The small car zoomed down the streets of Lima, Emma putting as much pressure as she could on the accelerator. Her hair whipped around her face as the car flew like lightning against the strong wind. Her heart pounded inside her chest and she refused to consider the possibility that Will and Jacob might already be on a plane to California. She had no idea when they were planning on leaving; all she knew was that the landlord was requiring them to be out by 12 noon.

The ambiguity of it all seemed to make Emma push the car even faster, leaning forward as she drove with determination. She tried to calm herself, breathing slowly and letting her right foot relax slightly off the pedal. Finally, she turned onto Will's street and as his house came into view, she breathed a huge sigh of relief and felt like shedding tears of joy.

Parked in the driveway was a huge moving truck. A couple workers were walking in and out of the house, carrying big pieces of furniture into the truck. Jacob was sitting on the front porch, his face resting in his hands, but Will was nowhere to be seen.

Sitting in her car, looking at the scene through her tinted windows, Emma took a deep breath. She turned off the engine and got out of her car, slowly walking up to the empty looking house. Once Jacob recognized her, his face lit up and he ran over to her, giving her a warm hug.

"I knew you would come. I just knew it," he beamed.

"You… you did?" She was slightly surprised at what he said. He nodded and took her hand, pulling her into the house.

"Yes! Now go convince my dad to stay. Please, Miss Pillsbury. You're the only one who can."

Bewildered by Jacob's words, Emma stumbled into the house, pushed by Jacob's gentle shoves.

"He's in the backyard, by the pool!" he called to her, then went back to sitting on the front porch, closing his eyes, hoping with all his might that his teacher would be able to convince his dad to stay in Ohio.

Emma wandered through the house, scared by its vastness and emptiness. She walked past Will's small bedroom and quickly looked away, shutting her eyes from the sharp memory that had invaded her dreams last night. The walls were bare, stripped of pictures and decorations, making the entire house seem like a dark prison.

"Excuse me, miss." A tall, broad-shouldered worker hurried past her into the house, dripping with sweat from the exertion of carrying the heavy furniture.

There would be no more dawdling. Emma needed to find Will. Quickly stepping into the backyard, she quietly shut the door behind her and stepped into the cool, breezy air. The swimming pool looked peaceful and clear, the water gently lapping the sides of the pool. On the far end of it, Will sat on the concrete, his legs dangling in the calming water, his jeans rolled up to his knees. He stared into the small waves at his reflection, a grimace painted onto his face.

Emma slowly approached him, not sure whether she should wake him from his daydream. She decided she had to, and softly cleared her throat, letting him know of her presence. He swiftly looked up at her, his mouth opening slightly, but his brain not forming any words.

"You… you came," he finally breathed. Right after he spoke the words, he seemed to snap out of his daydream, and he blinked twice. Bringing his legs out of the pool, Will stood up and returned to his task of disassembling the lawn chairs, clearing his throat loudly.

"Why are you here." his voice had changed greatly, now it was rough and harsh, his emotions locked up safely inside his heart. The words never rose up in question, though; Will knew why Emma was there.

"Will… I was so stupid," Emma said, walking closer to him. "I can see why you're upset. But I've realized my mistakes. I've changed."

Will shook his head, his eyes still on the lawn chair he was working on.

"Will." She put her hand on top of his, halting the job he was doing. His eyes rested on their touching hands for a moment. Her hands traveled up his arms and she pulled him away from the silly lawn chairs, forcing him to face her. "I'm not gonna let you leave."

"You don't have a say in the matter." Will was close to tears.

"Just don't leave right away," she pleaded. "You didn't even think it through."

He shook his head again. "We have a plane to catch." He tried to walk past her and into the house, but Emma grabbed his arm.

"Will, stop," she said fiercely. Tears were gushing down her cheeks now, and her voice came out wobbly.

"I can't live without you," she whispered, looking up into his sad eyes.

"Why are you doing this now, Emma?" His voice rose. "My landlord is kicking us out of here, Emma, we have nowhere to go. California is the best place for us."

"No it isn't," she disagreed firmly. "Come to my place."

"What?" Will was taken aback.

"Move in with me. Both of you. I have room in my house, and it will be forever empty if you board that plane, Will." She was sobbing, trying to regain her composure, and they both knew she was talking about her heart along with her house.

"Are you sure that's-"

"Yes. I've never been so sure about anything in my life." She was firm, and she wiped her eyes, sniffling. "Just don't go, Will."

He stared down at her, tears sparkling on her beautiful face, her voice shaking with passion and love. A tear squeezed its way out of Will's eye, and he let it slide down his cheek, dripping off of his chin. He smiled, a small one at first, but then it grew exponentially, and he cupped Emma's wet cheek with his strong hand.

"Okay," he said softly, petting her cheek with his thumb.

"Okay?" Her eyes widened, and traces of a grin showed through her tears.

"Okay," he repeated, grinning. "I'll stay."

