had even began to experience what good there was in life, and what it had to offer.

Sighing deeply, she took Stephanie's hand in her own. Stephanie, can you hear me?

Yes, came the projection back to her, and she looked up to see Andrew smiling encouragingly at her. Who are you?

It's Monica, don't be afraid, I'm an angel, sent from God, to tell you that He loves you very much, but He's not yet ready for you to come home.

Home? Her projection came back sensing that she was afraid.

Monica repeated the words to Stephanie replacing 'home' with 'heaven'. She told her that she shouldn't be afraid because she and Andrew was there to help her.

Stephanie remained still in the bed, but Monica received another message from her and she smiled weakly as she looked across the room at Andrew. Is this a dream?

Maybe, she answered with a smile, but no, Andrew and I are here with you, and this not a dream. Do you want to come back to us?

In part, was the answer that emerged.

Tell me why you say only in part, maybe I can help. Monica continued projecting her thoughts. She was so immersed in her conversation with Stephanie that she didn't notice the door had opened and closed.

Teresa Zimmerman had entered the room and when she saw the white light radiating from Monica's body, and holding her daughter's hand, she gasped and backed up against the closed door. "Oh my God!"

Andrew looked up quickly. "Monica, Teresa is here."

"I know," she said, and the glow of God's love remained in the room as she watched Teresa standing against the closed door, a frightened look on her face. Monica spoke to the girl. Stephanie, your mother is here. A few moments later, she looked at Teresa and spoke.

"Don't be afraid, Teresa, I'm only trying to talk to your daughter," Monica said gently as the woman pushed against the door, and attempted to get out of the room. At that moment, she could see Andrew fading into view. Struggling with the door, she tried to open it, but failed. Finally, she looked at Andrew and then at Monica. The Angel of Death stood up and took a couple of steps towards her.

"Who are you?" She asked, the fear in her voice causing him to stop.

"We're angels, Teresa," Andrew answered compassionately as the white light of God's love filled the room.

She shook her hand still backed up against the door, "Please leave my daughter alone. She's just a child." She sank to her knees and looked up at Andrew, horror in her eyes as she saw him still standing next to Stephanie's bed.

"Teresa, neither of us has any intention of harming neither you nor her." Andrew extended his hand towards her. "Come over here and sit down," he instructed trying to coax her out of the corner she had wedged herself into.

Slowly, she stood up, approached the bed, sat down, and grabbed Stephanie's hand.

Andrew reached across the bed for her hand. "Look me in the eyes." He said softly. "You have been separated from the love of God for so long, that you feel lost. Teresa, God loves you as much as He loves Stephanie."

She slowly glanced up as he instructed and her eyes met his. After a few moments, she relaxed and when the light faded somewhat, she could still feel the tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Why are you crying? Are you still afraid?" Monica asked.

Teresa shook her head, "No, I'm just so terribly confused."

"Why?" Andrew asked.

"Brad Fischer said that I was the reason Stephanie tried to do this to herself. Do you think that's true?" Teresa asked. "I don't know if he said that in defense of Patty or if he said it because it might be true."

"I don't really know," Monica said. "Andrew has been with her the entire time, and maybe Stephanie told him why."

Andrew nodded. "She's afraid, Teresa. She's frightened that she would grow up without knowing the feeling of having friends who love her in her life."

"That's why I wanted to come in here and speak with Stephanie," Monica said gently. "I thought that if I was able to talk to her, she would tell me why she did this, but, now I have to hurry, there's not much time left and the doctor will be back soon."

Teresa nodded, "Then, you're really able to communicate telepathically?"

Andrew nodded, "Yes, we're angels, Teresa, and we have this ability, because in heaven, communication is not verbal, but rather through thoughts and emotions."

"And you want to help Stephanie?" Teresa's voice cracked.

"Yes," Monica affirmed.

"Why?" She couldn't help but ask.

"Because God sent us to you, and to your daughter," Monica said simply.

Andrew nodded and smiled. "I'm an Angel of Death, Teresa, and any time someone tries to do what Stephanie did, then I must be with them and help them through it. It doesn't necessarily mean that they will die, but I was sent here to offer her my comfort."

"So you really wouldn't hurt her?" She asked.

"No," Andrew replied, "I couldn't, because I treasure life, and to see a child feel the hopelessness that Stephanie has experienced makes me very sad." He looked at Monica, and nodded.

Monica immediately began to glow as she projected to the girl in the hospital bed. Your mother is here, and she wants to do what she can to make you happy. Tell me what you want her to do.

I want to be friends with Patty Fischer without her telling me I can't, was the projection that came back to Monica and she repeated the words to Teresa.

Teresa nodded numbly, not daring to say a word. She knew that if she did, that she would probably break down and cry.

What else do you want her to know? Do you want to quit skating?

I don't know. I don't like being her marionette. If I skate, it would have to be because I want to, not because I have to be her molded ice princess. I used to like skating, and it was when Patty and I could practice together. If I continue, it would be only if Patty and I could train together. The projection came back so quickly that after some seconds, Monica relayed the words to Teresa before Stephanie's projections continued.

I have spent my entire life doing everyone else's bidding, and now I just want to be myself. I did this because I lost hope of ever having real friends. I have always envied Patty because she skates, but she also gets to do normal things that other teenagers do. I'm afraid to go on living because I think that my life will continue to be encompassed in something I don't feel gratification for. Right now, I am more afraid of my mother than anyone else and that shouldn't be the case. The projections stopped.

Do you want me to tell your mother that? Monica projected.

Yes, was all that came to her.

