This is it...
Epilogue
"What's taking them so long?" Caitlyn said, crossing her arms.
"They probably decided on a quickie…" Ella replied nonchalantly.
Caitlyn rolled her eyes, already used to Ella's side comments.
Caitlyn tapped her foot on the hardwood floor in Shane and Mitchie's humble home on the farm.
Jason, Nate and the grandfathers were out in the backyard playing with the children while Connie and Shane's mother, Denise, bonded in the kitchen. Shane and Mitchie, on the other hand, were nowhere to be found.
"Ooh look! Photo albums!" Ella squealed. "Let's take a trip down memory lane." she said grabbing one before flopping onto the couch. Caitlyn sat down next to her, thinking it was probably good idea.
"Awww…it's Sasha's baby photos." Ella sighed. "It seems just like yesterday, huh?"
"Yeah…"
"She's like…what now? Nine already?" asked Ella, skimming through the album.
"Ten." Caitlyn corrected her.
Ella sighed. "And we're pushing thirty!"
Caitlyn laughed. "Well, not in another three or four years."
"Wow...this one's just Sasha's photos from birth to one year." Ella exclaimed.
"Come on, El! Don't tell me you don't have tons of photo albums full of Heather and Tyler's pictures…arranged in chronological order."
Ella smiled sheepishly.
"This one's Amber's." Caitlyn said, getting another one.
"How'd you know?" Ella asked, puzzled.
"Her name's on the cover, stupid." Caitlyn said, handing the purple and white photo album to Ella.
Ella opened it.
"Amber-Dawn Grace Gray..." Ella read.
"Amber-Dawn Grace…I never realized how pretty her name is." Ella commented. "I wonder where Mitchie got it."
"Actually, Shane came up with it." Caitlyn said, matter-of-factly.
"Really?!" Ella said, befuddled.
Caitlyn nodded.
"Wow! How'd he come up with that?"
"Amber-Dawn Grace Gray." Shane cooed as he cradled his newborn daughter.
Mitchie smiled at him, the pain she was feeling just a few hours ago already forgotten.
"That's a pretty name."Mitchie commented, obviously delighted. Since was the one who named Sasha, she gave the liberty of naming their second child to Shane and she was trying to slip him some ideas for the past eight months for fear that he would name their baby something really awful like Rudolph or Delilah. Or Earl Gray which was kind of cute and amusing but still…
"Where'd you get it?" she asked, sitting up on the bed.
"Well…" Shane started, as he awkwardly handed baby Amber to Mitchie. "Since she was born during the wee hours of morning I got the name 'Dawn' and when I went out to tell everyone the news the first thing I saw out the window was a beautiful sunrise…it was all bright and yellow and that's where I got "Amber."
Mitchie nodded. "Good thinking, mister." she said, as she drew tiny circles on Amber's temple with her finger. "What about 'Grace?'
"Grace is a personal favorite." Shane replied nonchalantly.
"Really? Why?"
"It means a lot of different beautiful things. I think it suits her."
"Yes, it does." Mitchie said, softly as they both watched the baby sigh as she slept in Mitchie's arms.
"She's beautiful…Just like her mommy." Shane added before planting a kiss on Mitchie's lips.
"She's such a gorgeous little girl, isn't she?" Ella said, flipping through the pictures.
"Yes, she is. She looks just like Mitchie. The hair, the eyes. She even got Mitchie's chin!" Caitlyn said, pointing at one particular picture.
"Shane and Mitchie have good genes. Lucky bastards."
Caitlyn laughed.
"Come on! Don't be too harsh on yourself. We've all got good genes! We've got the cutest kids!"
"Yeah, you're right." Ella said, standing up to get another album. This time she picked a blue one.
"Oh look, It's Mitchie's college grad photos." She exclaimed as she opened the album.
"Look at that." Ella said pointing at one of the photos. "Who would have thought Donny and Tess would end up together?"
"I know." Caitlyn replied, giggling.
"Boy was Shane surprised to see that the girl Donny was going to introduce to them was his ex!" Ella exclaimed.
"Awww…Look at Mitchie…" Caitlyn said, looking at the last picture - The one where all of them stood crowded around Mitchie. "She was so happy."
"Yeah…This was like redemption for her." Ella said. "Not like she was in a bad place or something. But you know…"
"Yeah…I know what you mean. I guess this was the proudest moment for all of us."
"I know. Mitchie's such a trooper. I don't know how she did it. She had two kids to begin with and then she was pregnant somewhere in between…"
"Uh…Shane, you take it. I don't want to see it." Mitchie said, handing the pregnancy test to Shane before running back to the bathroom.
