Hello, my dear readers.
A little over a year ago, I began writing this little piece of fanfiction. The response to it was great, and in terms of storytelling, I still see this one as my best work. I read it myself again a few days ago and thought about things I could have done better, but after re-reading the reviews again, I saw that there was one thing many of you disliked.
As a little gift for you, my readers, I have written this epilogue as an "alternate ending" to the plot. I will continue the sequel once I'm done with "Sad Eyes", I promise, but now, I hope you will enjoy the first of two parts of the epilogue. It's something I wanted to write for myself, but hey, why be selfish?
I hope you'll enjoy it. The second part will be uploaded very soon.
"Hurry up. You'll be late again!" Cat said in an annoyed tone as she watched her daughter play with her cereal half heartedly.
"Yeah, yeah. We'll get there on time. Don't worry." Lilly said before she pushed away the bowl and got up. She grabbed her bag and walked towards the door.
"Wait." Cat said.
"What?" Lilly asked, slowly irritated by her mother. Cat walked to her and hugged her taller daughter around the waist and leaned her head on her shoulder.
"Please, don't be like that. I'm trying Lilly. I'm trying to be a good mother." Cat said. Lilly bit her lips before she said anything. She didn't know what she would say to that. She knew that her mother tried. She knew that she gave everything to be a good mother. But she made mistakes. And the biggest one was that she was never completely honest with her own daughter about her father.
"I got to go." Lilly said as she pulled away. She walked outside and towards the dock where Andre would be waiting.
"Bye." Cat said, despite Lilly already having left. She let out a sigh as she walked to the living room and sat down. She closed her eyes and leaned back, hoping that the day would pass quickly.
Andre took Lilly, his and Beck's kids to school that day. They bought a small fishing boat for that, since they didn't want to be dependent on any schedule. Andre walked back to the boat and untangled the rope from the post. He threw it onto the boat before he jumped on it. As he was rolling the rope together to put it aside, he heard something come from inside the cabin. Instinctively, he grabbed the gun he always carried with him. He slowly moved towards the door and opened it. He quickly peeked inside, yet he couldn't see anyone. He walked inside, holding his gun firmly in front of him. He let out a sigh of relief before he again heard something behind him. He immediately turned around and aimed his gun that way, but someone caught his arm and took his gun away in one swift move. Andre went to punch the attacker, but to his shock, his punch got blocked and his arm was now in a dead grip.
"Getting old, Andre? You used to be quicker." He heard the other person say. Andre's eyes grew wide when he heard that voice. It had been so many years since he heard it the last time, but he knew that voice. He would recognize it among millions. He felt the grip loosen and a moment later his arm was free. He turned around and saw that his ears hadn't betrayed him.
"A-A-Adam?" Andre stuttered, not believing what he was seeing and hearing.
"It's been a while." Adam said as he handed Andre his gun back.
"H-how? You're dead." Andre said.
"I would have been had it not been for a neighbor calling the ambulance after she heard the gunshots. I woke up in the hospital two weeks later. I had more luck than brains." Adam explained.
"I-I can't believe it." Andre said. He sat down on the bench. What he just found out was too much for him.
"I understand. I couldn't believe that I survived either. They had to tie me down on my bed so I wouldn't run off and open my wounds." Adam said as he leaned on the wall and crossed his arms over his chest.
"How did you find me?" Andre asked.
"Honestly, I had no idea you were here. I've been searching for you guys for fifteen years now. I came here because I traveled through Canada, Europe and even Australia before I tackled South America. I was sitting in a café on the docks when I saw you get of this boat with some kids. You can't imagine how happy I was." Adam said.
"Good lord, you're alive!" Andre said, realization finally reaching him. He jumped up and a moment later he hugged his friend. Adam chuckled as he hugged him back.
"I am. Now. Where are the others?" Adam asked. Andre smiled as he let go of him.
"I'll bring you there."
They arrived at the island fifteen minutes later. Both men got of the boat and Andre lead them to his house.
"You got yourself an island?" Adam asked as he followed Andre.
"Yep. And the best thing is that we're all only a few minutes away from each other. And there is no one else here." Andre said.
"That's great. Privacy, friends and the ocean." Adam said as he looked around. He took a deep breath and smelled all that untouched nature around them. "This is like one of my dreams."
"This is no dream. At least I hope so." Andre said.
"No, it's not. I would have woken up by now." Adam said.
"Well, this is my place. Tori and I live here with our kids. Beck and Jade and their kids are there." Andre said as he pointed to his right.