Monica repeated Stephanie's projection for Teresa exactly as it had been told to her. Teresa nodded numbly. She was still somewhat fearful of the unbelievable events she had witnessed. The feelings that were going through her finally became verbal as she looked over at Monica. "How can you do this to me?"

"I have done nothing to you. These are the words from your daughter. It is now up to you to talk to her. There is a choice here, you can either continue ignoring her wishes, and risk losing her, or you can listen to what she has said here. You may not believe that Stephanie has said these things, and that's your option, but I can do nothing more," Monica ceased to glow.

Andrew began to speak to her. "Teresa, we have explained everything to you about who we are and why we are here. Our intentions are only help you and your daughter. It would do us little good to speak an untruth to you about what has transpired here."

"Now you must try to talk to your daughter, Teresa," Monica said gently. "Andrew will be with you to help you in doing so, but, you must try."

Teresa nodded and looked down at the still figure lying in the bed and rather than question Monica, she watched as the angel left the room.

"Take her hand, Teresa, she will be able to hear you," Andrew said gently once Monica was gone.

Teresa reached over and took the hand of her daughter and held it tightly. Taking a deep breath, she began to speak her voice soft at first, but as each moment passed, it grew in emotion and intensity. "I'm sorry, Stephy, I didn't know that I had hurt you. I thought all along that you wanted to skate, but I guess it was more what I wanted for you than what you wanted." Teresa's tears began to stream down her face as she looked down at her daughter. "When I was a girl, I wanted to be a skater more than anything, but my mother, your grandmother, was against it. She sabotaged that, and everything else I cared about. When I was about your age, I was sent off to boarding school, and my mother burnt all of my skating posters, and souvenirs. I swore that I would never do anything like that to any of my children, but maybe I did when I pressured you about skating. I guess it was something I had wished for myself."

Teresa Zimmerman's past came out slowly at first, but as she spoke, the emotions continued to come out as she described her mother, a harsh woman who died before Stephanie had been born. Then she spoke about her father, a man who would disappear for days at a time, and when he finally did come home, he'd usually be drunk. This state resulted in him yelling at her for the simplest of things, whether it was being one number off on her math homework or forgetting to flush the toilet. "I guess what I learned from my mother was how to control the people close to me and from my father, how to yell at the people I love. I guess I'm no better than my parents were, but I had always dreamed of being where you were Thursday."

She grabbed a tissue from her pocket. "I guess I have been an embarrassment to you, but my intentions weren't done to hurt you. I'm sorry that they did, and if you want to quit, then I won't stop you. Just please come back to us. You have friends here who care about you. The Fischers are here, and Jake and Gilda, the Guthries, and the angels are here watching over you. All these people care about you. I'm the witch, but you're the ray of sunshine. I realize now that what I have learned from you far surpasses what you could have learned from me. You have more grace in you than I could ever hope for in me. I don't mean with the skating either. I have always remembered how you are always so kind to people, and so giving."

Teresa looked up from the bed and her tearstained gaze met Andrew's compassionate eyes.

After some moments, she looked back down at her daughter who was still lying on the bed. "I know I was the one who took away your hope, and I know that you want to quit, and I'll support you if that is really what you want to do." She paused, swallowing the lump, which had formed in her throat. " I've been thinking, if you decide to come home, maybe you should go back to public school too and start making friends there. And, if you still want to skate, Jake and Gilda can probably arrange for you and Patty to practice together after school. I'll do whatever I can to make things easier for you, I promise. Just give me a second chance." Teresa looked down at the still form of her daughter once again, and then she spoke softly, "I love you, Stephy."

Teresa wiped her hand over her eyes as the tears continued to stream down her cheeks. She released the hand of her daughter to wipe the tears from her face. Moments passed and she eventually looked up to see that Andrew was smiling at her.

"If you keep those promises, Teresa, Stephanie will find the courage to come back," he said gently, the relief evident in his eyes.

When she reached back down to grasp her daughter's hand, it was gone. She looked down, and when she saw Stephanie's hand, she reached over and held it tightly in her own. Moments later she could feel a pressure against her hand and she looked up. Stephanie's hand was holding onto her mother's, and after a second or two passed, Teresa felt another squeeze on her hand. She looked down at her daughter. "Honey?" She whispered still wondering if Stephanie could hear her.

Almost emerging as an answer, she heard a soft moan coming from the bed, and her eyes came to rest on Stephanie. When she looked back down at her daughter's hands, she realized the truth, Stephanie's hand had moved.

She looked at Andrew, "she's really waking up, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is, Teresa," the angel said gently.

She glanced over towards the machines, which were monitoring Stephanie's heart rate; it had changed. It was now going faster, and she heard, once again, another moan coming from the bed. She looked back down at her daughter.

Seconds passed and a doctor and two nurses rushed into the room.

"She's waking up!" Teresa stood up, reached out, and grabbed the nearest person to her, and wrapped her arms around one of the nurses; her tears were falling as the woman led her out of the room. She glanced back and could see that Andrew remained in the room, and that the people who had come inside were unable to see him. The nurse spoke to Teresa as she closed the door behind them "Don't worry, Mrs. Zimmerman, she's waking up, and she's in good hands. We're going to move her to another room once she's fully conscious."

Teresa nodded, once the nurse went back inside the room, and closed the door. After a couple of seconds passed, she walked through the corridor until she saw Monica standing near the elevators. She approached her and smiled, "She's waking up." She wiped the tears from her eyes and threw her arms around the angel in a backbreaking embrace. "Thank you!"

"You shouldn't thank me," Monica said once their embrace ended.

