It's slow.

The moment I said 'yes', I knew he wanted everything of me.

I wasn't ready for the affection and intimacy to start that first night. We need to connect and truly understand each other before I'm comfortable moving onward. Yet, I can't leave him and go to my apartment after I agreed to marry him. Butterflies flutter in my stomach at the idea of staying within Thomas' presence.

Those butterflies have never stopped when it comes to being around Thomas.

We spent the evening talking on the covers of his bed. Thomas agreed to not cross any boundaries of intimacy without permission, especially when I voiced how I wanted to take this slower, despite the rush of our engagement .We both vowed transparency and honesty with each other.

Days pass by, and Thomas keeps close to me. He doesn't push the affection like I expected him too, but he tries his best to reconnect. Those secrets he once held become open in the air, and I feel like for the first time we're operating on a two-way street.

I expect Thomas to be sleeping beside me when I awake, but I find myself to an empty bed.

"Thomas?"

He hums from the balcony, smoking a cigarette. He dresses in sweats, his shirt missing in action in his laundry hamper. That's another issue we plan on tackling together—for him to quit smoking, at least through my pregnancy. Him remaining half-naked is more an issue I have to work on to completely control myself in his presence.

Like a flip of a switch, my stomach turns on me, and I barrel to the washroom.

I hurl into Thomas' toilet, only to have him paces behind me holding my loose blonde curls away from my face.

He sets a hand on my back, rubbing soothing circles as I hurl, yet again.

"You sure you'll be okay?" he asks once the vomiting settles.

I collapse back against his chest. "It's just morning sickness. It'll go away."

"You know I have to go..." he mumbles.

For his business, he told me, to which he further explained what exactly he was doing. He was just meeting another figurehead who runs a similar operation to Thomas. Although Thomas plays a vigilante role for the lower class citizens of New Aberdeen, not every affiliate of the family business pays that much respect to others. It seems that the kindness Thomas bestows is a change he made directly after his father's passing.

I take Thomas' hand in mine, and his fingers loosely fondle the engagement ring.

"I can manage on my own," I smile as I nestle against his body. I forgot how well I fit against him.. "As long as you're back in the afternoon for the appointment."

The appointment. Thomas scheduled one yesterday to make sure everything's alright with my pregnancy. He's so adamant on ensuring I'm healthy and that the baby is healthy, but also that he'll stand by me through every curve in the road.

"You bet I fucking will be," he mutters as he combs away the strands of blonde hair from my throat.

He places a feather-light kiss on my neck, hardly grazing his warm heavenly lips against my skin. My insides heat up in a blazing fire.

Worst of all, throughout the entire rush of our engagement, I've hardly thought about Cato.

He enters my mind here and there, and in the few days that have passed since my engagement to Thomas, I've kept a few tabs on him.

Cato would have returned to New Aberdeen by now to discover his estate is empty of me. He's made media appearances, but the charade he puts up shields any hints of heartbreak and loss. The only evidence I see is the faint bags under his blazing green eyes. Last night, he spoke one-on-one with some reporter about the grand opening to the Patton-Leveque Scientific Research Centre. He smiled as he said that most of his astronomy notes and scientific research was going to be transported throughout the day.

What set me off guard was the amount of confidentiality Cato initiated in order to transport such research. He shut down the whole main street for the transport to go through. The occisor. He doesn't want the people to know the truth of his discoveries.

I wish I could be there to congratulate him. I admire his brilliance, and even if his research and discoveries leave me with unease, he's already come so far.

I close my eyes as I rest against Thomas' bare chest. "Is there anything in particular you're discussing with that person you're meeting?"

Thomas hums. "I need to make sure our debts are cleared."

I scowl. "What do you mean?"

"My father had some favours he had to deliver on, and I need to make sure they're all covered," Thomas admits. "I can't have anyone going after my family."

I lift his hand to my lips and kiss it softly.

Family.

I never had one before. I saw Evelyn as a mother, but we were never blood-bound like she was with Cato. Cato was her family. I was just a lost orphaned girl she viewed as a daughter. My bloodline resulted in my mother, who vanished after abandoning me on the Leveque's doorstep. My father, a sailor somewhere out in ocean blue, is only a rumour.

With Thomas, I can grow a family.

When the wave of sickness passes, Thomas and I leave the bathroom floor. I rest in bed as Thomas leaves to go to his alleged meeting. He reminds me that if I need any food, I can bug Vince down in the bar down below—free of charge, of course. Unless I'm hungry for protein bars or cereal.

Instead, I flip on Thomas' television screen, only to have the news ticker across it. Of course, today's big stories revolve around the Patton-Leveque Scientific Research Centre. There's an elaborate celebration this evening, and much like the gala, Cato plans to be the star.

I knew the grand opening was coming, but I didn't plan for it to be so soon.

A live feed shows a parade of security driving down the main streets of New Aberdeen. The occisor. Cato won't be far from it. In fact, he's probably monitoring it from within. I see a glimpse of Cato on the camera, but he disappears behind the transport of scientific information.

Do I feel guilty for agreeing to marry Thomas over Cato? A part of me does, because if Cato ever found out that I agreed to marry Thomas on a whim, he'd never forgive me. Heck with it, I think I've burned my bridge to Cato by leaving him, but he'll accomplish so much more without me in the shadows of his life, won't he?

Won't he?

I turn away from the screen to make a cup of tea. The water boils, but the sudden noise from the broadcast causes me to jolt, spilling to steaming water over the counter.

I turn to the screen. As an image of Cato's transport to the new research centre in total destruction flickers on. My heart clenches, and I suddenly feel nauseated all over again.

Either someone attacked Cato's research, or worse, the occisor broke free. Yet, as I take a closer look at the image, I can tell no human would ever be able to cause so much damage.

Cato's precious occisor has breached containment.

Cato appears on the screen for a second, his green eyes blazing. "Shut the fucking camera off."

The news feed clicks, then goes black. The sirens echoing outside through New Aberdeen roar louder than ever.

That creature could be the death of the entire city, according to what I know about it. Cato knew of its danger, yet needed to experiment further for the purpose of science. Maybe he took his need for scientific prowess too far.

All I can suddenly think about is him. I run my hand over my still flat, yet pregnant stomach.

Cato.

Caught in the midst of the treacherous chaos.

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Sorry this one is a little short! Prepare for a lot of action!

hehe Cato's not out of the picture just yet...

vote & comment & share & don't put pineapple on pizza.