Nex stood in front of the mirror and tugged at his clothes, frowning. He wasn't used to dressing up. When he'd been on Earth before, jeans and t-shirts is what he stuck too. Today, he was wearing a button-up shirt and black pants. He pulled at the tie Katherine put on him and sighed, walking into the kitchen where Katherine was crouched down, rubbing Venandi's belly.

"You're such a good girl, Nandi," Katherine cooed, making Venandi bark playfully and sit up, licking at Kat's face.

"Really?" Nex said, crossing his arms. "With the nicknames?"

"Says the man that gave me a nickname shortly after meeting me," Kat pointed out, pointedly annoying his scowl while she reached for Sicarius, scratching behind his ears. "You're such a good puppy, too, Cari," she cooed. "You're going to take good care of the house while we're gone, aren't you? You're going to be so good for Jeremiah."

"Cari?" Nex sighed. "No, absolutely not. We are not calling Sicarius Cari."

"You can call him whatever you want," Kat shrugged, kissing Sicarius's head before standing. "But I'm calling him Cari."

"You're really asking for it," he said, narrowing his eyes.

"You think I'm always asking for it," Kat said, rolling her eyes and walking over to him, placing a kiss on his cheek. "I think it's just wishful thinking on your part."

"Don't pretend like you don't like the idea too," he said, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into a kiss. Kat melted against him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"It's time to go," she said against his lips.

"Or we could stay home," Nex countered, sliding his hands down and up her dress, gliding them up her legs and lifting her up. "Stay home and be alone," he emphasized, pulling her into a much harder kiss.

Kat moaned softly but found her inner strength and pulled out of the kiss, panting. "You're welcome to stay home but I'm going," she breathed, setting her hand on his face. "And we can be alone as much as you want later."

"But I want to be alone and not going anywhere now," Nex said, dropping his head into her neck and kissing where he knew she was sensitive.

"Stop trying to distract me. It's not fair. You know I can hardly ever say no to you," Kat panted, pushing him back until he set her down. "You don't have to come," she said, looking up at him. "I didn't ask you to."

"I know you didn't," Nex grumbled, wrapping his arms around her and pressing his forehead against hers. "How long does it last, again?"

"About an hour," Kat said, pecking his lips. "Don't worry. I'll hold your hand the whole time," she assured before turning and letting the dogs out the back door. "We'll be back puppies," she said crouching down and giving them both a pet as she ushered them outside.

Nex sighed and stayed inside while Kat went out to get the hounds water dishes filled. He stood there, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, his eyes landing on the photograph Katherine made them take on Christmas Eve. At the time, he wasn't happy about having his picture taken. Now, he was glad he had the reminder of his friend.

It was a picture Kat had them take before they left for their walk to look at lights. The two of them with Marcus and Lucian. It was the only picture they had and so Kat had it printed and framed, being devastated when she learned what happened to Lucian and that they weren't sure what would happen in the future. Melchizedek said he would do what he could but it wasn't easy to find a soul once it was lost in The Prateritus. He told them to stay patient but with each passing day, Kat and Nex both lost hope of seeing Lucian, the only remnant of him they had being that single picture.

Kat had the picture up on the window sill and everyday she'd get flowers from the backyard and set them in front of the picture. That's why Nex wasn't surprised when she came back inside with two bunches of flowers and set one bunch in front of the picture, keeping the other in her hand for their next stop. She smiled sadly down at it and ran her fingers on the edge before walking over to Nex and taking his hand, lacing their fingers together.

"Are you okay?" She asked, resting her head on his shoulder as she gazed up at him in concern.

"I'm fine," Nex said, tearing his eyes away from the picture. "Let's get this over with," he added, rolling his eyes.

"I just want to say once again that no one is forcing you," Kat pointed out, squeezing his hand. "I don't want you to go if you're going to be miserable and uncomfortable the whole time."

"I'll be fine, stop worrying," Nex said, kissing her forehead.

"Okay," Kat said, giving him a small smile before starting to the door, keeping her hand tight around his. "Let's go then."