"I see their house. They really are close." Adam said.
"And there," Andre said as he pointed to his left "is Cat's place. She and Lilly live there."
Adam looked that way and he felt his heart clench in agitation. He saw the house. Cat was there. His Cat was there with their daughter.
"Lilly? Is that?"
"That's your daughter man." Andre said.
"W-was she with you?" Adam asked.
"She was. She's the tall, redhead. Just like her mother." Andre said. A wide smirk appeared on his face when he saw Adam's expression. Adam was smiling and yet looked as if he was ready to break down and cry.
"Let me see the others first. If you go there now, I won't get out of there for days." Adam said as he regained his composure.
"Then let me wake up my sleeping beauty first." Andre said as he opened his door. Both walked inside and towards the living room.
"Make yourself comfortable. I'll be right back." Andre said and walked upstairs to his bedroom. He opened the door and saw Tori still sleeping.
"Hey, wake up." Andre said as he shook her awake.
"Hm? What time is it?" Tori mumbled as she woke up. She looked at the watch and then back at her husband. "Andre, its 8:30 in the morning. What is it?"
"We have a guest I'm sure you want to meet." Andre said.
"A guest? Who?" Tori asked.
"Get up and see for yourself?" Andre said.
"Ugh. Fine." Tori said. She threw the covers off of herself and put a t-shirt on. She and Andre got out of the bedroom and walked downstairs.
"I swear, if you woke me up for no reason, I will mur…" Tori said, but her words got stuck in her throat when she saw who was standing in her living room.
"I see you still are the boss of this relationship." Adam said with a smirk while Tori stood there, frozen.
"A-Adam? Is that you?" Tori asked.
"Funny, I'm having a déjà vu here." Adam said.
"Adam!" Tori yelled as she ran towards him and hugged him around the neck as tightly as she could. Adam hugged her back, glad to see that she was still the same.
"Hey there. How are you?" Adam asked.
"I… I can't believe you're here." She said as she pulled back, but still kept her arms on his shoulder.
"Well, you can thank your husband over there. Had I not seen him, I would have left this place in a day or two." Adam said. Tori shook her head in disbelief. She was crying out of joy, not believing that he was really back.
"H-have you been over to see Cat? Andre, go show him where her house is!" Tori said as she turned around towards Andre.
"I did, but he wants to see everyone else first. If he goes there, we won't see him for a while again." Andre said.
"Exactly that. Now, please take me to that Canadian bastard." Adam said with a smirk.
"Sure. Come on." Andre said. Tori, he and Adam walked to Beck's and Jade's place. They opened the door and walked inside.
"Jade?" Tori called. She knew that her cousin was already awake.
"In the kitchen." Jade called back. Tori motioned for Adam to follow her. He did while Andre just watched, curious about Jade's reaction.
"I just wanted to come over to your place and invite you for coffee. Why are you up so early?" Jade said as she was standing in front of the sink, doing the dishes. She picked up a mug and began cleaning it.
"We had a surprise guest." Tori said, barely able to hide her excitement.
"Who? We never ha…" Jade said as she turned around, but froze when her eyes landed on the familiar looking man. He was just like she remembered him, except that he wasn't wearing a suit now, but shorts and a Hawaiian shirt. "Adam?" Jade gasped as she dropped the mug.
"Hello Jade. I'll pay for the mug." Adam said with a smirk. She stepped back and leaned on the sink as she covered her mouth with her hand.
"I-I thought you were…" Jade said, but she couldn't finish her sentence, no matter how hard she tried.
"Dead? I heard that a lot this morning." Adam said.
"H-how?" Jade asked.
"I'll explain when your husband gets here. I don't want to tell the same story a hundred times." Adam said. Andre went upstairs to get Beck while Jade stepped over the shards of glass and walked towards him before she hugged him.
"I saw you stay behind. I saw… I saw Dominique and Theodore walk inside… I…" Jade began, but her voice was barely audible.
"Shh." Adam said as he hugged her back and put his hand on the back of her head. "I'll explain everything."
Adam turned his head when he heard footsteps coming from upstairs. He saw Beck rush downstairs. However, Beck wasn't shocked like everyone else. Andre told him upstairs that he was back and Beck immediately rushed down.
"Hi there." Adam said as he let Jade go and turned to face his friend.
"I can't believe this." Beck said.
"Well, get used to it. I'm not leaving anytime soon." Adam said. Beck walked towards him and immediately hugged his friend who he owed everything.
"Come on, tell us what happened. Where the fuck have you been?" Beck asked.
