A/N: To the guest reviewer who left the really long and really, really sweet review to chapter 9: Thank you so much! Your review was just what I needed on what turned out to be kind of a rough Saturday. I'm flattered beyond words that you think so highly of my writing, honestly, because this was my first A&A fic and probably the first fanfic I've actually felt driven to finish as fast as I could, and I wasn't really expecting it to make much of a splash. At the moment, I'm just a nearly-broke 19-year-old college junior studying a STEM field and tearing her hair out because ALL THE MATH (I have a love-hate relationship with my field of study), so I have no plans to become a published writer…but, hey, who knows what could happen in the next ten years?

Anyway, I can't believe I've actually finished a multi-chap in about two months. I swear, Austin & Ally has consumed my entire existence…

So…Here's the epilogue. I almost decided to scrap this and end the story as it was, but then I figured you guys deserved some fluff after all the angst and drama I put you through. I hope this was worth the wait.

Warning: Fluff. And a little innuendo. (They're 17, not 7, after all.) And then more fluff.

No spoilers. Usual disclaimer applies. I own nothing.

Ally woke up on Sunday morning, her senses flooded by Austin's scent after a particularly romantic dream involving the aforementioned boy and a sailboat ride into the sunset.

(Even though the sun sets in the west. So sailing into the sunset in Miami would technically involve running one's boat aground.)

"Ho hum, I really need to return this jacket to him," she thought groggily, feeling around for the flaps to pull them more tightly around herself.

Then she felt her right arm pinned against something warm and solid and discovered that that same warm and heavy something was draped around her shoulders. She opened her eyes and realized that she was cuddling with Austin on the sofa in the practice room, herself cradled against him, legs draped across his lap with her head on his shoulder. (Was it clichéd to marvel at how perfectly they fit together?) Her free hand lay on his chest, the regular rise and fall of it, along with the steadiness of his heartbeat under her palm, reassuring her that he was, in fact, real as the little purplish mark on his neck that she had just discovered was millimeters from her now reddening face.

And then she was fully awake as the events of the previous night came rushing back—how they'd slow danced to a few more songs and then made out on the couch until they passed out from exhaustion—and she had to bite the insides of her cheeks to keep from screaming with joy and possibly scaring Austin half to death.

She glanced in her lap and noticed that the little notification light on her phone was blinking.

To: Ally
From: Dad
9:02 a.m.
Hi, honey! Thought you might want to have this. Congrats!

It was a photo of her and Austin snuggling, still fast asleep. Lester must have snapped it earlier that morning when he arrived to open Sonic Boom.

Aww thanks, Dad.

Then she realized that it was nearly 11 a.m. She was probably needed downstairs in the store, and Austin was probably going to get mad at her for getting his favorite band shirt horribly wrinkled, and her stomach probably hated her for not eating anything since the one tortilla chip she'd snagged at Trish's last night…but she couldn't get off the couch without waking Austin, and she found that she really, really didn't want to do that, so she decided to stay put and just…observe him.

She could see now that there was another hickey on his neck in addition to the first, as well as one just above his collarbone. And she had no doubt he'd generously given her quite a few in return. After all, last night had been anything but innocent, as she recalled suddenly declaring that she was bored of slow dances before shoving him onto the couch. And then he'd stared at her for a moment with wide eyes as she moved to straddle his lap.

He'd responded very enthusiastically after that, and some of the noises he made when she trailed kisses down his neck… Ally's blush deepened at the memory. She was pretty sure they would have gone all in and made for a truly clichéd prom night, if it weren't for Austin having just enough sanity left to stop her before the clothing started flying off. And thank goodness he did. Her father evidently loved Austin, seeing as the hickeys were pretty noticeable and Austin was still alive, but Ally doubted he would have been quite as forgiving if they'd taken it past the next few levels…

So Austin had gently pushed her off of him. "I'm sorry, Ally. We can't—I mean, we don't have any—it's too—"

"It's okay. I think we both got carried away there for a minute."

"Cuddling?" He held out his arms.

"Cuddling is good."

And then, when he thought she was asleep, he brushed a lock of hair away from her face and murmured in her ear, "I've always liked you, Ally. Never stopped."

asdfjljeriglbklnsdfkj…

She still couldn't quite believe that they were finally together again.

Well, okay, to be technical, they weren't officially together just yet because they still hadn't had the DTR talk. But even if Austin were to express reluctance to immediately label themselves and risk another songwriting catastrophe, at least now she could dream about him without having to deal with any heartache or guilt afterwards. And that was just fine by Ally.

So she scooted a little closer to Austin and tucked her head under his chin, prompting him to grumble adorably in his sleep as the increased proximity caused his arms to go slack. He stirred slightly, then tightened his hold on her.

Yep. This was much better than snuggling with his jacket.

"Austin," she giggled. "Come on, focus! We're supposed to be writing your song."

"But I like this much better," he pouted.

It was afternoon, and they were seated side-by-side at the piano bench, personal space pretty much nil, as he had his arm around her waist and was currently pressing kiss after kiss to her cheek.

"But we still have a lot of work to do. We've only gotten the verses down, and those lyrics still really, really need some work, and there's still half the chor—eep!"

