(A/Ns: ahhhhh i forgot what it's like to finish a fanfic and ashagfjskhgjb it's such a beautiful feeling :0 thank you to all my readers up until now! it's been a blast writing this fanfic! also shoutout to nawnomschnuff for literally being the motivation behind this fic :DD and the guy behind the original idea!

content warnings: brief mentions of drug addiction, and a lot of Vannoé

disclaimer: i do not own Vanitas No Carte)


Chapter 6: Epilogue

Noé could feel his fingers trembling against the steering wheel.

6 months ago, on this day, at 5:30am in the morning, he'd been here. Driving down this road.

With Vanitas.

Vanitas, who had managed 6 months clean, presumably for the first time in 5 years.

It had also been 6 months since Noé had even laid eyes on him.

The last 6 months had been lonely. Despite Domi's constant pestering, Noé hadn't gone out to a nightclub or a bar or anything like that even once. Anything which would've led to another man being close to him, he simply rejected.

A few days ago, the rehab had called him. The memory was still fresh.

He was fairly certain he'd cried. Tears of joy, of course.

Vanitas hasn't relapsed. He hadn't escaped, he hadn't gotten worse, and he'd made all the progress he needed to be able to…

Well, be free.

It was Saturday, his first day off since the call. And sure enough, Noé was on his way the moment he was allowed to be.

He glanced up, and to the side, briefly reading the road signs. In no less than 2 minutes now, he'd see Vanitas again.

For the first time, in 6 months.

The drive down the tiny single lane road to the rehabilitation facility seemed much longer than it actually was, his heart pounding against his trembling chest. Nausea resided at the pit of his stomach, but he continued driving nonetheless.

He just wanted to see Vanitas again.

The building, standing tall, was just as he'd remembered it, the only difference being that the trees had blossomed and the sun was shining, as opposed to the cloud-shrouded morning sky of last time.

Noé felt his heart skip a beat when he clambered out of the car, and he laid his eyes on the transparent doors to the reception. Other than the receptionist, the room was empty, which was probably a good thing; admittedly, he was not ready.

A tremble in his every step, Noé slowly began approaching the rehab, shakily pushing the doors open. But despite his nerves, a smile was still wide across his face. Beaming, and needing to see Vanitas.

"Um, hi…" he said, his words tripping over his tongue as he tentatively walked up to the reception desk. "I'm… here to collect, er… Vanitas?"

"Mhm…" they hummed, scanning the files briefly. "Name?"

"Oh, uh, Noé Archiviste. I was here when he checked in, s-six months ago…"

"Alright…" The receptionist smile up at him, warmly, and then stood up. "He is ready to leave now. I'll just go and get him now."

"Thank you," Noé replied, still beaming. Despite the quiver in his chest, and the ever-increasing nerves, he now felt… ready.

It took less than a minute for the receptionist to return. And, sure enough, behind them stood a very familiar person.

Vanitas. Here, in the flesh. And… clean?

He looked so… different. Firstly, he'd gained weight. Not too much – he still looked fairly underweight – but at least he looked like he'd eaten, and his face looked less gaunt. The constant trembling in his fingers and hands was now also entirely gone, and his complexion was just healthier. And his eyes were no longer weighed down by bags, the pupils of his not-bloodshot eyes no longer dilated.

"Vani…tas…"

Just as the word slipped out of Noé's mouth, Vanitas took three steps forward.

Three large steps which successfully closed the gap between them. And his arms, having gained so much strength, wrapped around Noé.

He sunk into his hug, grabbing Vanitas' shoulders with his shaky grip and burying his face into his shoulder. Shortly after, Noé felt Vanitas' grip instinctively curl around the leather of his jacket.

All he heard was silence for the first few moments, and then a quiet, almost inaudible sniff.

"Vanitas?" Noé said, his voice reducing to a whisper when he heard another sob. "Hey, shh. It's okay, alright? You're clean now. You've done… so well. And I'm so proud of you, okay?"

Vanitas let out a strained chuckle, and then another sniff. "I-I did it for you, dumbass."

Noé felt himself begin to tear up again. "N-No, you… you did it for yourself as well."

"I… I couldn't…" Vanitas sobbed, but Noé could feel his smile against his shoulder through his jacket. "That was… the hardest thing I've ever done…" he confessed, more tears seeping into the other's shoulder. "Noé, y-you… you have no idea how many times I wanted to give up, a-and just… get high. But I… I kept going."

"I know…" Noé whispered, his fingers lacing through Vanitas' hair. "And I'm… so proud of you for it."

Vanitas sniffed, once again, and then finally pulled himself away from Noé. Sure enough, his cheeks were stained with tears, but the smile on his face was honestly the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.

"Wait there, I'll just… fill out some paper work, and then…" Noé shifted. "I'll… take you back to mine."

Vigorously, Vanitas nodded, watching Noé saunter over to the reception desk and start scribbling.

It was a strange sensation. Something nerve-wracking – extremely nerve-wracking – was going on, right before him. But the urge to get high, or light a cigarette, just wasn't there.

Physically, mentally, and emotional, he was free.

"Okay, let's go," Noé grinned, and took his rucksack from his back. Then, with a shaky hand, he took Vanitas' sweaty hand within his, their fingers intertwining as he led him out to the car.

And then when they reached the car, Vanitas took control once again, spinning Noé around 180 degrees and pressing him against the side of the car.

Both arms wrapping around Noé's neck, Vanitas leant up, and captured the other's lips in a passionate, nearly desperate kiss. Their lips touching, he hastily slipped his tongue into Noé's mouth, battling for and winning dominance over the embrace. Noé smirked into the kiss, his eyes glued shut as he placed his hands on the either sides of Vanitas' waist.

It was in that moment that Vanitas realised that there was no other way he wanted to spend his life.

After another two minutes, the two finally parted, panting for breath but still smiling boldly at each other. Their gazes, locked on each other's, spoke a million words.

"I want you to stay with me," Noé declared.

Vanitas' smile dropped. Just a little bit. "I can't expect that."

"Fine then." Noé's hands remained on his waist. "I'm staying with you. So wherever you go, I'm going with you."

For a second, Vanitas paused. Then, he laughed, and stood back on his tiptoes to press his lips to Noé's once again. "You really are a pain."

Noé's eyes fell shut when their kiss resumed, conveying another million words which neither of them dared to say.

"Thank you," Vanitas whispered into the kiss. "I know there's nothing I can do to make this up to you, but…"

"I don't need anything," Noé said, pulling away but only to speak. "The changes you've made to your life… it's enough."

"You made me a promise before I checked in here, you know," Vanitas' smile turned devilish. "Remember?"

The smirk on Noé's lips only widened. "When you're clean… of course I remember." He spun Vanitas around, before taking a step back and opening the driver door. Warmly, he smiled at the other, pressing a hand to his jawline and wiping away his tears with a single finger.

"Let's get you home, Vanitas."

Fin.