A/N: This fic is based on an an art piece on y!Gallery by 18Speckles, entitled, "Don't Cry." This is a stand alone story and is not connected to "Right Here Waiting." A bit of a spoiler for both Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney and Phoenix Wright: Trials & Tribulations.
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All Souls' Day has come around once again and Phoenix finds himself still grieving over the loss of his beloved parents twenty years earlier. Can Miles and a miracle pull Phoenix out of the depths of his despair?
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A rather somber and sobering piece for November. The trees look so bare and creepy in the Park across the street from our apartment building nearly stripped of all their leaves; it reminds me of gnarled and dying fingers reaching toward the sky...
Phoenix is really torn up with grief and that doesn't change no matter how many years pass after the person's death which I hope that I have managed to do both plausibly and believably; you still feel the sting even though you do come to accept the fact that they are truly gone at some point but the pain never goes away entirely. It just becomes easier to deal with. A very good friend of mine died twenty-six years ago and I still feel the sting of his loss every now and then though I have long since accepted it and moved on. I can also see Phoenix's parents not being really thrilled, at least not at first, about their son loving-and being loved by-a man. I think this is perfectly plausible since it would, I expect, come as a great shock to some parents.
Although it isn't specified specifically in the game, I'm sure that Misty Fey could easily be channeled by her daughter, Maya, if necessary. A bit of speculation on my part. :^) All Souls' Day, November 2nd, is celebrated in the Roman Catholic Church and the faithful departed are remembered in masses and prayers.
I hope that you enjoy the story and the little supernatural twist. :^)
Thanks to my readers and all those who have favourited, reviewed, story alerted, favourite author or author alerted me. I appreciate it more than I can say! :)
Special thanks to my beloved husband, DezoPenguin, for all his help, support, advice, nagging (when necessary) and encouragement! I appreciate it more than I can say! Love you!
Comments and suggestions are welcomed and appreciated!
Rated Teen, Tragedy/Hurt/Comfort, Phoenix & Edgeworth, Alternate universe
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November 2, 2041
Phoenix Wright & Miles Edgeworth Residence, Master Bedroom
Los Angeles, CA
9:55 A.M.
All Souls' Day
Phoenix Wright's Personal Diary
March 29, 2021
My mother and father died today in an accident outside of Santa Barbara, California. We had hoped that there was some mistake but can no longer deny the hard, painful truth. They're gone.
Those blunt words stared me in the face as I sat at the mahogany writing desk that chilly November morning, the red-checkered cover of my personal diary lying open and flat, my left hand pressed against the cream-colored pages, my right boxed under my chin. I looked at the leaves dancing by the window as the cold wind blew them where it would, deep in thought.
The leaves were mesmerizing as I watched them twist and writhe at the whim of the biting wind, wondering just how their crazy dance made them look as beautiful and vibrant as a still pond in the summertime, their brilliant colors lighting up the hazy grey of early November.
The clouds seemed like wispy smoke against the iron-grey color of the sky, drawn thinly across a great expanse, dim, watery sunlight shining down on the nearly naked, grasping trees with its thin, sickly rays.
Depressing.
I sighed deeply as I looked slowly down at the page my hand was lying on, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes, remembering my parents who'd died over twenty years earlier, feeling once more like a bereft orphan much the same as I had then. I closed my eyes, clenching my free hand into a fist so tightly my knuckles turned white from the exertion, trying to fight off the memories of that terrible day...
The policeman standing on the porch of our house, ringing the doorbell. When we answered the door, we saw him standing there, hat in hand, his craggy face telling us everything we needed to know even before we heard the terrible words: I'm truly sorry to have to bring you such sad news but your parents were killed in an accident earlier today outside of Santa Barbara...
I threw that memory away with a will, clenching my right hand into a fist and pounding the top of the desk until the pain blocked it out of my mind. I winced, cradling my wounded hand in my left hand, clenching my teeth. It took a few minutes but eventually the pain subsided and I made a mental note not to do something so foolish like that again. I had to admit, that it did accomplish what I had set out to do: provide a distraction from the relentless grief I was experiencing today.
Just like I all those years ago, I thought sadly, the corners of my mouth twitching, the familiar ache twisting in my heart like a poisonous snake. I guess some things never change even after twenty years.
