by D. Breeze
New curtains hung at the windows, a new kitchen and bathroom had been installed, new floors laid. It looked like a whole different house, my house, our house.
It wasn’t until a month after Christmas that we decided to finally move in, I guess we just wanted to makes sure the demons of the past were dead and buried before we finally made the move. Our little place above the garage seemed like our safe haven, our little bubble away from everyone and everything.
The house though, that was real. It was moving on with our lives and becoming the adults we were supposed to be. Together.
I took Malcolm’s word on Christmas day as gospel, I still thought about them if I ever found myself wondering back down that ‘doubt’ path again. It wasn’t as frequent anymore, but it did still happen.
‘Don’t let your fears and doubts about the past, ruin something that could make your future incredible.’
I’ll never get the answers I was looking for, but I also don’t need them. My life, my future, lies in my hands and my hands only.
Although it took me a while to learn it and I still have a way to go, I realised that Jamie may be the biggest part of my life, but he’s not my whole life. There are certain things only I can do, no one can help me with them and looking around the house, I knew what it was that I needed to do.
I walked into the back garden, and sat among the trees at the end where I’d scattered my mother’s ashes. I started to talk.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry I couldn’t help you through whatever it was that happened to you. I’m sorry that you were so confused and unhappy for so much of your life. And most importantly, I’m sorry I didn’t get you the help you needed before it went too far. I don’t blame you, you know? I don’t hold a grudge against you anymore and I don’t hate you like I did. And I did, hate you, that is. I didn’t understand why you put me through the things you did, and I didn’t understand why you weren’t the mother that I wanted, I needed. But I understand now, you couldn’t be. I wish I knew, what it was that plagued your thoughts; maybe that would make things better. Then again, maybe it wouldn’t because I know I’d blame myself for not seeing it sooner. I have to let it go, all of it, the past, including you. I hope, wherever you are, you’ve found the peace that you could never find when you were here with me. And I hope your mind is free, because I want you to be happy. Most importantly though, I forgive you and I want you to always remember that I tried my best, I never wanted to give up on you. I love you.”
I touched the ground next to my leg. It was stupid, I guess. I knew she wasn’t there, but part of me really hoped that no matter where she was, she heard my words.
I stood up, brushed the dirt off my jeans, and walked back to the house with my shoulders feeling lighter than they had in years.
We still didn’t own much and we only had to carry things from two doors down, so we did all the moving ourselves. Well, most of it, we enlisted Malcolm to help with moving the furniture because Jamie couldn’t do it by himself and Harvey still wasn’t supposed to carry heavy things.
~*~*~*~*~
Once everything was in place and we were finally able to sit down, I snuggled into Jamie’s side on the sofa and my eye lids started to feel heavy.
My body was lifted off the sofa and I instinctively curled into the warm body that carried me. I was laid on the bed and I knew that Jamie was taking care of me the way he always did. He took off my clothes and pulled the covers over me, before sliding in beside me and holding me close to him.
I made a contented sound in the back of my throat.
“Babe, are you awake?” He whispered.
“Mmm.”
I felt him chuckle.
“I don’t know if you can even understand a word I say right now. But I just wanted you to know, that this right here, is more than I ever could have dreamed of. My perfect girl, in our perfect house, on a perfect night like tonight. I just wanted you to know how much I love you.”
“Mmm.”
My brain wasn’t working probably so I couldn’t find the skill to speak but I knew what he said and his words, as usual, were just as amazing as he was.
~*~*~*~*~
My life had taken a complete 360 in the space of a year. I’d lost my mother, gained a boyfriend, had too many near-death events in my life to be considered even slightly normal and I moved house.
It’s a lot.
So the normality still seemed a little strange to me, but I was coping with it. Actually, I embraced it.
The little things, going to the supermarket together, paying our bills, finding my first job...it all had some small effect on me. But I enjoyed it.
One huge change though, was that I hadn’t had a vision since the one on Christmas day. Not one. I felt a little lost without them, almost like I was missing a small part of me. When I mentioned it to Jamie, he said “I don’t know why things would change like that, but maybe it’s because you just don’t need them anymore. You were in such a bad place, given a life that you should never have had to live with, I don’t know how much I believe in a higher power, but maybe that’s what it was. You were given a gift that made you different, made you special, because you needed that at the time. You don’t need it anymore though. You’re special and perfect just the way you are.”
It might have been true, it might not. Maybe they’d come back, maybe they wouldn’t. Yet another thing I’d never know the real answers to, unless they came back, so I moved on.
My dad was around more too. I found it hard, at first, to let him back into my life. Jamie fixed that too, he said that everyone deserves a second chance and he really believed that my dad felt awful for what he had done. So I gave him a chance and I was really happy that I did.
I loved him.
Some people might think that maybe I had to go through all the bad things, to get to the good.
I don’t feel that way anymore.
I just think it was my destiny. No matter what happened, or how I got there, I was meant to live in this house, with my Jamie, being as happy as I am.
Every. Single. Day.
Epilogue
Future
Nine months later
The flames shot up into the air and I stared in awe as the balloon began to rise. We’d put off taking the trip because neither of us was that excited about doing it.
Malcolm had eventually pestered us into booking the ‘flight’ and we did it. I actually couldn’t believe we’d waited so long.
