The Confession

Ginny walked faster than she intended toward the Captain's bungalo. She was crying. Her right hand held her left, and she was feeling of that beautiful ring the Captain gave her at center court that wonderful day. The ring and what it stood for meant everything to her. She wanted nothing more than to be married and have a family. She didn't want to give up that ring, but she had no choice. She couldn't go through with this. It was all a sham. She couldn't do it. She couldn't hurt him and all the other people here too. She had to move on, get away from here. She had made a mess of it again! Oh, lord, when will it ever stop! The tears flowed freely with her anguish.

The Captain sat in his bungalo, grading papers. He had a nice fire going and his favorite music was playing on the radio. He had just finished supper and was getting caught up on his work. He was dressed in his Miskatonic University t-shirt and oddball Hangtown green and red basketball shorts.

He looked up at the framed picture of Ginny on his end-table, and wondered to himself about the girl he loved. She hadn't been herself lately. She had seemed pre-occupied, and even snapped at a girl who wasn't doing a part right in her class.

That was SO unlike her. Cap wondered what was bugging her.

He was about to find out. There was a knock at the door.

Cap answered it to find Ginny standing there. She looked disturbed, almost distraught. He invited her in and she slowly walked in and sat down in a chair opposite him. She didn't offer to kiss him or even hug him. Cap got apprehensive quickly. Something was very wrong here.

"Whats the matter, Ginny?"

She searched for the words. She wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Come on, you can tell me. Whats wrong? Is it something I've done? If so, I'm sorry, I..."

"No," she broke in, "Its nothing that you have done, its me."

Cap watched with something like confused horror as she took off the engagement ring and offered it back to him. If this was a nightmare he hoped it ended soon!

"I don't deserve this," was all she said.

What the hell? A chill of fear unlike any the Captain had ever known went up his spine. Demons, dragons, armies of evil, even Lord Havoc himself he had faced without flinching. But this? This was scaring the crap out of him. He tried to process what was happening. What had gone wrong? What had he done? Why was she breaking the engagement?!

Wait a minute. She said "I don't deserve this."? He seized on that statement.

"Deserve? What do you mean, Ginny? Why are you not deserving of my love and respect?"

He saw a tear fall slowly down her cheek. "Oh, please, god, talk to me! Tell me what is wrong!" his mind screamed. He made a powerful effort not to lose his composure.

"I've lied to you," she said. Then she got up and went to a window, head bowed, facing the curtains. She held the ring in her clinched fist, so tightly that the knuckles were white.

"I've lied to you from day one. Because of that, I don't think I can marry you."

Cap stood and walked up behind Ginny. He reached out to put his hands on her shoulders but dared not touch her. There was no telling what kind of reaction he'd get. This had to be played very carefully.

"Lied to me? How? About what?"

"Who I am. What I am. My past."

"Ginny.. Please... explain."

It was tearing his guts out to see her in such pain, and scaring him as to what was wrong. What ever it was he would do everything in his power to make it right.

She turned to face him and tearfully barked out "My name isn't Guinifer Stewart! My name is Gwendolyn Stacy!"

Confused, Cap just stood there. That was supposed to be some great revelation, but she had to go on. She was living here under an alias, and he had to know why. She turned back to the curtains and between choked back sobs began her story.

"I've lied to you about who I am. I'm from New York, yes, but something happened, something horrible. Something that destroyed my entire life, and left me alone with no place to go, no friends, no family, not even my own life and indentity."

Cap remained fearfully silent. Ginny continued.

"I was kidnapped by one of my college professors. He made clones of me and several of my friends. He was insane, but he had this strange love for me. He couldn't live without me. He replaced me with one of his clones, and kept me for his own."

There was a pause.

"He didn't hurt me or anything, but he used some type of mind control on me to keep me docile and to obey him. Sort of like hypnosis or something. It was horrible. I couldn't get away.

"Anyway, the clone he replaced me with was killed in a fight between a superhero and a supervillian. Everybody from my friends on down thought it was me. They had a funeral, buried the clone, and with it buried my entire life and existance. For some reason I was sent back to my friends and all hell broke loose.

"Here I was, not 'dead' a month and I show back up like a ghost in their lives. They were already getting used to going on without me. Accepting the fact that Gwen Stacy was dead.

"But I wasn't."

"One thing led to another and there was a big fight, people got hurt, some got killed, including the mad professor, and suddenly I was free of his dominance and control. I was also alone and without a past.