They all sat down and Adam explained everything that had happened. He talked about how he had to get away from the FBI and hide until the heat dropped. He explained how he traveled all over the world in order to track them down and how he got the resources to do it.
"And so I got here. It was pure luck and through years of eliminations of places where you could be. I figured you wouldn't be in Asia." Adam said as he took a sip from his glass.
"Damn it. If only we had known. We could have contacted you." Beck said.
"If only… I'm here now, aren't I? And as far I can see you guys are doing great." Adam said.
"We are. Everything's great." Jade said.
"Now, how's my girl…my two little girls doing?" Adam asked, correcting himself mid sentence.
"Why don't you go and ask her yourself?" Tori asked teasingly.
"I will. I just wanted a heads up on if I needed to know something." Adam asked.
"Lilly is a bit troublesome. She's sixteen now. You know how kids act that age. She doesn't know what happened… that day. Cat never told her. She couldn't." Jade said.
"Is she acting the way we did?" Adam asked, looking at Andre and Beck.
"No. Not like that." Beck said with a smile.
"Then I'm sure it's nothing bad." Adam said. He put his glass back on the table and got up. "If you would excuse me, I need to go and see someone. I'll see you later."
He walked outside and towards Cat's house. His heart beat faster every step he got closer to it. Finally, he reached the porch and stepped in front of the door. His breath grew heavy as he picked up his hand to knock. His nerves were going crazy. He wondered how she would react. He wondered if she still loved him after all those years she thought that he was dead.
He took one more deep breath and finally knocked on the door. He heard noises come from inside the house, which only made his heartbeat quicken more. He swore his heart was ready to jump out of his chest. He heard footsteps coming towards the door. He heard her unlock the door. He heard the doorknob turn and the bolt go inside. The door opened in front of him and his eyes met hers.
Cat stood there, frozen on the spot as everyone else was when they saw him again. She looked into his eyes. She saw the familiar scar over his left eye. She saw that it was him. He hadn't changed much in all those years.
Adam looked at her, awaiting any response from her. Seconds seemed like hours to him. She just stood there, as if she was trying to recognize if it was really him. He didn't know what to say to her right now. He had dreamt of this moment for a long time, but now that it was actually happening, he had no idea what he should say or what he should do. He wanted to hug her to himself; to kiss her and hold her as long as he could. But he couldn't rush this. He knew that it must be a big shock to her.
"Adam?" Cat asked in a shaky, weak voice. He smiled at her, glad that she had not forgotten him.
"It's been a long time, Cat." Adam said, never taking his eyes off of her.
"Y-you're alive?" Cat asked, not believing her own senses right now.
"Of course I am. I promised you something, after all." Adam said. Cat slowly reached forward and put her hand on his chest. She felt his heartbeat through his shirt. He was alive. He really was alive. He really came back. A wide smile formed on her lips while tears slowly ran down her cheeks. He put his hand on hers and gave it a light squeeze. He saw that she was still wearing the ring he had given her. That was all he needed. She still loved him.
"God, I missed you." Adam said. He reached behind her head with his other hand and pulled her to himself. He kissed her on the top of her head before he hugged her to himself. He felt her arms wrap around him; he felt her tremble in his embrace. He looked down at her while she leaned her head on his shoulder. He put his finger under her chin and lifted her head so that she was looking at him.
"I-I can't believe this is happening." Cat said.
"I know I have a lot to explain to you and… God, I'm so sorry that I put you through all this." Adam said. "I'm so sorry. I…" He wanted to say more, but then found himself silenced when he felt her lips on his. Both savored that moment as long as they could, as if they wanted to make up all the time they missed to do it. After a few minutes, they pulled apart, breathing heavily.
"Just tell me… are you leaving again anytime soon?" Cat asked.
"No way. I'm not going anywhere anymore, at least not without you." Adam said. "Are you going to invite me in anytime soon? The curious eyes are slowly annoying me." He said. Cat turned her head to see her friends looking at them before they quickly ran back into Andre's place when they realized that Adam and Cat noticed them. Cat giggled, shaking her head in disbelief. She took Adam's hand in hers and both walked into the house. Adam closed the door behind him and followed Cat into the living room.
"Nice place you got here." Adam said looking around. It was very similar to how he always had imagined it. It was a nice house without any greater luxury. It was simple, yet comfortable and the view on the ocean was as if someone had taken it right out of his imagination.
