He hugged her back tightly as she embraced him. Her hair brushed softly against his cheek, and he nuzzled her gently, feeling better. “And I’m happy with anything you give me. You don’t even have to give me anything, as long as we can be together.”
They hugged and nuzzled a few moments longer, before Jack pulled back a little. “So, um … do you want to open it?”
“Yes.” She smiled softly before taking the offered gift with both hands as if it were something she could easily break. It began to reveal itself once she began tearing away the paper, the apartment filling up with the sound of ripping paper.
Her eyes grew quite large in unison, lips parting to try speaking but no words coming out. “L-Love..o-oh w-wow…!” She could hardly speak as the image before her took her breath away.
It was a small linen canvas, not yet framed. The painting had been done in watercolors, giving it a soft, dreamy look. It showed a woman – obviously Katelynn – in a flowing, sleeveless white gown, walking through a grove of cherry blossoms. She wore her hair pulled halfway up, the loose bun decorated with flowers.
But the most striking thing was the cloak she was wearing. It was long and gauzy, white on the top, but swirled and streaked with iridescent colors underneath, and it billowed behind her like a pair of wings.
“R-remember when we were talking about your wedding dress? You wanted to put butterfly wings on it, but I said that would be too over-the-top?” Jack gestured to the picture. “I thought this might be a good compromise."
Jack Maple 