Hey! So, after getting two great reviews from freefalling08& Sw33t Lavenderand a sweet email from April (JLsNaley), I had to update. Thanks you guys. :)

Sophie: Aw... thank you so much. Great reviews... I could go for those too. :) Yes, obviously, Kerr Smith goes hand in hand with Dawson's Creek. Reminds me of the good old days... lol. I'm not that old. And Charmed, yes. I was like omg that's Kerr Smith. lol. Thanks so much for always reviewing!

freefalling08: Hey, don't worry about not reviewing for last chapter. I get lazy too. Happens all the time. And thank you so much. I'm really glad you liked both stories in the series. Hopefully, you'll like the third one just as much. :)

April: Thank you so much for your email. It really meant a lot to know that even though you couldn't read. Glad you were still thinking of this story. It's readers like you that I write it for:) Love you for it. Hope you had fun out of town! ;)

Well, guys, here it is, the last part... Enjoy.

Epilogue:

She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so happy. Being with Nathan was the only thing that had made sense in a long time. She couldn't begin to remember how she ever made it through the nights without him there to hold her.

There was still no news over Jack and that worried her a little. But she had decided not to dwell on it. For now, she just wanted to enjoy the time she had away from him.

Lucas and Brooke had come for another short, two day visit. They had just finished packing and Lucas was loading the car as Brooke was saying a very tearful goodbye to Haley. She choked back a sob as a few tears escaped and brought Haley into a hug. "I don't want to leave, Haley."

Haley smiled and hugged her back. "I know you don't, Tigger. But you and Luke have to get back."

At the use of her high school nick name, Brooke smiled through her tears. "You be good, tutor girl."

Haley rolled her eyes playfully and released Brooke. "Alright, get out of here."

Brooke pouted. "Won''t you miss me?"

"But of course."

Brooke smiled. "Now, that's more like it. I'll miss you, Haley."

Haley gave her another short hug. "We'll see each other a lot. And Peyton and Jake too. Besides, I have some people I want you guys to meet. Just a couple friends from college. We'll do tons of stuff together."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"OK." Brooke smiled and they shared one last hug before she moved on to say goodbye to Nathan. She leapt at him and gave him a big bear hug. He stumbled back, more than a little surprised as Luke approached her.

Haley nodded at Brooke practically attacking Nathan. "She's something else."

Lucas smiled. "Yeah, she is. I'm lucky to have her."

Haley grinned back at him. "We all are."

They shared a big hug as Lucas said sadly, "I'm gonna miss you, Hales."

"Aw Luke, I'll miss you too."

They pulled away and Lucas grinned at her. "But I expect to see a lot more of you and Nathan now."

Haley returned a smile. "You know it."

"That's my girl," Lucas cheered.

Nathan appeared behind Haley and wrapped her in his arms. "No, she's my girl," he said, mock serious.

Lucas raised his hands in surrender and widened his eyes. They all laughed. Nathan dropped a kiss on Haley's shoulder as she leaned back into him, placing her own arms over his. Lucas draped an arm over Brooke's shoulders. "Come on, babe. We're not wanted here."

"Bye," Nathan and Haley uttered, but neither moved. They were too comfortable.

Brooke rolled her eyes. "Fine, I see how it is."

"Bye, Brookie!" Haley called as Brooke slid into the passenger seat and slammed the door, Lucas already situated beside her.

Brooke rolled down her window. ""Whatever!"" she yelled, but turned back to give them a big, dimpled smile as Lucas drove off, holding up her thumb and pinkie to indicate they call her.

Nathan laughed. Haley turned and wrapped her arms around his neck. He smiled down at her. "Now that they're gone. Whatever will we do to pass the time?"

Haley slapped his chest lightly. "You are so corny."

He grinned. "I know, right?" Leaning down, he kissed her long and deep.

She stood on her toes, dropping kisses along his neck and jaw line. "Well, I was thinking we could go out tonight," she murmured.

"Haley," he groaned. "You're not serious, are you?"

She stopped her ministrations and smiled up at him. "No."

He smiled. "Good." Kissing her once more, he pulled away and lifted her into the air. She giggled as he carried her through the front door and slammed it behind them. Carrying her into the living room, he sighed as he dropped her onto the couch, falling right behind her with arms still locked around her waist. "Free at last."

She picked up the remote and turned on the TV. "Hey, look. It's A Walk To Remember!" she exclaimed. Turning to face him, she gave him a long kiss, sucking on his bottom lip playfully and taking it between her teeth. Pulling back slightly, she pouted. "Will you watch it with me?"

He held her close and groaned. "Haley, come on. You can't do that to me."

She added her best puppy eyes. "Pleeeeeeeeease?"

He closed his eyes. "I'm not falling for it."

"Come on, please," she whimpered. "Nathan," she whined when he still refused to open his eyes.

Slowly opening his lids, he found her still staring up at him with the most adorable face. He groaned again. "Alright, fine. You win."

"Yay!" she cheered, giving him another tantalizing kiss. "Thank you baby," she whispered, turning back to the movie.

