Epilogue

 

A New Page

 

~

 

This is what normal feels like. Hand in hand, walking across campus with warm sunshine on our faces instead of a constant tracking over our shoulders.

 

We keep our slow pace with arms swinging. Shan and I have completed our finals, now officially finished with our second year. Now, summer approaches with internships and free time to spend with each other. Travel and living a normal life away from the stressors of our past will be our shared futures, ones we both look forward to as the school year comes to a close.

Shan, now officially Shan Bends, joined his sister and mother in changing his last name to his mother’s maiden name. My boyfriend, officially since our just friends zone ended over the spring break we’ll never forget, made the decision in hopes of closing the door to a past he’d rather forget. Forget? Never. And to forgive? Impossible, but time and love can lessen the memory. Yet those painful parts of his past will be shoved aside, replaced by ones of caring, of loving me, and with a life lived without the evils of his past.

The birds, now releasing their babies from the springtime nests to learn on their own, fill the campus with sounds. Only a few others walk around with us; the other students are either completing finals or at the end-of-year celebrations in town. Neither Shan nor I will be joining our friends and roommates; instead, we walk hand in hand, opting to explore one of the trails around campus while we prepare to meet our families for dinner in the city.

“You don’t have to be nervous. I know my family will love you.” My smile is in tandem with a squeeze to his hand.

“Oh, yeah?” he asks while coming to a stop and pulling me into his arms. “How do you know that?”

“Because I love you. And because they know what you’ve done for me and that you have and will take care of me.”

“Always,” he promises, and seals it with a kiss.

We are surrounded by the sounds of summer. Chirps, rustles, and scurries fill the air with life. My life, Shan’s life, our lives, and we spend them together.

“Always,” I repeat before we kiss again, holding each other in the freedom of a future of our own making.

There’s nothing to trap us, and we have each other to protect our hearts from now on.