For the third time this week I woke up to the sound of her voice calling my name from downstairs. “Kame!” she yelled. I hated when she didn’t let me sleep in. We had only been living with each other for a few months now and since then my life has been pure hell. Everyday I have to wake up and take care of her like shes a damn baby. I tell myself I can’t live like this, then again I can’t leave her alone, especially not since the accident… nothing has been the same.

“Be down in a second sweetheart.” Kame replied slowly getting out of bed, making his way toward the bathroom. I splashed some cold water on my face and looked at myself in the mirror. My face was pale and there were blue bags under my eyes. I took my time getting ready hoping Kate wouldn’t scream my name again. I made my way down the stairs, one foot then the next, trying to keep the old wooden steps from creaking incase she had fallen asleep. Oh how I hope she is asleep. Turning the corner from the kitchen into the living room, I heard her sneeze and from there I knew what I was in for today. I turned back around and trecked back into the kitchen. I grabbed the meds I knew she needed today along with glass of water. Ever since the accident Kate had to take over 20 pills a day and even with all of that she still lived in pain. She can’t remember what happened that day only 6 months ago but at night she dreams about it. She wakes up in terror. Sweat pours down her beautiful face and her blue eyes turn red.

We can no longer sleep in the same bed. She mistakes me to be someone that hurt her and she tries to hurt me. Though, during the day things are easier. I can talk to her and laugh with her which reminds me that she is still the same Kate I married 2 years ago. Our honeymoon was the best! We went to Thailand and rode elephants everyday. We slept with families in their mud huts and we even saw what the tsunami did to the families and communities in that surrounding area. We played with the children and talked about how the day we adopt would be the best day of our life. We planned to have our own children first and after they grow up a little bit we would adopt.

I checked the fridge for who would be coming to see Kate today, luckily there was nobody on the schedule. I was so bad at being in charge of all of this but who else was going to do it? After she took her medication and I helped her shower we decided to go out to a late lunch. Taking her out was the hardest by far. Just getting her into the car was a struggle in itself and making it in the restaurant was a miracle each and every time. Not only were both of her arms broken but so was her pelvis, not to mention the cuts and the bruises which would lead to scars that covered most of her cold body. The waitress came and took our order, and she could tell something was awkward between me and my wife. She then asked in my wife was okay and what had happened to her. I was the only one who truly knew what happened well other than her of course. We decided we would just tell people Kate got into a very bad car accident.

After lunch we went straight home and I made sure Kate was comfortable watching Say Yes To The Dress and I decided to try and take a nap. Ever since the accident it was hard for me to fall asleep, of course this time was no different. I closed my eyes and everything from the accident just replayed over and over again in my head. The image I saw most was the green alien that picked her up from our daily walk around our new neighborhood. It had three big, nasty looking eyes and a huge mouth. It was like nothing I have even seen before. It came alone and just sweeped Kate right off of her feet. “Stop thinking about this!” I told myself right before I got up to check on Kate again.

She was asleep so I turned on Sports Center. As I watched the highlights I missed every second of every moment I spent on the ice. Ever since Kate’s accident, I haven’t been able to play at all. I had to tell the team and all my coaches Kate and I were in a car accident. They believed it and sometimes would come visit me. When they came to visit I would put on a fake boot and would wince in pain every time I got the opportunity. I missed playing more than anything. I missed getting checked by my opponent and the way I felt when I scored a goal in a tight game. If there was one thing I could do for the rest of my life it would be to play hockey. I know when I come back they are going to put me back to the semi-pro team in Philadelphia and that is really the last place I want to be. Kate moaned and mumbled “Turn this off Kame, you are only making it harder on yourself, remember that.” I got up, pressed the power button and chuckled. I can’t believe I actually listened to her.

After dinner I cleaned up Kate’s wounds and gave her the meds she needed to take at night. We watched a movie and ate some ice cream. When she started dozing off, I put a blanket over her and made my way upstairs. I laid in “our” bed and looked around “our” room. None of this felt like “ours” anymore. It was either hers or mine. This wasn’t the time to contemplate on our relationship so I closed my eyes and tried falling asleep.

