Well, here it is! The final chapter... I had a little fun with this ending and hope you enjoy it! Thanks for all of the support for this story!
Ulrich
Once again, days turned to weeks which lead to months. All the while, Regina and I stayed together. We faced every day together knowing well what could happen. In a way, life went back to the way things were before she fell. Reggie and I actually were dating again. We spent days in the diner or at my studio or just staring up through the trees. The two of us would hold hands in public and everyone knew of the relationship between the Olympic hopeful and her bad boy boyfriend (her words, not mine). I waited patiently as she trained with Lori. In private the two of us would kiss and make out.
Yup, we were just like any other teens in love… most of the time.
Then the rough parts would come. Nightmares that left Reggie crying in her sleep that forced me to stay with her nearly every night. I would hold tight to her and gentle coax her awake so she would calm and know she was safe. Then, there would be the missions to Lyoko. Jeremy would get new alerts of clones or information for William, and I would have to leave.
And I would have to leave her behind.
I never broke my promise to William. I kept her safe and she never set foot on Lyoko again. She helped us other ways by covering our absences or distracting those looking for us. Reggie worked with the William clone to hide his slip ups and kept her parents at bay from asking too many questions. Every time I entered the scanner though, I thought of her and how I had to come back to her. And every time I made it back, she would be waiting for me on the other side of that scanner. Reggie would throw her arms around me or help me up, and I would know I was home.
Time was a funny thing though. For some reason, that saying time heals all wounds, well it still held true. I didn't think it would, especially the first night I heard her cry. We were together in her bed; I curled protectively around her like always. Our skin touching peacefully in the silence of the room. It all began with a whimper. Soft at first, then growing louder into full cries as she thrashed in my arms. I had never felt so incompetent before until all I could do was hold her tighter and whisper into her ear. When she finally woke, she buried her face into my chest and wept the rest of the night. All I could do was whisper sweet nothings to her as she told me about her nightmare. Falling, always falling.
Then the struggles with her archery came. I would sit by watching her train only to catch her get this look. Out of nowhere she would freeze with this deer in the headlights expression. Her arms would shake and she would drop her bow or arrow or both. It would take a minute before she would snap out of it and speak to a worried Lori.
Eventually, the nightmares stopped. Reggie could get through the night without crying or searching desperately for my hand under the covers. The bow in her hands quit triggering the phantom feelings of facing her brother or monsters. She healed and grew strong again, and I stood by her the entire time.
Time also gave Reggie something else: her brother back. It took months and everything we had, but finally Jeremy had the right program. After battling robot armies, fighting William atop the Kollosus, and nearly losing Aelita with the Skid, we brought him home. Reggie had waited back in the computer room with Jeremy, sharing with him that their parents had made a surprise visit. When the elevator doors opened revealing Yumi and I carrying her brother, Reggie stopped mid sentence. Speechless she stepped forward, tears forming in those brilliant eyes.
William pulled his arms from where they were slung over our shoulders. Stumbling, he moved towards his sister who shook her head violently. A smile crossed his lips as I saw for the first time him truly at his happiest. "You killed me like dozens of times."
Instantly she barreled into him giving a back breaking hug. He held her too, apologizing for what he was forced to do.
"It doesn't matter. You're home," she mumbled into his shirt.
I stood back and smiled at the scene. I had fulfilled my promise. Now my very first love could rest easier.
After we scrambled to get William back and replace the clone without his parents noticing, we realized we were nearing the close. We had nearly finished everything that we had started. There was just one last thing to do. It was far from easy, but we final took down X.a.n.a. Jeremy's multi agent program worked and all traces of X.a.n.a. were taken down, but at the cost of losing Aelita's father. But time healed that too.
Regina was with us when we shut down the computer. Her hand was in mine as Jeremy pulled the handle. We watched the supercomputer sink back into the floor where it would remain off, terminating Lyoko as well. It was bittersweet at best. We had so many memories there, but now we were making so many new ones. True, a huge portion of our lives was ending. Now though we could do so much more.
It wasn't long after that when Reggie called me to meet her down in the clearing where we had our first kiss. That day seemed so long ago, but it was one that I will always remember. When I reached her, she was seated in the grass. She was wearing a paint splattered tank top and ripped up jeans. Her hair was a flash of scarlet in the monotonous clearing. I sat down heavily beside her, instantly my fingers tangled into her hair and I kissed her soft cheek. She laughed as I whispered hello, but it was a sort of empty sound.
"What's going on?" I asked mildly concerned.
She took my hands into her lap and examined my knuckles. Reggie continued to play with my fingers as she looked around the clearing. "William was talking to me this morning. He says that even though we shut down the computer he wants to get me away from here anyway."
"What do you mean?"
"He says that it will of course be my choice, but he wants the two of us to go back and live with our parents… away from here. If I don't go then he stays, but he doesn't want to." She spoke quickly chewing on her lip.
"So you have to choose between what you want and what William wants."
She looked me in the eyes before leaning into me. I held on to her, suddenly scared that this could be gone again. "I want to make my brother happy and keep us both safe. But I love you Ulrich Stern. Just tell me what to do."
I grinned at this and kissed the top of her head. "I love you too Regina Dunbar." I ignored the question for now. For about an hour we sat together having easy conversation before she had training and I had a test to study for. I kissed her passionately good-bye before we headed in separate directions. My heart and my head waged a war though. I should tell her to go to make sure they would be safe, the only problem was I absolutely hated that idea.
In all my thinking, I didn't pay any attention till I crashed into Yumi. "Watch out Ulrich, might not crash into someone as nice as me next time."