"You're going to find out anyway, Mitchie."
"I know. I just…don't want to be the first to know." she said, although deep inside she knew she was definitely expecting their third child. Being three weeks late was already a giveaway. Plus the all-day sickness…and a PMS-like state of mind.
"Oh God…" Mitchie whispered then stopped. She didn't really know what to pray for. She didn't know if she wanted to NOT be pregnant or to BE pregnant.
"Mitchie?" Shane knocked on the bathroom door. "Honey, it's been five minutes already."
"Well, look at it then!" Mitchie said, sounding annoyed.
"I already did." Shane said as calm as ever but his insides were killing him already.
Mitchie took a deep breath, unlocked the bathroom door and opened it.
Shane stood in front of her, test in hand.
"You're not pregnant." he said, smiling at her.
"I'm not?" she asked again, like she didn't hear it the first time. She probably missed her period again because of stress from school and everything, she thought to herself. This had happened before. It was nothing new.
"No." Shane reiterated, shaking his head.
Mitchie took a deep breath as tears stung her eyes.
"What's wrong?" Shane asked, gently pulling her into his arms.
"I don't know." Mitchie sobbed. "Nothing, I guess. I mean, why would I cry over something I never had? But I really thought I was…" Damn PMS! Making her emotional and all. Mitchie prayed for it to be over.
"Wait." Shane suddenly said, his voice sounding alarmed.
Mitchie looked up at him.
He was staring at the test again.
"Two lines." he said.
"What?" Mitchie said, grabbing the test from him.
She looked at it and lo and behold – two big fat red lines staring back at her.
"But the box said five minutes…I feel woozy…" she said.
"Maybe we should do it again." Shane suggested.
Mitchie whined as she grabbed another two-liter bottle of orange juice and another pregnancy test which confirmed what they already knew.
Eight months later, Sean Matthew Gray was born.
"Hey, don't you ever wonder why Shane and Mitchie don't have any wedding photos?" Ella asked, closing Mattie's baby album.
"Come on! Their wedding was an impromptu one. And I don't think there were other people around." Caitlyn replied, matter-of-factly.
"But isn't it weird that it's been six years but Mitchie has never told us what happened that day." Ella said feeling a little hurt then a little annoyed.
"I guess they just want to keep the moment special by keeping it to themselves." Caitlyn replied, as if her lovely lukewarm sentiment would be an enough consolation for Ella.
They heard the door open and close. The sounds of hurried footsteps, whispered threats and wailing came near them.
Ten-year-old Sasha appeared in the living room carrying an inconsolable Mattie in her arms.
"Stop it, Mattie!" Sasha said, removing the toddler's grip from her hair. "Ow! That really hurt, Mattie!"
The little boy crossed his chubby little arms across his chest and pouted
"Aunt Caitlyn, Aunt Ella…" Sasha started, moving Mattie to her other hip. "Have you guys seen mom?"
Ella huffed and rolled her eyes. "You tell me, young lady."
Sasha shrugged her shoulders. "Mattie really needs her."
All their eyes fall on the little boy in Sasha's arms. He was about to give the ladies in the room another earful.
"I got him." Mitchie said entering the room her arms outstretched towards her baby boy.
Mattie gave her a toothed grin and kicked his chubby legs excitedly, accidentally kicking his sister on the side in the process.
"Ow!" Sasha mouthed before running outside.
"Did you miss, mommy?" Mitchie cooed like there was no one else in the room.
He put his chubby arms around Mitchie's neck.
"You really do, huh?" Mitchie said, kissing his head before finally acknowledging Caitlyn and Ella's presence.
"And where have you been, missy?" Ella asked her giving her the eyebrow, her arms crossed over her chest.
"Don't bite my head off. I just went to get married again." Mitchie answered, nonchalantly.
"What?!" Her two friends yelled in unison.
"To whom?!" Caitlyn asked.
"To Shane." Mitchie answered like it was the most obvious thing. Well, come to think of it, it is.
"Oh…" Caitlyn and Ella echoed each other.
"Haven't you both heard about renewal of vows?" Mitchie asked, playfully cocking an eyebrow as she rocked Mattie.
"We have." Caitlyn replied. "I mean, I have. I don't know about her." she added, pointing at Ella.
Ella pinched her on the side.
"But why weren't we invited?!" Caitlyn asked, sounding a little hurt.
"We do it every year and…"
"You do it every year?!" Caitlyn asked again, her voice an octave higher.
"Yes."