I felt myself falling asleep until I heard Kate’s voice in my head. She was screaming. “KAME help me! I need you, help me!” She didn’t realize we were both helpless. There was nothing I could do. The little green thing had already had her in a death grip. There was no way in hell he was letting go. He dragged her by her hair at incredible speeds but her screams sounded so close. She kept telling me she needed help and I tried to follow behind them but there was no way in hell I was going to reach them. She was gone. That fast the love of my life was gone. Right before my eyes.

That night I couldn’t sleep, I sat on the couch with my feet up and tried to focus on things that didn’t have anything to do with Kate. I watched the Penguins play and tried to eat my favorite kind of ice cream but I couldn’t. I felt sick to my stomach. I asked myself if she was ever going to come back. I asked where she was. I asked if there was something I could have done. I asked so many things that I didn’t have the answer to. I don’t remember much more from that night considering I drank quite a bit.

I woke up the next morning expecting Kate to already have coffee made and my clean clothes laid out on the bed. I contemplated on what I should do next? I could go to the police but they would never believe what happened. I could get some of my teammates to come look for her with me but I can’t let them all find out how bad things really are. I finally decided I had to go about finding her on my own.

I made my way to the spot this all happened the previous night. There was nothing in my sight which made me nervous. I already wasn’t sure what to do and this made me want to give up even more. I paced up and down the street and tried to ignore all the stares that were aimed in my direction. I made my way closer to the store at the corner. As I approached it, I felt a strong gust of wind hit me and I stumbled backwards. I looked up and suddenly everything was black and I was somewhere I had never seen before. I heard a voice but I couldn’t make out what they were saying. I tried to focus in here and the voices became a little clearer.

“Well hello there sir.” said Gus, the alien.

“Hello…” relied Kame, his voice uneasy.

“It’s nice to see you finally came to look for your wife. We are taking very very good care of her, as I’m sure you would too. She is waiting to see you.” said Gus.

“So are you going to tell me where she is, or should I find her on my own?” replied Kame.

“Oh, no. I will gladly show you where she is, just follow me.”

I followed Gus and observed everything we walked passed. My stomach was so uneasy but I knew it was all going to be worth it since I would soon see Kate. My nerves were only getting worse as we kept walking. I saw tons of people including children. They didn’t seem in their right state of mind either. They were just walking back and forth in a little clear space. They were alone and nothing was in their space. They didn’t even seem to see us walk passed. The rest of the area was dark and I looked down to tons of stories of the same thing I saw up here. We were walking on a little path with no railings. Someone slide on the right of me and I almost fell off the edge.

Finally, in the distance I saw Kate. She looked sick. She was pale and her hair was tied up tightly. She looked at me and we made eye contact and when I tried to smile at her and blow her a kiss she looked away in disgust. I asked myself if this was really Kate? Or had they done something to her that made her not remember me?

“What did you do to her?” Kame asked Gus

“Nothing, what makes you ask that? replied Gus

“She won’t even look at me in the eye.”

“I’m not sure what to tell you young man. We did nothing to harm Kate. We took a little blood and added another type to see how she would react. She seemed to have taken the reaction well, we also gave her some of the food we usually eat so she wouldn’t be hungry,” said Gus

“So why does she look so skinny and sick?” asked Kame

I was beginning to get angry. I knew Gus was lying to me and for Kate to get better I needed to know what he had done to her. I continued to ask him but he repeated the same things. At this point Kate was crouched over on the floor with her head between her knees. I walked over towards her until Gus and one of his little alien friends grabbed me by my shoulder and pulled me backwards. I hit the ground with a hard thump and Kate looked up startled by what had just went down. My anger reached the point where I could no longer contain it. I grabbed Gus and his friend and threw them off the side of the path. I watched them fall until their tiny bodies faded away.