"Why not? You're the one that woke her up," Teresa said.

"It wasn't me, Teresa, it was you and the love of God that woke her up," Monica said softly.

Teresa shook her head, "Monica if you hadn't have communicated with her, I wouldn't have realized what it was I had done."

Monica shook her head and her voice emerged soft, but filled with understanding. "You would have realized, but maybe not as quickly," The angel smiled gently at her, but changed the subject. "Let's just go downstairs and tell everyone. I think they would like to know that Stephanie's awake."

"OK." She allowed Monica to lead her into the elevator and once they were inside the elevator, Teresa looked at the angel, "I don't know what to say to you about what happened in there. I mean I still can't believe what I saw."

Monica looked at her intently, "It was nothing but the truth, Teresa. God wanted you to know that He loves you and Stephanie so very much, and that it was important for you to know this."

"I'm sorry," she offered as she looked at Monica and blushed, "I just can't believe what I saw. This is the most incredible thing that's ever happened to me."

"I did nothing, Teresa, everything that happened came from God, and his love for Stephanie helped her overcome the obstacles she was faced with."

Teresa looked over at Monica once again. She could see the modesty in the eyes of the angel, and decided that she'd better not say anything else about what had happened. Instead, her voice came out barely above a whisper, "I'm just so glad that Stephanie's going to be OK."

Monica nodded and smiled at the woman. "Yes, but you must remember to keep the promises you made to her. Do you think you can?"

Teresa nodded, "I'll remember. I guess I will probably need to get some kind of help in getting through this, though. I mean, a lot of things I thought I had forgotten, suddenly came out in there. I thought I had put them all behind me, but I didn't. The thing I didn't realize is, a lot of the things about me, were impacted by my parents, even things about me today. I told Stephanie about them, but she had never met them. Her grandma died before she was born, and her grandfather disappeared and never came back."

"Believe me, many things that happened, happened for a reason. Most children do have traits that are like both their parents, and when they are grown, they probably still possess some of those qualities." Monica offered. "The difficult task is trying to accept and understand those things about your parents, which you may not like or comprehend. It takes a very courageous person to overcome them. Stephanie has done this, and now it's your turn to follow her example."

She nodded as the elevator doors opened on the ground floor. "I didn't know that these things were in me, like how I was yelling at her, and then the pressure, and then suddenly my only child turns out to be the only person who can tell me that I am more like my parents than I wanted to be. I had no idea that I was trying to recycle my dreams onto my child."

As they exited the elevator and made their way down the corridor, Monica smiled. She somehow had the feeling that Teresa would keep all her promises and as they walked back into the waiting room, Patty approached them hesitantly.

"Is there any news? How is she?" Patty looked at the two of their faces, but unable to understand why they were smiling, she looked back over at Tess who was still sitting in a chair.

Monica looked at them and nodded.

Teresa spoke, her voice soft, but full of emotion "She's awake, and they're going to move her out of Intensive Care and into a private room."

Patty smiled, ran back over to her father, and threw her arms around him.

Mandy Fischer smiled warmly at Teresa. "I'm really glad to hear it. You must be relieved."

Teresa nodded, "yes, I am." She glanced over at Patty, who was wrapped in her father's arms, tears of happiness streaming down her cheeks. "I did make a few promises in there, and one of them involved Patty."

Patty looked up when she heard her name. "What?"

Teresa smiled weakly, "I guess I should have known that you simply wanted to be Stephanie's friend, but I didn't like it because I was afraid. Please forgive me, Patty. Your father had been right, as had your coach, and I owe you an apology for blaming you for what happened. It was actually my fault." Teresa smiled weakly glancing over at Monica. "I probably wouldn't have known this had I not gotten a bit of encouragement from a friend. But, I know that you two want to be friends, and I won't come between you anymore."

Patty smiled, "Thank you."

Monica and Tess left the waiting room, and when they were out of the earshot of the people still in the room, Tess spoke. "What happened? After you went upstairs, Mrs. Zimmerman left and I guessed that she went to Stephanie's room to see how everything was going."

"Yes, I had to tell her the truth." Monica answered.

"But, I suppose that now Stephanie's awake, we should be heading off," Tess said.

"Not yet," Andrew appeared and spoke. "I think we should explain a few things to Patty."

Monica nodded. "Yes, Patty could sense who we are, and I think it would be unfair to leave without telling her."

Tess nodded. "We'll stay until tonight, but then the Father says we'll have to go." Andrew smiled. "I wonder how Stephanie will perceive what happened in there. I am guessing it will emerge in her mind as a dream. I don't think either of us were prepared for Teresa to come in and see everything, though."

"Yes I figured this," Tess said, "but perhaps it was better that she did, because then it would have given her a chance to accept this as well as face it."

*****

Within the hour, Stephanie had been moved into a new room and the group of friends had assembled there. Teresa sat in the chair by the bed; Brad and Mandy Fischer were standing next to the window. Thomas and Mabel Guthrie were seated in two chairs that the nurse had brought in, and Tess was standing alone near the doorway. Monica, Andrew, and Patty had gone downstairs to get some flowers for Stephanie, and they thought it would make the room more cheerful.

When Patty and the two angels returned to the room some ten minutes later, Patty handed a bouquet of flowers to Teresa and hugged Stephanie warmly. "I should have done that on Thursday," she said after their hug ended.

Stephanie smiled, "You wanted to?"

"Well, yeah, we're friends, aren't we?" Patty said.

Stephanie giggled as Monica and Andrew approached the bed. "Hi," Andrew said softly. "I'm really glad to see that you are doing better. We were all really worried about you."