Ally's protests died in a squeal when Austin suddenly tucked his free arm under her knees, hauling her into his arms and swinging her around to sit bridal-style across his lap as her startled hands immediately latched to his shoulders. And then he was just looking at her, a coy smile playing at his lips, and she was pretty sure her lungs forgot how to function, and she felt herself melting into a warm puddle of Ally-goo under the intensity of his gaze…

He'd been very affectionate all day—and, don't get her wrong, it was something she could definitely get used to—but he hadn't kissed her on the lips since the previous night. Just a lot of tickle fights and long hugs and plenty of kisses on her cheek—but no lip contact. She was already melting; she felt like she was going to spontaneously combust; yet she needed more heat in their kisses.

Then his gaze flickered down to her lips, and his hands found her shoulder blades as he slowly started to draw her in…

Was this it? Was she finally going to get a proper kiss? What was taking him so long?

She bounced impatiently. "Ooh, kiss me already!"

And then he pecked her cheek and pulled away, grinning. "Come on, Ally, focus! You shouldn't be kissing boys who aren't your boyfriend when we're supposed to be working on our song."

"Ugh, you're such a tease! I don't even know why I—wait. Our song?"

He just winked at her and started playing the chords to the chorus.

"La la la la la la la…
Ally, we really need to write some actual lyrics for this part.
Oh, wait, here comes the part that actually has lyrics now…
something something something something
…but it's just not the same.
And I don't know why, but I've just dropped by to say,
Hey, hey, eh-eh…
Catch me, before my heart slips away.

"What do you think?"

She tried her best to keep a straight face and replied, "Well, aside from the fact that the first part wasn't exactly your best shot at lyrics…I think we should speed it up. Sad songs just don't really sound like you." She carefully climbed out of his lap to sit properly on the bench. "How does this sound instead?"

They worked for a while longer but stopped when their hands touched over the piano keys.

He looked at her sheepishly, the way he always did whenever this happened, and started to pull away, but she surprised them both by locking their pinkies together. It was hardly a bold move, considering they'd been cuddling and kissing (on the cheek, anyway) since he woke up, but relief still washed over Ally when he didn't pull his hand away. And one look into his eyes told her that he knew that she knew that he knew the significance of the gesture. She wasn't going to let him slip away again.

So she took a chance. "What you said earlier—that you're not my boyfriend… What exactly are we now?"

And then he looked away guiltily, all traces of his earlier mischievousness gone. "I'm sorry I confused you. It's just—you just broke up with Gavin, and I didn't think you'd want to rush into another relationship so soon. Besides, we're releasing your record next month, and if we announce we're together now, then all the press is going to be about our relationship, but I want it to be about you. And things didn't work out last time because we felt so pressured to be the perfect couple…" At her half-crushed, half-hopeful expression, he interlaced the rest of their fingers and added earnestly, "I meant everything I said last night. I want to be with you—I really do. You're the most important person in the world to me. But I also don't want to stop writing with you."

And then it hit her, just how much he must care, how scared he was to ruin what they already had.

"Austin." She cupped his cheek in her free hand, willing him to look her in the eye. "I can't guarantee that we'll be together forever this time around. But if we want this to work out, then I know we can make it work." She didn't miss how he swallowed, hard, as she leaned in closer, eyes drifting shut… "Because it's me, and it's you. And I really, really want to be with you—Hey, those are pretty good lyrics!"

She whirled around to scribble them down in her songbook, giggling as he pouted at the missed opportunity.

Who wants it now?

"Anyway," she continued, "it just wouldn't be right to separate being with you and writing with you. Remember that line from 'Parachute'?"

He blinked, startled by the sudden change of subject, tilting his head like a confused puppy.

A confused puppy whose lips she wanted to devour.

(Not literally.)

So she turned back to the piano and sang it to him.

"I know this love isn't gonna be perfect,
the ups and downs are gonna be worth it…"

She'd meant to sing only an excerpt, but the way he was looking at her was both terrifying and exhilarating. That gut feeling she'd discovered last night at prom (perhaps Miss Pennyworth, her childhood imaginary friend, finally back after an inexplicably long absence?) was now telling her that she and Austin were on the verge of something bigger, better, than anything she could ever imagine or begin to comprehend. So she kept singing, as if her life depended on it, unable to stop until the song was over.

He never looked away.

"You always break my fall, my fall…
Like a parachute…
You're my parachute—"

Austin kissed her full on the mouth before she could finish.

So, naturally, she closed her eyes and responded. (And, being Ally, she kept her head above the water long enough to play the last few notes on the piano anyway.)

And when he laughed into the kiss, she pulled him closer, kissed him back even harder, imploring him to understand.

Love was the unadulterated joy of being with someone, not the fear of losing that person.

Because he was as stuck on her as she was on him, and she couldn't if she tried.

End note: And that's a wrap, folks! Thank you all so much, whether you were a regular reviewer or a silent lurker or anything in between, for sticking through all the drama with me as I tackled my first multi-chap A&A fic. I'm working on two other A&A stories at the moment. One's going to be a cute, fluffy one-shot, and the other one is still in the beginning stages of planning, so be on the lookout for the first one. Until then, I'd love to hear what you thought of this ending.

Oh, and may all your fashion shows be mustard- (and paint-) free and all your promposals non-tardy and publicly non-embarrassing.

Until next time.