I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, trying to find that place inside that I went to whenever I was upset and needed to get away from things for awhile; to my great chagrin, it seemed that I wasn't able to find that usual spot and I was greatly disturbed by this. I needed to get away if only for a few minutes in order to gain my equilibrium but it was proving to be an almost impossible task today. I just couldn't find that peaceful place and gave up after awhile, feeling very uneasy and unhappy.
I knew it would be a rough day but I wasn't expecting it to be this tough! I rubbed my red-rimmed eyes tiredly with my fingers. It always seems that this is always the day I feel like this, that my grief over the loss of my parents seems to be at its sharpest although they died in March. Strange, isn't it, that November 2nd is always the day I feel their loss most keenly and deeply and not in March? I don't understand why...
I watched the dancing leaves again for awhile before looking down at the printed words in my diary, feeling that same old grief surge through me once again, leaving anguish in its wake.
I wonder where Miles is...?
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November 2, 2041
Phoenix Wright & Miles Edgeworth Residence, Master Bedroom
Los Angeles, CA
3 P.M.
All Souls' Day
March 20, 2021
They're gone... they're really gone. I feel like an abandoned orphan and I can't help but to rail against the Fates for taking them from me. We still had things that we all wanted to do together, my parents, myself and Miles. There were places that we wanted to go to-like Ireland and Britain-and I can't help but feel cheated now that they can't go.
I also feel angry... and I'm not sure why. I feel terrible for even thinking it... I don't even want to admit it...
I'm angry at them for dying and leaving me all alone...
What does that say about me?
I'm a horrible son.
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November 2, 2041
Phoenix Wright & Miles Edgeworth Residence, Master Bedroom
Los Angeles, CA
5 P.M.
All Souls' Day
Dickens had expressed it best in Great Expectations: It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Looking back on it from the safe distance of twenty years, it was both the best and the worst time of my life: the best because Miles and I were living together as a couple and the worst because I had just found out that both of my parents had passed away, bringing my entire world crashing down around me.
I was very close to both my mother and father and their twin loss hit me like a ton of bricks. It also made me question the direction I was taking in my life, whether all of the hard work I was pouring into my career as a defence attorney was really worth it and what I was to do now that both of my parents were gone.
The hardest thing I've had to do in my life, other than to cope with Miles disappearing from my life for three years and the hell we went through repairing the trust and closeness we'd once had, was to go to their home two weeks after their deaths to sort through their personal belongings, accompanied by my siblings and their respective families.
It was bad enough that the pain and grief of their untimely passing was still raw and fresh but, the sheer necessity of going through their possessions made it even worse and brought the fact firmly home that they really were dead. It was a task that we all dreaded, in one way or another, to decide who was going to take what and what to give away. We sorted throughout the next three days in silence, broken only by the occasional sobs of my siblings and myself.
Even though twenty years have passed since their deaths, the pain is still as raw and fresh even now as it was back then when I first received the news. I can feel tears welling up in my eyes as I sit here and write this. Thank God that I had Miles or I am sure that I would have simply given up on both life and living as I was so consumed with the heart-wrenching pain at their passing.
I can still remember the day that I came out of the closet, as it were, and told my parents that Miles Edgeworth and I were lovers and the crypt-like silence that followed that proclamation. My Dad swallowed hard and my Mom's eyes echoed clearly the shocked look on her face. I had felt that, since both Miles and I appeared in the paper more often than not over our newest courtroom victory, that it would only be a matter of time before our relationship was exposed to the world and I wanted them to hear it from me first, rather than some nosey reporter who may or may not have had a specific agenda in mind.
Even though they weren't exactly thrilled with the discovery that their son loved-and was loved by-a beautiful man (at least not in the beginning), they soon came around once they met Miles, much to my-and I'm certain his, as well-relief. I shudder to think what would have happened had they not; knowing what I know now, it would have made their loss thirty times worse than it was over having left a festering wound in our relationship because of whom I fell in love with.
I couldn't have lived a lie and they would have found out the truth sooner or later at any rate so I felt that the best course of action was to lay it all out on the table from the start and let the chips fall where they would. Had they disapproved, I would have still continued to see Miles and left it at that; I wouldn't give him up and I made that very clear to them from the outset when the subject first came up.
