Shark Lover (38 page)

Pushing
her fears aside, she got up and stood right in front of the podium. She
nervously looked out at all of the guests whose eyes were glued on her. She
gulped apprehensively and began. “Hello everyone, I’m Cathy Montanan. I just
came up here to say that Marc was the love of my life. When I met him, he
changed my life for the better. He made me see the type of person I was and
strive to be even better. Not only was he the love of my life, but he was my
best friend. It was hard even going a day without talking to him. We did
everything together. I first met him in Professor Tyson’s class back when the
semester first started. I knew he was an excellent student once he answered one
of Professor Tyson’s trick questions. We were inseparable after that day.
Whenever I was feeling down, he always made me feel better about myself. We
connected over a bond of marine animals. I admired his passion for everything
that he did. He never gave up on things, even when they were tough. He died
doing something that he loved to do and longed to do for ages. He got back on
his board and was strong in honor of his father. Marc was a hero and he died a
hero. I will always love him and he will be in my thoughts and prayers until
the day that I die. Thanks everyone for listening.”

As
she walked down to her seat, everyone started clapping. She felt tears coming
from her eyes, but she wasn’t ready to wipe them just yet. She wanted to feel
her pain and grief at full force. After letting it all out, she would feel
better. When she sat down, Chris took her right hand and held it softly.

“That
was beautiful. You gave a great eulogy.” He whispered in her ear after the
clapping had ended.

She
nodded taking in the compliment while still grieving. A few of Marc’s friends
gave speeches as well as the pastor. The funeral was over and Cathy felt signs
of relief. She wouldn’t have to tell Marc goodbye any longer. Even though he
had been gone nine long months, it felt as though he had just died yesterday.
The room started to clear out and Chris went with Cathy’s mom to see the
flowers that had been planted in front of the church in honor of Marc. Carly
and Cathy were alone in the room once again with the casket.

“Shall
we say goodbye?” Carly looked at her sister uncertainly.

“Yes,
here we go again to the casket,” She said as she took Carly’s hand and they
walked over to the casket together. When they were standing in front of it
Cathy said, “Even though I know there’s no body in there, it still feels like
there is. Isn’t that weird?”

“I
think it’s because you miss him so much. Maybe it’s because you have finally
accepted the fact that he is gone. Even though there’s no body, you know that he’s
gone forever. It has been a long time since you last saw him.” She put her hand
on top of the casket. She whispered, “Goodbye Marc, rest in peace.”

“It’s
been easier to accept the fact that he’s departed as time has gone on, but I
don’t feel like he’s completely gone. I think he lives on. Sometimes I still
feel his spirit, as if he’s still here on earth with us. I loved him more than
I loved any other man. I don’t know if I will ever find that kind of love
again.” She sighed feeling guilty that she was even thinking of having another
relationship in her lifetime, but at times she did feel lonely. Marc had been
gone almost an entire year and he wasn’t coming back. She’d had time to grieve
and she would have liked to think that he would have wanted her to move on. He
would have wanted her to find happiness even if it wasn’t with him.

“He’s
probably looking down upon you in heaven. He’s smiling knowing that you are
moving forward with your life. Cathy, don’t even worry about that. I know for a
fact that you will love another man. I think that you already do, you just
don’t see it yet because you’re not ready to. People will always love you, you
don’t have to worry about not ever being loved again. You’re a great person,”
She said as the light shown through the stained glass window. “Let’s go to the
beach after this. It’s Daddy’s tradition.” She said and smiled. “I’ll be in the
hall waiting. Say your last goodbye and come and get me. We’ll run again. You
always feel free after that.” She walked away leaving Cathy alone with Marc.

She
peered up at the light shining through the windows and smiled. “I know you are
here, Marc. I feel you with me all the time. I don’t want to ever lose that
feeling. You were my first love and I will always love you. I don’t want you to
ever forget that. I think that you would want me to be happy, so I hope that
you understand why I am doing what I am doing next. I didn’t want to ever hurt
you. I love you so much. Goodbye Marc.” She took her hand off the casket,
leaving the room without looking back.

Present
Day

            It
was still hard to believe that her life had turned out this way. If someone
would have asked her three years ago, if this was the way she would have seen
her life, she would have responded with not in a million years. As she sat on
the rock and overlooked Ocean Beach, she could still feel his presence. Time
had gone on and she still felt the loss of him. Some days were worse than
others. Like today. Seeing the ocean had always reminded her of him. He had
died surfing and whenever she saw the fierce waves coming in, she often thought
of him.

            Through
everything that had happened, she had learned that life was short. There wasn’t
much time to waste. She knew that now. She had lost the two men that she had
been the closest to. Her father and the love of her life. Thinking of loving
another man seemed impossible. She didn’t believe that it would have ever
happened again. Not after everything that she had been through in the past
decade of her life. But for some reason, she was destined to find love. She
couldn’t give up on it. No matter what she was thinking or feeling, love seemed
to find her.

            “Cathy?
Are you ready to go home now?” He stood a few feet away from her now and gave
her a concerning look. He always was worried about her well-being. He knew that
her past hadn’t always been kind to her, but he had.

            She
got up from the rock and looked at him admiringly. Every day she loved him more
and more. After everything she had been through, she didn’t even know how love
was possible for her again. But here it was standing right in front of her. It
had taken her some time to get used to, but she loved him. By the way he was
looking at her, she knew that he loved her just as much. She had been so lucky to
have met him.

