by Maya Sliver
Finally, each student is called by name. They all are presented with their degrees. All the students exited to cheers, mingling with their friends and families.
A few folks raise eyebrows, scrunch noses, and make disgusting faces as they see us exchanging grins and smiles. Perhaps, they’ve never seen an unusual family like ours. Or perhaps they’re too annoyed to notice the happiness gleaming in our eyes and reflecting on our faces, or even envious of that. That despite the queerness, despite being so unusual, we appear as an unusually happy and satisfied family.
“Dad.” Carrie comes jostling in the crowd followed by Blake, both girls holding hands. Their faces are splitting with wide jubilating grins. As they near me, I step forward and grab them both in a big wide hug.
“Well, you guys rule the roost,” I speak as the two of them hug me from either side. “I’m proud of you both.”
“Thanks, Dad.” Carrie beams, her blue eyes gleaming, happiness, elation, fulfillment all clear on her face.
“Thanks, William. I couldn’t have done this without you guys,” Blake speaks, her thankful stare darting between me and Carrie. She then hugs Carrie and I just watch the two of them.
I glance at them as they break their hug. The girls never stop grinning and smiling and celebrating even when they are dragged by a group of students to the lush green garden of the Westlake High.
There in the garden, the entire group of students, occupies a raised platform and tosses their graduation caps into the air, shouting and squalling. Photographs are clicked, followed by an endless round of selfies and group photographs. The graduation ceremony is deemed to be successful as students beam with joy. Almost all the students of Westlake have passed their exams and now are all set to make big into the outside world.
I’m enjoying the sight, when I see Blake bidding goodbye to the group. She then whispers something to Carrie, and I notice my daughter smile and nod. The girls peck each other before Blake parts from the crowd and saunters in my direction, smiling.
Epilogue Two
Blake
“So, you’re a graduate now.” He greets me with a wink and a smile.
“Yeah and the credit goes to you and Caroline. My preparation for the exams was horrible. Had you guys not helped me with it, I would have never made it.”
“Wonderful. So you give me the credit too.”
“Your love is my strength, Will.”
“And yours is mine. Thanks for being there. These past six months have been the best of my life. You guys are my lifelines.” He takes my hands to his lips and presses a kiss on my fingers.
“Yeah. It’s been six months, but it feels as if it’s just been a few days.”
“I’m happy for Carrie.”
“Me too.” We both glance at the beaming bundle of joy, that is Caroline, still busy jubilating her success with her friends, pouting, giggling, smiling, taking selfies.
From Caroline, I drift my stare back to William and find him staring at me.
“What’s next?” he asks, peeking inside my eyes.
“Piano, of course.”
He smiles. “You’ve missed a lot of classes, you’ve got to practice hard.”
“All righty, Sir.” I weave my fingers with his as we march to the crowd where Caroline is still busy chatting and clicking selfies with Ben, Katy, and Candice. Joshua left early. Perhaps, he will take some more time to get himself together and bounce back.
William glances at me, his eyes crinkling under the bright morning sun. The sky is clear blue. The day is golden bright and cheerful and so is my mood. I still wonder how quickly the past few months went by. And before we saw it, we are graduates.
With that, one more thought clusters my head. And that’s Caroline’s stay with us is over. William’s little bird who he has raised with so much tender love and care is going to leave the nest.
Though I’m happy for Caroline, there’s this nagging worry or rather a feeling of loneliness that’s not letting me enjoy the moments of our triumph, our graduation. Yes, I’m feeling lonely. During these past six months Caroline and I have got really close. We have become each other’s pillar of support. We’ve grown from reckless teenagers to independent young women. We’ve had our own phases of ups and downs, highs and lows, anger and frustration, discomfort and awkwardness but at the core end, we know we’re family. We understand that we’re bound to resolve differences, conflicts, and misunderstandings, if any arises, coz we know the importance of familial bonds and relationships. We are confident about ourselves and about the path we have chosen for us and for our loved ones. We know that we’re bound together. Though we’ll miss each other when apart, our locations aren’t going to matter anymore when it comes to our hearts. We are connected through our love.
