Jen Decker was about to leave the room when her fiance Claire Jacobs asked, "Do you have to go just now?"
Jen turned to look at her lover and fellow werecat. There was a longing in her eyes, but for what exactly Jen couldn't say, since Doctor Tachibana had said Claire should err on the side of caution and not switch to her fursona tonight or engage in any sexual activity because of her head injury.*
"Sure honey," said Jen, coming back towards the bed they now shared.
"Here, sit," requested Claire, scooting over to let Jen in.
With both ladies still fully clothed and in their normal forms, Jen sat on the mattress next to Claire.
"The look of worry on your face over me is so obvious," began Claire, moving closer to her lady. "But don't worry. I was a strong woman even before you gave me such a wonderful gift."
And then, even though Claire was under doctor's orders not to shift forms, she laid her head on Jen's shoulder and began to purr.
"It's not just you," began Jen, letting the soothing sounds Claire was making wash over her. "I've been through so much, and now..."
"I understand honey," replied her fiance, taking Jen's hand in hers. "Like I told your parents, I'm not out to replace Jeff, but I don't want to be a burden to you either."
"You're not," Jen replied, while wrapping her arms around Claire. "But when I got that call this afternoon, the first thing that crossed my mind was the fear of losing you too. That is something I cannot go through again."
"You're NEVER going to lose me," swore Claire, moving to look at Jen directly. "I'm the werecat who will love you long after our fur's turned solid gray. Why, I'll chase you in my wheelchair around the old weres home."
Jen couldn't help giggling at that one. "You won't have to chase me for very long, because I'll let you catch me, every time."
"Promise?" Claire asked, staring deeply into her lover's eyes.
"Promise," swore Jen, before they kissed.
As the seconds passed, both ladies felt a familiar heat building within them but Jen, being the more sensible of the two, forced herself to pull away.
"We can't. At least, not tonight. Remember?"
"I know," said Claire mournfully, recalling doctor's orders. "But when we can..." as a smile crossed her face.
"What am I going to do with you?" Jen asked, teasingly.
"Marry me and live happily forever after?" suggested Claire.
"Already plan to. When should we set the date?"
"My first thought would be Valentine's Day, but I don't want to wait that long."
Jen agreed, to which Claire suggested, "How about as soon as we can get in front of a Justice of the Peace?"
"Why one of them?" Jen wondered.
"All your family is here in Moon Lake. There isn't much on my side to begin with beyond you, so why go to all the trouble and expense of a fancy smancy wedding?"
"Well, I was picturing the two of us in white, walking down the aisle together."
"One of us wouldn't be waiting at the altar for the other?" asked Claire.
"Truthfully, I'm not sure how a same gender wedding ceremony should be handled to begin with," admitted Jen.
"In the end, it don't really matter to me how we actually do it, as long as we do get married. I love you so much Jen."
"And I love you too Claire," she replied, before they kissed again.
This time, when their lips parted, Claire said, "The one thing I know for sure is that I don't want to be a janitor the rest of my life."
"I would hope not. What would you like to do?" asked Jen.
"You mean besides being your wonderful wife for the rest of eternity? I don't really know," confessed Claire. "It's just that, even before becoming the werecat of my dreams, all I've ever had is just menial, dead end jobs ever since I graduated high school. My grades were decent, but not enough to get me into any college."
"Doesn't Moon Lake College offer an employee discount?"
"Yeah, which I'll be eligible for after I complete two years of employment. But that still leaves me with the question of what to take to better myself."
"As a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?" asked Jen.
"Happy," said Claire, snuggling closer to her. "Which I am now, with you," she purred.
Jen honestly didn't know what to say as a smile crossed her face.
She just sat there and held Claire close, thinking about all the events in her life up to this point, wandering in the vast memories.
Jen's quiet solitude of contemplation lasted until she realized Claire had fallen asleep in her arms.
Silently, she managed to get out of their bed without disturbing her fiance.
Then, lightly kissing the top of Claire's head, Jen crept out of the room before leaving to go start dinner.
TO BE CONTINUED...
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*In our previous episode "Emergency!"—tmw.