Two Pairs of Wings

“I'm home.”

The voice entered the room as the door to a small apartment creaked open, revealing a young woman, looking to be in her 20s, with bright, long red hair. She had piercing brown eyes, a matured face, and an attractive form, yet she seemed very tired. She had a look in her eyes that told the world 'I just want to collapse on the couch'. She was wearing an employee outfit for the restaurant she worked for, as a waitress.
The apartment was quite small, being both neat and also a bit dirty. It was nothing to really remark about, as it didn't leave much of an impression. On the couch was a young man with glasses and short white hair, also looking to be in his 20s. He, just like the woman, had a face showing maturity, but his eyes were calculating. He had a slender form with a plain white shirt and black pants, but when he wore it, it looked quite classy. In his hands was a book, a book that the woman did not care about. 'It's probably pretentious nonsense or some crap like that.'

“I see you finished your shift, or did they just make you stay late because you slacked off?”

“I don't need your crap right now, Matthew, I'm not in the mood. Geez, I just want to fall on the couch and watch some shows with hot guys in them.”

“Right, just keep the volume down, Dara, I don't want it to get in the way of my reading.”

“I can make it as loud as I want, I bought the damn thing.”

At first glance, the two of them seemed like normal roommates sharing an apartment to save money; old friends, perhaps. Well, they certainly were old, much older than they looked. The two of them were a lot more than they looked. Dara was a devil, and Matthew was an angel. They were both part of a peace treaty experiment between Lucifer and God. They wanted to test just how well their respective followers could get along in a regular environment. The two in the apartment were the 'lucky' ones chosen, and they had been living in the human world for over a year now. The good news was that they hadn't killed each other yet, or anyone else for that matter.
Dara slumped onto the couch, her usually flirty and lively self being rundown by human jobs and the necessity of money in the current era. She didn't even have the energy to really complain about it like she usually would. This put Mathew off a bit, but he couldn't complain. It was relatively quiet, so he could catch up on his reading, which made him happy. However, after a few minutes of silent laziness, Dara found the energy to talk again.

“Why do you read so much crap? What has reading ever done for either of our species? I get why humans do it, but you can just like, read their minds or learn about it from your father. Why bother?”

“Because I want to and I like to. We all have our likes and dislikes, Dara. Now be quiet.”

“You are no freaking fun, you know that? Sheesh, like talking to a rule book that has even less of a sense of humor. Whatever, time to watch my shows.”

The incoming noise from the television managed to set the usually calm minded Matthew off his hinge. He took his bookmark and saved the place in his book, then put it down on the table.

“You need to stop watching so much tv, you know how much it costs?! And it's not like you even keep up with the bills, I do!”

“Really now, because I'm the one who paid for the electricity bill the last 2 months, and for our water bill. So, don't you bring your crap here and say I don't help. Just because I am a devil doesn't mean you can think of me as something below you, angelic prick.”

The two of them often quarreled like this pretty often, retorting back with insults and claims of laziness. Still, they continued to live together, because despite these fights, it never got worse by escalating to more than just words that at times felt forced or empty. They were almost just bickering. Angels and devils are flawed, just as humans are.
After their 'fight', they sat in silence, doing their own respective entertaining activity. Both of them, despite not wanting to admit it, enjoyed the other's company. It was a complex relationship of fighting and smiles, but it worked. A few times, it has almost gone past a friendship, with fleeting moments of romance and passion. These usually ended with Dara punching Matthew in the stomach because 'he let his guard down', or something just ended up breaking the mood. And, the two of them found themselves in the same situation after their bickering on this very day. This day was different, however. Their romantic moment did not end abruptly with a punch or a mood breaker. It persisted, oddly enough. This would most likely not lead to anything more than just a contained moment, however. And it did not. It ended almost as soon as it began, or at least that's how it felt. In actuality, it lasted 47 minutes. The two of them laughed, and the night continued as if nothing had happened. Dara watched her favorite television programs while Matthew finished reading his book. Both of them were quite content, even through the bickering. Their lives were interesting and different from the hundreds of slow and monotonous years they had experienced until then. So, they were surprisingly happy with the change. However, that still didn't stop Dara from doing some more complaining.

“The boss was such an asshole today. He made us work our butts off, and complained when we started getting tired. Makes me have more respect if humans do this all the time for most of their lives. Even I got tired, so that means he put us through too much work! Almost wanted to punch the guy. Still, the cute guy I work with put up a bit of a sweat moving a few things around, so I guess that's a plus. I almost wanted to ask him for dinner.”

“He probably would've declined. The things you think will happen and what actually happens are two entirely different situations. Remember what happened with the neighbor we had?”

“Oh shut up, not like you're any good with women. And I don't count, by the way.”

“I don't try, whereas you do. So, I've made my point.”

Dara pouted in defeat, always being a bit of a child when it comes to losing. This brought a smirk to Matthew's face, he enjoyed watching her be upset, but not in a cruel way. He just knew that she was being immature. After a moment of pouting like a little girl, Dara laughed, and Matthew joined her. They made such an odd couple. The flirtatious and lively devil with the rule bound and serious angel. Two pairs of wings under one house, in a world of humans. A world of logic and money. A world where their kind were parts of stories, considered fiction. But sometimes, truth is stranger than fiction.