Nex nodded and they walked outside together, not bothering with jackets because it was Spring now and not necessary. While Nex never had a preference to seasons on earth before, he decided he very much preferred Spring over Winter. Spring meant Katherine wasn't wearing leggings under her dresses all the time and even sometimes was in shorts and a tank top. Yes, Spring was his favorite so far.

They walked closely down the street, their fingers laced together and Kat resting her head against his arm. "Are you ready to fly for the first time?" Kat giggled.

Nex rolled his eyes. She found the fact that he was going to be on a plane later that day incredibly amusing considering he was actually very used to flying, just not inside anything. "I don't know that ready is the right word as much as resigned," he corrected.

"You're the one that bought the tickets," Kat reminded him.

He did buy the tickets. With money from his job. His human job.

After he settled more into being a human, he quickly decided he hated not being able to buy anything he wanted, not being able to buy Katherine things like he could before. So, as much as he hated the idea, he knew he had to get used to it. The last thing he expected was to have Katherine's pastor set him up in a restaurant his friend owned as a sous-chef. He didn't hate it as much as he was afraid he would. Katherine suggested he think about going to culinary school since cooking seemed to be the human thing he liked doing.

He was still undecided, still learning human things and worried he'd grow bored after what he was used to. The only thing he knew for certain he'd never get bored of was the woman next to him.

"I still don't understand that if the flight is at six o'clock we have to be there two hours prior," he said, giving her a side-glance. "Seems like an awful lot of unnecessary human interaction to me."

"It's just the way airports work," Kat shrugged. "Nobody likes going to the airport, they just do because it gets them to fun places faster. Places like Las Vegas," she beamed, holding his hand a little tighter.

That smile she gave him was worth going on a stupid human plane.

"I suppose you have it all planned out for when we arrive," he sighed.

"Yep. We are going to order in," Kat nodded. "The hotel we're staying in has as buffet in the casino you can order food from."

"Order in?" Nex frowned, looking over at her. "I thought you had so many different shows and places you want to see, restaurants you want to eat at."

"We'll be able to see the lights from our window," Kat shrugged.

Nex paused and turned her towards him. "Are you doing this because you know I'm already on edge being around all these humans so much?" He asked, narrowing his eyes. "Because I will be fine. I'm taking you for you. I survived hell for over two-hundred years, I can survive an evening of crowds."

"And I am going with the man I love and I don't want him to be uncomfortable the whole time," Kat said, draping her arms over his shoulders. "Besides, the room you got has a hot tub. No matter what we do while we're there, I am ending every single day in that hot tub and we'll be getting there late anyway so..." Kat trailed off, a blush forming on her cheeks. "We might as well relax inside. Alone."

"Well now you've caught my attention," he said, unable to stop the smile. "Fine, but tomorrow we work through that ridiculously long list you have."

"Deal," Kat said, pressing a quick kiss to his lips before turning and walking ahead, pausing when she felt a pull on her hand that told her Nex wasn't moving. She glanced back and gave him an encouraging smile. "It's going to be okay. You can leave at any point, if you want. Or you don't even have to come in."

"I'm coming," Nex said, staring up at the church uncertainly.

It felt strange, to cross onto a ground he never could before. He tentatively stepped forward, where time and time again he'd been blocked from entering. For a moment he was paranoid he'd hit that same invisible wall but his foot landed on the ground, into the church's official property with no barrier.

Kat waited until he made it across the property line with much effort. She squeezed his hand reassuringly and grabbed his arm, leaning against him and smiling up at him. "Come on, I'm right here," she said, ushering him forward.

Instead of walking up to the church, they first went to the cemetery. It was the first time Nex was able to go with her and her parent's anniversary was over the time they'd be in Vegas so Kat wanted to make a brief stop before they left.

They paused in front of the tombstone and Kat crouched down, placing the flowers on the ground. When she stood, Nex wrapped his arms around her from behind and pressed a kiss to her head. He'd never had to do anything like this so he was uncertain how to behave and decided silence and holding her was the best option. Kat placed a kiss to her fingertips then her fingertips to the epitaph. "Happy Anniversary," she murmured, running her fingers along the edge before turning in Nex's arms and hugging him tightly.

