FIERY CONNECTIONS. CHAPTER 7

I DO NOT OWN THESE CHARACTERS. THEY BELONG TO THE CW NETWORK. THIS IS A WORK OF FANFICTION BY OMEGAPWHITE.

TWO WEEKS LATER

JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI

Vincent navigated the impossibly long and winding road, after leaving the airport. He looked over at Catherine and his heart skipped a beat. After a two week honeymoon, he still felt as giddy as a teenager in love. His eyes fell on her short sundress that exposed her exceptionally long legs. Her hair was pulled backed in a ponytail with a few loose strands waving about. He drank in her astounding beauty. Studying her like an artistic masterpiece. The moment seemed so surreal.

Months earlier he'd been sure, he would be a bachelor forever. Sure, he'd dated women before and he'd even come close to marriage, but thinking back he'd never fully committed himself emotionally. Previous relationships had run their course and then both parties had simply moved on. In retrospect, he hadn't loved them. He hadn't even missed them. The transition was too easy, their memory gone too quickly. Then he met Catherine and everything changed. He changed. His heart danced in her presence. He missed her like crazy, when they were apart. Unfamiliar feelings surged within, that scared him, yet he couldn't stay away. Seduced by her eyes, captivated by her beauty. She had reached into his chest and stolen his heart. For the first time in his life, love was in his eyes, his actions, and thoughts. After several months of dating, the future, their future was lucid. Remembering the profound effect of their first meeting, the threat of her untimely demise, Vincent made the most salient decision of his life. He didn't know if the sun would shine tomorrow or lightning would illuminate the sky, he only knew he needed Catherine by his side, as his wife.

Their honeymoon had been incredible. So incredible, that he hated to come home to reality. He wanted to be selfish and take Catherine to a faraway island and stay forever. Now as he looked at her. Admired her. Appreciated her. He knew everyday spent together would be like looking at a rainbow forming on the horizon.

CATHERINE AND VINCENT

With a serious look donning her face, Catherine looked at Vincent. "I have thought about this for awhile and I've decided I want to teach. I've lost interest in the law. Besides, I hated the stress and long hours, anyway. I would need to get my certification first, but teaching was always my first love. For the first time in my life, I've made a decision about my life that wasn't predicated on what I thought would conciliate everyone else. While I'm studying to acquire my certification, we wouldn't be affected financially. My uncle bequeathed a rather large amount of money to me, but I know we haven't had the opportunity to discuss finances and I'm not sure how you feel about it."

"Take all the time you need to get your certification. As far as the money goes, it's yours and you can do as you please with it. I can support us with no problem, so don't worry about that."

"We're married now and I want to contribute. Statistics show that the first 5 years of marriage are difficult and finances are usually one of the main factors."

"I can see your point, but statistics aren't always accurate. I will concede though, but under one condition. If you promise to come to me if you're ever unhappy. That you will always keep the lines of communication open. Finances may negatively impact most marriages, but I refuse to let it affect ours."

Vincent looked at Catherine before he expertly segued on to another topic.

"We haven't decided where we're going to live yet."

"I know. I guess we were so caught up in getting married, we forgot about the details after. For example, how do you feel about children?"

"I would love children, but we have to consider the possibility of cross-species DNA being passed on to the children. Even using the serum to eradicate it is dangerous and it is not a 100 percent effective.

Vincent's thoughts trailed off as he thought of the painful side effects of the serum, he'd taken before donating his kidney to Catherine. He couldn't allow her to endure the agony and pain associated with removing the cross-species DNA. And even then, he wasn't completely sure if all traces were gone. Sure nothing showed up in his blood samples, but he knew some minute traces had to be there. His connection to Catherine was too intense and when they made love, it was so spectacular and incredible. Even when he was angry with her, all he wanted to do was grab her and make mad passionate love to her. Her very presence stimulated every sensation in his body.

"Vincent, did you hear me?"

"I'm sorry, baby, I got lost in my thoughts."

"I was saying, I'm okay with us adopting."

Vincent smiled, because he hadn't thought of adopting.

"You know everyday, I'm reminded of how lucky am that you're my wife. I would love to adopt. We have so much love to give and I know you would be an excellent mother. I know it's too soon now, but I'm happy we can look forward to it in the future. Now about our living arrangements. I was thinking I could move out of my apartment and we could live in your condo for the time being. I own three acres of land on the outskirts of town. How do you feel about building a house on the land and living in the country?"

"Oh, Vincent, I love it. Can we go look at the land now?" Catherine said.

"Sure."

Later as Catherine looked at the land, she had the strangest feeling Vincent was only trying to make her happy. He didn't seem that enthusiastic about building a house. She began to wonder if they were moving too much fast. Maybe they should have discussed the future more than they did. Now that they were married, it seemed they were impetuous in eloping. Did they know enough about each other? Would their marriage last? Catherine didn't know if she was jumping to conclusions or asking valid questions. Love was blind, but she was certain of one thing, she did love Vincent.

THE NEXT DAY

Once again, Catherine found herself at her favorite place, the park. The peace and serenity afforded her the opportunity to think clearly.

"Newlywed problems?"

Catherine turned to find an elderly white gentleman seated beside her on the bench. "Am I that obvious?"

"Yes. The pensive look and turning of your wedding ring gave you away. Either you're facing a divorce or the honeymoon is over and reality has set in. Judging by the look in your eyes, I'm assuming it's the latter."

"You're very insightful, but it's pathetic to be so transparent."

Don't take it personally. Wisdom comes with age and experience. I'm seventy years old, so I'd say I'm chock-full of wisdom."

Smiling, she extended her hand. "By the way, I'm Catherine."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Catherine, I'm Scott." He took Catherine's hand. "Now tell me why reality is stealing your thoughts."