"Thanks," Stephanie said softly.

Monica and Patty continued setting flowers up in the room as Thomas Guthrie approached the bed and looked down at her. "Now, girl, are we still gonna see you around our neck of the woods or are you more interested in boys?" Mr. Guthrie's voice boomed and everyone laughed.

Stephanie blushed and looked over at her mother and then at Patty, "I guess you will, Mr. Guthrie, but I think things are going to change a bit. Right, Mom? Just like we talked about."

Teresa nodded, remembering the promises she had made. "OK, Sweetheart, but, you have to tell them what you want."

"The first thing I would like is to practice with Patty like I used to," she said.

Patty's eyes fell on Teresa who nodded slightly. Once she saw the approval in her friend's mother's face, she squealed with excitement and began to jump up and down. Andrew was closest to her, and he got a very exuberant hug from the young girl.

Stephanie looked over at her coach, "Jake, I still want to train with you, though, just during the same times that Patty trains." Stephanie said. "I wasn't happy skating when I couldn't train with Patty, but I think it would be more fun for me if I can skate with her, since she is my best friend."

Jake nodded, "That works for me, what about you, Gilda?"

The other coach nodded and smiled, "I have a funny feeling that the regional competition is going to be a very interesting this year."

The group laughed. Stephanie looked up at her mother, "Thanks, Mom.

Teresa smiled, "I should be thanking you," she said to her daughter. After a few moments, she looked over at the group of people, and began to speak once again. "I never was very nice to any of you, but I would like to have a second chance to be friends." She paused, and then looked at Stephanie's coach. "Jake, you said that the girls need to have friendships with one another when they skate, and I realize now that you were right. I was paranoid about how this would affect the rivalry between my daughter and Patty. I now realize that the two of them being friends is much more important than any competition."

"Mrs. Zimmerman, that was why I took the job as Patty's coach last year. I wanted the girls to be friends. I had seen them skating together during the 'free skate' and found the two of them to be quite charming together." Gilda said.

"Call me Teresa," came the simple response.

"Speaking of which, I think it would be fitting if these two did a end of season exhibition show after the competition is over." Thomas Guthrie suggested.

"Like a fun program?" Patty asked, her eyes glowing.

The older man nodded.

"Yeah," Stephanie squealed, "and I have just the idea too." She glanced over to see Andrew still standing next to the door. When she saw him, her eyes widened slightly, but she said nothing. Instead she looked over at her coach, "there's something else; I don't want to skate to My Fair Lady for the regional competition."

Jake's smile disappeared, "You've been working on this program for months, Stephy. We only have a month to train for the competition, and now you want to change your music? It wouldn't work, there's not enough time, keep the program you got and use the idea for next year."

Stephanie's smile vanished, but Thomas Guthrie looked at her, a smile on his face. "Why don't you and Patty combine the idea for the exhibition program? We can schedule it for the closure of the season." When he saw her smile return, he looked at her and asked, "What's your idea?"

She smiled mysteriously, "it's just an idea, but I think you can make the costumes, right Mom?"

"What kind of costumes are you proposing?" Teresa asked.

"You remember that white silk type material you bought last year and was going to use for my 6th grade graduation gown?" Once Teresa nodded, Stephanie continued, "I was thinking you could use that and maybe get some silver trim for the skirt."

"Where did you get that idea from, Stephy? It sounds like a costume from an episode of Highway to Heaven?" Jake asked, smiling.

"Maybe, but I had this dream, it was amazing, and there was this beautiful white light, and I saw angels." Stephanie said, "I guess that's where the idea came from. But, I was thinking of using the music from that movie City of Angels."

"Wow, what a cool idea," Patty said. "I sure wish I could have such great dreams." She looked over at Monica who carried an odd look on her face.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Teresa asked looking over at Andrew. An uncomfortable silence settled over the room, and finally Stephanie broke it.

"Oh, come on Mom. It's going to be great. Besides everyone knows that one can really get inspired by their dreams, right?" Stephanie sat up in bed.

Teresa looked at Monica and Andrew knowingly, but said nothing.

Instead, Andrew approached her bed, "A dream is like a picture of heaven, isn't it?"

She looked up and when she saw him, she smiled. "Yeah," she whispered. She was about to say something else to him when Teresa reached over and grabbed hold of her hand without saying a word. When she looked at her mother questionably, Teresa shook her head slightly. Stephanie said nothing more, but the confusion on her face tended to ask more questions then she was able to do vocally.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I could really use some food," Brad finally broke the silence. "I think we should probably take off and get some food for tonight." He looked over at Tess and Monica, "You two want to come along?"

The angels nodded, and both approached the bed, "You take care of yourself, baby," Tess said gently and Monica squeezed the girl's hand.

Stephanie nodded and yawned.

Patty smiled weakly, waved, and followed Monica and Tess out of the room. Brad and Mandy said their good-byes as well as promised to bring Patty to visit the following day. Once they left the room, Thomas and Mabel approached the bed.

"It's probably time for the little lady to get some rest. It's been a very exhausting day, hasn't it?" Thomas said gently patting her hand. "We'll try to pop by on Monday to see how you're doing."

"Thanks, Mr. Guthrie," Stephanie offered.

"Take care of yourself." Mabel said softly smiling down at the girl in the bed and squeezing her shoulder. "We'll see you soon."

Stephanie smiled, "I will, thanks for coming, I'm really grateful."

Jake and Gilda also stood up to leave. "Teresa, are you going to be at the Fischer's later for the party?" Gilda asked.