Nex wasn't sure what to expect but she seemed more okay than any other time she'd visited that grave. She pulled back and gave him a small smile, glancing back at the epitaph one more time before taking Nex's hand and leading them to the front of the church.

They walked up the steps to the church and again, Nex paused at the door, almost worried someone was going to recognize he couldn't be there and stop him. Or maybe the invisible barrier would make an appearance here. Except they slowly stepped through and nothing happened. He was inside a church for the first time.

Kat kept him close to her and tried to keep people from flocking over and overwhelming him. They were excited to meet the person she'd been talking about but she gently directed people away with the shortest introductions possible and got them seated on an empty pew with Nex on the end so no one could sit next to him but her.

Kat rested her head on his shoulder and looked up at him. "Okay?" She asked, bringing his hand up and kissing his knuckles.

Nex nodded and couldn't stop the smile because he apparently had no ability to not melt under any type of smile or affection she gave him.

"Excited for the trip?" Bernice asked, turning from the pew in front of them and looking back.

"Very," Kat nodded, unable to contain her excitement. "We'll be back on Friday."

"Take lots of pictures for me," Bernice smiled. "And please don't elope while you're there. I really want to be there for your wedding," she said. "Did you decide on a date yet? And a place?"

"Not yet," Kat said, unable to stop the smile as she glanced down, seeing her mother's engagement ring on her finger. "We've barely started talking about it. You'll be the first to know, I promise."

"I better," Bernice said, giving her a playful glare before turning in her seat and facing forward.

"You want to get married in the church, Katherine," Nex said quietly, placing his hand under her chin and turning her face towards him. "So let's do it here. It's where your parents got married. The others will understand."

"I want Marcus and Arda and everyone to be able to be there," Kat said. "It's okay. It's just a building," she shrugged. "An outdoor wedding is nice, too."

"Katherine," Nex said, giving her that look that she knew full well meant he was being serious and it was unlikely she'd be able to change his mind. "We can have the party afterwards with the others. Don't change your plans for a handful of people. You only get to do this one time, for once in your life, be selfish for fuck's sake."

"Nex," Kat scolded.

"Right," he said, clearing his throat. He promised her he wouldn't curse in church. He didn't mean to, it was a force of habit. "Sorry, but I'm serious. They'll understand. They can hear very well, they can stand outside and listen to the whole thing."

"It's not the same," Kat frowned. "Who will be your best man if not Marcus?"

"I really couldn't care less," Nex said flatly. "I just want to be with you, Katherine. Pick my best man for me for all I care, this is a human thing I am not familiar with."

"It's our wedding, not mine," Kat said, rolling her eyes.

"Yes, and I already gave you feedback on the single thing that matters to me," Nex shrugged.

"My-" Kat paused, glancing around to make sure no one was listening before dropping her voice. "My lingerie for the night of the wedding and on our honeymoon does not count as wedding plans."

"Highly debatable," Nex said raising an eyebrow.

Kat sighed and opened her mouth to speak but the service started so she went quiet and leaned her against Nex's shoulder as Allen stepped up to his podium.

"All right, we've been working through the New Testament and now we come to a set of verses many are familiar with and that brings us to today's topic: Love," he said, opening up his Bible. "Reading from 1 Corinthians 13, verses 4 through 8," he said, clearing his throat before speaking, a smile reaching his face, his eyes darting to his wife, Myra, before he read.

"Love is patient, love is kind," he started. Kat cuddled closer to Nex, setting her hand on their clasped hands. "It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud," he said. Nex glanced down at Kat, bringing their hands up and kissing her knuckles, earning a smile from her. "It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs," he continued. Kat sat up straighter and rested her chin on Nex's shoulder, mouthing 'I love you'. "Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth," he said. Nex mouthed it back to her and placed a kiss on her forehead, holding her hand tighter. "Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."

Allen went on to talk but Nex was distracted, staring down at Katherine. After considering the words Allen read he realized something. Katherine, he decided, was the embodiment of love. And when she looked up at him again, gave him another one of his smiles he always loved to see, he considered it worth it to spend 200 years in hell if the end result was living, in this time period, with his own personal heaven sitting next to him.