            “Yes,
I’m ready.” She came closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. After
passionately kissing him, she grabbed his hand and they started to walk towards
the beach together. “Let’s go on a beach walk. I don’t feel like going home
yet.”

            “Sounds
like a plan. Are you feeling alright?” He asked running a hand over her cheek.
“You look flushed. I hope you’re not coming down with something.”

            “No,
no I am fine. Don’t worry about me. I’ve just been thinking about everything
that led me to you.” She grinned as they had finally made it to the beach. Even
though she was a grown woman, she still loved the feeling of the sand
in-between her toes. Everything felt right in the world when she was next to
the ocean. She felt as if she belonged here. Looking down at the diamond on her
left hand that shimmered in the sunlight, she realized that she felt content.
The man next to her was hers for life and she couldn’t help but to look him
warmly in the eyes with pleasure.

            “Oh,
what are you thinking about?” He asked worriedly.

            “Just
everything. I was thinking that maybe we are soul mates and that we were
destined to be together. What do you think?” Cathy asked as the wind blew her
hair all around her face. She couldn’t be happier. She hadn’t been this happy
in a long time. It was as if everything had fallen in place. For once in her
life everything felt right.

            “I
don’t know if I believe in soul mates. I think sometimes people just come
together, but there’s no code for them to do so. They come together because
they have a lot in common or they end up miraculously falling in love.” He
smirked at her stunned expression.

            “What?”
She was taken aback. It wasn’t the answer she was hoping for.

            “You
know I am just kidding right?” He poked her stomach.

            She
sighed a breath of relief. “It wasn’t very funny. Don’t joke about our life
together.” She put her hands on her hips trying to be serious, but ended up
laughing.

            “You
know that I have always loved you. From the minute that I met you, I fell in
love with you. I just couldn’t tell you at the time because you were with Marc
and you appeared to be happy with him. I waited so long to tell you because I
wanted to make sure that you were fully done grieving and this was what you
wanted too. But yes I do believe that we were meant for each other. We have so
much in common and every day that I spend with you is better than before.
You’re my best friend and I love you. After the marines, I never thought I
could be fully happy again. I came out depressed and uncertain about life after
my injury. When I started Shark Savors, I started to feel better and I started
to regain my passion in life again. But it wasn’t until I met you that I began
to feel whole again. You changed my life for the better and I love you more than
I thought I could ever love a woman.” He said with sincerity.

 She
laughed and he gave her a look of dread.

“Why
are you laughing? I was being serious.” He said pulling his baseball cap down
below his eyes.

“Because
I love you Chris. It’s just that speech sounded a lot like your engagement
speech. I started laughing thinking that you memorized it or something.” She
said with a whimsical laugh.

“No,
no I didn’t memorize it. I’m not that big of a dork,” He said now laughing as
well. “I love you more Cathy. I’m glad that we are spending the rest of our
lives together. I didn’t think I would ever get the chance to do that with you.
I feel blessed.”

“I’m
pretty happy about it too. I know we have only been married for two years, but
these two years have been the best of my life. I didn’t think I would ever find
this kind of love again. We’re pretty lucky.” She smiled thinking about all of
the good times they had. She could honestly say that she loved him from the
bottom of her heart.

They
walked along the beach together still holding hands and Cathy was completely in
bliss. The wedding had been beautiful. She had worn a white dress with lacy
accents and her mother’s veil. Her mother had walked her down the aisle and had
given her away to Chris. It had been one of the happiest days of her life.
Carly had been her maid of honor. The summertime wedding had been filled with
joy and happiness.

The
light had shown through the windows of the church and the sky had turned red.
Even though her father and Marc were not alive anymore, she still felt their
presence. It felt warm and happy. She felt as if they were both pleased she had
chosen Chris. He was a great man who treated her like gold. She felt needed and
wanted whenever she was with him. He was the one she was meant to spend her
life with, at the time she just hadn’t known it.

The
past three years had been mostly filled with joy. Ever since Marc’s funeral,
Cathy had been able to fully move on with her life. Although she hadn’t made it
back to working at the aquarium, she had fully joined the team at Shark Savors.
She was proud to say that she was part of the full-time staff that kept the
organization going. While working at Shark Savors, she had found her passion
again. The work was different from the aquarium, but she loved it just as much.
She felt as if she was making a difference in the lives of animals.

A
few months after Marc’s funeral, Chris had confessed one night that he loved
her and that he always had. Cathy realized that she felt the same way. Ever since
that day, she had been perfectly happy. At some points, she did miss Marc. But
she realized that he wasn’t ever going to come back and he would have wanted
her to be happy. As time passed on, she wondered if Marc had really been right
for her and if they would have made their relationship last. Chris had more in
common with her and he seemed to understand her needs and personality better.
Instead of thinking about it deeper, she just decided that God had a plan and
knew what was right for her.

As
they walked along, Cathy saw something intruding from the sand. She wondered
what it was and why it was sticking out like a sore thumb on the beach. “Chris,
what is that?” She asked interrupting the silence. “Let’s go investigate.”

“There’s
always a mystery when I am with you,” He said while he laughed. “But don’t get
me wrong. I love it.”

Still
holding his hand, she pulled him toward the heap of sand with the object
sticking out of it. She let go of his hand momentarily, as she dug through the
sand to pull it through. When it was in her hands, she was completely
speechless. It was a piece of Marc’s board. His favorite red board that he had
always used to surf. The board that his father had died using. What were even
more shocking were the words that were written on it. She couldn’t believe what
she was seeing. The words
I love you Cathy
were written in cursive on
the red side of the board.