An hour later, Nathan was about to go insane. There was nothing he hated more than chick flicks. Haley, however, seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself and he didn't want to ruin her moment of happiness. But it seemed he wouldn't have to as her cell phone began ringing. He sent a silent prayer of thanks to God above.

She pouted and muted the TV, whipping out her phone. She frowned. "It's some number I don't recognize." They had both maneuvered into sitting positions, Haley in his lap. He shrugged and she flipped open her phone. "Hello?"

A weak voice came through the other line. "Haley?"

"Yeah, who is this?" She gave Nathan a questioning look.

"Jack," came the answer and she almost felt her heart stop. She could tell Nathan had heard the name too. His eyes squeezed shut and his grip on her tightened. She kissed his cheek and rubbed gentle circles on his arm.

"What the hell do you want?" she whispered harshly. "You have some nerve to call here after that little stunt you pulled. Heart attack my ass. You just wanted me to feel sorry for you."

He cleared his throat and when he talked again, his voice sounded as though it was about to give out. "No, Haley, it's true. I had a heart attack. I'm having a few problems with the recovery, but I should be OK."

She tried not to sound so angry. "Is that what the doctors said?"

"No, that's what I say," he answered, sounding almost sad it seemed.

"Well, what did the doctors say?" she asked, not really wanting to know, but needing to.

He took a few seconds to answer. "They don't think I'll make it." There was silence, but he felt like he had to reassure her. "But I'll make it, Haley. You'll see. I'll prove them all wrong."

"Jack……" her voice cracked as a solitary tear escaped. Nathan was looking at her, confused and hurt. She gave him a quick kiss, trying to let him know everything was OK.

"No, listen to me, Haley. I know I messed up your life pretty bad. In fact, I ruined your life. And I am so sorry. I just, I had this idea, that you were going to get hurt, stomped on, just like everyone else does. And I had to help you. It was the only way I knew how. It's the only way I know how to stop the pain I feel every damn day of my life. I don't ever want anyone else to have to go through what I go through."

She interrupted him. "But Jack, that's not the approach you should take. No matter how good your intentions are, you're still corrupting people. I mean, look at what you did to me. A life without love is no life at all."

"I know that now," he said, his voice full of desperation. He needed her to understand. "Haley, I love you. I don't know how it happened, but it did. I fell in love with you. And I know you're in love with that Nathan guy and I can never have you, but I just thought you should know."

Haley cut him off angrily. "You're right. I do love Nathan. I'm with him now and you will never be a part of that. I will never be with you."

"Haley, I know that!" he exclaimed. "I just wanted to tell you because it changed my life. It made me realize that love's all we've got. It's the only thing out there that's worth living for. So, I want to let you know that I'm gonna change. I'm really gonna try. I'll do it for you. And maybe someday, somewhere off in the far distance, you and I can even find a way to be friends."

"Maybe we can. Someday," she whispered. She could see Nathan looking at her blankly. He had no idea what they were talking about. All he knew was that the person on the other end of the conversation was the one who had stolen Haley from him multiple times. And he didn't think he could handle it again. Hell, he knew he couldn't handle it again.

"So, thank you, Haley," he continued, sounding much happier. "And I'm sorry. I hope you can forgive me."

By now, Haley was in tears. "I hope I can too."

They both hung up and Nathan waited patiently for her to offer an explanation. He didn't want to jump to conclusions. "He claims he'll make it through OK." She waited for a response from Nathan, but got none. "He told me he loves me."

Nathan tried abruptly to stand up and she knew she'd made him angry. But she had to tell him the truth. She shifted all her weight against him so he would remain seated and took his hands in hers. "But he knows I'm in love with you and he knows we can never be together. He just wanted to say thank you because I helped him to realize how wrong he was and how much love matters and that he's really sorry."

"So, he expects you to just forgive him!" Nathan blew out, eyes churning with fury.

She shook her head. "No, he just hopes I can one day."

Nathan looked stunned. "Wow, I never thought the bastard had it in him."

She gave a small smile. "Yeah, me neither."

"I'm sorry," and he truly did look regretful. "I shouldn't have gotten mad. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. I know you would never do that to me."

She shook her head, tears forming again. "No, you had every right to. I haven't given you any reasons to trust me. I've given you every reason not to. I just want you to know that I love you so much and I don't want either of us to hurt any more. I'm going to do my best to make sure it doesn't happen."

He let himself relax around her. "I know you will. And I love you too."

They shared a long kiss, one full of love and meaning, as he laid her back on the couch.

It seemed like things were finally looking up. Jack was changing for the better, they were back together, their friends were happy and so were they. They'd been so close to losing it all. One wrong step along the way and this life wouldn't have existed.

They pulled away for a few seconds. "I love you," she whispered.

"And I love you," he whispered back.

And he smiled.

And she smiled.

And they let go.

I will remember you
Will you remember me
Don't let your life pass you by
Weep not for the memories

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I just wanted to give a big thank you to everyone who read this story, especially those who did so faithfully. I had so much fun writing this and reading all your reviews only made it better.

So, yes, I will be writing a sequel. I've decided to call it The Art of Letting Go. Depending on how many reviews I get here, I might start posting today. If I get none, I'll start it tomorrow. So, please tell me what you thought. :)

Love all you guys,

Ashley