Amala touched his face and kissed his lips, looking forward to every day of her life that they would spend together, a life that would surely be filled with vivid color and light.

* * * *

Nearly a year following their marriage, Amala had awakened with a strong desire to visit Kat’s grave, and Henry had eagerly agreed to accompany her. It wasn’t the first time they’d done so, but today was Kat’s birthday, and Amala wanted to visit her sister’s final resting place and leave flowers, especially on this day. She and Henry had talked a great deal about Kat, and time was making it easier to do so without having difficult emotions surface. Now that their lives had come to this place, they had more comfortably accepted their mutual love for Kat and her role in bringing them together.

While the carriage waited at the perimeter of the church cemetery and little Harry ran around between the gravestones nearby, Amala pressed her fingers over her sister’s name where it was carved into the granite headstone. Henry did the same before he took hold of her hand and they stood there in silence together for a long moment until Harry wandered a little too far and Henry hurried to catch up with the toddler. Amala stood where she was, smiling as she observed from a distance the way Henry scooped their son into his arms and made growling noises that provoked giggling from the child. Henry laughed and shifted little Harry onto his shoulders, holding tightly to his little hands to keep him secure as he walked back toward Amala. She watched them while she once again touched her sister’s name, trying to comprehend the happiness she felt. With a loving caress, she pressed her other hand over her rounded belly, anticipating the day when Harry would be getting a younger sibling.