Epilogue
Stephanie tied her hair into a bun on top of her head and wiped the sweat from her forehead as Paul came into her room.
"Please tell me this is the last box" Paul said as she placed a few more of her items into it. "I don't know how much more you can take before we have to rent a whole new apartment."
"This is the last one I swear" Stephanie replied grabbing a few more things from her nightstand drawer.
It had been eight months since her and Paul had got back together and he had asked her to move in with him since she basically lived at his place anyway. Now that she had also got a job meant she could help him pay rent, utilities, and whatever else they needed. But with how much she was packing she started wondering if he was regretting his decision.
"Am I really packing too much?" Stephanie asked closing the box and taping it close.
"We'll have room don't worry. We'll make it work" Paul replied kissing her and then grabbing the box to load it in the U-Haul they had rented.
Stephanie followed behind him but stopped at the doorway to her bedroom and turned to look at it once more. It looked a lot barer now than it had when she had left for college. This time she was taking a lot more since this was permanent or at least she hoped was permanent. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with Paul, she knew that for sure. She wasn't sad that she was leaving, she was excited about starting a new life with Paul but she did want to look at her room one last time the way that it was.
"I knew this day would happen eventually. I have to confess it makes me a little sad" Linda said coming up behind her.
"Mom I had already moved out before for college" Stephanie laughed turning around to face her mother.
"Yeah but it was different. I knew you'd be coming back eventually. This time you won't be" Linda shrugged with a sad smile on her face which made Stephanie tear up a little.
"I'll come over all the time" Stephanie assured her but Linda shook her head.
"I know but it won't be the same. Eventually you'll be married with children of your own. You'll know exactly what I mean one day when they get old enough to move out on their own."
"That won't be for a long while mom" Stephanie laughed and hugged her mother.
"You know if anything were to happen you can come back home, right?" Linda asked and Stephanie nodded her head. "I'm not saying that it will and I hope it doesn't but just so you know."
"I know mom."
"Okay so Paul said that was the last box so I just came to make sure it really was" Shane said coming in her room behind Linda.
"Yes, it really was" Stephanie replied rolling her eyes at her brother.
It had been a while during the last eight months before Stephanie had been ready to start forgiving Shane even after he apologized a lot. They were in a better place now than they had been and really the only reason she had started trying to forgive him was because he was family. Once upon a time they had been close too and she missed having that. Thankfully Paul was willing to try and forgive him too and they were friendly with each other. They weren't quite friends again but Shane had offered to help with moving Stephanie in with Paul and they were getting a long great.
Stephanie was sure she had Marissa to thank for how Shane was being now. She had made him happy and a lot like the brother she used to be friends with. Although Stephanie didn't know much about her because they were just getting to know each other. Marissa and Shane had met a few months back through some mutual friends and Stephanie was happy that he had started to move on from Charlotte.
"Just making sure" Shane said putting his hands up in front of him as if to defend himself "I know how you can be."
"That is all of it" Stephanie replied looking back one last time.
"Okay I guess its time to go and take it to yours and Paul's apartment and unload it. Thank God I don't have to actually unpack it all and put it away" Shane said turning and leaving the room. Stephanie and Linda followed behind him after a couple of seconds.
"Call me if there is ever a case of emergency okay?" Linda asked once they made it to the front door of the house.
"I will mom" Stephanie assured her. She didn't remember her mother being this concerned when she went away to college.
"I love you" Linda said before hugging her.
"I love you too" Stephanie replied and once they stopped hugging, she opened the door to leave.
"Wait a minute" Vince said stopping her before she even opened the door. Stephanie turned around to look at him as he pulled out his wallet and pulled out a couple of hundred-dollar bills. "I want you take this."
"No dad I can't" Stephanie replied shaking her head but he took her hand and put the cash in it.
"Yes, you can. I want you to put it in a savings account and add it to when you can in case of an emergency and you really need it. You can always come to me if you need help too but I know how independent you are."
"Thanks dad" Stephanie smiled at him.
"I love you" Vince said giving her a hug. "He better treat you right or he'll have me to answer to."
"I love you too and he does dad, you don't have to worry about that" Stephanie replied after the hug ended. She smiled at her parents as Vince went and put his arm around Linda.
Vince had moved back into the house a couple of months after him and Linda had told her and Shane they were back together. They seemed happier than ever and back on a good path with one another and she hoped it stayed like this. Stephanie's relationship with her father was better and she was trying to trust him again but sometimes it was hard. But as long as Vince kept trying so would she, but she couldn't promise anything if he left her mother for another woman again. But the way he looked at her mother again made Stephanie believe everything was going to okay and she knew her mother would be fine without her. That was all she needed to know before she turned and left.
Later that night after getting Stephanie's stuff into the apartment and her unpacking some of it, her and Paul decided to cuddle and watch a movie. They were laying on the couch with Stephanie snuggled into Paul's side with her head on his chest and his arm wrapped around her. She was a bit distracted though because it seemed Allie and Melanie both were texting her freaking out. Allie was freaking out because next weekend her and Daniel were finally getting married. So, she kept texting Stephanie to make sure they had everything because she felt like they were forgetting something. Melanie was freaking out because she had a date and was really nervous about it because she had been wanting this guy to ask her out for a while now. She was sending Stephanie pictures of it seemed every dress she owned to ask Stephanie's opinion.
"What is Allie freaking out about now?" Paul asked with a laugh as her phone dinged yet again.
"It's actually Allie and Melanie tonight. Allie is freaking out about flowers and Melanie is freaking out about what to wear on her date."
"I guess you're the go to girl tonight."
"Well I am Allie's maid of honor and Melanie can't really ask Allie anything because Allie is so stressed about the wedding so it all falls on me right now" Stephanie replied texting them both back.
"Do you think they'll hate me if I ask you to turn your phone off for the night?" Paul asked staring at her as her phone dinged once again.
"Maybe but they'll get over it" Stephanie joked opening her text messages. "Just let me tell Allie to calm down and assure I have everything and I'll talk to her tomorrow and let me assure Melanie that is the right dress and I'll turn my phone off."
"I feel bad for asking because I know with the wedding coming up Allie is nervous but I kind of just wanted tonight to be about us. We just took a new step in our relationship and I just want to enjoy our first night of officially living together just you and me" Paul explained as she sent the text messages and turned off her phone. "Tomorrow you can talk all day with Allie if you need to. Promise."
"It's okay. She just wants everything to be perfect because she feels like her soon to be mother in law will pick at any little flaw. I'll just be glad when she can relax and I hope she'll be too happy on her wedding day to care what her soon to be mother in law thinks."
"I'm sure she will" Paul replied rubbing her back and kissing the top of her head. "I love you."
"I love you too" Stephanie replied angling her head so she could kiss him.
She wasn't sure what awaited them in the future but whatever it was she knew they would get through it together. He was her forever and after everything they had been through, she felt like their relationship was even stronger for it. She had everything she could hope for, two best friends, her parents back together, her brother and him finally finding love and happiness and the love of her life.
Thank you to everyone who read, followed, favorited, and reviewed my story. I really appreciate it and I hope you enjoyed it!
