Hey, hey, hey! Welcome to the third Far From Perfection in this trilogy! I have been dying to post this since I wrapped up the sequel, but with great restraint I decided to wait until the 30th since that is exactly two years to the day since I posted the first chapter of Far From Perfection 2.

So, one thing you may note is that the perspective changes. After writing the first two stories in first person, I have changed to third person. Partly because third person feels like the more proper way of writing and partly for myself to be able to explore a different writing style after so many years.


Chapter One: Even Fairytale Characters Would Be Jealous

This tale is set not too long after the high school reunion and not too long after everyone in the group brought their own exciting news to share at Mako Island.

It is not too long after Will and Bella announced their engagement.

It is not too long after Cleo and Lewis shared their son's unsurprising merman developments, which then triggered them to move out.

It is not too long after Rikki and Zane announced that despite their hiccups, they weren't planning to give up their marriage anytime soon.

It is not too long after Emma and Ash's revelation they are moving home to Australia once again and returning to Queensland.

It is not too long after everyone's lives well and truly appeared to be back on track, with their bright shiny futures, only needing to walk in a straight line.


The scene is set as evening begins to roll in and the temperature begins to drop, bringing in a cooler breeze on a summer's evening to the esplanade of Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast.

Nine adults, a five year old and a two month old baby are all set up and comfortable far closer to the cement than the cold water from their consecutive positions up on the shore. The group create a messy circle around the centrepiece; a large piece of butchers paper where their oily, salty hot-chips dinner is sitting on the sand.

The couples are all casually collapsed into each other to some degree, Tam nurses the youngest of the group, while the second youngest gleefully runs circles around the group, alternating between trying to feed or chasing seagulls.

Conversation comes and goes in waves as the adults add to or just sit back and listen to the chatter as they please, with no discomfort or awkwardness in the few and far between moments when the group goes quiet.

Everyone is comfortable, everyone is content, but most of all, everyone is happy.

Among the chatter, everyone's lives are thriving while they all float along happily within their own little bubbles and in their own little worlds.

No one wants to even consider, let alone welcome, anything that might bring any one of them down from the high in their lives or that might threaten their happiness.


"That was a really good night, hey?" Cleo mentions, conversing with her husband as they arrive home to their new flat after their afternoon and evening they had spent at the beach with their mutual friends.

From the bathroom, a mere room away, Lewis replies while bathing their son.

"It sure was. Hey, how much longer are Em and Ash staying down here for before they move up to Brizzy?"

"I'm not too sure. 10 days? A fortnight, maybe?"

The couple's friend and her boyfriend from way back had recently returned to their home country after travelling, working and living abroad since high school. After making the decision to move home, she has had great difficulty in finding a place that meets her meticulous standards and is within her price range. So, Emma had been forced to broaden their apartment-hunting boundaries before she had eventually found an apartment just north of Brisbane.

That particular conversation comes to end as soon as Lewis has his answer before minutes later, Cleo hears tiny squeals and more manly chuckles originating from the bathroom of their flat. The noise is music to the wife-slash-mother's ears.

"What mischief are you boys getting up to in here?"

As Cleo stands in the open doorway between the bathroom and the hallway, she overlooks and watches her husband crouching beside the bath where the little, tailed baby is happily splashing in his baby bath.

"Gosh, this kid loves bath-time" Lewis muses, continuing to scatter little handfuls of water over Lincoln, much to his delight.

"Can you blame him? I can't believe that I spent so much of my life hating the water."

The couple continue to watch their son, absorbing his happiness for close to half an hour before it gets a little too cold for the baby to continue in the water and bedtime approaches for the family of three.

Watching their son fall asleep within his much bigger bassinette, Cleo sighs contentedly.

"Link is great. Life is great..."


"So, the 13th of August. 4 months away. We have got so much that we have to organise before then. Have you got any thoughts or ideas for the wedding?"

"Well, I've been thinking it should probably be legal...?"

Will's response that is equally coy as it is unhelpful simply results in a disapproving eye roll from his fiancée.

"Well, that's some completely helpful advice right there. Seriously, I should just let you be in charge of the entire thing..." Bella trails off, unimpressed, before the male and the elder of the two grabs her wrists, pulling her in his direction as Will's blue eyes concentrate on meeting Bella's own turquoise ones.

"Listen, I'm not too fussed because I just know that my beautiful bride is the most important thing to me on the day. The other stuff is just minor details to me."

Bella lights up at Will's response, showing her approval as she presses a kiss to his cheek.

"Aw, good answer mister."

Will smiles briefly before the smile evolves into a smirk, with his sense of humour ruining the good work of his previous comment.

"... Yeah, so just as long as Miranda Kerr turns up, it'll be all good."