They were a little surprised at the strong stance I took on this issue-I was twenty-nine years old at this point and had never raised my voice once to them in all that time-so my passionate defence of my beloved surprised me, as well. I suppose that when one is defending the person that they love, they can become very protective; although it also put our relationship under strain for awhile, they eventually came around when they saw that I wasn't about to give Miles up.
The invitation to dinner that came a few weeks after our confrontation for both Miles and myself to attend really surprised me but Miles didn't seem to be the least perturbed about it; he simply accepted it and went to choose his wardrobe for the evening leaving me standing there with a stunned expression on my face, questions flooding my mind as to the precise nature of this invitation.
My parents and myself hadn't exactly parted on friendly terms a few weeks earlier so to say that I was nervous about the whole thing was an understatement but Miles simply went about his business with an unconcerned air, treating it as if it were just another day in court which, I must admit, did much to calm me.
The dinner that evening was an unparalleled success. Miles was at his most charming and he pulled out all the stops to make the evening quite a pleasant and enjoyable one. My mother declared that Miles was a fine young man and, even though they would have preferred me to fall in love with a woman, both of them could see how much we meant to each other and posed no further objections to our relationship.
Which was just as well since I was more than willing to walk away from it should the need have presented itself and both of my parents knew it. I suppose that, when they considered the loss of a son because his partner was male, it really didn't make any sense. I loved Miles and he loved me; that was all that was really important to Miles and myself and they could clearly see that we were very happy together.
At any rate, that was the last we ever heard of that particular objection and went on to have quite a pleasant evening, all four of us enjoying ourselves and enjoying the play we took in later after dinner at the theatre, Miles having been able to procure four tickets. My parents were thrilled and so was I; we had wanted to see this play for quite some time-I'm surprised that Miles never rolled his eyes every time I mentioned that-and it was a beautiful way to end the evening.
Later on, after we had said goodbye to my Mom and Dad and were snuggling together in bed, Miles remarked that he really liked my parents and found them to be quite amiable company, especially my Mom who had, as my Dad liked to say, the proverbial "gift of gab." I chuckled at that; Mom always loved to chat while my more reserved father tended to let her take the bit and run with it.
I had often wondered, when I was growing up, at just how they managed to get along with such diverse personalities; even though they were very different people in many ways, they truly loved and were in love with each other, accepting their unconventional personal differences with a mixture of affection and humor.
I often wonder what might have been but all that came to a screeching halt that terrible day twenty years earlier. My parents were due to drive out to California, making a brief stop in Carmel to see my younger brother and his family before swinging over to L.A.
We weren't overly concerned when they didn't show up on time; on these long road trips, they were often late so we weren't worried... at first. As time went on and the minutes turned into hours, we began to get the very distinct feeling that something was amiss but tried not to give in to what may simply have been our imaginations. As Miles later expressed it, we were living on a hope and a prayer during those hours; we didn't know at the time that this would be the last "normal" day in what would turn out to be a previous life.
When my younger brother and his wife called a few hours later to ask if Mom & Dad were at our place since they hadn't heard from them since they'd left Carmel, this cemented the terrible feeling we'd both had that there was something horrifically wrong . We continued to hope against hope that it was all a mistake and that they would be walking through that door any minute, smiling and laughing as they always were.
The denouement came an hour later when a policeman, his craggy face wreathed with sympathy, showed up at our doorstep to tell us that my parents had been killed in a car accident a few hours earlier outside of Santa Barbara. The bottom fell out of my world in that instant; thankfully, my memory is vague about what happened after the news was delivered although I was told that I fainted and had to be sedated when I came to.
I kept calling for my parents when I was conscious and tossed and turned when I wasn't, words, half-garbled and unintelligible, pouring from my lips. All in all, Miles stayed by my side for months until the grief ebbed sufficiently that I was able to accept that my parents were gone and that I would never see them again.
I don't know what I would have done if Miles hadn't stuck by me during those first terrible grief-stricken months although I was happy that my parents accepted-and genuinely liked-Miles as my lover; at least that gave me some measure of comfort, however small, that our last words hadn't been angry ones. If they had been, the guilt and pain I felt would have been so much greater and I doubt that I would have ever gotten over it.
Quite literally, Miles saved my life and I couldn't express the deep gratitude I felt to him for helping me pull through this difficult time. I shudder to think what would have happened had I not had him and my gratitude is heart-felt.