Emma gave a little shriek of happiness, and wrapped her arms around his strong body, holding him tightly, never wanting to let him go. He hugged her back, burying his face in her sweet-smelling red hair, rubbing her back lightly. They pulled away from each other and stared at each other's faces for a second, before bringing their lips together for a kiss, hungry, happy, and passionate. He sucked on her bottom lip hungrily, tasting her salty tears and smiling into the kiss. She put her arms around his neck, returning the passion, and he picked her up, twirling her around, never letting his lips leave hers.

"I love you," she murmured into his soft lips.

"I love you too," he whispered back, not missing a beat.

Smiling happily, they walked back into the house, hand in hand, passing right through it and walking back out into the front yard. Once they got outside to the front yard, Will let go of Emma's hand and addressed Jacob.

"I have some good news, buddy," he said with a grin that Jacob hadn't seen in a long time.

"What?" Jacob was suspicious.

"How would you like to move into Miss Pillsbury's house?"

Jacob gasped and smiled hugely, standing up immediately and looking to both of their faces to see if it was true.

"For real?"

"For real."

"Oh my gosh!" He yelped with excitement and ran up to his dad, hugging him with all the strength his ten-year-old body could muster. Will laughed happily and hugged his son back. Emma stood there, a smile shining through her tears, until Jacob reached out his little hand and brought her into the happy embrace.

The three stood there hugging. The sun broke through the gray clouds and shone down on them, and Will leaned over and gave Emma a happy peck on the lips.

"Hey boys!" Will called to the movers. "There's been a change of plans. Instead of going across the country, we're gonna go across town!" Jacob shouted again with delight and began dancing around the yard, so happy to be staying in Ohio.


"Okay, don't forget, I'm picking you up from school twenty minutes early. You know why," Will said with a wink as Jacob got out of the car.

"Okay. I'll remember," Jacob said with an excited smile as he went into his middle school. One year had passed since Will and Jacob had almost boarded a plane back to California, and both of them were so grateful that they hadn't. Will's relationship with Emma was stronger than ever, and in fact, he was about to take the next step that very day.

At work that day, Will could not concentrate one bit, his heart constantly fluttering in anticipation for what he was about to do. Jacob had the same situation in class. He couldn't focus on any of his work, and throughout the day he would randomly look out the window and smile. His sixth grade teacher, nowhere near as nice as Miss Pillsbury, constantly had to remind him to stay on task.

Emma, on the other hand, had quite a normal day at school. In fact, it was rather draining. Her kids were somewhat rowdy that day, and by the time the end of the school day rolled around, Emma was quite tired out. There were ten minutes left of class, and Emma's fifth-graders were packing up their stuff, organizing their desks and talking animatedly about their weekend plans.

All of a sudden, a man with curly brown hair that they had never seen before burst into the room holding a beautiful acoustic guitar and a huge bouquet of flowers. Immediately, the class fell silent in curiosity at who he was and what he was doing here.

"Will?" Emma squeaked out, surprised. "What are you doing here?"

Will said nothing, only smiled and moved aside to allow Jacob to come into the room from behind him. He then approached Emma and handed her the flowers, gently pushing her into a sitting position on a chair. Emma smiled quizzically, tilting her head a little in question.

"What…?" She was shushed by Will's pointer finger that he held up in the air, the smile never disappearing from his face. Then he began to play his guitar and sing. His voice was deep and passionate, and his smile faded away, but the love in his eyes was unmistakable. As he sang, he slowly walked up to Emma, serenading her, walking around her as she sat in her little teacher's stool, blushing profusely.

The song was "Sweet Caroline," and Will made it seem like the lyrics had been written just for Emma, his voice contained more meaning and love than any singing voice Emma had ever heard. Emma's students all watched in awe, giggling at the romantic sight and whispering how good of a singer Will was.

Finally, the beautiful song ended and Will took his guitar off, placing it on the ground behind him. Standing right in front of Emma, he took her hands in his and looked earnestly into her big brown eyes.

"Emma…" he began, and she swallowed in anticipation, biting her lip, holding back a huge grin.

"We've traveled a bumpy road. We've been through so much together, but I think that's what makes us special. You are the sweetest, most wonderful person I have ever had the pleasure of getting to know, and I am so grateful to be able to call you my own. You are the love of my life, Emma, and I never want any other woman besides you, ever."

He got down on one knee and took a little red box out of his jacket pocket. The whole class gasped and squealed as Will opened it, revealing a gorgeous, sparkling ring. Emma stared at it with her hand covering her mouth, tears sliding out of her eyes and down her cheeks.

"Emma Pillsbury… I love you more than life itself. Will you marry me?"

Emma let out a stifled cry, and nodded her head vigorously.

"Yes! Of course," she cried, and got up off the stool as he stood up, the happiest man alive. He took her in his arms and kissed her, a short but sweet kiss, because her students were all watching her with wide eyes.

"Oh Will, I love you so much," she murmured, cupping his cheek with her hand, both of them oblivious to the enthusiastic cheers and applause from Emma's excited students.


Well, that's the ending! (sort of) There is going to be a short epilogue after this, but then that's it. I hope you enjoyed!