This is a new short story I am working on.
It was a typical gray May Sunday in the mountains, the couple sipped their creamy coffee in chipped cups. The morning went as all their mornings do until it didn't. An off-the-cuff remark with that woman's name. Sarah…. Kara's breath slowed, her chest sank, and her soul ached. Tears welled in her eyes.
"Can't believe, you mentioned her name," Kara said tearfully.
"What are you talking about?"
"Seriously, I can't have this conversation, Bill. I haven't thought about her in almost 8 years."
"Kara, you can't be serious. "
"Fine, I will stuff it back down."
Kara finished watching Meet the Press. Bill retreated into the garden as he did with conflict. Sarah washed the dishes thinking of the confirmation classes she had taken all those years ago. Father Joesph had spoken to the girls about keeping pure for marriage and finding a husband with a like mind. The warm water enveloped her hands. Her husband came with a lot of baggage in the form of multiple marriages and a girlfriend when they first met. Kara had not been able to have a Catholic wedding, they simply married on a Monday at town hall. Kara had never been married. Bill had two divorces. Neither divorce had been annulled. Sarah felt the weight of the sin of adultery. Divorce is a sin against the natural law. A mortal sin, the weight of it came upon everyone in a while in a flood of shame.
Kara didn't come to marriage clean either. She had a child out of wedlock. Her parish had allowed her to access the Eucharist. The older members always made it clear to her that she was not worthy to receive the sacraments. Kara would hold her head high with her child in her arms and receive communion. Kara raised her daughter alone until she was grown. Then she met Bill. It was a painful courtship as Bill ended his relationship with Sarah. It had been torture to know that Bill had been intimate with Sarah. Bill had called Kara and told her he had confessed that he had been intimate with Sarah. Kara could hear the pain and shame in his voice as he said, "It was mechanical." Kara felt sick to her stomach when he came clean.
Kara sobbed until she threw up. Kara had done that many times during their courtship. Kara had thought about ending it many times. No one knew the secret of their relationship had begun except her best friend. Melaine had been appalled with Kara, yet, she stood by her with the late-night calls.
Kara knew why she had stayed with Bill in the beginning. Kara had even justified it. Bill was married to Sarah and she was miserable to Bill. Kara had been cheated on by her high school sweetheart and the father of her child. Kara needed to win a man's love despite any obstacle. She had put her life on hold too long. Bill and Kara were soul mates. Before they had met in person, they had spent many hours on the phone talking as though they had known each other all their lives. It was easy to be together.
"Kara, we need to talk. I have been thinking we should start going to church. If we accept Christ into our hearts, we could be born again. We could join a Baptist church. We could remarry in the church."
Kara gasped, and thought, Who, am I if I am not Catholic."
Copyright 2024 India Marque
No comments:
Post a Comment