Final chapter, everyone. Thanks to the few of you that consistently read the chapters being posted. You're the best readers an author can ask for.

Clare's POV:

We all hopped into out respective family's cars and hurried off to the police station. Audra was furious, she had already lost one son; she didn't need to lose another.

Dallas talked to the detectives working my case. An eyewitness report was the least reliable type of evidence, but it was all we had for the moment.

The trip to the station took about two hours, then we were back out at our cars.

"I'm sorry Mrs. Martin, Clare, for accusing you of falsely blaming my son. And I'm sorry for what he has done to your daughter," Audra apologized politely.

"No matter. You were protecting him however you could. I am sorry you must go through this," my mom said.

"It'll all work out in the end," the Torres' mom said as she climbed into her car, where the two boys were glaring angrily straight ahead. She waved goodbye and drove off.

I turned to my mom. "Could you drop me off at Eli's, please?" I asked as politely as I could muster.

"Yes, oh, sure, honey," she responded, opening up the driver's side door. I got in the passenger side. As we were pulling away from the police station parking lot, my mom asked, "So, are you and Eli back together?"

I had to think about it. I knew I wanted to be, but did he? Did he want to be with a girl as damaged as I am? "No, mom. We are just friends right now," I finally answered.

"Do you still love him?" She asked. It felt weird to be talking about my love life with my mom, but after all we had been through in the previous couple days, I felt as if I didn't want to hide anything from her.

"Of course I do," I responded, looking at her as if she had two heads.

"If I have learned anything in the last few years, it is that if you love someone as much as I know you do Eli, you don't waste any time with anyone else, or contemplating being with them. I'm sorry if this makes you feel weirdly, but I have noticed how much your esteem fell when you two parted."

She was making valid points, and I would be an idiot not to follow her advice.

"Is that what you did with Glen?" I asked, curious.

"Actually, no. I wish I had, though. We sort of drifted together without any grand gestures," she explained.

"I see," I said, thinking about Eli. "Are you okay with me being with him?"

"Whatever makes you happy," she answered, indecisively. I hate when parents do that, it doesn't help me make the right decision, one that will be right for everyone that matters.

"Yes or no, mom. I don't want you to be upset with me because I chose someone you don't like," I said, exasperated with her.

"He has been there for you in ways that I could never be. You let him in. I am resentful of that in some aspects. However, having someone in your life like that is everything and more than I have wished for you. So, yes, I very much approve of him." She was in tears, this time of the happy variety.

I smiled at her, "Thank you, mom. I love you," I said.

"I love you, too, sweetie," she replied.

We rode the final few minutes to the Goldsworthy house in silence, save for the sniffles coming from my mom's post-cry.

She pulled up in front of the house to let me out.

"I won't wait up," she said, smiling at me, trust in her eyes.

"Thanks, mom," I said, closing the car door and hopping up the steps to Eli's front door. I knocked three times in succession. Bullfrog answered the door about thirty second later.

"Clare! We were wondering when we were going to see you again," he opened his arms, accepting me in a hug. I wrapped my arms around him in return.

"Where is that son of yours?" I asked after stepping through the doorway into the house.

"Where else? In his room," he growled, winking at me.

I smiled and said my thanks, running down the stairs to the room with the door closed.

I didn't bother knocking. As I turned the knob, I asked, "Is everyone decent in here?"

He smiled from where he was sitting on the bed, reading a comic book. "What's up, Clare?" He greeted me.

"Not very much. Just a bit of evidence that helps my case popped up today," I told him, barely able to contain my excitement.

He sat up straighter, curiosity radiating off him, "What are you talking about?"

"Even if it's sort of embarrassing, Dallas saw what Drew did to me, and he told his story to the detectives today." I grinned at the love of my life.

"That's amazing, Clare!" He said, getting up from his bed and hugging me, lifting me off the floor and twirling once in a circle.

I was laughing, head thrown back, feeling careless in his arms.

He set me back down gracefully on my feet.

"You look good, Edwards," he observed, smirk adorning his face.

"You're not so bad yourself, Goldsworthy," I shot back, grinning at him.

He gestured to his bed as an invitation to take a seat. I did so and watched him do the same across from me.

"Do you want to talk about that little outburst you had in the van Monday" he asked, getting serious suddenly.

"I meant it, Eli. I will always mean it. I love you. How you have been through this nightmare only solidifies it. I want to be with you for the rest of my life." I was ready to spill all my feelings, there is nothing I could say I would ever regret.

"I need to know that you're all in," he said simply, just like a year ago when we were in the Torres' backyard. So much has changed since then.

"Eli, I am all in," I leaned forward and kissed him.

His arms wrapped around my body, keeping me safe from whatever horrors may come to attack and claim me.

My hands were clasped behind his neck, gently pulling him into me.

There was, there is no other place I would rather be than in his embrace.

He pulled away from me, "I love you, Clare."

"Forever and always," I responded locking my blue-eyed gaze with his green one. "Forever and always."

This is it, guys. Let me know what you thought of it below. Thanks for reading!

-Babygirl669