Epilogue:
It was hard for Clarisse to adjust to the old Joseph, he had changed so much physically because of the torment he suffered whilst in prison, but his heart was still the same. He was sweet, caring and very patient when it came to waiting for Clarisse to open up to him again and rekindle the fire between them. It had taken her a whole month to get used to him and another two to realise she still loved him as much as she did all those years ago. He was happier than he'd ever been, he'd spent the best years of his life behind bars and now he could finally enjoy life, he had a right to be happy.
The roughness of his touch seemed to fade away over time, which was a relief for Clarisse, as she no longer had to suffer being squeezed to death every time he hugged her or showed affection. His mind seemed calm and free, yet he still had hatred for the man who ruined his life, he wanted him dead. Of course, Clarisse often informed him of what would happen to him and indeed to them if he had anything done to Steve, so he kept his distance and decided to just let him suffer in his cell, an even worse pain.
Joseph is in high hopes that Clarisse will accept his proposal to have a legitimate marriage, something they were never able to have until now. He is planning on proposing to her over lunch tomorrow, that is unless she asks him first, which is a high possibility since she's been planning tonight for over a month.
In the dark depths of floor C, corridor 2, a beaten and bruised man leant over his desk with a pen and paper observing the candle in front of him as he thought of what to write. He had thought it over in his head a million times, how would he address her now that she knows the truth? He couldn't come out and write, 'Dear Clarisse' he had no right. 'To Clarisse' seemed so informal and he couldn't be informal, not with her. In the end he wrote down what he thought was most appropriate:
'Clarisse,
I'm sorry I never told you about Joseph, I just loved you too much and didn't want to let you go or have you hate me. I hope you don't hate me now, I couldn't bear that especially when I'm still head over heels in love with you. I understand if you never want to see me again and I hope sending you this letter doesn't upset you, I can't bear to think of you crying. I would have written sooner, but I haven't been able to pick up the pen and write, it's not so much the fact that I find it physically hard to write, it's mentally. I fear that by writing to you, I may lose whatever respect you have for me, if any, which is something I don't want to happen.
I don't expect you to reply to this letter, I just want you to know that I'm sorry and I really do love you.'
He paused when it came to signing his name, what was he to call himself? He couldn't call himself Joseph because it wasn't his name to write, he couldn't call himself Steve because she didn't know him as Steve, he couldn't call himself Mr. Lyell either because despite the fact that she didn't know him by that name, it seemed too impersonal. Perhaps she didn't know him at all, nor did he, he'd had two names in his life, one was a lie, one was hidden for years, who was he really?
In the end he decided to sign the letter as simply 'Prisoner 83F039D2W'.
He stared at the sealed envelope for a whole hour wondering whether or not to rip it up and throw it in the bin with the others. Eventually he decided that it was best to let her get on with her life, to never make contact with her again. Her life was after all, no longer his concern.
The End.
Just thought I'd finish this since I've started another story and I did only say it'd be 5 chapters. Hope you enjoyed it, I had lots of trouble with this last chapter.
Seeya.
R & R.