"When I saw it I remembered the house you always said you wanted to live in. And I finally understand why. It's a beautiful place to live in. The beach is right in front of us, our friends are only a minute away, Lilly is going to school here. The only thing missing was…" Cat said before she looked back at Adam. She bit both of her lips to prevent a sob from escaping her. A small, sad smile formed on the edge of Adam's lips. He could see what he had put her through. He saw all the pain in her eyes. He saw the fear in them. It was the same fear he had seen the first time they met.
"My brave, little redhead." Adam said as he walked towards her. He picked her up bridal style and carried her to the nearest sofa before he sat down and held her in his lap while he hugged her to himself. She hugged him back, enjoying his warmth she believed she would never feel again.
"I can't believe this is really happening." Cat said, tightening her grip around Adam, just to be sure that it isn't one of her dreams again. He turned his head slightly and kissed her forehead gently. He couldn't even imagine what she must have gone through.
"But it is. And to prove it to you, we are going to do something tomorrow." Adam said.
"What?" Cat asked, raising her head to look at him. He smirked, as he always used to do when he knew that he would make her happy. He took her left hand in his and lifted them up, showing both rings next to one another.
"Something long overdue. If you still want to, of course." Adam asked, looking at her. The small smile on her lips widened into a large one before she kissed him again.
"I want nothing more, Adam." Cat said. Adam smiled as he put his hand behind her head and pulled her in for another kiss.
They stayed there for hours, as Adam explained to her what happened at Roy's house that day, how he managed to survive and get away from the hospital. He explained how he managed to get out of LA and hide in Florida under a false name. He explained how he traveled around the globe searching for them and how he finally found them.
"And now I'm here, finally." Adam said, finishing his story.
"You went through all that to find me?" Cat asked, now absolutely sure that she wasn't dreaming. She would have woken up a hundred times by now, but this time, it continued, and with every minute passing, she got only happier and happier.
"When I took you in eighteen years ago, I gave you my word. And even though I broke it twice, I always came back and always tried to make up for it. Now, I have to try and make up for fifteen years. Knowing you, they were mostly in tears, weren't they?" Adam asked.
"They were. But that doesn't matter anymore. All I care about right now is that you are here again. With me." Cat said. The front door opened and Cat's head shot up again. She looked at the clock and saw that it was afternoon already. Lilly was back from school.
"Wait here." Cat said as she got off his lap and walked towards the door.
"Hi." Lilly said, seemingly exhausted.
"Hey. How was school?" Cat said.
"Boring as always. Did you make something to eat?" Lilly asked.
"Oh. No, I didn't. I forgot?" Cat said.
"You forgot? First Uncle Andre picks us up an hour late and now you forgot? And why are you smirking like that?" Lilly asked as she walked into the living room.
"I'm sorry, honey. I guess I'm to blame for both this time." She heard someone say. She turned her head and saw him standing there, hands in his pockets. He looked familiar, but she knew that she had never seen before. Then she remembered. He looked like someone her mother, her aunts and her uncles had described often. His size, the goatee, the scar over his left eye. All that matched. But it couldn't be. It couldn't be him.
"W-Who the fuck are you?" Lilly asked in a shaky voice.
"Lilly, don't curse." Cat said, even though she understood her daughter's reaction very well.
"Don't worry. The things I've heard with your uncles back then. A few f-bombs don't mean anything to me." Adam said. "Thank good she got her looks from you, Kitty."
"Would someone please explain to me what the fuck is going on here?" Lilly yelled, looking at her mother and then back at Adam.
"I'm the man I'm sure you kept asking about for all these years, Lilly. I'm the guy you must think abandoned you and your mother." Adam said, taking in a heavy breathe. He began trembling, as if he wanted to break down and cry himself, but somehow he kept his composure. "You have every right to think that of me, because you can't know better. I will explain everything to you, if you give me one chance, because I never wanted to leave you or your mother." Adam said, his voice almost breaking at the end.
"Y-You're my…" Lilly said. She felt an arm wrap around her waist as Cat stood next to her.
"He's your father, honey. That's him." Cat said.
"My name is Adam, by the way." Adam said, hoping to somehow break this tense atmosphere.
"I-I know. Well, explain then."
"How much do you know already?" Adam asked.
"I know that Beck and Andre did some shady stuff back in LA. I'm not stupid. And now I'm sure that you were with them."
"Clever girl. I can tell you everything then."
The three sat down and Adam told Lilly everything, from his past to how he and Cat met, to how he almost had gotten killed. Still, he made sure not to mention the murders done by them or that Cat was forced to work for a pimp. Instead, he said that she was a beggar.
