Epilogue
Meadow- A few months Later
W ow, where to begin? A lot has happened in the last few months, the most surprising thing being that my best friends were keeping huge secrets from me. Turns out I wasn't the only pregnant tattoo artist at Once Upon a Tattoo, and our little family grew by three!
Daphne and Ezra found out they were expecting shortly after they tied the knot, but due to her endometriosis, her pregnancy was considered high risk. They kept their pregnancy with their sweet boy pretty quiet until Daphne was far into their second trimester. It was actually River who figured it out, when she caught Ezra rubbing Daphne's belly at our house one night after we brought Briar home. The pair spilled the beans and apologized for keeping the secret. They were just being cautious and didn't want to draw attention from us after everything we’d gone through.
Much to everyone's surprise, Wren burst into tears before pulling up her oversized sweater and showing off her rather round baby bump. To say we were shocked is an understatement. Wren explained that while she was extremely excited to be having a baby girl with Brooks, her pregnancy had brought about some very unexpected trauma responses from her past. She didn't want to keep her pregnancy or her baby from us, but she was struggling with being pregnant, with the fear of losing her baby and the joy of becoming a mother. She had been working with her therapist to manage her emotions, anxiety, and panic, and was working towards telling us before the accident happened and set her back. To say there wasn't a dry eye at our house that night would be an understatement.
With all of us popping out babies, things at the shop have changed a bit. Lark officially moved to Sparrow Falls and filled the fourth station permanently. He manages most of the day-to-day stuff at the shop while River helps him with all of the admin stuff. With Briar being the oldest and a rockstar of a baby, I've started to work more hours, but Daphne and Wren are still part-time.
River and Brantley both made a full recovery, although Brantley required quite a bit of physical therapy. He had to have multiple surgeries and missed out on a lot of his senior year. Luckily, he is a brilliant student, and it didn't deter his college possibilities. Before we left the hospital, one of the doctors gave us an excellent therapist that has worked with all of us together, and individually, to process the trauma we’d gone through. I thank the goddess above every day that these kiddos are as well-adjusted as they are and that they have handled everything so well.
As far as Colton and I go, we couldn't be better. We waited only long enough for the snow to thaw and the flowers to bloom before having a small, intimate ceremony in our backyard, surrounded by our closest family and friends. River helped me make my wedding dress, and matching dresses for her and Briar that were dreamy and ethereal. Colton enlisted the guys to turn the backyard into a fairy dreamland. The entire day was enchanting.
Today is River's high school graduation, and I couldn't be more excited. All of our family and friends are here to support our girl, but I can't wait for the moment she walks across the stage. Colton is up on stage with the faculty and will have the honor of giving our girl her diploma, which will be even more special.
"Do you have the camera set up?" I ask Brooks as they start calling the students up to get their diplomas.
"Yep, I have this one recording, and Principal Sanchez let me put one up on stage."
"Perfect. Thanks, Brooks."
"Our next student has been a pleasure to have with us this year. River, can you please come to the stage?"
We all clap as River makes her way to the stage. "Her dad is our wonderful guidance counselor, Colton Harding. Would you please come do the honors, Colton?"
Colton wipes the tears from his face over being called River's dad.
"As the principal of Sparrow Falls High, it's my greatest honor to recognize our valedictorian, River Harding."
We all cheer as River makes her way to Colt, who looks absolutely gobsmacked.
River stops to hug Principal Sanchez, then takes the last few steps to Colton and falls into his waiting arms. The two cry as he whispers in her ear. When she pulls her head back, her smile could brighten the cloudiest day as she nods and shows him not only her diploma but the adoption papers awaiting his signature. He hugs her again, then hands River her diploma before grabbing her hand and thrusting it into the air.
Our entire group cheers, tears in our eyes. I don't know what our future holds, other than a lot more laughter, tears, and so much joy. As long as I have all of these wonderful people in my life and we're all together, I have no doubt our future holds nothing but happiness.