"Forgive me Father, for I have sinned." He pauses. "It's been twelve days since my last confession."
"What is your sin, my child?"
"Father, I attend Mass," he hesitates for a brief moment, "almost every Sunday. I pray for the souls of those I love, as well as the ones of those I arrest. I know I am far from being a perfect man, but I try my best to live right, to follow His word, and to spread it to others. But Father, I am afraid that on any given day, I commit at least one Cardinal Sin." He sighs heavily. "For her Father, it's all for her."
"Son, please explain the sins you feel you've committed."
"I lust for her Father. I imagine us in situations, in places, both perverse and not. I think about her all the time, even when it's inappropriate; it's mental gluttony."
He ticks off the first and second sin on his fingers.
"I am greedy of the time I get to spend with her, preferring not to share her with others, even though her time and presence is not mine to manage." Tick three.
"My heart aches when I see her with other men. Especially the last man she was with, which leads to yet another sin, wrath. I was so angry when she started dating him. Not because he's not a good guy, because he's a great guy; but because I felt it should have been me. But rather than work on myself and make myself the man she needed and deserved, I only allowed the anger of not having her to wash over me. I realize now that I didn't even try." He ticks off two more sins, bringing his total to five.
"Father, this man I was referring to, just before he left, he was in the same line of work I am in now. And during his last few weeks here, I was so envious of him. Because, while we both had her, he really had her, and it made me so angry and jealous that all I wanted to do was punch someone or something. I would find myself at the gym, punching the bag like my life depended on it. And when I would stop, it wasn't because the rage and self-pity were gone." A hateful, self-depreciating laugh fills the velvet lined confessional. "It was because I had no more strength left." Tick number six.
"And when we're together, I feel so proud. I call her 'my squint,' always mine. I'm vain and arrogant when I tell others about who she is, and what she has done." Tick number seven.
He stares down at his seven counted fingers; a look of revulsion contorts his usually handsome features. He rests his head in his hands with a dejected sigh and asks, "Father, what can I do? I know what I am doing is wrong, oh God, it's wrong, but I can't give her up." There is a long, pregnant pause. The only sound he can hear is his own breathing. Finally, the priest speaks.
"My son, while the sins you have committed are great, let us not forget that God forgives all. While you see each of these sins as Cardinal in nature, since you have sinned against yourself, and not man, perhaps the best practice for you right now is self-restraint. When you find yourself in any of these situations, sit back and remember that God provides abundantly for those who ask. So, rather than-"
"Temperance," Booth says softly to himself, an expression of dawning realization lighting his face.
"Yes, my son. Temperance is exactly what you need in your life right now."