AN : Heyy guys ! here we go for another chapter ! Still kind of a short one but I hope you enjoy hihi !
Disclaimer : I don't own these characters and I don't make any profit out of this story.
Chapter 10
He sighed and her tea was finally ready… he was determined to get to the bottom of this, he wanted answers…
/-/-/-/-/
In Catherine's chambers
She tried to calm her racing heart by concentrating on her breathing… how could she have let this happen ? He had seen her once more in this state… and that wasn't something Catherine could stand. The last thing she wanted was for her husband to know that most of her nights were still plagued by horrible nightmares… Catherine took a deep breath, there was no point in torturing herself with these thoughts, it was too late already and anyway, he had left her…
She sighed loudly… she hated this feeling of not knowing if she would have preferred him to stay or go…
/-/-/-/-/
Henry was climbing up the stairs with her tea when he heard her loud sigh…he wondered what she was thinking about… his wife was such a mystery lately. He walked silently in the corridor and peaked at the entrance of his wife's room to see what she was doing. When he saw she was just staring at her ceiling, he stepped in the room and cleared his throat to make his presence known.
Catherine had been so lost in her thoughts that she didn't see him coming in and startled when she heard him clearing his throat. Her eyes widened in surprised and after she had realized that it was her husband and not some kind of intruder, she tried to appear more relaxed. Though, she was still astonished to see he had come back.
Henry sighed when he saw her reaction "It's just me Catherine…"
His wife swallowed and nodded "I know… I… just didn't see you coming".
He nodded slightly and held out the cup of tea "I thought you'd want some of this…"
Catherine observed the cup carefully and could already smell the delightful mix of camomile and honey… yet, her throat got dry… it brought back too many memories… he always did that after… – she swallowed hard.
On his side, Henry looked at her and tried not to stare but he saw every thought that came to her mind. He remembered, he remembered very well what she was thinking about…
After nearly a minute with his arm held out to give his wife the cup of tea, he broke the silence "It's just tea Catherine…"
She swallowed even harder and spoke in a broken voice "You know it's not…"
He shook his head slightly and sighed while he put the steaming cup on her bedside table. "Catherine… I… I don't know what to say." He was so lost, he didn't know how to get to her.
She closed her eyes painfully for a few seconds and turned on her side away from the tea and from him "Then don't say anything…" she whispered.
Henry sighed more, he couldn't understand why she couldn't even talk to him, it was insane. "Are you just waiting for me to leave ? Is that what you want ?" He knew he had promised he wouldn't ask more questions, but this was different.
She was surprised to hear him ask this, his voice was still soft but firm. She stayed silent for a few seconds "Is that what you want ?" she whispered. Did he want to leave her ?
Henry sighed more, "Of course not. I want to help you." Couldn't she understand that ?
She shook her head softly and covered herself even more with her blankets "You can't…"
"Yes I can Catherine, if you let me…" He tried to convince her.
"There is no helping me…" she barely whispered.
"That's nonsense Catherine, of course you can find help… let me help you, please." He was so desperate to help her… but if she didn't let him, there was no way he could do that.
Catherine sighed "I can't be helped by you Henry, can't you understand this ?" her voice was a little stronger.
His eyes widened "Why ? Why do you say that ?".
Should she say it ? Should she admit it ? She hesitated during long seconds… and at last she decided he deserved the truth "Because you are the problem… I can't be helped by my problem".
Surely he hadn't heard correctly, surely his loving wife could never have said such a thing to him and especially now. But she did… and he felt worse than if he had been stabbed. Why was she so cruel suddenly when the only thing he wanted was to help her to get out of this nightmare… His heart was aching… was it what it felt like to be rejected ? It was horrible… he felt helpless, his reality had suddenly become a nightmare… everything he was sure of became uncertain… everything…
Catherine gripped the side of her blanket with her hand, and tears filled her eyes… she knew how he must have been feeling, she felt his hurt… and she hated herself just a little more for doing that to him.
The general was frozen and his heart was bleeding. He tried to find something to answer, he even opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out… he had nothing to say.
"Very well" he whispered painfully, this had certainly answered all his unasked questions, he didn't need to hear more. Therefore, he silently left the room. He didn't know where to go, he didn't know what to do. He walked aimlessly and found himself at the top of the stairs. He certainly couldn't go see his children in the state he was in… pain was carved on his face. So, he decided to sit on the stairs… hidden from the children's eyes and away from his wife. He put his face in his shaky hands and tried not to cry… this was worse than anything.
Catherine was crying silently in her bed… she had felt all his pain through his barely whispered answer. She buried her face in her pillows… She didn't know why she had said it like that… she just… didn't know.
AN : *handing tissues* Our Cathry is having a hard time now, will they overcome this ?
Also, I wanted to ask if you preferred short chapters more often or longer ones ?
Laura D.