She shook her head, "No, this has been the most stressful day of my life. The last thing I need to do right now is party. I think I'd be better off if I go home, eat some soup, take a bath, and go to bed."

"That's understandable, you look exhausted." Jake offered, noticing her haggard appearance. "Do you want me to drive you home?"

"No, I'm going to stay until visitor's hours are over, and then I can call a cab. I don't think I can drive tonight." Teresa answered honestly.

Andrew smiled. "I'll take you home Teresa when you're ready."

Gilda nodded and spoke to Teresa. "Are you sure we can't do anything for you?"

Teresa nodded weakly, "just explain to Brad and Mandy why I'm not there."

Jake smiled, "I'll tell them, and I'm sure they will understand." His attention fell on Stephanie, "Don't scare us again like that, Stephy; we all care too much about you. We'll always be here for you if you need us." He squeezed her shoulder, and nodded to Andrew.

The two coaches walked quietly out of the room, and Andrew looked up and his gentle green eyes met Teresa's as he sat down in one of the vacated chairs.

"Andrew, can I ask you a question?" Stephanie's voice broke into his thoughts.

He nodded.

"You're probably going to think I'm strange, but I had a dream about you this afternoon. There was this white light all around me, and I felt so loved and cared for. I could see a tunnel and you were standing there with me. But, then, I heard a second voice in my head asking me if I wanted to come back. It was like someone was standing next to my bed, and I could hear a voice, this was a woman talking to me." Stephanie offered, "Does that sound strange?"

Andrew smiled weakly, "No, of course not."

"It was the most wonderful dream I've ever had." She said softly. "That's why I want to do the exhibition, with the white costumes. It reminded me of this dream and it was all so real, and it was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life." She looked over at her mother who was listening intently.

"Well, honey, what did you get out of your dream?" Teresa asked.

"I don't know, Mom. I thought it was so strange, but it felt right, and was also wonderful, I'll never forget it. It somehow convinced me to wake up. Then I heard you crying, and I couldn't bare to cause you so much sadness."

Teresa smiled at her daughter gently and hugged her, "You really are special."

Andrew looked over at the two of them but said nothing. It was apparent that she wouldn't even tell her daughter what happened. He looked up at Teresa and nodded his head.

After a few seconds passed, he began to speak, "Stephanie, do you remember what I said in your dream?"

"That God loves me and that he forgives me for what I tried to do?" she asked.

He nodded and began to glow, the loving light filling the room.

Upon seeing the light emanating from Andrew, Stephanie looked at him, her eyes wide. "It wasn't a dream," she mumbled. "You really are an angel?"

"No, it wasn't a dream, and yes I am," Andrew said gently.

"Wow! This is so cool." She looked over at her mother. "Then you knew about this?"

Teresa nodded, "yes, I wanted to tell you, but I didn't know where to start."

Stephanie nodded but said nothing; instead she looked back up at Andrew. "I knew there was something different about you from the first time I saw you at the rink. Is everything I saw the truth, the light, and the love that I felt?"

Andrew nodded trying to put his thoughts into words. He didn't want to frighten Stephanie but he also realized that it was important for him to be honest with her.

"I can't believe it, there are really angels right here in Harrisburg. Who would have thought it was possible?" Stephanie said.

Teresa and Andrew laughed out loud and Teresa spoke between her own giggles. "I think she's reacted a bit better than I did, Andrew."

"Really? Were you scared, Mom?" Stephanie asked.

"I was petrified, I wasn't so worried about myself, but I was afraid for you. I thought they were going to hurt you." Teresa said honestly.

"They?" Stephanie asked weakly.

"Monica is also an angel, Stephanie, and she tried to talk to you," he said gently but smiled weakly at Teresa, "Many people are frightened when they discover that I'm an Angel of Death. They immediately believe that I am going to do something that might hurt them," He looked down at Stephanie, and smiled gently at her. "But you know that I wouldn't, don't you?"

She nodded numbly.

"Are you afraid of me?" he asked gently.

"No, why would I be?" She asked.

"Many people are," he said sadly.

She shook her head and reached for his hand. "You gave me no reason to be afraid. I was frightened because I thought I had disappointed God when I found out who you are, but you never said that to me, and you showed me in every way possible that you cared for me. Especially in the rink on Thursday, when we met and you talked to me. You cannot imagine how lonely I felt then." She wiped the tears from her face, with her free hand. "Andrew, if it weren't for you, I know I would have died believing that my mother didn't love me." She paused. "I know I don't have a reason to be afraid, do I?"

Andrew shook his head, but maintained eye contact with her. Smiling gently, he spoke. "It wasn't me that changed this event, Stephanie, it was Patty, and your mother. Their love for you is what made you wake up."

"Yeah, but Andrew, you don't know how stubborn she can be," Stephanie said smiling impishly at her mother.

Teresa looked at Stephanie frowning.

"Well, Mom, you know it's true." Stephanie continued to giggle.

"OK," Teresa conceded, her frown breaking into an embarrassed smile.

"Andrew, are you going to stay here or do you have to leave now that things are resolved?" Stephanie asked softly.

"We have to leave, soon. We have new assignments," Andrew answered honestly.

Stephanie nodded, trying to accept his words. She couldn't deny the connection she had to him, and now he was going to leave. She started to remember when her father walked out, and how she felt when he left. Remembering this, tears began to stream down her cheeks once again. Andrew reached over and grabbed a tissue from the box on the bedside table. This he handed to her. She accepted it, and wiped her eyes.

