"You seriously can't microwave?" I ask.

"I can..." he trails off awkwardly, punching in random buttons and then jumping behind me.

"Woah! Why'd you jump behind me?"

"It's gonna explode," he says fearfully.

I think it will if Remington keeps this up. And the microwave won't be the only one that will explode. I stride forward, annoyed, and stop the microwave, which Remington has set at 10 minutes.

Actually...

I turn to him, a smile on my face. An angelic smile. "Nope, you seem to be doing alright. Do you want to sit down first and wait?"

He eyes me suspiciously. I have most likely aroused his suspicion because I'm acting nice. Or at least borderline cordial, for once.

We sit down and wait. Soon enough, just as I predicted, a burning smell diffuses throughout the kitchen and tiny exploding, sizzling sounds come from the microwave. Outwardly, I remain calm, but inside me, I am rubbing my hands close together and chuckling evilly.

"Wait-" Remington starts, then leaps up and runs to the microwave. "My gosh, what have you done?"

"Me?"

He quickly flips the main switch off, turning to me with an outraged look. "M...my food got burnt!" Remington sounds like he's about to cry.

I smother a laugh. He looks adorable. Like a baby bunny finding Easter eggs for the first time. "Alright, I wanted to play a prank on you."

Remington frowns. "No one has ever done that to me. No one would dare to."

"Luckily I'm not a person," I say dramatically.

He looks so upset that I feel a little sorry for him. Just a little. Smaller than a pinch of salt. "Fine! Do you want me to cook for you?"

Remington sighs. "Okay, how's this. I'll teach you to drive and you teach me to cook."

"You can't cook?"

"I manage to burn even water," he admits.

I back away slowly. "Only aliens can burn water..."

We both laugh and the tension is broken. Slightly grudgingly, I fix a meal for Remington and give it to him. Just then, my phone rings. I scowl when I see the first few digits of the number, which I haven't bothered to save. Stupid Boss.

"May I answer this call?" I ask politely.

When he nods I zoom out of the kitchen and answer it. "What?" I hiss.

"Have you gotten the cash yet? We're expecting you to take millions off him. Make him poor."

I frown. "Do you know that there's something called patience?"

Over the phone, Boss sighs and snaps harshly at me "Get on with it! You don't understand. I need the money!"

"Same here, barnacle," I mutter and hang up.

Stalking back into the kitchen, I find Remington has already finished his food and is scraping at the bowl hungrily. I place my hands on my hips and announce "Okay, my job is over. Bye."

I have to think of a plan to scam Remington. Just being his driver isn't good enough.

And then staring at him, I get it. My current method isn't working, because he's just too smart. But if I use my ability...if somehow I make his sadness go away by performing the most intricate trick ever...I could just be the richest person in the world.

The problem is that this trick is difficult to execute and I'd probably flop and fail.

Okay, time to ask Jay of his opinion. I wave. "Byeeeeeee!"

"Byeee! Wait, no!"

I've already grabbed my clothes and am high tailing it out of the damn rich stinking place. Fishing out my phone, I call Jay. He sounds amused. "You read my mind. I was just going to call you."

"Huh?"

A pause. Then: "Meet me at the bridge."

---

Our town is humble, but there are a few beautiful attractions, and the bridge is one of them. Simply called The Bridge, it's a popular spot for friends and couples. The bridge looks out to a shining expanse of waters, and when the sun comes out, the bronze of the bridge lights up and it's absolutely stunning.

When I go there, Jay is already waiting, leaning against the metal railing and looking out to the river.

I sneak up and clap my hands on his eyes. "Boo!"

"I thought you were this strong woman? Why have you turned childish?" He says without turning, and flips me around such that I'm next to him.

I gape. "I...I was behind you, and then..."

Satisfied, Jay looks back at the river. He wants to tell me something. I know it by observing him- the tapping of one foot, the deliberate avoidance of my gaze.

"What is it?" I ask him.

"I was thinking about you," he says simply. It's so honest and pure that I can't help gasping. Jay's suddenly so close...

"Do you want to be my girlfriend?" He asks.

I can't help a grin forming at my lips. "You finally asked? I've been waiting since forever!"

Jay rolls his eyes. "Stop kidding me. If I don't have a chance, just say it."