Indeed, these past six months have brought about a lot of changes not only in Caroline but in me as well. Now, I’m more responsible, more caring, and more sensitive toward Caroline and toward William. Indeed, we are a happy family now. And I’m gonna miss the time spent with her.
By the time we reach Caroline, she’s almost ready to leave the group. Seeing us, she quickly exchanges a few rounds of pecks and hugs with Candice, Katy, and Ben and then she marches in our direction.
We meet and the three of us stand together, forming a circle and gaze at each other with pearly grins. The sun has never been so bright before. The morning has never been so soothing before. The chirps of the birds have never been so musical before as they are now.
“I love you guys. Thanks for all the love and support. And thank you, Blake. Thanks for being there. You’re awesome, sweetie.” Her eyes sparkle with unshed tears of love and happiness and I don’t miss a beat in stepping forward and grabbing her in a sisterly hug.
Later in the afternoon, we go for lunch in the nearby restaurant and enjoy a hearty meal. The day is spent roaming across the uptown in William’s old hooptie, chilling and having fun.
Soon, the day crawls into the evening followed by a cozy and silent night. I help Caroline with packing while William cooks a meal for us.
Together, we eat the dinner throwing in some playful banters and lighthearted chit chat.
Later in the evening, the three of us sit together in the cozy living room of our Cape Cod house, promising and vowing that no matter what, we’ll always have each other’s back. We’ll always keep in touch with each other, especially Carrie who’s leaving the nest for a bright career and better future prospects.
The night would have ended with us sitting and talking had William not pushed us to go and catch some sleep.
William doesn’t mind when I express my desire of spending a few more hours with Caroline in her room. Yet, he strictly warns me not to keep his daughter awake the entire night for she has to catch the morning flight next day.
After spending a few hours in Caroline’s room, I wish her goodnight. The two of us hug and then I make her lie in bed and cover her in her favorite fur blanket, tucking her in her bed.
“Don’t behave like my mom, Blake.” She sticks her head out of the blanket and peers at me in the dim lighting of the lamp.
“No, I won’t. I’m just making sure you’ve a good night’s sleep. That’s it.”
“But your worried look is telling me a different story.” She pushes herself to a sitting positing. “Sit with me for a while.” She holds my hand, and I perch myself at the edge of the bed.
“You look pale, Blake. What’s the thing?”
“I don’t know, Carz. Perhaps, it’s you going away from me or perhaps, I still find myself guilty of taking your mom’s place in this house.”
“You can never take her place.” Caroline displays a sardonic smile. “She left us. Wiped us off like we were nothing but blemishes on her sparkling clean life.”
“I’m sorry, Carz, but my intention was only to make it clear that I can and will never ever try to step into Stella’s shoes to get closer to you and William.”
“I know you, Blake. You don’t have to clarify anyt
hing.” She takes my hand in hers and strokes it, looking in my eyes.
“Thanks, Carz. Thanks for understanding me.” I don’t know from where the tears come. Both of us peer at each other with teary eyes before Caroline orders me to leave her room at once.
“Now go and catch some sleep. You’re dropping me to the airport, aren’t you?”
“Of course, I am.” I wipe the corners of my eyes and rise from the bed.
“Goodnight, lovely.” Kneeling, I plant a kiss on her forehead. “You too catch some sleep.”
“I will.” She winks. “Go now!”
A minute later, I’m in William’s room.
“Hey, you here?” A sexy baritone assaults my senses as he gets down from the bed and swaggers toward me.
“Actually, I thought it’s better if Caroline catches some sleep before the…” My words trail as two strong arms wrap around me.
“And what do you want to do before the morning? Do you also want to sleep?” he whispers against my ear.
“What are your plans for the night?” controlling my rapid heartbeat, I speak.
“Do you want me to tell or show you?” Pulling back, he gathers my hands and plants kisses on my fingers.
“Umm. Showing is always better than telling, Mister Wild.”
“Beyond gracious.” He rounds me and gathers me in his arms, pressing me to his chest. Closing my eyes, I snake my arms around him, enjoying the warmth of his strong body wrapped around me. “But before I show you the night’s plan can I tell you something,” he whispers, holding me in the encirclement of his arms. His warm and sweet breath floats across the side of my neck and I feel like jelly.