"I'm sorry that our leaving makes you sad, Stephanie, but we have to go. There are other people who need to be reminded of God's love. Now that you know and are going to be OK, you don't need our help any longer. God will encourage you, as long as you seek Him out, and ask Him to shower your lives with His unconditional love and support. We'll be here until tonight because Monica and I would like to say good-bye to Patty."

"I think if she knew the real reason why you were leaving, she'd understand," Stephanie said softly and reached out and hugged him.

*****

Later that afternoon Patty, Tess, and Monica arrived at the Fischers' home and began to watch television while Brad and Mandy prepared for the party which would take place that evening. Upon their arrival, Monica called Andrew at the hospital and gave him directions to the house.

Monica had been thinking about telling Patty the truth since they had left the hospital and as they sat in the living room, her thoughts continuing to encompass her. Patty had grabbed a videotape and put it in the VCR while her father went outside and began to work on the patio. He set up the grill, opened a bag of charcoal, and prepared to make barbeque.

In the kitchen, Mandy had pulled a head of lettuce out of the refrigerator and was beginning to build a large salad.

It was late in the afternoon when their friends began to arrive. Tess joined Mandy in the kitchen to help with the preparations. Monica and Patty turned off the movie and Patty opened their CD cabinet, and began to pull out music to play during the party. After some time passed, Andrew finally arrived.

Upon his arrival, Mandy came into the living room and greeted him, "Hi, I'm glad you could come tonight. I have to put Erika in bed, but I'll be back down in a few minutes."

Andrew nodded, and Mandy headed upstairs with the toddler. Patty, Monica and Andrew were left alone.

Patty looked at Andrew, "How's Stephy?"

"She's fine, I took Teresa home after Stephanie fell asleep, and then drove over here," Andrew said.

Monica remained silent.

Andrew looked up to see Mandy coming back downstairs. As she looked at them, she spoke with a good-natured grin on her face. "I'm going to need some help in the kitchen, any volunteers?"

Before anyone could answer, the doorbell rang and she rushed to answer it.

Thomas and Mabel Guthrie had arrived and walked into the living room, their arms loaded down with boxes. Once they greeted Patty, Monica and Andrew, they followed Mandy into the kitchen with the food they had brought.

Upon leaving the hospital, Mabel had rushed home and baked some pies. Three freshly made pies, and whipped cream was placed on the counter in the kitchen. Thomas was putting plastic bottles of cola and juice into the refrigerator.

Once Gilda arrived, she too joined Mandy and the Guthries in the kitchen and began to show them how to make German style potato salad. "My mother used to make this for us when we were kids. She and my father came from Germany 40 years ago." she explained to them as the doorbell rang once again.

Mandy went to open the door, and Jake entered. He carried a bag full of potato chips and other snacks and walked into the kitchen to leave them on the table. When he returned, he opened the video cabinet and looked at Patty, Monica and Andrew. "You guys want to watch a movie?"

Monica nodded, but her mind was obviously elsewhere. "Patty, we need to talk to you," Andrew said softly as Jake popped a movie in their VCR.

"OK, why don't we go outside, there's a lake not far from here? It's pretty quiet, and we can talk there. Come on." She turned to Jake, "We'll be back in a few minutes; put in whatever movie you like. The other movies are in the cabinet under the TV."

Jake nodded, "OK, Patty, thanks."

She led them outside through the sliding glass door.

"Don't be gone for too long, Patty," Brad called out when he saw them make their way across the back yard and through the gate at the end of their property.

She nodded and called back over her shoulder, "we won't."

Once away from the house and beside the lake, Patty sat down and smiled at them. "You probably won't believe me, but this is exactly how I had hoped things would turn out. I never imagined that my prayers could be answered."

"Prayers are very special, Patty, and you know that God does answer them," Andrew said as he sat down next to her.

"I think he does, Andrew, something about you confirms that," she said smiling.

"We're going to be leaving very soon, Patty, that's why we wanted to speak to you, we want to say good-bye," Monica said gently.

"For how long?" She asked, her smile disappearing.

"We're not coming back for a long time," Andrew said sadly.

"Why? I thought you were working for the newspaper here," she said weakly.

Monica shook her head, "We have to leave," she said and looked at Patty. "We didn't want to disappear without telling you the truth."

"The truth?" Patty asked.

"Yes," Andrew began to speak. "The reason we won't be staying here is because our work here is done and it is time for us to move on. Patty, the truth is, we're angels, and we were sent from God to help Stephanie through the last few days."

"I somehow figured that you were only here for Stephy," she whispered.

"Not necessarily," Andrew said gently. "We also have a message for you."

Patty looked at them with wide eyes when she suddenly could see the white light beginning to surround them. "Y-you really are?" she asked weakly shaking her head in disbelief. "I-I mean, you're messengers from God?"

"Mm-hum," Monica nodded.

"Both of you?" she asked weakly.

Andrew nodded. "I was with Stephanie the entire time she was in a coma. I'm an Angel of Death, Patty, and I was there to make sure that she would never be alone."

Patty backed up slightly her eyes wide, and she could see that both of them were glowing. She shook her head in complete disbelief. "Then she could have…" her question trailed off and she looked at Andrew, with a mixture of shock and fear in her eyes.

"Look at me, Patty," he began and took her hands gently in his as she looked into his eyes. "Stephanie could have died, but she didn't, and you're part of the reason why. The friendship you share with her was something like a beacon in that dark night of her life. Through the love that you carry in your heart, you were able to make her believe that she is loved. Today, because of her experiences, she believes that God truly cares for her."

She shook her head in disbelief. "You're really an Angel of Death?"

"Mm-hum," he nodded.

"You're nothing like what I would have expected," she said softly.