Catherine eyes found the ground as she began to speak. "My husband and I were married after several months of dating, in Vegas. We just returned from our honeymoon and we find we haven't discussed anything past getting married. I wasn't even aware if he wanted children or not. I'm afraid we may have gotten caught up in the romance and rushed into marriage."

Scott smiled at Catherine. "I'm going to share a story with you. Back in my day, we courted for a short period of time and then we married that person. I knew my wife only two weeks, before we were married. We were just teenagers in love with very little money, so we lived with her parents. It was a serious blow to my ego, that I couldn't afford to buy us a place. Because of that, I began to drink and come home late every night. My wife never said anything. She always had dinner ready and I always had clean clothes, ironed and laid out for the next day. One day she fell ill with pneumonia and it changed my outlook. You see, back then we didn't have the medicine that's so readily available today, so I didn't know if she was going to live or die. I prayed and I prayed and I vowed if she recovered, I would be a better husband. In that heartwrenching moment, everything became crystal clear to me. It wasn't about where we lived or how much money we had. As long as we loved each other, everything else was secondary. She had known this all along, that's why she never wavered in her duties as my wife. She knew I had to find out for myself. Eventually, she recovered and I kept my promise. I got my act together and we finally moved out of her parent's house. Every evening as I walked in the door from work, her eyes sparkled as she greeted me with a kiss and she never forgot to ask me how my day was. I lost her five years ago and I still enter our home, expecting to see her with that sparkle in her eyes and feel the softness of her lips.

Catherine, don't let the minor details of life change the feelings in your heart. A stong marriage is built over time. Whether you've known each other for weeks, months, or years, it won't be easy. You will argue. You will face challenges and setbacks, but true love can withstand the trials and tribulations of life. My final advice to you is to compile a marriage bucket list. On your anniversary every year, make a new list and complete it throughout the year. It will give you and your husband something exciting to look forward to every year. I can see the love in your eyes, so go home and kiss your husband and tell him you love him. And when you face that first bump in the road, take his hand and remember, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and health, until death do us part."

"Scott, thank you for a very romantic and enlightening story. I feel so honored that you shared it with me. I can assure you I will follow your advice."

"My days on earth are numbered, so I won't be around much longer, but you can thank me by staying married for fifty or more years."

CATHERINE AND VINCENT

Catherine lit candles throughout her condo and put fresh flowers in the vase on the dining room table. She prepared Vincent's favorite meal; steak and a loaded baked potato with steamed broccoli. At six o' clock, Vincent walked through the door from work.

Catherine smiled with a sparkle in her eyes. "Hi, Baby," she said, as she kissed, Vincent, passionately.

Taken aback, Vincent said, "Wow, what a wonderful way to welcome your husband home."

"I missed you today."

"I missed you too."

"How was your day?"

"Long and hot. A new bridge is being built on Highway 61, so I had to inspect the construction site and ensure all saftey guidelines were in place. Several safety hazards were found, so I had to to stay and wait until the site was ready for a second inspection."

"Your loving wife will help you to relax."

Catherine took Vincent's hand and led him into the dining room.

"Have a seat and I'll be right back."

Catherine returned with two plates of food and set one plate in front of Vincent.

"Baby, this looks delicious. Thank you."

After dinner, they headed to the living room and took a seat on the sofa.

"Vincent, I want to discuss something with you."

"Okay. Go ahead."

"I know we were married rather quickly and now we're trying to accommodate the wants and needs of each other. I don't want us to lose ourselves in material possessions. Our happiness is the only thing that matters. So, I need you to be honest with me. Do you really want to build a house or were you just doing it for me?"

Vincent looked at Catherine as he took her hand. "I was only trying to make you happy. I just wanted to give you the perfect house with a white picket fence."

"That's exactly what I thought. Tell me, where do you want to live?"

"To be honest, I pass a beautiful colonial home everyday on the way to work and I sometimes find myself wondering what it would be like to live there. I saw a for sale sign in the yard this morning and I became very interested in finding out the purchase price."

"Then, lets go look at it, so we can get the number of the real estate agent, so we can schedule a day to take a look inside.

"Do yo want to go now?"

"No. I need to assist my husband in decompressing after a long day at work. Lets take a look at it tomorrow," Catherine said, as she took Vincent's hand and headed toward the bedroom.

THE NEXT DAY

Vincent left work early so he and Catherine could tour the colonial house. They both loved it so they made an offer on the house.

Catherine noticed how excited Vincent was and she realized it really meant a lot to him. She made a call to the real estate agent to see how many offers they were up against. Five offers were made aside from theirs, so Catherine asked to schedule a meeting with the agent for the following morning.

THE NEXT DAY

Catherine called Vincent and asked him to meet her at the colonial house after work.

Later that evening, Catherine sat in her car waiting on Vincent. After fifteen minutes, he pulled into the driveway behind her car.

Catherine got out of the car and headed toward Vincent as he exited the vehicle.

"Hi, Baby," Catherine said, as she kissed Vincent.

Vincent smiled and said, "Hi, Baby, what's going on?"

"First I want you to put your pride to the side and just be open-minded. I saw how excited you were yesterday when we toured the house, so I called the real estate agent back to see how many offers were made on the house. There were five offers and I didn't want to risk losing the house, so I made a cash offer and it was accepted. I was even able to get an inspection done and no structural problems were found. So, we just bought a house, free and clear."

Vincent hugged Catherine tightly for a long time. Finally he whispered in her ear, "Thank you, Baby. Please don't take my silence for unhappiness. I am so overjoyed, I am speechless. If I didn't tell you today, I love you."

"I love you too."

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS CHAPTER. LEAVE SOME FEEDBACK AND LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS. THANKS FOR READING MY STORY.