I had no idea why we were the only ones in the basket though. It was made for six people, plus the operator, yet we were alone with him – and he didn’t speak to us much anyway.
As we floated over the trees and the fields below, I inhaled a deep breath, usually I would have been scared of how high we had flown, but for some reason I felt relaxed and able to enjoy every moment of it.
Jamie however, seemed to be tense and I figured he was just scared, not that I’d ever known him be scared of anything before.
He had his hands clutched tightly around the edge of the basket, one on either side of my waist. I loved him being so close to me, always protecting me. His chin rested on my shoulder and I lay my head against his.
We’d been together just over a year and I still woke up with butterflies in my stomach when I opened my eyes and saw his beautiful his face. Nothing had changed in that respect, but I honestly doubted it ever would. That was just who we were.
“Look at me babe,” he asked, as I stood there staring at the view.
I turned in his arms and looked up at him. He cupped my chin and stroked the side of my face with his thumb. Such a small gesture that made my heart skip a beat. I smiled.
“I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too.”
“Forever?” He asked and I frowned.
“Of course forever. You’re the only man for me Jamie.”
“Good...” He took a deep breath. “I have never, and will never, love anyone the way I love you. You’re my world, my ai
r, my lungs and my heart and I never want to be without you. Nothing with us has ever been particularly easy, but at least it’s not boring!”
I laughed at his sarcasm and wondered where he was going with his speech.
“You’re everything to me and I hope I’m always going to be everything to you too, so...with that in mind...” He lowered himself on to one knee and I gasped, covering my mouth with my hand. Opening the little black box he had retrieved from somewhere, he finished.
“I want to spend the rest of my life with you. We might still be young, but we’ve been through enough to last a lifetime, and I want the rest of mine, with you. Will you make me the happiest man on Earth...” he shook his head and muttered ‘man, that’s so cheesy’ then he carried on. “Will you marry me?”
At nineteen? He wanted to get married at nineteen? I had a fleeting moment of panic that it was too soon, we were too young. But then I realised that the normal rules just didn’t apply to us. We were always going to do things differently, our own way, because that’s what we’d done from the start.
This was our life.
I’d never thought much further beyond the day in front of me, definitely not the real concept of forever, but that didn’t matter, I didn’t need to even think about it. I knew he was the man for me from the moment I noticed him, as a six year old little girl. With no further hesitation, I met him on the floor and threw my arms around his neck. The tears fell freely.
He laughed. “I’m taking this as a good sign right? You’re saying yes?”
I didn’t want to let go of him, I wanted to get as close as I could, so without taking my face from his neck, I just mumbled ‘yes!’.
“Yes?” He questioned.
“Yes! Yes, yes yes! God, I love you so much!”
“I love you too, pretty girl. Forever.”
He swung me up into his arms and I just knew, I knew that my little slice of happiness, was going to last for a lifetime.
Sometimes in life, you meet people who you know, are going to change your entire world.
Jamie Travis changed mine.
From the moment he first spoke to me, despite my doubts and fears, I think a small part of me always knew that he was going to be my saviour.
My hero.
My soulmate.
The End...for now.
I truly hope you enjoyed reading this book as much as I enjoyed writing it. I started out planning for this to be a stand-alone novel, but as my characters developed, I realised that people wouldn’t understand Harvey and I want him to get his chance to redeem himself!
I couldn’t tell his full story without taking away from Jamie and Rhianne. With that in mind, I decided that there will be another one, possibly two, books to follow on from this one and I hope you will keep an eye out for them in the near future!
Thank you for taking the time to read Everybody’s Somebody!
Acknowledgements
I honestly do have just too many people to thank this time around, so I apologise in advance if I miss anyone out, but I’m still grateful!
Tabby. I do not know how I would even manage to get through writing any of my books without you! You are always there to keep me on track and moan at me to hit deadlines and your ideas are always the best! Having you there to give your opinion and point me in the right direction, makes all my books better and I am so grateful to you for it.
My Bobbi! I sat here for ages trying to find the right words to say everything I want to say to you and in the end I gave up! There are no words to describe how much you help me out all the time, every single day. You’ve worked with me on this book from day one and I’m sure it would not be half the book it is without your input. I think you make me a better writer overall and it’s so perfect to have someone who truly understand ‘the writing world’ to have a good rant with when things are not going the way I want them too! I love you for all your help, and I just love you for you!
Nat. As always, I have to mention you because it’s nice to have someone support me as much as you do. My best friend from the day I was born, life’s just better with you in it!
Mum. My biggest supporter from day one, thank you for always having faith in me, even when I don’t always have it myself!
Megan (This Bish Luvs Books!) and Steph (Rude Girl Book Blog!). Thank you so much for always being as helpful as you are. You’re both so great whenever I ask for anything and the job you do is amazing!
And finally! All the other blogs who are involved in the tour/release day blitz I want to say a huge thank you for being part of it!
Indie authors would not get to be half as successful as they are without the help of all the bloggers and reviewers out there who do the job because they love books and nothing more. I’m not sure they get enough credit for all they do, so even if you’re not part of the tour or the release day blitz, thank you to every single one of you who takes the time to make the life of an indie author easier!
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Thank you!