I wish I would have treated him better. I winced as I remembered how cold I'd been to him at times, pushing him away when all he wanted to do was comfort me. No matter what he says, I can't forgive myself for that.
I opened my diary again, my eye falling on this entry, a stab of pain going through my heart as read it...
November 19th, 2021
We went to visit Mom & Dad's grave site today and, despite a chilling, biting wind, it was strangely peaceful. Miles and I stood by the gravesite, my hand clutching his tightly in my own. When I think of how things may have gone if I hadn't had him by my side in these past few difficult months, I don't know how I would have been able to cope with this tragedy.
We stood there for some time, each thinking our own private thoughts. I couldn't help but feel guilty as I stood there staring at the joint headstone, carved hearts and roses intertwined around their names and date of death; a myriad of ridiculous thoughts and notions crowded into my head and I shook it in a vain attempt to try and dislodge them. I couldn't stop the two tears that trickled down my cheeks nor the loud snuffle that shortly followed and I could feel Miles turn to look at me and his hand, squeezing mine tightly, spoke volumes.
I knew that their deaths weren't my fault but I couldn't help but feel partially responsible. If only I hadn't have told them the truth about myself and Miles... If only I wasn't attracted to men... If only I could have been the man they wanted me to be in the beginning...
If only...
If only...
If only...
I could waste a lifetime repeating the same words over and over, ad infinitum, and it wouldn't bring my parents back. I suppose it was at that moment when I realized that they really were gone,that they weren't coming back.
I felt like an orphan-as, indeed, I was now-abandoned to the whims of Fate; Miles' love kept me together in the dark days to follow and I was grateful for his presence even though I felt guilty every time I looked at him for some time afterward.
It wasn't his fault; it was mine. I think on some level he knew what I was struggling to come to terms with and, though it hurt him, he took a mini-vacation for a few days, leaving me alone to come to grips with my parents' deaths and get a hold of myself in the process.
I missed him terribly during those few days but, in the end, it turned out to have been a good decision as far as getting myself together went; I hated being apart from him but it was necessary for the healing process to begin. Every time I think back on those terrible days and months following, it never fails to make me feel ashamed. Miles doesn't hold it against me but I do. I don't think I will ever be able to forgive myself for that...
And then this entry...
December 15, 2021
I couldn't believe what I have done today. Miles wanted to comfort me and I pushed him away, screaming at him to go away and telling him that I hated him because he was alive while my parents were dead.
He stood stock still after that horrible volley, his eyes wide open with shock. I stood there, trembling and sick at heart, wishing with all of my heart that I could have taken those terrible words back. He never said a word as he slowly turned and left the room while I crumpled to the floor, crying myself to sleep...
And this one following...
January 1, 2022
A New Year has come... and my heart still aches. The pain isn't too bad today but I still hurt; little things that once gave me pleasure no longer do and I find myself wishing, more often than not, that the ground would open up underneath me and swallow me. I hate the world...
Miles doesn't say much and I can't really blame him; the last few months have been hard on him, too. Trying to hold down a fulltime job and deal with a shattered mate is tough... I do miss his presence, and long for him to hold me...
There were times, in the past three months, that I pushed him away, particularly when the pain of losing my parents was too much for me to bear and I couldn't stomach the thought of someone being near me, let alone even touching me. I could honestly say that I hated Miles for being alive when my parents were dead and I remember all too well the horror that filled me when this nasty little tidbit flittered past in my mind.
What could he possibly see, or love, in this shattered relic that is my body?
I miss my Mom and Dad...
I can't bear the pain any longer...
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November 2, 2041
Phoenix Wright & Miles Edgeworth Residence, Master Bedroom
Los Angeles, CA
7 P.M.
All Souls' Day
I didn't realize that Miles was behind me until he spoke. I've often wondered since if he had been there long enough to read some of what I had written all those years ago. I flushed guiltily as I thought of it.
"Wright," I heard Miles' gentle voice say behind me and I jumped, startled, when I felt his arms wrap around me and hold me tightly against him, "I've never held that against you. I knew that you weren't angry with me, per se, and that you needed some time away to work through your feelings." He nuzzled the back of my neck with his nose. "I never took it personally."
I nodded, swallowing hard over the lump in my throat.
"I... know..." I said hoarsely, my voice thick with tears. "But..."
