It took a while, but the "Kiss of Fate" series is officially done. A long time ago, when I was mulling over ideas, I could hear a little girl named Jocelyn tell a little boy named John that she loved him – right after she kissed him. How ironic that that story would spawn four other stories on the significant kisses they would share later in life and show how intertwined their lives have been from the beginning? Below is a weird little thing that came to me right before I started writing. I think it pretty much describes our star-crossed lovers.

I don't own Person of Interest.

Kiss of Fate

I took a moment to catch my breath,
and there you were.
Like an answer to a dream come true,
I couldn't believe my eyes.
It only took a second to realize that
we were meant to be.
And when you took my hand in yours
I wondered if you could see...

That we were drawn together by a kiss
of fate.
Oh, that is what I believe.
You belong to me, and I belong to you;
I will never leave.

Come hell or high water, we'll take it day by day;
No matter what the future holds, I will always
stay.
Through the sands of time – not a moment too
late -
We're bound by the kiss of fate.

Maybe it was luck or chance or that the stars
were aligned to get us here today.
From start to stop, heartbreak to heartbreak,
We had to keep going to find our way.

When my hand touched yours and your
eyes met mine, I could feel my heart meld with yours.
And instantly the love began to flow.
I'll never let you go.

We were drawn together by a kiss of fate.
Oh, that is what I believe.
You belong to me, and I belong to you;
I will never leave.

Come hell or high water, we'll take it day by day;
No matter what the future hold, I will always stay.
Through the sand of time – and not a moment too
late -
We're bound by the kiss of fate.

(flashpenguin poetry)
*********

July 4, 1976

Long Island, New York

Eight year old John Taylor sat on the porch step and sighed. The vacation his dad had promised him had not turned out the way he had envisioned.

Okay, so they had seen the Empire State Building and the two really tall buildings that seemed to disappear into the sky when he tried to look up at them. Sure they had gone to see the Cubs play the Mets at Shea Stadium before watching the fireworks afterward. He even got a tummy ache from eating too much popcorn and hot dogs, but he hadn't complained. No, all of that was great. It was where he was right now that was bumming him out.

What was he thinking when he volunteered to watch the daughter of his dad's best friend? He wanted to blame it on all the Mr. Pibb he had drunk the day before. Yeah, that seemed like a great excuse. He sighed again.

But the truth was that he was stuck on the porch of the modest brick house in the quiet little suburb of Long Island watching four year old Jocelyn Kelly peddle her tricycle up and down the sidewalk while the adults sat in the backyard talking. All because that is what she wanted. No one asked what I wanted, young John groused to himself.

Sure Jocelyn was cute enough with her pigtails and big brown eyes that looked up at him with adoration. But in his world girls were icky and full of cooties; baseball players were the coolest people on earth. And since girls would never play baseball, as far as he was concerned, he had no use for them.

Resting his chin on his fist, John kept one eye on the little girl while his thoughts replayed the baseball game. He imagined himself as Rick Monday and hitting the home run that could have saved the day and won the game. He imagined the cheers from the crowd as he touched all the bases to head home for a well deserved victory.

A sudden cry pulled him out of his reverie. Looking up, he saw Jocelyn laying on the sidewalk, her tricycle overturned on the grass. Hurrying from the porch, John ran toward the little girl. Guilt filled his stomach at the thought of her being injured because he had ignored her.

"Are you okay?" John asked as he knelt beside the little girl.

"My knee hurts," Jocelyn cried and held her knee in her hands.

"Let me look." Jocelyn tentatively pulled her hands away so John could see the damage. Expecting the worst, John breathed a sigh of relief. "It's okay," he assured her. "You just scrapped it."

"Is it bleeding?" she wondered as a tiny tear fell from her eye and raced down her cheek.

"Just a little. I'll go get your mom," John offered and started to stand.

"No," Jocelyn protested fearfully. "Don't leave me."

Conflicted by what he should do, John debated going against the little girl's wishes. But so far, where he was concerned, Jocelyn had everyone wrapped around her little finger and pretty much got what she wanted. And as he looked into her big brown eyes, he felt something weird in his tummy.

"Okay," John conceded. "Let's go get a band-aid," he suggested and held his hand out to her. Confidently, Jocelyn took John's hand and let him help her to her feet.

