Epilogue
OLIVER
TEN MONTHS LATER
I pulled my car onto the highway and smiled to myself, knowing I was finally on the home stretch. It had been a long year being away at college. I came home every weekend I was able to and any break that we had. It was a lot, but I got through it.
The six-hour drive wasn’t as bad as it sounded after doing it so many times. My car hated me for all the miles and wear and tear I put on it, but that was insignificant in the grand scheme of things. There was only one thing on my mind that really mattered.
Luna Truly.
And I was finally coming home to her.
The past year wasn’t an easy one with the distance between us. I wanted to wait until Luna was discharged from the hospital before leaving. I was in jeopardy of losing my scholarship and as soon as Luna found out about that, she wasn’t having it. She was furious and insisted I go.
Even though I didn’t want to, I listened to her and went. I missed the first week of camp and was severely disadvantaged when I got there. I had to work my ass off to prove myself as still being worthy of my scholarship. I made it through but only because I was doing it for Luna at that point.
She was my biggest cheerleader and even though she wasn’t physically with me, she was still cheering me on every day. We FaceTimed and talked on the phone every chance either of us had. I hated being away from her, and after this year I realized a lot about myself.
I would tell her sometime this summer, but I forfeited my scholarship at the end of the year. I already started the process of transferring to a school much closer to home. One where I wouldn’t have to be far away from Luna. When it came down to it, she was the most important thing to me. Football didn’t matter. I could go to college anywhere else and still be able to play without such a huge commitment.
I didn’t want to lose any more time with her than I already had lost.
The past year wasn’t exactly easy for Luna either. Thankfully, since she was taking classes at the local community college, she was able to switch to taking them online for the first half of the year so she could have more time to mend at home.
It took about a month before she was able to tolerate being off the ventilator again during the day and breathing without the assistance of the machine. She lost a lot of muscle, weight, and strength while she was in the coma. Dr. Wyn was on top of taking all of the necessary measures to get her right back to where she was before she ended up in the hospital.
By the time Halloween rolled around, Luna was finally feeling like she had completely recovered. She was the strongest person I ever met and probably would ever know. She never failed to amaze me, but I never doubted her ability to get back to her baseline.
By Christmas time, a miracle had happened and Luna didn’t even need her ventilator to sleep anymore. It was almost as if her body was healing itself. And it honestly didn’t surprise me when it came to Luna Truly.
She was tenacious and nothing was going to stop her or get in her way.
I glanced at the clock as I pulled off the highway. It was already after six o’clock but I would be home in less than twenty minutes. Thankfully, the days were growing longer and it was still light out. It wouldn’t get dark until later in the evening. I pressed the gas pedal closer to the floor and sped down the back roads as I made my way to our town.
As I pulled onto our street, my heartbeat quickened and my stomach did a flip with anxiety. I had a lot of finals before the semester was over and I hadn’t been able to get back home for a few weeks. It was a lot longer than I wanted to be away from Luna and I was just ready to see my girl.
I didn’t even bother stopping at my own house and instead I pulled directly into Luna’s driveway and parked my car behind her mom’s. Turning the key, I killed the engine and hopped out of my car, but not before grabbing the bouquet of flowers I picked up for her.
Standing outside of her front door, I knocked lightly and patiently waited. She knew I would be coming home sometime today but I didn’t tell her when. I wanted to surprise her. Tank barked on the other side of the door, alerting whoever was inside that there was someone on the front porch.
Less than a minute passed, yet it felt like I was standing and waiting for an eternity. I just wanted to burst through the door and take her into my arms. I missed her so damn much.
The doorknob slowly turned and the door was pulled open.
There she was.
My heart and soul. She stood there for a moment, her bright blue eyes shining back at me. She looked healthier than ever before. She had gained some of the weight back and there was a little bit of color in her cheeks. I didn’t care how she looked, because she always looked beautiful to me.
“Oliver,” she breathed, the corners of her lips pulling upwards. Tank was trying to get through the door and he finally succeeded as he rushed at me. Luna was right behind him and I laughed as she pushed him out of the way.
I held my hands out, lifting her into the air as she wrapped her legs around my waist. Her hands were linked around the back of my neck and I spun her around as her lips claimed mine. It took me by surprise since Luna wasn’t always the most forward, but she was learning.
She was learning to take what she wanted—what was hers. And I fucking loved it. I loved seeing her open up and how comfortable she was in our relationship. She pulled away, leaving both of us breathless and she hugged me fiercely.
“Luna love,” I breathed against her neck before inhaling her scent. “Fuck, I’ve missed you.”
We held onto one another for a few more moments before she tried to wiggle herself out of my arms. I tightened my grip around her and trapped her in my embrace.
Luna laughed softly. “Put me down, Ollie. I can walk.”
“What did I tell you about walking, love? If I can carry you, I will do it for you.” I paused for a moment as she stared down at me with those ocean eyes. “Plus, I’m not ready to let you go yet. I feel like it’s been a lifetime since I last had you this close to me.”
“You can’t carry me around all the time.” She smiled as she shook her head at me.
The corners of my lips lifted and I raised an eyebrow at her. “Watch me.”
Luna laughed again as I carried her into her house. Tank followed after us and I kicked the door shut behind the three of us. He trotted through the house and I walked after him, taking Luna into the kitchen. No one else was around so I set her down on the counter, but I didn’t move from between her legs.
I slid my hands through her long hair and gripped the back of her head as I brought my lips back to hers. She tasted sweet like candy and I wanted to drown in her. I didn’t give a shit about what was going on in the world around us.
She was my entire world.
As I traced the seam of her lips with my tongue, she parted them and let me in. The kiss grew deeper and feverish as we both devoured one another like we were starved. It would be a lie to say I wasn't. I couldn’t keep my hands off her whenever I was close to her. I literally could not get enough of her.
Luna was the one to break apart first. Her lips were swollen from our kiss and her cheeks were tinted pink. A ragged breath escaped her as she smiled at me. “Someone could walk in and see us.”
“They know we’re together,” I said with a shrug and a smirk. Luna was a little more reserved than I was, but I would always respect her. “Do you have your list ready?”
We were going to spend another summer checking off a brand new bucket list she made. She refused to show it to me, and not knowing what was on it was killing me.
“Yep,” she said with a wink. “I hope you can handle it.”
I laughed softly as I held her close. “I can handle anything you throw my way, Luna Truly. I hated being away from you and missed you so damn much. You’re the brightest star in the sky. You’re my heart and my soul and I thank the universe every day for you. I love you.”
She fell silent as she looked past me for a moment. I glanced over my shoulder to see what she was staring at. The clock on the stove read 6:37. I turned back to look at her and she smiled brightly at me.
“Six three seven,” she said softly as wonderment filled her eyes and peace washed over her expression.
My eyebrows pulled together. “What does that mean?”
“I didn’t understand it at first, but when I was in a coma, those three numbers were everywhere in my dream. When I woke up, they were the numbers on the clock in the room.” She paused for a moment, her gaze never wavering. “It’s us, Ollie. Six letters for always, three for and and seven for always.”
My heart skipped a beat in my chest as I stared back at her, feeling her words sinking into in the fibers of my soul. Tears pricked the corners of my eyes as a grin spread across my lips. “Always and forever.”
She nodded, smiling back at me as she illuminated my entire world.
“Always and forever.”