But you do.

"Angel, you mean a lot to me."

And you to me.

"I've thought about it, and I want to give us a chance."

Me too.

But the words are stuck in my throat. I swallow.

Jay is the only one I ever listened to. He doesn't even know how important he is to me. But I don't want to admit it. Because admitting how truly important Jay is to me would mean I have unlocked my heart, and am displaying it to the world to mock at and destroy. No, liking someone, loving someone, they all require a portion of your heart. And that is something I am unwilling to give. My heart. Better to shy away from such things than to give away my heart.

Jay pulls me in and I lean on his shoulder. "It's okay," he murmurs. "You don't have to say yes or no."

I still can't speak. I do not wish to feel that raw pain again when someone gently opens my heart, only to have my heart ripped out. The veins tearing apart from my body. Those long silent nights spent sobbing.

"I'm sorry," I find myself saying.

His eyes widen. He knows I don't say sorry easily. "Stop, Angel-"

"I want us to work, too. But with me I don't think we can."

Because there's another reason. Apart from the fact that I want to preserve my own shreds of heart, I also do not wish to see Jay feel sad because of me. If I can see his sorrow and know it's because of me, I would feel terrible. No, I cannot bear that burden. Of knowing that I caused his sadness. Of knowing his sadness.

The people at the bridge around us are blurry, but as always, their sorrow clouds are as clear as day. So many people around us are depressed. It makes me depressed too.

"Angel, you're beginning to sound cliché." Jay's tone is light, but I see him grow sadder. His cloud gets darker and darker, nearing a very dark grey. He's hurt by me and we haven't even dated yet. Guilt gnaws into me and my chest feels tighter.

So impulsively, I lean over, and give him a sweet kiss on the cheek. Anything to stop him from feeling sadder, anything...

"I'll be your girlfriend."

His cloud of sorrow lightens. It's amazing how human emotions flicker on and off so quickly, like lightbulbs. Hope flashes in his eyes.

And suddenly I feel like I should just jump into the river and drown myself. What have I done? Oh, what on earth have I done?

"You agreed to be my girlfriend," Jay whispers, his eyes wide with shock.

---

I collapse on my bed. What a mess I am.

No, no. I am amazing. I'm the amazing Angel who no one can touch. Yes, that's me. Now repeat it five times, I tell myself.

If I were a person who couldn't see sorrow, I would be over the moon. I mean, come on. Jay's a total catch and I know it and he knows it. The problem is my ability.

"Ugh!" I slam my head in the fluffy pillow, which doesn't do much but make a loud bang. Anyway, the loud bang makes me feel better and I scream loudly. "Life sucks!"

Grumbling, I turn on my phone and an advertisement pops up: get a new girlfriend now!

Ah, that reminds me...

Back on track, I sit up and think hard. I need to scam Remington of his money, that is clear. I have a plan to do so, but my plan involves degrading myself, and I simply cannot imagine myself really executing the plan. 

Unfortunately, I don't have a choice. It's go big or go home, and I know it. So I get out a piece of paper and start brainstorming. How should I portray myself to Remington? How will I win his affections? Yes- I am going to perform the hardest, but most rewarding in terms of monetary value, scam: the love scam. 

In order to find out more about Remington, I google his name, and thousands of search results pop up. In fact, these search results aren't about Remington himself. They're about his parents, the top criminal lawyers in the country. I roll my eyes when I see that, not even impressed. Defending criminals who have obviously broken the law? I don't think that's a good way to live.

Much better to be the criminal, like me. 

My question is, why is he here, then? In this obscure town where criminals run rampant and the police are trodden on by the people? The son of a criminal lawyer should be in Oxford or Cambridge, or Harvard, studying to be another top lawyer. Then the puzzle pieces click into place and the picture, crystal clear, appears before my eyes. 

A smirk grows on my face. I can't believe I didn't see that earlier. Remington most likely came for some lame pathetic reason, like- oh! Like...

Wanting to find the one.

Obviously, Remington isn't going to find her. But he can find a substitute- and that would be me. The smirk grows wider. This is going to be so easy. Make him fall in love with me, and cure his depression (maybe) and then grab the cash and take off, never to be seen again (obviously). That would solve my other problem, too. Once I have enough cash...