Author's note: This is my epilogue to current Ctrl+Alt+Del webcomic story (strip from 23.11.2012, "... Will"), because I wasn't satisified with original ending. Also, my first story ever published. Please read and review.

I woke up, lying on something cold and hard. My mind was cloudy and I spent ages (though it couldn't be more that few minutes) wondering "What the hell happened, where am I?". Underneath me was concrete floor, the air was stale and full of dust. My basement, I went down here to fetch my old game project files...

I tried to stand up and then the most intense pain I've ever felt shot through my head... and with it, came the images - at that point, calling them memories seemed absurd. Post-apocalyptic world ruled by Zeke and his army of robots... the other Ethan taking me there to stop me from fixing Embla and causing all of that... resistance catching me, then my escape... gunfight... other Ethan dying at the hand of that girl whose name I didn't even know... me, walking down to the machine through the torrent of green energy... pressing the button...

"Man, I must've hit my head really hard." I said to myself, feeling strange comfort hearing sound of my own voice. Standing up, I looked around - on of the boxes from the top of the time machine prototype fell down, probably it hit and knocked me down.

Then, feeling sweat trickling down my cheek I reached to wipe it - except, it wasn't sweat. When I took fingers away from my face they were blood red - yet, I didn't feel like I was hurt. I looked down on my shirt and saw that there was blood on it, too, splattered like...

My brain froze. "That's impossible... it couldn't be..." I didn't want to finish that thought. The blood looked like it was splattered after a gunshot. Gunshot killing other me. "So it was real..." I thought and then something clicked. "Lilah!" I ran out of basement as fast as I could and went straight for our bedroom. There she was, sleeping peacefully. Was she real? I had to know, so I reached to her face, stroking her cheek.

"L.. Li... Lilah? Lilah!" my voice was shaky. She stirred and then lazily opened her beautiful, hazel eyes.

"Mmm, Ethan? Wha... oh my God, what's happened to you?" her eyes shot open as she noticed blood on my face and clothes. Hearing her voice was too much, I grabbed and hugged her tightly and started crying.

"My God, Lilah... I thought I'll never see you again! That other Ethan..." I was babbling incoherently, spilling bits and pieces of the story.

"Ethan, calm down, I can't breathe" she said and I've relaxed my grip. "Now, tell me what has happened, you had a bad dream? Where's all that blood from?" I've felt her hand on my back, going slowly up and down, a gentle caress.

"It's ok Lilah, it's not my blood... well, it is but..." I stopped, not able to find words.

"Shhh, just tell me." she slid out of my grip and held me at arms length, a soft, warm and encouraging smile on her face.

So I did. With my head down, not having enough courage to look her in the eyes, I told her about other Ethan and all that went on in that other timeline, even about her death. Finally, having said everything, I looked up and our eyes met. I saw shock, mixed with disbelief and... something else, that I couldn't decipher though I was sure I know this.

"It's... I mean, did that really happened? Are you sure you didn't just fell down in the basement?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm sure. Check me over, I'm not injured and yet, this blood came from somewhere. Lilah, I was so scared. When I was pushing that button I thought that you will live rest of your life thinking that I've left you. But I had to do this, or else both these timelines would be destroyed." I said.

She looked me straight in the eyes and suddenly, the disbelief was gone, replaced by that other thing I saw earlier... and suddenly, I realized that it was love, and I didn't recognize it before because it was so great and pure. I gasped, feeling the force of that feeling wash over me. I knew that she saw the same thing in my eyes because she too gasped. We looked at each other, astonished by the strength of our bond. Then we leaned in and kissed, it was as that was our first kiss ever.

After indefinite amount of time our lips parted. "Lilah, I promise you - I will never leave you, and I will never let this world to go down the same path as that other timeline. I will protect you and our family no matter what it takes. I love you so much..."

"I know." she said. "I love you too". And the future was in her smile.

THE END