That was my moment. I ran into the room Kate was in and picked her up as carefully and gently and I could. She was shaking and crying. At this point I wasn’t sure if she knew who I was but that didn’t really matter. I used every ounce of energy I had in me to run as fast as I could back the way we came from. I looked over my shoulder and I saw Gusx10 running after us. I tried running faster but they were picking up ground pretty quick. My shoelace became looser but I couldn’t stop and in that exact moment I fell. Kate flew out of my arms and off the ledge of the path. She hit the ground with a crash. I kept running as fast as possible until I reached her. She was back at the store I had first gotten taken from.

“Kate, love, are you okay?” Kame asked.

She wasn’t saying anything. I didn’t want to move her but I had to. Her head was bleeding a little bit and I laughed to myself… “I wonder which kind of blood this is?”

We made our way to the hospital and when we got there they took her away from me right away.

“Hello sir, we are going to have to take your wife for a good examination, we will be back to update you on how everything is going,” said the nurse, trying to make Kame feel as comfortable about everything as possible.

“Thank you, I really appreciate it,” replied Kame with tears filling up his pale blue eyes.

Sitting in the emergency room waiting area I had time to think. The most important thing on my mind was Kate and whether or not she was okay but I also thought about the aliens and I hoped they would never come back to bother us again. I remember seeing all the kids and adults there and it hit me that this isn’t some freak accident that will never happen again. It is something real that is taking over. This could happen again and we must do something to stop it. As I began to come up with something in my mind, the nurse came back.”

“How is she?” I asked the nurse eagerly.

“Right now she isn’t doing well. She has a slight concussion and needed 20 stitches in her head. She also has a broken femur and her pelvis is shattered. Other than that she is suffering from internal bleeding which we now have under control. She will need emergency surgery on her leg and pelvis in a little while but she would like to see you first.”

“Yes! That would be great. I would love to see her.”

“No problem, just follow me. She is still pretty out of it which I am sure you expect.”

I walked in the room and saw Kate laying in the bed. She looked better than before. She smiled at me and I could tell she remembered who I was. I walked over to her and grabbed her hand and kissed her forehead. I checked to make sure she wasn’t intubated before I sparked up a conversation. She wasn’t, so I began.

“Kate?” I asked.

“Yes baby? I’m okay now. I really am. The pain is under control and I’m just so happy to see you here. Are you okay?”

“This is not about me. Really. I’m just glad you're feeling better. Do you remember what happened?”

“Not really, I remember being taken and then after that everything is a blur until right now.”

I woke up. Sweat was pouring down my face. My sheets were on the floor and everything was all over the room. I ran down the stairs to check on Kate. She woke up startled by how I was acting. She didn’t say anything because she knew what it was about. I felt dizzy and turned around to leave the room. I made my way back upstairs and laid on the floor of the bathroom. I couldn’t move. My body just wouldn’t allow me. This is something I tried to tell myself over and over again. I couldn’t be with Kate after all of this. It wasn’t fair to either of us. I just no longer felt the same way.

I forced myself to get up. The walk from the bathroom to “our” room felt like eternity. I packed my stuff up, everything I knew I was going to need and I left Kate our wedding ring and a note on the bed. The note didn’t say much other than I just needed time alone and I would come back if it was right. I told her I was going to the store and I left. I needed to think of somewhere to go. I walked passed the store where all of this initially went down. After thinking about all of that again I made my way to the police station. It was time to confess everything I just witnessed.

They sat me down in a room and told me to wait for someone to come so they could listen to my story. I sat and waited for what seemed like forever. I reviewed what I was going to say in my head until the detective finally walked in.

“Hello sir, how are you this morning?” the cop asked shaking my hand sternly.

“I’m holding up, and you?” Kame replied.

“Good, so what happened?”

“Well….”

That is when I told the cops everything that happened. They didn’t believe my story and told me I was crazy. They set me up with a psychologist and told me that I might had a mental illness which is leading me to make these things up in my head and dream about them as if they were happening in real life. I went back home and Kate and I talked through everything.