This comment is not as warmly welcomed by the blonde, which she lets him know of by pushing her hands off of him.

"You better watch it bud or I'll remember that comment come wedding night."

Bella takes point-one of a second to take a quick breath before returning to her wedding planning focus.

"Now, Allie insists on choosing her own flower-girl dress... I'll take Cleo dress shopping sometime soon. She's the maid of honour so she'll want most input, plus I think Rikki would much rather I grab her measurements off her and order the dress on her behalf."

"Of course she does. And I'll bet you that Miss Allie will be looking like a mini-Elsa on the day..."

"Amen to that. So how's it going with you guys suits? Have you looked into any for you boys? When I know the girl's dress colour I'll let you know to coordinate your ties."

Will simply shakes his head, while Bella furrows her brow.

"Will? If you were having any second thoughts about our wedding, you'd let me know, right? I'd much rather calling it off than being left at the altar or having you feeling forced into a marriage."

This time it is Will's turn to furrow his brow, as though what Bella's saying is unthinkable.

"What do you mean? Why would you think that I'm having second thoughts? Which I'm not, for the record."

"You just don't seem very committed to the wedding... You kept holding off and holding off asking Zane to be best man and Lewis to be your groomsman until last week. And that was probably the easiest decision for you to make. It was so obvious that Zane had basically already finished writing his best man speech before you even asked him formally."

Sensing his fiancée's insecurities, Will leads them both to the lounge, taking a seat before directing Bella onto his lap.

"Please don't doubt the fact that I want our wedding to go ahead. I'm sorry if I've found it a little hard to get into, it's just-."

"It's just-? It's just what, Will?" Bella encourages, urging her partner to finish his sentence which has her on edge.

"Nothing. It's just nothing, don't worry about it."

Will presses a kiss to the top of Bella's hair soothingly, but Bella hangs onto her thoughts, wondering and coming to her own conclusions of the words that just might have been supposed to the follow Will's 'it's just-'.


"Ew, ew, ew! I'm gouging my poor little eyes out here" Tam exclaims, carrying on dramatically upon walking into the intimate scene that is playing out in the lounge room. It is later in the evening and after they had all returned home from the beach.

The youngest of the share household rushes right on past the loved-up couple to reach the kitchen, giving a running commentary of her burning eyes for the next minute which the couple uses to their advantage to get off the lounge and straighten up their clothing.

"Oh stop your whinging. Unless you're under 15 or a nun, it's nothing you haven't seen before, Tamsin" Rikki unsympathetically states as she follows her sister through to the kitchen. "Besides, shouldn't you be delighted for me that my marriage is thriving?"

"That's not quite the word that I'd use for it, but yes I am happy for you... as long as you take that love and keep it in your room. This is a share-house, Rikki.. It could've been Will and Will could've had Allie with him!"

"Lucky them - free entertainment."

Tam just rolls her eyes at her frustrating elder sister, taking a moment to seriously consider who the oldest of the two really is. After her disapproval of her sister's comments, Tam takes a moment to scan her surroundings, looking out beyond the kitchen to check whether or not her brother-in-law is in sight or within hearing range.

"Rikki? I'm glad that you and Zane seem to be closer, but knowing you two, you haven't just brushed the problems under the mat and left them to all build up again, have you? It's just that one day it looked like you might have been closer to breaking up, but then next thing you were all over each other again."

The elder of the two rolls her eyes.

"A, I'm not sure why it's any of your business. B, I don't know why you'd think that."

Tam sighs.

"It's because I know what you're both like. You're experts at shutting problems out. And I only asked you that because I care about you. And I wanted to make sure that in 'loved-up land' you still understand that there's more to a relationship than the physical."

"Yes, Tam. Don't worry you're pretty little head. What happened over the last eight months or so is in the past now. We've dealt with it and moved on and moved past it together. It's all good, Tam."

Rikki attempts to reassure, with a smile to convince her sister, but whether she is successful or not is very much open to interpretation...


This tale is set not too long after the high school reunion and not too long after everyone in the group brought their own exciting news to share at Mako Island.

However, just as anyone over the age of ten recognises that every fairytale is too good to be true, the same goes for this group of friends when in that moment at the beach, their lives seem completely picturesque.

In fact, their lives are just so good that even fairytale characters would be jealous.

... Life is just that little bit too good.


And there you have the first chapter! I am so excited to be sharing this with you all. I'm very proud of Far From Perfection 3 so far and I can't wait to share all the plots that will be starting very, very soon!

So far, on the surface everything looks great. But, what storm is already brewing for Bella & Will? Any thoughts on what was going to come after Will's "it's just-"? As for Cleo & Lewis and Rikki & Zane, well, their time will come.

I'll update after 15-ish reviews, or so.

Next chapter: How can one phone call change everything? One couple has a big decision to make.