"Every. Single. Frickin. Year?" Ella asked.
Mitchie nodded.
"And you never even tell us?" Caitlyn asked.
"We just wanted to relive our wedding day..." Mitchie explained.
"With no intentions of sharing." Ella said, huffing and puffing like the big bad wolf.
"Hey, you guys are here every year." Mitchie said defensively.
"Yeah, waiting for you guys to come home from your wedding." Caitlyn mocked.
"We can take a hint Mitchie. I know work's not doing really well. If you're having problems in the money department, we can skip the gowns and make up and cake and wine and everything else fancy. We can go to your wedding in flannel and blue jeans and have milk and corn. It will be enough." Ella added.
The three friends laughed.
"I'm sorry." Mitchie said. "I promise, on our tenth anniversary, you guys will definitely be there."
"Wow, that's like only four years away!" Ella remarked sarcastically.
They laugh again.
"You know how you can make it up to us?" Caitlyn started. "Tell us what happened today, six years ago." she suggested.
"Yeah, I can't believe you never told us what you guys did while we tried to come up with euphemisms for 'Mitchie jilted Donny'." Ella added.
"And I can't believe you never asked until now." Mitchie said plopping on the couch, cradling Mattie's head to her chest.
Caitlyn and Ella plopped their own behinds on the couch on either side of Mitchie.
"Spill!" they yelled into Mitchie's ear.
"Okay! Here goes…"
"This is the first time I'm so glad I missed my plane." Shane said looking over at Mitchie on the passenger's seat. He still couldn't believe this was happening. Must be his lucky day.
"Me too." Mitchie sighed, sitting with her legs propped under her, facing Shane. "So what are we going to do? Run off to Vegas or something?" she asked, inching closer to Shane.
"Honestly?" Shane said, trying to keep his eyes on the road as he drove Mitchie's 'stolen car.' "I don't know. Any suggestions?"
"I think I have a plan." Mitchie said, grinning.
"Have any of you seen Father Krause?" Connie asked the couple of people remaining after they announced that there was no wedding taking place.
"Didn't we just see him enter the sacristy mumbling possibly unholy words?" Ella replied.
"I checked. He wasn't there." Connie said, wondering where the priest had run off to. "Any luck on Mitchie?" she asked again.
The people in the crowd shook their heads.
"I know it was wrong to leave Donny that way. But this is way better than leaving after the wedding. I'm sure I'll probably go straight to Hell because of that." Mitchie explained to the wide-eyed elderly priest sitting with her on the backseat of the stolen car parked behind a tree near Lake Rock.
"Do you understand that Father Krause?"
Father Krause nodded, still in shock after he was jerked out the window of the sacristy. This was too much he could handle in one day.
"Now would you please wed me and Shane…" Mitchie pleaded to the priest. "I swear to God…" Father Krause glared at her. "I swear…to no one in particular… I really really reeeeeeeeeally love him and you will not regret marrying us because we will definitely stick to them wedding vows." Mitchie added to persuade the priest.
Father Krause looked at Shane and then at Mitchie. Both their eyes were pleading. It seemed like this was what they really wanted. Heck, they had a child together and as they've said they 'really really reeeeeeeeeally' love each other. Who was he to get in their way?
Father Krause exhaled sharply and nodded his head. "All right."
He watched the expression on the young lovers' faces change from worry to excited smiles.
"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to…" Father Krause started before looking at Shane and Mitchie holding hands and smiling at each other as they stood barefoot on the dock in the lake. "…witness the joining of Shane and Michelle in the holy sacrament of matrimony."
He looked at the couple again, their eyes still locked together.
Father Krause cleared his throat. "Vows?"
"Oh, right…" Shane said, releasing Mitchie's hands from and wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans. Then he took Mitchie's hands in his again. "Mitchie…How and where do I even start to tell you how happy I am right now…and how much I love you?" he started. "It sounds so cliché because we hear it every day and everywhere, you know? I guess I can never express in words how much you really mean to me but I want you to know that when I tell you I love you it comes from here…" he said, placing Mitchie's hand to his chest…where his heart is. "We've missed a lot the past four years. But I'm glad things worked out the way they did because now we have each other, and Sasha and the rest of our lives to make up for lost time. I know it's not going to be a perfect life. We're still going to have ups and downs. But one thing's for sure - I'll be there with you…for you every step of the way…lovingly, faithfully, completely until my very last breath."
Mitchie was crying her heart out already.
"Mitchie?" Father Krause urged her on.