Romantic Love / Love at First Sight Alyssa Winner

“Taming of the the Shrew” to “The Wedding Planner”

The book “The Taming of the Shrew” shows, how love at first sight is possible and does occur in both the book and in the movie, “The Wedding Planner. In Shrew by Shakespeare, a character name Baptista who is the father of Katherine and Bianca has different expectations on having a relationship with his daughters. In the 2001 movie “The Wedding Planner”, the two characters Mary Flore & Steve Edison fall in love at first sight when Mary is in a rush and her heal gets caught and she almost gets hit by a dumpster but Steve saves her, and later takes her to the hospital he works at. It is obvious that there is some love connection between them but it turns out, Mary, a wedding planner turns out the be planning Steve and his fiancee’s (Fran) wedding. Love at first sight shows up in the book and also the movie but there are different ways it appears.

Although the film and the book aren’t directly related, they share many of the same qualities. Mary and Steve meet in an awkward situation but right away, it is obvious to the viewers that there is a love connection boiling. In The Shrew, Lucentio who is acting as Cambio to win Bianca over. It is a tough situation because he is lying about who he is to her so she will never know what he is truly about unless he tells her which is unlikely to happen. On the flip side, Steve is doing the same thing by not telling her the he is engaged to another women. This is another bump in the road because he is leading Mary on when the truth is she has no idea what is actually happening. In the book one of the characters says, “I see a woman may be made a fool. if she had not a spirit to resist.” This is saying that since a woman can’t resist the man they are in love with then that will make them a fool. Being in love like that turns them into a fool because there is really no other choice. Everything they say or do goes back to the man they are in love with. Not only does that occur in the book, but it also occurs in the movie. Steve and Mary meet in that weird situation, but from there she is in love. In the snapshot below from the movie, Steve is laying on top of Mary right after he saves her and right before she passes out in his arms. Mary has always been the type to keep away from men and just remain focused on her career, but when Steve saves her in this extremely romantic way it is tough to stay on track and not get lost in the fantasy of love. As you can see, although these scenes don’t match up 100 percent, they are very similar and shows how long love has been a pressing issue in the lives of so many.

In another instance, Mary meets up with Fran at a dancing lesson in preparation for Fran’s wedding but of course things don’t go according to plan when Mary find out that the man she is in love with is also her new gigs fiancee (which is shown in the snapshot below). Similar to the Shrew when Tranio finds a random old man and tricks him into pretending he is Lucentio’s father so that he could take care of some things before Lucentio could marry Bianca. That is until they run into problems when Lucentio’s real father, Vincentio appears in the picture. Both the book and the movie show why it is hard to lie about who you are and the people you are involved with because it indeed in a small world and no matter what precautions you may go through to hide the truth there is always a hole in the fence that will show your true colors. Both Lucentio and Mary were doing everything they could to be with the love of their life but ultimately who knows if it would be worth it or not. In Act 2 Scene 1 of the Shrew, Petruchio is going on a rant about Kate and how they are happy together. He says “If she and I be pleased, what's that to you?” He is trying to say that since they are happy, people need to back off and let them be. During the same scene previously discussed from The Wedding Planner, if Fran would have known about Mary and Steve’s little lingering love affair she would have said the same thing Petruchio said. In both of these stories, there is some jealousy and fear of losing their lovers although they are presented and shown in very different ways.

In conclusion, the movie ended the way the fans wanted, with Mary and Steve being together. It was expected through the whole movie, even through all of the setbacks. The strong love connection shined through and everyone, even Fran ended up happy. On the other hand, in The Taming of the Shrew, Kate says a long speech at her wedding and says many things obtaining to her husband and how he should be treated and how every man should be treated that way. It was unclear whether she was saying those things to make her husband happy or if she actually meant them Overall the movie and the play are extremely similar and have close endings although the characters and their love connections can be drastically different.