Andrew could see that Patty was taking his news rather well, and she even was smiling somewhat coyly at him. He finally looked at her in mock surprise. "What is it you want to say? I can tell you're holding something back."

Patty blushed and looked at Monica for a moment and then finally back over at him. "I was just thinking, if all Angels of Death are as handsome as you, it surprises me that there isn't a line a mile long of women waiting to go to heaven."

Monica laughed and Andrew blushed.

"Very funny," he said, but she could tell that her comment was well received.

"Can I make a suggestion to you though?" Patty asked.

"What's that?"

"It's nothing bad, but I'd suggest that you take some ice-skating lessons when you get home. I really had no idea that an angel could wipe out as quickly as you did."

Andrew sighed loudly and Monica laughed. "I know, Tess and I both saw him."

"It was priceless," Patty said, but after a few moments, she composed herself and became serious. "You said you had a message for me, is it from God?"

"Yes it is, Patty," Andrew said, grateful that they were finally abandoning his inability to ice-skate. "He wants you to know that He is very proud of you."

"He is?"

Monica smiled. "Yes, He is. You are a very caring girl, and that is a gift. Unlike many people, you chose to listen to the love that is in your heart, and that love brought your friend out of her virtual dark night."

"I never thought it was me," she said softly.

"It was, baby," Tess appeared from out of nowhere and smiled at her.

"You're an angel too?" Patty asked.

"Yes, I am, and like Monica said, God is very proud of you," Tess said.

"I know this isn't possible, but I wish you could always stay with us," Patty said. "It's so nice having you here, and knowing that God cares so much for us that He sent His angels to help us. It gives me the impression that He was as worried about Stephanie as we all were."

"He was, but I'm afraid that we do have to go," Tess said gently.

Patty stood up and was able to give each of them a hug. As soon as she loosened her embrace with Monica, the three of them disappeared leaving her standing next to the lake alone. "Good-bye, my friends," she whispered as she sat back down at the bench and looked out across the water. Folding her hands, she began to speak.

"God, it's me, Patty, I just want you to know that I'm so grateful to you for sending your angels to us and for helping Stephanie. She's my best friend, and even though I know that you know that, I want you to know that it means so much to me to know that she wasn't alone during all of this, and that Andrew helped her to not be afraid. Thank you so much for the guidance, and for giving me the strength to be a good friend and to help someone I love. It means so much to me. I love you, and I'm so blessed by your love!"

"Hello?" Brad's voice interrupted her some five minutes later.

"Daddy," Patty looked up.

"Did you want something to eat?" Brad asked.

Patty nodded and when her father offered her his hand, she accepted it, stood up, and walked with Brad back to the house. Neither of them spoke.

Once back at the house she could see that Jake and Gilda were confused that she had come back alone with her father. "What happened to Tess, Monica and Andrew?" Jake asked. "I thought they were with you outside."

She nodded sadly. "They had to leave," she whispered, and when she could feel the tears streaming down her cheeks, she wiped them away and spoke. "Would you please excuse me, I'll be back in a few minutes?" She said to them and walked towards the front door.

Outside on the porch she looked up at the stars, and sighed deeply. Somehow, she knew that it would have been selfish to expect the angels to have stayed, but she would miss them so much. By letting go, she felt that she had done the same type of selfless act that Andrew and Monica had done for Stephanie. She smiled secretly to herself as Mandy came outside.

"Hey, isn't it a bit chilly for you to be out here without a jacket on?" The woman came over to her and placed Patty's jacket on her shoulders.

"Actually, I didn't really think about it." Patty looked at her mother. "Mom, do you believe in angels?"

"I don't know, but where did that come from?" Mandy asked.

"Probably because I got to thinking about Stephy's dream and the costumes for the exhibition." Patty smiled secretly.

Mandy grinned at her daughter, "You know what? Ever since you were little, you couldn't talk about too much without turning the conversation back to figure skating?"

"Oh come on Mom, I'm not that bad." She grinned sheepishly.

Mandy laughed but when she noticed that her daughter's attention had diverted back onto the black velvet sky, she looked at her daughter thoughtfully. "The sky is really beautiful tonight, isn't it?"

Patty nodded, "Yeah, it looks almost like you could reach out and touch it. And look I just saw a dove; it flew through the trees over there." She pointed across the street towards a clump of trees in the neighbor's front yard.

Mandy nodded. "I saw it too, the bird of peace, and somehow it could be a symbol of the peace that has come into our lives. Come on, it's really chilly out here, let's get inside, the Guthries, Jake, and Gilda are still here. Mabel said that we can cut some pieces of her pies now."

"Oh Mom, you know I have to watch my diet. I don't want to be Attila the Hun on ice." Patty whined.

"One small piece of pie isn't going to make you look like Attila the Hun." Mandy sighed as she led her daughter towards the front door. "Besides, I hear that chocolate mocha is one of the best pies ever made. From what I heard, Mabel Guthrie's pies are so good that most people would travel from the heavens to have a wedge. Our friend Monica actually ate three slices."

Patty giggled; the irony of the statement was too much. This must have been a real novelty for her, she thought to herself, her hand covering her lips to stifle her giggling.

"What's so funny?" Mandy asked as she opened the door.

"Nothing, Mom, but since you insist, I'll have a piece of that pie, but only one." Patty smiled following her mother inside and closing the door.

Epilogue

Two months later, Patty Fischer and Stephanie Zimmerman were getting ready to perform their exhibition. Both girls had skated in the regional competition and Patty was still on top of the world after winning in her division. Stephanie had come in third, but she couldn't have been more pleased with her performance.