Miles sighed, burying his face in the nape of my neck. I could feel the trembling of his lips against my neck, his breath hot and sweet against my flushed skin.
"I wish you could get past that," he whispered, holding my trembling body close to his, his fingers digging deep into my hair. "I knew why you needed some space and I knew that you needed some time to yourself to sort things out. As I said, I never took it personally."
"I... know that," I replied, my voice hoarse and choked with sobs, turning around to face him and burying my face deeper in his neck, trying to swallow over the lump in my throat so large that it threatened to choke me, "but-"
"No 'buts,'" Miles said firmly, moving his head so that his chin was lying on top of my head, "you need to get past this needless guilt, Phoenix. It wasn't your fault; none of this is your fault. None of it!"
He gently put me from him and I was surprised to see a solitary tear roll down his cheek when he looked at me. "You were hurting and lashed out in anger; I knew that and decided to give you the space you needed to grieve. It was hard to do but I did it and, when you needed me, I was there."
My mouth struggled to form the words as the lump in my throat grew larger. "But-"
He smiled sadly at me and I could feel his arms tightening around me once again, holding me so close to him that I could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He didn't say anything for some time, the silence in the room becoming almost deafening as the minutes ticked by.
"Miles, I-" I began but he didn't give me a chance to verbalize the protest that was bubbling up from deep within as he gently pressed his mouth to mine, a muffled exclamation of surprise coming from me as he did so. The kiss lasted for some time, his mouth gently moving against mine, his hands gently and tenderly caressing my back in small, intimate circles.
After the first few moments, once the element of surprise wore off, I found myself kissing him back, clutching him tightly as I were a drowning man and he was a life preserver. Which, ironically enough, he truly was. Just as I had saved his life all those years ago, so now did he save me from the crushing blow that hadn't healed in over twenty years.
We parted, our lips slowly disengaging. We looked at each other for awhile, his grey eyes shining as they looked into my momentarily stunned blues and, at that moment, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was, indeed, the perfect one for me; and that, in choosing to re-establish a connection with him, that I had, indeed, done the right thing.
"I love you, Phoenix," Miles said, his right hand coming up to cup the left side of my face, his fingers gently tracing invisible patterns on my skin, "and I'm always here for you if you need me. Always."
"I know." I gently rubbed his nose with mine, a dazzling smile that took my breath away spreading over his face, the ghost of a smile tugging at the corners of my mouth. "I love you, too, Miles."
"I'm always with you," Miles whispered tenderly, smoothing my hair back from my forehead, pressing his cheek against the top of my head and closing his eyes, reveling in the shared intimacy between us, "and you're never alone. If you need me, I'm always here." He looked into my eyes. "You don't need to hold it in any longer, Phoenix; let it go. I'm here."
Thank God! Deep, wracking sobs burst from me with surprising vehemence as I allowed myself to truly mourn at long, long last, the pain and grief I felt finding release. I don't know what I would do without him!
Through it all, Miles was there with me, holding me, supporting me and, most of all, loving me, giving me the shoulder that I needed so badly. I heard his sweet, tender voice whispering words of comfort and love in equal measure and the pain in my aching heart finally, after all this time, began to subside to allow the healing process to really begin.
I couldn't have asked for more than the precious gift of himself that he so freely gave to me and sometime later, as we sat there in each others arms, I thought that I heard a faint whisper in the stillness and saw twin flickers of white out of the corner of my eye, dancing joyfully on the dust motes that hung in the air from the overhead light.
My eyebrow raised as I slowly moved back from a little in order to see them a bit better and was stunned to see that they were twisting in joy.
"Miles," I whispered, lifting a shaking finger and pointing to the tiny white flickers that hovered close to my face, blinking my eyes rapidly a few times in order to clear my vision. "Do you see what I see or am I only imagining it?"
"What...?" he asked, his voice full of honest bewilderment with a mix of fear and amazement.
"Over there," I replied, my tone uncertain, my hand trembling.
He looked to where I pointed, his eyes narrowing. At first, he didn't see anything and was about to say so when something captured his attention; after a few moments, his eyes grew wide as he, too, saw the dancing white flickers of light. They were so close that I didn't think it would cause any harm to touch them and that was what I did, slowly reaching out and poking the closest one gently with the tip of my finger. I wasn't at all sure what I was expecting to happen but I did gasp in surprise when, after I touched it, I felt a warm, peaceful feeling rush over me like a tidal wave, feeling a very pleasant tingling sensation that ran through my entire body from my head to my feet.
