Chapter 7

  Katie Benson and Brent Moore- 34 and 38 years old

  The car took a sharp turn at the intersection and pulled into the driveway slowly. “Thanks for Dinner,” Brent said, turning to face Nat and Chris in the backseat. “Are you sure you two can get home from here? I have the gas, I don’t mind taking you home. It’s the least I can do for buying dinner.” He said turning the ignition and removing the keys from it. Jeff wasted no time in opening the passenger side door and letting himself out. Brent shot a glance at Jeff who’d casually drifted out to the front of the car. Brent’s gaze focused on the sight in front of him. Katie’s car was parked in the open garage. A sense of dread washed over Brent. He could feel his heart beating in his chest as his mind shot off like a rocket.

  “We have our ways of getting home, Don’t we Chris?” Nat replied, glancing over at Chris to see a nod. “Plus. I wouldn’t want to keep you from your fiance.” Nat continued, watching Brent’s gaze escape her own. Brent rolled his eyes as if he’d just had a thought that he chose not to vocalize. Nat’s expression changed just a little. “I know you aren’t looking forward to what’s coming, but I can assure you, it will help in the long run.”

  “I guess,” Brent continued with a sigh, opening his door and planting one foot down onto the concrete driveway. “I just wish I could have stopped myself from doing it to begin with. There’s no turning back now though, I guess.” He said, planting both feet and pulling himself up out of the driver’s seat. “If I hadn’t though, I guess we wouldn’t have met.”

  Nat flashed her friend a smile. “Come with us tomorrow. We’re going on a hike after work.. Maybe a little time in nature will take your mind off things.” The ginger haired beauty said, pushing the door of the back seat open and offering a hand to Chris. “Let nature run its course, darling.”

  “Sounds fun to me.” Brent said, looking up at Jeff. “Are you coming with us?”

  “No Thank you!”Jeff shook his head without even giving it a second of thought. “Nature and I don’t get along very well. And I need to keep up appearances. I’m going to the club tomorrow night.” Jeff patted his pockets, to make sure he had everything, then reached into the car to grab his game.”I’m taking this thing home to give it a try. Let me know what happens with you and Katie, would ya?” He said, taking his keys out and opening the driver’s side door of his car.”Text me when you get back from your hike.” Jeff said, shaking his friend’s hand and turning the ignition. “Have a good night man.” Before Brent could say it back, Jeff had already taken off down the road. Brent peeked up at the house from the driveway. His head dropped again, dragging his feet up along the cement pathway. Brent couldn’t help but feel a little scared.

  The door knob turned and the door slid open. Brent took a step through the doorway, Quietly closing the door behind him. A silence filled the air as he made his way through the living room. The light in the kitchen above the stove was on, but that seemed to be the only sign of life in the house. Brent’s eyes scanned the floor of the darkened house until they settled on the crack in the doorway bedroom. The light was on, which left Brent thinking that Katie was in there.

  Katie had pulled the covers over her torso and rested her head on the pillow. Her eyes gravitated from the television to the card that was on the table. Her mind wandered, contemplating if this was what she wanted. This card was different from the one she found this morning. This had an appointment time. An appointment to see Dr.Love. She thought about it. Did she really need this? And why did the Doctor only want to see her and made no mention of bringing Brent with her. What kind of relationship counselor didn’t want to see couples together in one room? She thought for a second about canceling her appointment. A voice in the back of her mind argued with it though. She started thinking about everything. She thought about the patient she’d taken care of the previous night. That wasn’t the first time though. She needed answers. Her and Brent never fought like this before. They’d always been close. She felt more comfortable around him than Dani, even. Her doubts had only surfaced in the few months since Brent proposed.

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  Katie glanced up at the door, watching her fiance step through it. Katie didn’t feel like arguing. But she could sense something was coming. She pulled her phone up to her eyes, refusing to keep eye contact with him.”Hey,” she said, cycling through her phone and entering a time for her alarm to wake her up. Brent plopped down on the bed in front of her. Katie peered up over her phone screen.

  “So? What happened this morning?” Brent asked in a low tone. He barely caught her gaze, but refused to keep it. “I didn’t wake up to your phone going off, so I know you couldn’t have been called in early.”

  Katie shifted her gaze to the door. “I left early.” she asked, pretending to watch her screen, while her ears tuned into the voice of her fiance. “Should you answer the same question?”

  Brent discarded part of her reply. “But where did you run off to that early in the morning?” Brent said, rubbing his temples, feeling the early signs of a headache setting in.

  “You didn’t answer my question. Where did you go all day?” She asked the tone of her voice rising.

  “I asked my question first. Why did you take off so early?” He asked, raising his voice even higher.

  “I left early to go in and make a Doctor’s appointment! Now Where did you go all day?” she shouted, setting her phone down on the nightstand.

  “Oh. . .” Brent said, dropping his gaze. He took a deep breath before answering her question. “I went out with Jeff to the mall to pick up a game.”

  “Jeff told me the other night he didn’t have any money. And I know it doesn’t take him all day to pick out a game. Now where else did you go and tell the truth.” Katie replied sitting up in the bed.

  Brent closed his eyes, Quietly dreading the answer that came out of his mouth. “We ran into Nat and her friend and. . “

  “So you went out with her? You went out with that girl from the club? Even after our little talk last night?” Katie let her head crash down onto the pillow. “I can’t deal with this right now! Good night!” she said, reaching out and turning the lamp light out.

  “It wasn’t like that! Jeff and I just had dinner with her and walked around the mall.” Brent replied, gazing at the darkened silhouette of his fiance. He shook his head in disbelief and slipped into the covers, closing his eyes and letting the tense silence settle in.

  Katie rolled her eyes and refused to reply with anything other than a huff from her nostrils. Her thoughts ran at what felt like a hundred miles an hour. She attempted to close her eyes and drift off to sleep, but her mind was at war. Imagining everything she wanted to say, but didn’t have the energy to push from between her lips. She tried as hard as she could to let the anger slide through her veins. She hated her fiance at this moment. Never before had she felt such a sense of detachment from her fiance. She drew in a deep breath and opened her eyes. The silence had lingered into the air and held still in the cold night air. The moon cast it’s beams, sending them cascading in through the window seal. Her gaze settled on the outstretched shadow of the card that had the Doctor's contact information on it. The card sat on her night stand just a few feet from the bed.

  Brent was fast asleep next to her. His ability to suppress even the most heated of arguments was nothing short of astounding to her. She extended her arm out and grabbed the card carefully rereading the print. What could someone who deals in “human affairs,” possibly do for her and her troubled relationship? She flipped the card over to one side and scanned it, before stopping at setting it back down. Katie rolled over on her back and gazed up at the ceiling. What could even be considered as “Mortal affairs?” She tossed the card down again and rolled back over on her side, letting out a tired yawn and finally managing to close her eyes.