Against Jake's advice, she had changed her program, and wore one of the dresses her mother had designed, the white taffeta with a silk skirt etched in silver. In one month, she pulled off a new program, and pulled third place. Jake was astounded with this turn of events and he promised her that next year, she would be able to compete in the Junior division with a similar program, but modified for the more competitive division.

Because of the many challenges she had had with this particular contest, the newspaper interviewed her and published a long story about her. It had been published two weeks before and Teresa had the article framed and hung in the living room of their home.

Now, she stood next to her best friend, her smile genuine, her life changed. Her mother was sitting in the stands with Patty's parents, and when Stephanie looked up and saw her mother waving at her, she waved back.

Patty came out of the dressing room and ran over to her friend. "Stephy, I got a present for you."

"What is it?" Stephanie asked.

Patty handed her a small white pouch and she opened it. When her eyes came to rest on a small angel figurine inside, she looked up at Patty, a surprised look on her face. "You knew?"

Patty nodded, "Yeah, they told me the day they left."

"Patty, Stephy, we're ready." Thomas Guthrie called out. "Are you two ready?"

Both girls nodded. With pouches in hand, they skated out onto the ice.

"Here for an special end of season exhibition skate, Regional winner Patty Fischer, and Third place Regional winner, Stephanie Zimmerman," Thomas called out. The spectators in the stands cheered.

Stephanie closed her eyes, this was what figure skating was supposed to mean to her. She held the pouch tightly in her hand. When she opened her eyes once again, she could see her friends and mother in the stands. "Thank you, God," she said softly.

Patty skated over, "Let's do it," she smiled secretly at Stephanie.

Stephanie smiled, and both girls removed the angels from their pouches as the music started. As they glided across the ice, they held their special reminders in the palms of their raised hands. At the end of the program, both girls returned their keepsakes to the pouches and both attempted a triple loop. The crowd cheered loudly when both girls landed the jump successfully. Tears streamed down Patty's cheeks as she landed the jump better than all the other times before.

They held the angels close to their hearts as the music ended about thirty seconds later. As Stephanie cradled the gift in her hands, she began to cry. When Patty reached her, they shared a triumphant embrace. Together they stood in the middle of the ice as the people applauded. Nothing could have replaced that moment. Both girls returned the angels to the pouches and skated off the ice.

After some seconds passed, Stephanie looked at her friend, "Patty, why didn't you tell me you knew about Andrew, Tess, and Monica? I have been spending the last two months wanting to tell you, but I was afraid you would think I was crazy." Stephanie said, showing her friend the small pouch.

"I don't know, I guess I just wasn't sure. Then I got the idea about the figures. I wasn't sure if you would know the significance to them, but then I thought if I were to give you one, that you would either know why or not. If you didn't then, you would have accepted it as a gift from a friend, and nothing more." Patty smiled.

Stephanie nodded, "It's really incredible, isn't it? They saved my life, and they changed everything with my mom. If it hadn't have been for them, I probably wouldn't be here today."

Patty nodded, "But you are, and no matter where they are, the friendship and love they shared with us will always be a part of us."

Stephanie smiled and pulled the angel from the small pouch. The tears began to stream down her face as she looked over at the railing where she had first seen them standing two months before. She remembered how Andrew's concerned eyes had regarded her with compassion and sympathy after she had skated. As she looked down at the object in her hands, and back over at her best friend; she realized that without the intervention of God's angels, she wouldn't be where she is today.

******

Dear Reader,

The story you have read wouldn't have been possible without the help of my friend, David. David, a former competitor and coach, provided many of the technical facts used in the story to make it more realistic. The information regarding the jumps, and the levels of skating is accurate, as well as the information about competitions and the lengths of the programs. I've included some of his information regarding the psychological aspects of the sport, which are described in the two cases here. Using the information he provided, I was able to piece together some ideas of what might happen during training sessions, the commitments skaters make, and various small technicalities which I probably wouldn't have found had I not inquired.

I did however make a couple of ascertains which are false. I used these in order to maintain an element of flow in the story. First of all, the local figure skating competitions are not depicted as they are on television. According to David, rather than announcing the scores and ranks, as they do during the Olympics, or National competitions, they post them on a bulletin board. The announcing of the scores for the Novice division was done in order to inform the reader that Stephanie desired friendship with Patty, which is why this inconsistency is present. Secondly, Medals for all events are awarded at the end of the competition once all the events are finished. When I started the story, I assumed that it was after each event as depicted on TV, and kept it this way because I didn't wish to change the entire beginning of the story when this inconsistency was brought to my attention.

The cases of Patty and Stephanie are fictional circumstances. If they resemble anything real that has or had happened, this is purely coincidental and these characters are from the imagination of a writer with way too much time on her hands. Unfortunately, these extremities of psychological pressures by parents or coaches probably do exist in the world of Figure skating today. Also, many skaters probably aren't as determined as Patty was without the element of pressure by her family or coach. Her determination was strictly unique to her character.

Finally, Andrew and Monica's presence at Patty's training session probably wouldn't have happened in real life either. However, presenting this to you, gave me the opportunity to use David's information regarding the distinguishing characteristics of the jumps.

This story idea was originally a 'Starman' story, which I wrote and published in 1998; but somehow I was drawn back to it and I realized that although this plot sequence is similar, it could also be used with one of my other favorite shows: 'Touched by an Angel'. Seeing as I had been obsessing about this fact, I decided to give it a try, and the result is the story you have just read.

I hope you enjoyed the story.

Yvette Jessen

January 25, 2001

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