Holy Toledo, what was that?!
"Miles...!" I gasped in surprise, jerking my finger away as Miles, startled by my sudden reaction, looked blankly at me for a few seconds, his expression definitely one of puzzlement. "You...I...it's..." I was having trouble trying to verbalize my thoughts for they were in such a twisted jumble that it was difficult to sort them out as they flashed though my mind at a terrific pace. I did my best, though, for there was something about these flickers that felt... familiar ... somehow and that was a part of the puzzle that both intrigued and frightened me in equal measure.
That's odd, I thought, worrying my lower lip thoughtfully with my teeth as I tried to get things sorted out mentally, Miles looking on with concern etched clearly on his face. I wonder why there's that sense of familiarity about those flickers and the feeling of peace that comes with them. It just doesn't make any logical sense, unless...
My eyes widened. Unless...
As if to underscore my thought, the flickers danced closer, touching my cheeks lightly and then doing the same to Miles before they slowly faded from sight. Neither Miles nor I said anything for some time, each of us lost in our own private thoughts, digesting what had just occurred. When we looked at each other again some moments later, we had the same stunned expression on our faces as we tried to come to terms with what had just happened... and trying to find a reason of why it had happened.
Miles broke the silence first, his tone subdued.
"Those flickers of light... what were they?" he asked, his eyebrow furrowing.
"I think-although I am by no means certain-that they were Mom and Dad coming to say goodbye," I replied, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, "and to let me know that they're okay."
Miles' eyebrow rose but he made no comment for some time and then nodded his head sagely, closing his eyes.
"I suspect," he said slowly, "that you are probably correct in that assumption."
"I don't know of anyone else it could have been; it wouldn't be Mia since she comes through Maya and I doubt that it would be Misty Fey for the same reason. Therefore, it makes much more sense if it's my Mom and Dad." My eyes misted as my voice caught; Miles noticed at once and held me tight, kissing the back of my head tenderly. "I loved them so much and I really miss them!"
Miles nodded.
"I know," he whispered, "I miss them, too." He took a deep breath and exhaled quickly. "They were the most kind and gentle people I'd ever known... and I still mourn their loss, just like I do my father's." He smiled at me sadly as I reached up and tenderly caressed his skin with my fingertips, his usually stoic grey eyes sad and filled with unspoken pain. "I miss him, too, and I wish he was still here."
I had been so immersed in my own misery that I hadn't given a thought to his; I was about to apologize for overlooking his unspoken grief but he shook his head as I opened my mouth to do so, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth and kissing the top of my head, his grip on me tightening.
He did this every time when I opened my mouth and it occurred to me, belatedly, that he must have known in which direction my thoughts were going. I silently marveled anew at the depth of Miles' love for me as his message finally got through to me: All was forgiven and he wanted to make sure that I both knew and was in no doubt of it.
I didn't say anything after that for some time, cuddled protectively in Miles' sweet embrace. When I at last did speak, a sweet, proud smile on my face, I looked once again out of the window into the dark night at the myriad of shining stars, two of the closest which seemed to shine more brilliantly than the others.
I gasped in wonder as I saw them and Miles also noticed them when he looked out of the window after me, his gaze one of wonder and profound respect. The twin stars twinkled merrily in the dark night sky and I couldn't help but to feel a little overwhelmed as the message that they had been sent to bring had, at last, finally made itself known to my aching heart: "Our bodies may be dead but our spirits shine brightly. We may not be nearly you physically but, as long as you remember us, we'll always be with you. We love you, and we miss you, and eagerly await the day when you and Miles will be reunited with us. Always look forward, beloved son; never look back..."
I looked out of the window for some time in silence before I spoke and, when I did, it was in a voice tinged with both the deepest love and respect. Miles squeezed me tightly as I sat back in his embrace, my heart lighter than it had been in years. I had begun the healing process at last and I now looked forward to a bright future with Miles by my side, knowing that my parents would always be there watching over me.
"Thank you, Mom and Dad," I whispered gratefully, my eyes beginning to well up again, Miles' chin resting on the top of my head once again. "Thank you."