"I couldn't come back. I couldn't be Gwen Stacy anymore. I couldn't be with my friends that I loved and the one man I fell in love with. I couldn't be me. If I stayed it would only get worse for all the people I loved. I was dead, I needed to stay dead.

"So I left and let them go on with their lives without me. I came down here to start a new life.

"And its all a lie, just like I'm a lie, Cap. I can't marry you. I'm not who you think I am! I CAN'T DO IT! NOT LIKE THIS!"

Cap grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her to face him. She looked at him wide eyed for a second then cast her eyes down.

"Ginny... Gwen...Ginny... You didn't lie to me. You haven't lied to anyone. You ARE Ginny Stewart, just as much as you once were this Gwen Stacy. And I love you. You are the one thing in all the world I love more than my own life. I don't care who you were in the past, its who you are now that matters. To me, and all the kids around here who depend on you.

"We must move forward... and cast aside the past. For if we don't...we become old.. and bitter.. and alone. Until now, you have done that. I don't know what brought all this back on you, but its okay. We've made it okay! We can do that again!"

"I don't think I'm worthy of you, Cap. I don't believe I'm the woman you think I am, other than a woman with no past and a liar."

Cap sputtered for second.

"If YOU are worthy of ME?" he exclaimed.

The mere concept boggled his mind. He put his finger under her chin and gently raised her face to look her in the eyes. Ah, those wonderful blue eyes, now bloodshot from crying and the inner pain she was feeling. Even now in great mental anguish and distress, her lovelyness was almost intoxicating to him. She was hurt so deeply. He had reach her and bring her out of it.

"My lady, it is I who must be worthy of YOU. I have traveled hundreds of thousands of miles and fought tens of thousands of foes yet I would journey twice as far and do battle with 10 times 10 as many of my enemies if only to hear you say that you love me, to see you smile, and to gaze as I do now into your eyes.

"You built a new life. You gave yourself a new name, for the old one is dead. You loved all your friends so much that you would rather leave than see the chaos you would bring to them. My lady, you are courageous as any one I have known. I could not have done that. Yet you did. And for it you put yourself through a private hell of sleepless nights and doubtful days.

"Ginny, let me take you from that. Let me be the man you love, and the one you build your life with. Please don't do this. I love you."

She looked back in his eyes. He spoke the truth, and she hadn't trusted a man like this since she left New York. He did love her, even after finding out that she had secrets and no past.

And yet, would it always be this way? Would he some day turn on her and send her away?

Cap saw the doubt in her eyes and it was too much for him. He suddenly embraced her, tightly.

"Ginny, please, I need you!" he choked. With a gasp Ginny realized he was crying now too. Oh my god. My god!

"Don't leave me!" he begged, "I see here before me a loving, caring person, not a liar and a deceiver! You are a good and decent person, Ginny! Don't go! You can't go back to what you were and neither can I! I've never loved anyone the way I love you. My life with you has been the greatest part of my entire existance. I would die without you. The emptyness would kill me! Please! Don't do this to us!"

Silence settled, broken only by their breathing and sobs. Gently Ginny pushed him a step or two away. She looked up at him. She'd never seen him broken up before, not like this.

She opened her hand with the ring, and looked back in his eyes.

Cap took the ring. She offered her trembling left hand to him.

He slipped the ring back on her finger, then wiped a tear from his eyes.

"I love you" he whispered.

She repeated it back to him.

They embraced and kissed long and hotly.

Ginny left Cap's bungalo a few minutes later with her doubts and demons put to rest. Yes, she would marry him. And yes, she loved him as much as he loved her. Perhaps it would work out after all. He knew everything now, and did not send her away. A great weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

He was right. It was time to cast aside the past. She was now and forever, Guinifer Stewart.

Cap longingly watched her go home from the advantage of his front room window.

She walked down the sidewalk and stopped, as if to consider something. Then she turned and looked back at him. She saw him in the window. She smiled and raised her hand and waved to him.

Cap smiled back and waved at her. She then turned and continued on her way to her bungalo.

"There goes one fantastic woman," he thought, "She'll do anything to keep from hurting her friends, and yet life has been so cruel to her. I am fortunate to be blessed by having her in my life. I'm going to spend the rest of my life with her. She is an Angel."

Cap looked heavenward.

"Thank you."