"And then I stayed behind, so they could get away. I managed to take both down, but one shot me. I almost bled to death and had passed out before I woke up in a hospital. Two weeks had passed and I found out that a neighbor had heard the gunshots and called the police. I got away anyway and spent the last fifteen years looking for you." Adam explained. Lilly sat there, dumbfounded and shocked at what she had just heard.
"I-I'm sorry, this is too much." Lilly said as she got up and walked upstairs. Cat sighed. She looked back at Adam, who leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes.
"I think I had this conversation in my head a million times by now. And yet I never imagined it to be this difficult." He said.
"Give her some time. It's a shock, not only for her."
"Well, if I have anything now, it's time. Go check on her. I would, but I can't rush this now." Adam said. Cat nodded and walked upstairs. She stopped in front of Lilly's room and slowly opened the door before she saw her lying in her bed, hugging one of her pillows and crying into it. Cat entered the room and slowly closed the door behind her. She walked to the bed and sat down on it.
"Lilly, I know it's hard to believe, but what he says is true." Cat said.
"Why did you never tell me the truth about him? Why did you never tell me that you, all of you here, thought that he was dead?" Lilly asked.
"Because it was painful to remember, Lilly. It hurt so badly every time I remember that moment. Beck and Jade had come back from Jade's house to pick me up. We all wanted to leave LA that day. Your father told me that he would be back immediately. He kissed me, he told me that he loved me and that he would never leave me. He told me not to worry about him. That he would be fine. Those were his last fords I had heard until… today. An hour later, Jade and Beck arrived in front of Adam's flat and rushed me to come with them. They didn't tell me what happened immediately. Only when we went to pick up Andre and Tori did they tell us everything." Cat explained, breathing heavily and barely able to keep it together. "He stayed back because he knew that there was no other option. I know how he thinks. I know his reasoning. He took all the blame with the people back there, so that we all could have another chance. And now, after all these years, he's back. The way he talks, the way he looks at me… the way he holds me in his arms… he didn't change."
"Mom…" Lilly said, seeing her mothers struggle.
"That man downstairs is the man I dreamt about every night, since that day. And every time I would wake up, I felt as if he got taken away from me again. Every night, I felt the same anger; the same agony I felt that day. But I stayed strong, because I had you." Cat said as she put her hand on Lilly's cheek. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, honey. I wanted to, but I couldn't. I thought that not knowing would hurt a lot less that knowing, because I knew how it made feel me. I just didn't want you to feel anything like I do… Like I did." Cat said, a small smile forming on the edge of her lips when she said the final part. Lilly sat up and wrapped her arms around her mother. Cat hugged her back, feeling relieved that she finally told Lilly the truth.
"I'm really sorry, Lilly." Cat said.
"It's okay, mom. It's okay." Lilly said.
Half an hour later, Cat walked downstairs. She tightly gripped the guardrail of her steps, almost as if she was afraid that Adam wouldn't be there. She looked into the living room, and saw him sitting there.
"How's Lilly?" He asked.
"She's okay. Just give her some time. I can barely believe this is happening. I can't even imagine how she must feel." Cat said as she walked to the couch and sat down next to him.
"I understand. I'm just… so glad I finally found you guys. I can't describe to you how happy I was when I saw Andre today." Adam said. He turned his head to look at Cat before he leaned towards her and wrapped his arms around her. "You actually waited for me. You wore the ring all this time."
"I dreamt about you every night, Adam. Every night, you would be with me in my dreams, and every morning, you would be gone. Without a goodbye, without a notice… nothing. How could I forget you? How could I even think of anyone else?" Cat asked. She felt Adam's hug tighten around her.
"I'm so sorry I did this to you. I'm so sorry I put you and our daughter through all this. Back then, at Roy's house, when I saw what had happened, I saw no other way. They would have hunted us, Cat. And they would have found us. They would have tortured you and her until I told them where the others were. And then they would have killed you. I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't let anything endanger you and our baby then." Adam explained, his voice becoming shaky.
"I know. I know all that, Adam. It didn't make it easier, but none of that matters to me anymore." Cat said, leaning her head on his shoulder. "You are back. You are here now. Just let me enjoy having you back."
"Thank you." Adam said before he cupped her cheek and kissed her again.
Lilly covered her mouth to not let a sob escape her body as she was listening to them from upstairs. She wanted to hate them for lying to her. She wanted to stay angry at her mother the way she had been for all these years. But now, she finally understood. She had never seen her mother like this. She had never seen her so honest; as strong as she was now. She sighed as she walked back into her room. She needed to think.