"Shane…" she started, almost whispering. "I also can't think of any words to tell you how much I love you but I reeeeeeally reeeeeeeeeally do and I hope you understand that when I say that I really mean it. Like, no kidding. I'm so thankful we were given this second chance although you almost blew it again…" she giggled. "Yes, we've missed out a lot on each other's lives but I guess that just made me realized how much you really mean to me and like you said we have each other and an eternity to catch up...and do a whole lot of other things together! You're my twice-in-a-lifetime and spending forever with you and as perfect as it can get."
Shane smiled at her and then hugged her really tight.
"I love you." he whispered.
"I know. I love you, too." she whispered in reply.
Father Krause had never heard wedding vows as real and as moving as the ones he had just heard. He actually found himself holding back tears.
"You…may now…kiss…the bride." he said, stifling a cry.
Shane cupped Mitchie's face in his hands and gave her a gentle yet long kiss.
"Then we took Father Krause back to the church but you guys were no longer there." Mitchie said before pausing.
"And?!" Caitlyn and Ella urged.
"God! Do you two have to always say things together?!" Mitchie said, grimacing. Mattie wriggled in her arms.
"Caitlyn and Ella shushed her jokingly.
"And then what happened?" they both asked, eagerly waiting for more.
"Duh!" Mitchie said, rolling her eyes. "Like you both didn't know…"
Caitlyn and Ella looked at each other then smiled.
"And then?"
"And then we went straight to this house and decided that this is where we were going to start our life together."
"And?"
"And the rest, as we all know, is history." Mitchie said, playing with Mattie's hair.
"You're no fun!" Ella exclaimed.
"Ladies!" Shane called, disturbing the girls' moment. "What are you three up to?" he asked but only looked at Mitchie flirtatiously.
"Nothing…dad." Mitchie joked, struggling to stand up.
Shane immediately came to her rescue and took their sleeping son into his arms. After three kids, he was a pro at this.
"I was just telling them about our wedding."
"Oh…"
"It was soooo romantic!" Caitlyn sighed, half joking.
"I know, right." Shane said. "You two want to give your toasts now?"
Mitchie laughed and her girl friends just stared at her, ridiculously. What can she do? She found her husband hilarious.
"Why do you have hay in your hair?" Caitlyn asked Mitchie who immediately ran her fingers through her long, raven hair.
"That's a whole different story if you ask me." Shane answered.
"Now that's funny." Ella chortled.
Caitlyn rolled her eyes. "Let's go, Ella." she said, pulling Ella towards the door.
Once again, there was peace and quiet in the room. Shane and Mitchie looked at each other like two teenagers who just met.
"So I guess it's just you and me again." Shane said in a husky voice.
Mitchie giggled and pointed at Mattie.
"Right." Shane said.
"And we have people waiting for us outside." Mitchie added, walking towards Shane.
"They're waiting, right?" Shane said, popping his eyebrows up and down.
"Don't be such a baby, Shane." Mitchie said, placing her arms around Shane's waist.
"I'm not." Shane pouted. "I'm a man!" he said, before kissing Mitchie.
"See?" he said.
"Ewwwww!!!"
Shane and Mitchie almost jumped.
Sasha and Amber stood in front of them, their faces all scrunched up in disgust.
"Girls…what did I tell you about kissing?" Mitchie said, placing a hand on her hip the other around Shane's waist.
"It's gwoss!" Amber said, shaking her head and her nose wrinkled like she smelled something foul.
"No, it isn't." Mitchie said.
"Yes it is!" Sasha said.
"No it's not. Someday when you're older, you'll be doing it too." Mitchie explained.
"I'm never kissing boys." Sasha declared, her arms crossed.
"Boysh are dishgushting." Amber added.
"That's my girls!" Shane yelled, raising a fist into the air.
Mitchie rolled her eyes.
"You girls don't know what you're going to miss..." Mitchie said in a sing-song voice.
It was Shane's turn to roll his eyes.
"Hey! What are you guys doing in there? The food's getting cold!" Someone yelled from outside.
The adorable Gray Family looked at one another and walked out laughing as they were welcomed by the hugs and cheers of the people they loved and the people who loved them.
And you guessed it: they lived happily ever after.
THE END
And that was the epilogue...I don't know about a sequel though. Hehe! But hey, I can always write other stories (if I have the time)? :)
Thanks for reading and for all the alerts and all the reviews!
I really enjoyed writing this and I truly appreciated all your comments! I will seriously miss this!
I LOVE YOU GUYS! :D
-Jill
P.S. "Love Stood Still" is a song by MYMP. That's where I got the title. :)
Bye for now!