“What’s the thing, William, you never sounded so mysterious before?” I ask.
“I want to take you out for a dinner,” he hisses, nuzzling my hair.
I turn around at once. “Dinner date, you mean,” I squeak with surprise.
I can’t believe he’s taking me out on a real date. Our first date.
“Kind of.”
“When? Where?”
“Tomorrow six pm sharp, meet me in the living room.”
***
Next day at six in the evening, William takes me to a serene restaurant farther uptown—The Rustic Table. The rustic jewel lay nestled in the lap of sprawling Southern mountains of the town.
It’s cozy. It’s vibrant. It’s lively. And it’s every other thing a romantic couple like us would demand from the hospitality industry. Indeed, it’s heaven, a romantic paradise for lovers like us.
“How come I never knew about this place?” I ask as we sit across from each other on the vintage rattan chairs upholstered with ultra-soft silk cushions. A white linen-clad candle-lit table gleams in between us.
“It’s a hidden gem.”
“Indeed it is.” My gaze travels across the garden, taking in the surroundings. Orange evening is slowly sprawling across the green landscape.
We order our meals and enjoy the food while talking about inconsequential things. We devour not only the heavenly tasting food but also the warmth of the evening, the color of the setting sun, the fragrance of the hills.
“Thank you for bringing me to such a beautiful place. It feels like paradise here.” I place a hand on the top of his.
He smiles and looks into my eyes. The night has started to spread its blanket, but I can notice the gleam of his magical stare. The candle gives me full access to his ocean blue eyes. I can see deep into them. And right now, I know they want to communicate something. I wait for him and then he rises from his chair, strides to my chair, and goes on his knee. He speaks in a very low calming tone. It’s so soft and suffused with love, I can feel it touching the corners of my heart.
“Would you like to spend the rest of your life with me, Blake?” he asks, a velvet box with a solitaire shining on the palm of his hand. His eyes never leave mine as he waits for my answer.
Words perish at the tip of my tongue. I want to say yes. I want to shout out loud, yell at the top of my lungs, dance and sing insane, yet I couldn’t do anything. I just sit still, staring at him and the diamond shining on his palm, stunned.
Happiness suffuses my senses so much so it hampers my ability to speak. Emotions choke my throat. I feel tears hanging on my eyelids as I try to form a word.
“Say, something, Blake.” His eyes grow narrow, brow furrowing. His lips quiver.
Still, I couldn’t speak and only nod my head in yes, eyes pooling. A lone tear escapes the right eye and rolls down my cheek.
“Say it, Blake. I want to hear you.”
“Yes,” I murmur and he smiles.
He holds my hand and without waiting for another moment snugs the diamond on my ring finger. “Now you’re mine, darling, forever and always.”
He takes my hand to his lips and kisses my fingers before making me rise. His hand snakes around my back. Other hand lifts my chin. His eyes hold my gaze as we stare at each other, letting our eyes do the talking.
“Let’s get back home.” He tucks some stray strands of hair behind my ears as the chilly wind blows wild and plays with my loose locks.
“Yeah, lets. It feels like a storm is setting in.”
“A storm has already arrived, darling.” He winks as he places a protective hand at the small of my back and guides me to the exit of the cozy restaurant.
Life has never been so good. If there’s heaven on earth, it’s right in the arms of my William.
The End
I’m an indie author and need your help to spread the word about the book. If you enjoyed reading the story, I’d love it if you recommend it to your friends.
Please do consider leaving your precious reviews!
About the Author
Maya Sliver writes offbeat romance, not the conventional boy meets girl type but stories that are taboo and forbidden, unconventional and free-spirited, sultry and sweltering, and raw and rebellious. Maya enjoys transporting her readers to a land of unconventional heroes & bold heroines, taboo love stories, lush and untamed emotions. All with a guaranteed happily ever after.
When she’s not writing or reading, she’s probably singing, cooking for her family, and sowing new seeds and plants in her mini garden.
You can connect Maya at:
MAYASLIVER
Facebook