The One Rule
Tabitha sighed happily as the evening sun settled behind the trees. “Well, there they are.”
“Yep,” Constance said. “There they are. All naked and stuff. You think we should get ’em a shirt or something?”
Tabitha rolled her eyes. “Can’t you just enjoy the moment, Connie? They’re the only two people around! Who’s going to know?”
The angel shrugged. “I’m just saying. We’ve got our wings and robes and whatnot. They’re just…out there. In the open. And it’s supposed to get chilly tonight.”
“They’ll be fine,” Tabitha said. “You worry too much. Look at them, being happy, over by the trees…”
“Trees?” Constance cut in, a sudden note of alarm in her voice. “Please tell me they’re just the normal trees and not the tree. You know.”
“Oh, come on,” Tabitha said, laughing. “It’s literally only the eighth day of creation. They’ve got one rule. Don’t eat the fruit. They aren’t going to break the one rule. They’re not stupid.”
“Well, they were made two days ago,” Constance said doubtfully. “Maybe you’re right. I mean, it’s probably a really nasty-looking fruit anyway, something that looks horrible and would make them throw up, that kind of thing.”
“Oh, no, it’s a pineapple!” Tabitha exclaimed.
“A what now?”
“Yeah, see, I was in charge of selection. I’d just rocked this killer solo in the angel choir, and I didn’t even lose my halo which is a total first, and so the archangel, Gabriel what’s his face, was like, “Congratulations, you get to pick the apple,” and I was like, “Oh, cool, well, hey, let’s do a pineapple! Pineapples are fun!” and he was like “Okay, fine, yeah, whatever, let’s go with that.” He didn’t seem too thrilled, not sure why, I think he’d had a long day maybe, and-”
Constance raised her hand. “Tabitha, you know pineapples aren’t actually apples, right?”
“They’re not?” Tabitha’s face fell. “Oh. Well. I didn’t…actually….know that.” She rallied bravely. “But still, pineapples! They’re fun, right? Everyone loves a pineapple, right?”
“They’re not supposed to love it! They’re supposed to not eat it! That’s the point of the one rule, remember?”
“Oh, yeah.” A short pause followed. They became slowly aware that things had gone ominously quiet in the trees.
“Maybe …we should check on them,” Tabitha ventured. “Just to be safe.”
“Let’s.”
With a rising sense of alarm, the two angels stretched their wings and took flight, into the gathering dark.
