Please do not distribute or re-post this fiction without contacting it's author.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Take my hand," her soft voice whispered as she reached out a helping hand to him. She was a beautiful child and she had a marvelous set of wings. Was she an angel? Ryan wasn't quite so sure.
He nodded as he took her hand as requested. He was suddenly aware of the weightlessness he was experiencing. He was flying! He looked at her profile, a picture of innocence. She had curly locks, the bluest eyes, and the most beautiful smile.
"What are you thinking about?" the little girl asked as she giggled. He wanted to ask her whom she was, how she found him, and how she was managing to fly, but he only blurted out one question.
"Where are we going?" Ryan asked.
"The Promised Land," she stated plainly as she smiled at him.
Beautiful.


"Godammit," Ryan said sleepily as the sudden jerk of the tube caused him to regain consciousness. It was only a dream. He was still in a daze, but he was awake enough to realize it was a mere fantasy.  He looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings through the glass windows of the tube, UK's version of the subway. It had
been quite awhile since he had last taken any public transport, much less
in a foreign country.

"And I missed my stop, too," he mused. He could probably ask someone, but he wasn't sure if he would get recognized. The last time he checked, `Whose Line' was pretty popular in the UK, and he had gained quite a following.

That was what he hated about life in the spotlight. It wasn't normal. He couldn't just behave like an ordinary guy. He always had to be wary of other people.
Ryan hated that the most. Having to doubt everyone and everything. Having to be suspicious about intentions. Having to keep his distance from people, even the ones he knew well.

People were always nice to him. The problem was, why were they being nice? Did they want something in return? A free ride, perhaps? He had once dated a fan even, and all she wanted was Ryan Stiles, the guy on TV and not plain ol' Ryan Stiles. Once that realization hit him, he broke up with her and hurt both of them in
the process.

It was all so disheartening. So disillusioning. So futile. He had tried to trust people, but just couldn't. Ryan knew what the answer to this problem was. All he had to do was quit his job and leave the limelight in the dust. But he couldn't do that either.
Improvisation was his inner calling. Almost everyday he felt the tumult within.
Was it really a hopeless case for him? Was he doomed to live his life doubting every single soul out there? Did everyone harbor ill intentions? Would he never know the meaning of innocence, like of the angel in the dream?

"I can't find my way.." he mumbled, still very much lost in his reverie. 

"Are you lost, mister?"
Ryan looked up. A young child was staring at him with wide eyes; arm clutched around her teddy bear. He looked at her for a few  seconds until he suddenly realized he was staring.
"Mister?" the young girl repeated.
"Wha..? Oh. No, no," he replied.
"Okay," she shrugged as she skipped off to the other section of the tube. "Bye, mister!"
Ryan smiled despite of himself. What he had just seen was
amazing. It was a child - a picture of innocence.
That was when he realized that he wasn't alone in the world.
He would always have his daughter, Mackenzie. With her, he was Ryan Stiles, the father. No doubts, no fears. Just love.
He whipped out his wallet as he looked intently at the photo of Mackenzie which he kept in there. He studied her profile and gasped when he realized it, that it was her that he had just seen a few minutes ago in his dream.
Mackenzie was his angel.