"We should get tattoos. You already have one and I don't have any." Kate smiled.
Seth looked indifferent, "Why do you want a tattoo, princess?"
Kate gave a light laugh, "Is it so hard to believe that I could want something permanent on my body besides these stupid scars?"
Seth looked at her seriously, "Kate…"
"Don't Kate me…I'm going so either come along or stay here!"
Seth sighed but followed her out the door. They made it to the tattoo shop a short time later.
"So, what are you going to get?" Kate asked.
"No idea, why don't you pick…"
"I thought you would have some idea, Seth, you already have a tattoo."
"Not like I even remember getting this one."
"Okay, so I'll just go first." Kate smiled.
Kate followed the tattoo artist into the back room without even looking around at the pictures hanging on the walls. Seth shook his head and hoped this wasn't a mistake. He thought about texting Richie and telling him to come help him intervene before Kate made this mistake but he had a feeling that would not end well. A little while later Kate emerged smiling.
"All done." She stated leaving Seth sitting there with a dumb look on his face.
They drove back to the hotel in silence.
"You're not even curious what I got?" Kate asked him as they were walking back to their room.
"Uh..a butterfly? A flower..? Something girls like." Seth laughed.
He unlocked the door and was surprised to see Richie watching a movie from the bed.
"Where have you guys been?" Richie asked them.
"Getting a tattoo!" Kate laughed.
"You let her get a tattoo?!" Richie replied.
"Relax dad…" Kate laughed, "It was my decision."
"So…whatdidya get?" Richie asked.
"That's for me to know and you two to guess." Kate smiled, "I'm gonna take a shower."
She grabbed clothes out of her bag and walked into the bathroom. She smiled to herself and started to remove the bandage. Kate had gotten the tattoo over her heart because that is where she felt it belonged. She smiled and rubbed her fingers over the medium sized letters written in script. Kate laughed to herself as she imagined the look Seth would give her when he saw his name there.
A short time later Kate emerged from the bathroom and the boys were watching the movie together.
"Don't forget you have to keep that clean." Seth stated.
"I know that…" Kate sighed.
"What? No witty dad comment?" Seth asked eyebrows raised.
Kate shook her head. If he only knew how she saw him. Kate only said that to Richie because he was like her brother, they had grown closer the past few months and he tried to protect her from things that a father would. Seth protected her but in a different way. She didn't think of either of them as fathers…the comment she made before to Richie was meant to be playful but now that Seth brought it up it started to bring back memories from the twister and the road that led them down.
Seth could sense her uneasiness.
"Hey…I'm sorry." He started walked towards her, "I didn't think…"
"No, it's okay. I'm gonna go sit outside for a little while."
"Shit." Seth mumbled.
"Way to go brother…" Richie sighed.
Kate closed her eyes and concentrated on the breeze.
"…in the eyes of the people I love."
The words came flowing back to her. She loved Seth. Kate knew she did, regardless of the things that happened to her and her family. Yes, Richie and Seth kidnapped her and her family. Yes, they did get her father killed and her brother turned. But she didn't blame Seth for any of that. Seth made her a better person regardless of the events leading up to this point. Kate remembered the way he looked at her as they were leaving Matanzas.
"Hey sis…" Richie sighed.
"Hey." Kate smiled.
"Sorry about what Seth said." Richie reached out and grabbed her hand.
"Do you always apologize for him?"
"Habit." Richie stated.
"It's fine…I'm okay." Kate said.
"So…a tattoo." Richie cleared his throat, "Are you gonna tell me what you got?"
Kate laughed, "No. You have to guess."
Richie sighed awkwardly, "The Chinese symbol for love…"
They both laughed and she leaned into him. When they reached the room, Seth was nowhere to be found. Kate sighed and left Richie to look around outside for him. When she found him he was sitting on the car drinking a beer.
"Hey…" Kate said.
"Hey Princess…" Seth greeted.
She sat next to him and grabbed the beer from his hands. Kate took a sip then handed back to him.
"Are you going to tell me what tattoo you got or are you going to leave me in suspense?" Seth asked.
Kate knew that he was suffering because the thing about Seth was that he punished himself for all the bad shit that he did. She saw that when Amaru took over.
"I wanna taste your soul…"
It came in flashes…as soon as she grabbed Seth she could see what he thought he deserved. She saw him burning to death…screaming in agony. Kate felt all the despair he was feeling. She knew that he felt like he deserved to die. She knew that he didn't need any other reason to hate himself so she decided she would show him her tattoo.
"Well..." Seth started taking another sip of his beer.
"…in the eyes of the people I love." Kate said softly.
Seth looked up at her, "What?"
Kate started peeling the bandage away. She looked up at him and smiled. Kate knew that he wouldn't be able to see the tattoo from where she was sitting so she stood in front of him.
Seth looked at the tattoo, "Why?"
"Because I love you, Seth. That might now be what you want to hear but I really do. You mean more to me then you should." Kate stated hesitantly.
"You shouldn't love me, Kate. I'm a bastard…" Seth swallowed.
"…but not a fucking bastard." Kate smiled.
Before Seth knew what was happening her lips were on his.
He deepened the kiss and mumbled into her lips, "I love you too, Princess."