"Does it hurt?" he asked.

"Yes," she pouted as John led the way to the porch.

"Stay here," John ordered. "I'll be right back." A moment later he disappeared into the house. Sitting down on the top step, Jocelyn tried to keep the tears back, but she was afraid. John had left her alone and in pain. What if he never came back, she wondered tearfully. What if she had to stay on the porch by herself for the rest of her life? Sniffling sadly, Jocelyn bowed her head on her knees and cried silently.

The screen door slammed shut and footsteps sounded as John hurried back to the little girl.

"What's wrong?" he asked and sat down beside her.

Turning her head, Jocelyn looked at him with tear filled eyes. "You were gone." Her bottom lip quavered. "I didn't think you would come back."

"I told you that I would."

"But I was all alone."

John brushed the tears away with his fingers. "Joss, you are not alone; I'm here. Now let's make you feel better. Move your hand," he ordered.

Taking the band-aid out of the sterile wrapper, he pressed the thin strip of gauze against the abrasion before pressing the adhesive to Jocelyn's skin.

"There!" he announced. "Is that better?" he asked.

"Y-y-yes," Jocelyn sniffed.

Sitting together, the pair sat in silence.

"John?"

"What?"

"Do you like me?"

Uncomfortable by the question, John shifted on the concrete step and searched for an answer. Shrugging, he replied, "I guess so. You're pretty okay...for a girl."

Jocelyn's eyes widened in surprise. "You don't like girls?"

"They got cooties. Plus they can't play baseball. They can't even go to war," John replied in mock disgust. In his book, next to baseball players, soldiers were the coolest guys on earth; no one else could even compare.

"I can too baseball. And girls can go to war," Jocelyn retorted stoutly.

"No, they can't."

"Would you like me if I could?" Jocelyn wondered aloud not realizing she just diffused the nearly volatile moment.

"I guess. Yeah. Sure," John answered weakly. That funny feeling in his tummy was making him feel weird. He wanted to run, but he couldn't move.

"John," Jocelyn said as she snuggled closer to her protector, "when I grow up, will you marry me?"

John held his breath. Marry?! He was eight years old. He didn't ever want to get married. He wanted to play baseball and join the Army.

"No way!"

Joss didn't understand the outburst. "Why not?"

"Because I'm going to go into the Army and be a soldier just like my dad. I'm going to save a bunch of people and be a hero just like him," John stated proudly and confidently.

Jocelyn considered the statement. How could she compete with that? She pulled back and looked at him. "Never ever?"

John felt as though he had been put on the spot. He felt his cheeks flush hot, so he gave an indifferent shrug.

"I don't know," he admitted reluctantly. "Maybe, someday," he conceded. "After I finish playing baseball and I retire from the Army." Now his heart was doing weird flip-flops. He swallowed hard to fight off the butterflies.

Jocelyn thought it over. "When you do that, then will you marry me?"

He looked at her and felt his tummy doing that weird thing again. "You might find someone new and want to marry them."

Jocelyn shook her head. "Never."

"I might happen," he warned matter of factly.

"I cross my heart." Jocelyn dramatically ran her finger over her chest. "Cross your heart," she ordered.
John quickly crossed his heart.

Jocelyn took John's hand in hers and intertwined their fingers. "I'll never forget you," she vowed. Yes, she told herself, she would always love the boy she considered her hero - no matter what happened.

"I'll never forget you." Okay, John reconsidered his earlier remark, maybe girls aren't so icky after all.

Leaning up, Jocelyn pressed her lips to John's cheek. "I love you John."

At that moment, John's heart fell hard. He suddenly realized that he had broken his vow and fell in love. But he would never tell his guy friends that. Nope. On that matter, his lips were sealed. But he could tell her.

"I love you, too, Joss," John replied softly.

Jocelyn pulled back to look at him. "For ever and ever?"

"For ever and ever." His blue eyes met her brown ones. "I'll never let anything bad happen to you. I promise."

Satisfied, she snuggled close to him, and closed her eyes with a sigh. Hesitantly, John wrapped his arm around Jocelyn. Side by side, their hands holding tight, they sat on the porch and just breathed.

As far as they were concerned, no matter what happened, life was perfect. And always would be.

The End.