Epilouge

I Smile Real Hard

November Day

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A day in the Life....

Two years later.

Charlie Thomas smiled down at the scars on his arms with indulgence. The day he had received them was still as vivid in his mind as though it had happened only a second ago. And it wasn't just because of the blinding pain that was also associated with these burns, no it was mostly because that had been the moment when he had asked his second wife to marry him.

"ON BLOODY HELL, I'M GOING TO BE LATE!" Charlie looked up to see his lovely wife tear through the house looking for her cell phone. Find it, wave it about like it was on fire, run out of the house at full speed, trip over Robin right in front of him and then show him her Wright brother impression. Without the plane. Lucky for her Charlie was expecting this, as he had been for 2 years, and caught her.

"Thanks darling," and with a quick kiss, she was gone out the door. Mac, throughout this little circus act had been calmly sitting and reading the comics.

"10 on 10." She said as Charlie sat down beside her.

"Really? I'd say 10 on 5," he said pouring milk over his Crunchy O's.

"Deal."

Ten minutes later Sparrow walked back into the kitchen.

"I hate you all." Charlie looked at his watch, cursed slightly and put a crumbled 10-dollar bill in his daughters waiting hand. It was Saturday and the only place Sparrow should be on Saturdays was in bed.

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"I'm running around like I'm on fire. Charlie knows what that feels like, don't you dear? And it's Saturday and my supposed family lets me almost go all the way to New York."

Jay tried without success, to not laugh in his sister's face. He had come to Stoneybrook this fine day in June to see his little sister. And since the weather was so nice they were having a barbecue out in the backyard.

"My poor Sparrow," he began. "Disowned by her Mother, made a fool of by her husband and Stepdaughter and just generally mocked by her siblings."

"How is mother anyway?"

"Oh her usual tyrannical self. Her anger at you has cooled a bit though, what with you expecting. She actually only gave me a half hour talking to when I told her I was coming here, instead of the usual 2." (Gwen O'Connelly, at seeing THAT photo, had promptly disowned her daughter, took all of Sparrow's pictures off of the walls and from the photo albums, put them in a big brown box and only by Raven's intervention had been stopped from burning them. While she had been wrestling the brown box from Raven (who had taxied over the second he saw the photo) she screamed at the top of her lungs that the clan was forbidden to talk to Sparrow and warned death to whoever did. At the Flockings, all of which the Thomas family attended, Gwen happily greeted Mac and chatted with Charlie easily. She wouldn't even look at Sparrow though. But despite all of this, she still phoned Sparrow at 4 in the morning just to chat.)

"Well I guess that's good for appearance sake," said Sparrow taking a sip of her orange juice while rubbing her swollen stomach unconsciously.

"It's a good thing in general as well Sparrow," spoke Charlie kissing his wife on the head before heading off to see what Mac was doing. Jay watched the exchange bemused before a look of excitement came over his face.

"I forgot!" he exclaimed, pulling out a package that looked the size of a book. "I can't believe I did. Call it a belated wedding present," he said handing the package over to Sparrow. "HEY CHARLIE COME OVER HERE AND BRING MAC AS WELL!"

The package actually was a book. But what made it so special was the author's name in bold print at the bottom. "The Photographer and Her Man", by Jay O'Connelly.

"JAY! YOU GOT PUBLISHED!" Sparrow happily hugged her brother, while Charlie calmly flipped the book over and began to read the back. He had a nasty suspicion about that title. He was right.

"My dear, before you continue, I think you may want to read the back." Charlie said handing the book to his wife. He smiled at Sparrow's quizzical look and merely waited. Still wondering what that look meant on her husbands face, Sparrow obediently read the back.

Sparrow O'Connell was satisfied, successful, sexy and single. Until the accident that is. While taking photo's of starving children in the Amazon, to raise awareness of world hunger, she contracted a deadly disease that took her vision. No longer able to take the pictures, the still portraits of life as she called them, Sparrow fell into a deep depression.

Charlie Fairchild was an English teacher and a single father of a vivacious 8 year old, Max. After his wife's tragic death when their only child was 1, he closed his heart to any romantic love, sure that no one could take the place of his dead wife. Or so he thought. Then one day, while helping to prepare for his sisters wedding, he laid his eyes on the beautiful, though sad, Sparrow. Determined to help this Sparrow of his heart, a friendship developed between the two that soon became something more, but will both of their pasts keep them from an everlasting love?

Sparrow finished reading the back and turned to Jay. Charlie was not disappointed.

"YOU BLINDED ME!" And despite the fact that Sparrow was five months pregnant, it didn't stop her from chasing Jay around the yard with a meat fork. Mac and Charlie only watched amused. I guess mother does know best, thought Charlie. I really did need more chaos in my life.

The End.

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