"Sorry Yumi, got something weighing on my mind."
"Wanna share?" as I looked at one of my best friends, I sighed and nodded my head.
We grabbed a nearby bench, our bags resting at our feet. I had one of my legs up on the bench and rested my chin on it. Yumi faced me with both her feet sticking out straight at an angle, ankles crossed. I told her our conversation in the park, how I should tell her to go for her safety but couldn't. The whole time she frowned at me and struggled to meet my eyes.
Staring at her feet, I could barely hear when she actually spoke. "Maybe it would be best for you to tell her to leave."
"What?" I asked in shock.
"I mean, it would probably be best for both of them to get over this and get better. No more feeling in danger." She said nervously.
"But… but that could mean we would have to end what's between us, and I don't want to be away from her."
"Maybe you two splitting would be okay," she blushed. I was caught off guard when she reached and grabbed my hand, "maybe you could find someone else. Someone better."
Maybe I should've gotten mad at her. For how long I chased after her only to be pulled along and shot down time and time again. I should've been furious. Instead, I pitied Yumi. I shook off her hand lightly, knowing that all of this only strengthened my feeling for Regina. "Yumi, for so long… you were it for me. Now though, I don't see you that way any longer. You're my friend now and that's how it going to say." I stood from my spot and smiled down at her, "I love her more than anyone else in the world. I'll take care of her and make her happy and safe."
Regina
I finished dabbing at my red lipstick in the mirror of my dorm room. It was the end of the year formal for 11th and 12th graders. Summer break started in only three weeks. A few students stayed in the dorms year round. Three of which would be Ulrich Stern, myself, and my brother. The first of which was my date tonight. I puckered my lips one last time before deciding it was as good as it was going to get. My hair was pinned into a French twist and the dress I wore was floor length, beige with black lace over the entire dress. A vintage style, fitted with a flared portion around my converse covered feet and an open back, fitted me perfectly.
I gazed at myself. It felt weird to be doing such regular, teenager stuff now, like going to dances or movies without worrying about an evil computer program attacking. It was weird to think how close to death I was. No, not close, I was dead.
A knock at my door shook me from my thoughts, "Reggie? Are you ready?"
I opened the door and the handsomest boy in the world stood wearing a classic tux with dark green accents. "Whoa, you're breathtaking."
I blushed at his complement as I took Ulrich's arm. We exited the dorm and found the others waiting out front. My brother wore an entirely black suit with Yumi holding his arm wearing a dark plum gown. Sissy in pink held onto Odd's arm who winked devilishly in his white suit. It was a shame that Aelita and Jeremy couldn't come because of their grade and didn't have older dates, but I was sure Aelita had something planned.
"Well, let's go you guys." I smiled, but my only focus was on Ulrich.
After everything that had happened, getting back to normal was harder than any monster. We entered the gymnasium with the bright colored lights and a DJ playing in the corner. Music filled the air and already teens were dancing and grinding everywhere, each in suits or elaborate dresses. I instantly began to battle the feelings of dread that I always had when things seemed to good to be true.
Odd and Sissy instantly flung themselves into the busiest part of the dance, while the rest of us hung around on the outskirts. Yumi complemented my dress and I did the same for her. Meanwhile Will lectured Ulrich on not getting to fresh on the dance floor with me. I scolded him before the two walked away to dance on their own.
Ulrich backed himself towards the center of the floor, smiling at me while I raised an eyebrow. "May I have this dance, my lady?"
The fast beat of the modern pop song had me unsure. But I couldn't resist those puppy dog eyes of his. I took his outstretched hand and we hit the dance floor. Ulrich spun me around and swung our hands all over the place in some sort of swing dance. I laughed as he continued to move me about with no grace whatsoever. At least I wasn't the only one who couldn't dance.
The song drew to a close and I fell into his shoulder, still laughing but also out of breath. His arms wrapped around me in a hug as he laughed to. I listened to the music change into a slow song and watched the dancing evolve. Gently, we began to sway back and forth, my head on his shoulder. I hummed to the familiar lyrics as my arms wrapped around the back of his neck pulling him closer.
"See I could do without a tan, On my left hand,Where my fourth finger meets my knuckle"
I softly kissed the bottom of his chin.
"In the winter I'll hold you in a cold place, And you should never cut your hair, 'Cause I love the way you flick it off your shoulder"
His hands were strong on the small of my back.
"And you will never know, Just how beautiful you are to me, But maybe I'm just in love, When you wake me up," it took me a minute to realize he had sung the last verse softly into my ear. Quietly he sang to me the rest of the song and I listened. At the very last verse, he rolled his shoulder so that my face rose. Our foreheads touched as he finished the song. "So you just need to breathe, To feel my heart against yours now, against yours now, 'Cause maybe I'm just in love when you wake me up, Or maybe I'm just in love when you wake me up, Maybe I fell in love when you woke me up ."
After the last word, our lips connected in the best kiss I had ever had. I loved him more than I thought possible, and not in a million years would I leave him. The kiss ended delicately as he looked at me and smiled. "What is it?"
"Nothing, I just can't believe I am lucky enough to have found you this early in my life." The world could've ended right there, and I would have been okay with it but I still had the rest of my life to spend with this boy. And I was ready for it.
I decided to let go, of the past, of the fear, because what I had was worth so much more. I touched his face and the world melted away. "I love you," he said again.
"I love you too."
Giving the heads up, there will be no sequel, but thanks again for reading! I don't know if I'll do another Code Lyoko fic but please feel free to check out my other works if you liked this one. Stay frosty!