Tangled By Fate

When she noticed Vincent wasn't around, she relaxed. Whether he was a friend or not, she didn't wish to meet a man after a bath.

The aroma of the delicious food entered her nostrils. Sensing something moving down to her chin, she touched it and realized that she was drooling.

'Oh! I can't believe I'm drooling." She wiped her mouth and sat on the couch. The smell of the meal made her stomach cry.

"I didn't know I was starving." Before she knew it, she finished the last piece of meat.

With a filled stomach and content heart, she leaned against the couch. "When was the last time I had a heartfelt meal? I don't remember."

She turned her head toward the window. She noticed three white, black, and brown cows in the field. They were eating grass.

It reminded her of Veronica who used to love animals. She liked feeding all kinds of birds and animals. She never discriminated.

'If she was alive, would she feed the cows right now?' 

Questioning herself, Catherine closed her eyes and shook her head. 'I should try not to think about the negative part. Ver will be sad if she finds out. I need to be strong.'

She got up from the seat and changed her clothes. She wore a grey colored gown and an orange corset. 

Her hair was still wet. She kept the hair untied, letting the hair get dry.

At that moment, someone knocked on the door. Vincent opened the door and smiled politely, "Did you finish your meal?"

Catherine could finally stretch her lips without forcing herself.

"Yes, that was the most delicious meal I had this year. Please thank the cook for me." While talking he sat across from her.

"I told her that my friend wanted to eat spicy food. She was thrilled. She is a master at cooking spicy food. She cooked the best dishes she could make," Vincent looked proud 

Catherine was delighted to hear that. 

"That's wonderful! I want to eat spicy food every day for the next few days. Just give me a light breakfast."

"Sure, whatever you wish for." Vincent leaned forward and clasped his fingers together.

"Now please tell me, why do you look horrifyingly sickly. I know you had work pressure but the moment I saw you, you looked like a dead person. What happened?"

He sounded deeply concerned. His eyes were filled with worry.

Catherine lowered her eyes. "Like a dead person, huh? I wish I was the one who died."

"What do you mean by that?" Vincent became serious. "You cannot just say things like that as a joke."

"Joke?" Catherine chuckled. Grief covered her blue eyes. "It's not a joke though."

Vincent reached out and carefully held her hands. "Did something happen? Can you share? It will ease your burden."

A deep sigh escaped from Catherine's mouth. "Do you remember the girl who came with me here?"

Vincent remembered. "Yes, the red-colored hair."

At that time, Veronica was using a hair color spell. Thus, he didn't know her true hair color.

"Yes, she is my best friend. We grew up together. She went on traveling with her husband and then…"

Hiding whatever was necessary, Catherine elaborated how Veronica died.

Only then Vincent realized what she was going through.

"I see! That's terrible! You must have had a hard time. Even I would grieve for my best friend. No wonder you hardly wrote anything in the letters."

Catherine nodded. "I just wanted to dig a hole and stay there and work, work and work. I did not want to think of anything else. I just wanted to forget about the news that she died. It's unbearable."

"Sometimes, you just have to face it to fight your fears. Only then it will be gone forever." Vincent's voice was gentle.

Catherine shook her head. "It won't be fair for Ver. I want to remember her till the day I die."

"Please don't talk about death for now. It's giving me goosebumps," Vincent stated.

After that, he stood up and reached out his hand. He proposed an idea, "Want to go for a walk?"

"Sure," Catherine agreed. "It'll help my stomach to digest the food."

"You will be here for a week, won't you? In a whole week, I will change your mood completely," Vincent took an oath.

Catherine giggled. "I'm looking forward to it.

The two of them went out for a walk. The open area was mainly covered with green grass. 

The resort was covered with tall trees. There were at least two tall trees beside every cottage. 

In front of the small cottages, gardeners took care of the flower beds. The sweet scent of mixed flowers was mesmerizing. 

Catherine looked around and found colorful butterflies playing around. A pet dog was chasing after a yellow butterfly. It was an amusing sight.

She took a trip down memory lane while staring at the scene. When she was a child, she and Veronica would often miss classes and chase after butterflies.

Her heart throbbed but it wasn't as painful as before.

'Maybe talking to Vincent did help me,' she thought.

She took a deep breath and looked around. Everywhere she looked, she saw rolling hills. This picturesque hill was surrounded by undulating hills.

They went down to the road. The road was wide enough for three horses to walk side by side. The red soil looked attractive around the greenery. 

Naturally, the road would be dark at night. Visitors would find one lamppost with magical stone in a ten-meters stoppage. 

It was chilly around here because of the trees surrounding the area. The sloppy part of the hill had a deep forest. 

Only natives go there to hunt animals. Visitors were forbidden to go there, or they would never find their way to the resort. 

All the fills were connected and so was the forest.

Vincent took Catherine to the lush green valley. People held picnics there. Children laughed and played. There was a huge lake in the middle of the valley. 

"The lake is beautiful," Catherine commented.

Vincent replied, "It is, isn't it? You can find lots of fish here.. Fishermen frequently come here to catch fish."