Epilogue
ARCHIE
Ten Years Later
I watch as Tabitha blows bubbles in the backyard and our youngest chases them. Our son jumps and giggles as the bubbles pop when he catches one. Across the yard, our daughters are swinging on a swing set both my father and father-in-law helped me build a few summers ago.
Tabitha looks up at me from where I stand behind the grill, flipping burgers. Both of our parents will be arriving any minute for dinner and we’ll get to share the news with them. We are expecting—again.
Can’t blame me for wanting to keep her knocked up. She’s my everything and she always wanted a big family. I’m just the guy to give it to her.
She doesn’t do as much cosplay as she used to, but only because she told me she didn’t need the escape. At a moment’s notice I’m prepared to support her in whatever journey she wants to take. In the meantime, she assembles some cool family costumes for when we go to nerdy conventions as a family.
As long as she’s happy, I’m happy. I still can’t believe this is my life. Finally. It’s hard to believe at one point, I didn’t think I could give her everything she wanted.
Turned out all she ever wanted was me. It’s probably why we fought it for so long. It started with us not wanting to ruin the friendship, but the chemistry was always there. Even when we pushed the other away, more me than her—fate had other plans.
Life gave me more chances than I was expecting when it came to Tabitha. She was the one who got away—but, it turns out—so was I. We just had to wait for the right timeline to snap into place.