Epilogue - Five Years Later
They say money changes people, and for us it certainly did.
A little under two months after my return to Chicago our son was born. Ashton Wyatt Coulter was born after putting his mother through twenty hours of labor. He has become my clone, with curly blonde hair and grey eyes, but he is also the apple of his mothers eye.
The first few months after Ashton was born were rough for us. Tris and I hadn't lived together officially at all, and moving in together while raising a child we were completely unprepared for was a feat. I was a stubborn and selfish asshole, which in hindsight I can completely see, but at the time I thought everything that was wrong in our relationship was Tris' fault. I was in uncharted territory in being a father and even more so in being in love with an abuse survivor. The idiot in me thought once she was away from him everything would just magically be better and I would get frustrated when it wasn't. I was so focused on getting Tris away from Peter that I never gave enough thought to the emotional scars that relationship was going to cause her. My insensitivity to her recovery led to Tris asking me to leave, and I further cemented my place in the asshole hall of fame when I had to have Max and Aria flat out refuse to help me if I came back to California, and they recruited Antoine and Charity to join their cause. When she kicked me out all I could think about was fleeing again, and it took a deep conversation with Tobias to put me in my place and cause me to go back to Tris with my tail between my legs. We immediately sought out couples therapy and I firmly believe it saved our relationship.
We recommitted to each other, our relationship and our family and decided to stay in Chicago for good. Tris applied to and was accepted to The University of Chicago Law School, where in four years she graduated with her Law degree. She passed the bar on her first try, and she was quickly hired by her former boss Johanna Reyes. She's one of the top up and coming young lawyers in the firm, just as Johanna had always expected. For as much as Ashton was unplanned and a surprise, Tris and I carefully planned our second pregnancy so that she'd be done with school and have her job before becoming pregnant. Our daughter Madelyn Hope was born almost five months ago and she looks so much like Tris it's as if we cloned her to make her.
With the money Tris gave her brothers they were both able to settle in Chicago as well. Lauren and Tobias had our nephew Colton exactly eleven months to the day after Ashton was born, and then a little over a year later they were blessed with their second son Jaxon. The three cousins are inseparable, just like Tobias, Caleb and I were growing up.
Caleb started medical school and found himself an apartment in one of Chicago's swankiest buildings. It suits him and his personality well. He's in no hurry to settle down, and he definitely dated some interesting characters along the way, but he recently met a fellow medical student named Keith who has caught his attention longer than anyone else we've seen. We all wait patiently to see if 'Uncle Caleb' has finally find the one.
Uriah and Christina welcomed their own bundle of joy three months ago when Taylor Marie Pedrad made her appearance almost two full weeks after her due date. Christina and Tris have already decided that Taylor and Maddie will be the absolute best of friends just like their mothers are.
Antoine and Charity were married almost five years ago, and they were both pleased when I brought Tris as my 'plus one'. They were also finally able to meet Ashton, who was only two months old at the time. Max and Aria kept Ash while Tris and I were at the wedding, and what could have been an awkward situation with my ex fiancé meeting my then girlfriend turned into the two of them hitting it off immediately. Over the years we've visited each other often, traveling between Palo Alto and Chicago with ease. Christina and Charity could have easily been separated at birth, their outspoken personalities, brutal honesty and quick wit was so evenly matched that we often tell them that the two of them could never be contained in the same area for too long without them eventually hatching a plot for world domination. Or shoe shopping, whichever came first.
While I was in California I made it a point to try to find Ty so I could properly apologize for the way I treated her. I never could track her down, but I left a letter with Charity in the hopes she could pass it to her. Two weeks later I received a text from Charity letting me know she had given Ty the letter, and while the gesture was appreciated her only response was "his fucking loss". I deserved that.
Much to Amar and Max's surprise I've continued to work at Dauntless Enterprises in their Network Security department. It's not like Tris and I need to work, but we enjoy it and we've both worked extremely hard to be where we are in our careers. We've been careful with our money, creating college funds for both Ashton and Maddie while earmarking funds for our future children. We've made investments and followed the advice of our financial advisor as well.
Camille passed away just six short months after Peter's sentencing. She'd gone to her doctor complaining of flu like symptoms and six days later she passed from what was a blood infection. Norman was heartbroken, and less than a year later he went to bed one night and quietly died in his sleep of heart failure. I don't think either of them ever got over the pain that Peter caused them, and it pains me to think of how much his crimes impacted the lives of the people that loved him. Norman and Camille left their money to several charities and causes, one of which being a domestic abuse survivor network.
After almost six years together (yeah, I said six, because neither of acknowledge our six month separation) and two children later Tris and I were married today in a simple civil ceremony. Neither Tris nor I had ever given much thought to getting married. We were extremely happy together, committed to each other and our children and we felt if it wasn't broken we shouldn't try to fix it. A simple question from Ashton changed all of that when he innocently asked us why Mommy had a different last name from Daddy, Maddie and him. When we didn't have a good answer we realized there was no reason for us not to be married. We called Lauren, Tobias, Uriah, Chris and Caleb together and drug them along to witness our low key event. That leads us to where we are right now, the same restaurant we were in over five years ago when I finally brought my stubborn ass back to Chicago.
I watch as Ashton, Colton and Jax all scribble happily with the crayons and coloring placemats the restaurant gave them. They draw dinosaurs and cars and entertain themselves with their own stories. Christina feeds Taylor while talking to Tris and Lauren. Uriah, Caleb, Tobias and I are talking baseball as usual as my baby girl sleeps soundly in the crook of my arm. I feel a hand on my thigh and I glance over at my beautiful wife before bringing my free hand down to hers and threading our fingers together. I can feel her wedding rings for the first time and I grin at her as I run my thumb across them.
"Do you need me to take her?" She asks quietly as she gestures towards our sleeping daughter.
"No, I'm enjoying this." I reply. I lean in and kiss her and I can feel her smile against my lips.
"I can't believe you're my husband." She whispers.
"I love you so much." I whisper back. We break apart when we hear the sound of a knife being tapped against a glass.
"So, I'd like to propose a toast." Christina announces. She clears her throat before continuing. "Eric and Tris, the two of you are my best friends, and frankly two of the best people I've ever had the privilege to know. While your path to each other was anything but conventional, the love you shared was enough to keep you together in your hearts through every twist and turn you were faced with. When we look at the two of you together, and the two beautiful children you've brought into this world we see the very definition of true love and devotion. I'm so proud of you both, and I'm sure I speak for everyone here when I say we are thankful to have been a part of your journey together. Thank you for sharing your beautiful family and special day with us. I love you both so much, and I look forward to the rest of our lives in friendship together. To the Coulter's."
"To the Coulter's!" Everyone repeats as we clink our glasses together. I look over at my wife and see the tears in her eyes that I'm sure match my own. I feel Maddie being gently lifted from my arms and I glance over at Caleb as he kisses her forehead before returning to his seat with her.
I lean in and kiss my wife, neither of us caring that we have an audience. We hear the 'ew Gross's' from the boys and the chuckles from the adults.
"We should have done this years ago." I chuckle and she laughs next to me.
"We never have done things by the books, have we?" She asks.
"Nope. I do have another serious question for you Mrs. Coulter." I reply. She furrows her eyebrows slightly and nods. "Want to work on number three tonight?"
The smile that breaks out across her face is answer enough for me.