Chapter 14: Epilogue
It had taken a while to sort out our differences, but in time, Sebastian and I had moved back onto the farm together. We even had Mayor Lewis remarry us in a private ceremony. Although married life is far from perfect – as we've both come to expect – we have grown close enough in our trust of each other that we decided to have a baby.
"I've had this recurring dream that our new baby is wearing a shadow shaman costume and sitting on a glowing pumpkin," Sebastian said, leaning back on the patio of our home. "Weird, huh?"
"Were you able to tell if it's going to be a boy or girl?" I laughed, rubbing my large pregnant belly.
"No, not yet." He came over to me as I was tilling the spring soil. "Remember not to strain yourself. Doctor Harvey said you need to take it easy."
"I'll be fine," I insisted. "But thanks for your concern."
"Of course." He carefully wrapped his arms around me.
I had settled back into the valley without much issue. No one brought up the turmoil that Sebastian and I had put ourselves through in the past year or so – as far as the residents of Pelican Town were concerned, it never happened. Sebastian would sometimes tell me about the melancholy life he led in my absence, and I would return the favor when asked, but those stories grew fewer by the day.
Later that evening, we sat down to a lazy dinner of frozen pizza. "You know," Sebastian said between bites, "I've never actually seen you buy these…they just magically appear."
"I usually get them from Shane," I confessed. "I found out that after the Joja Mart closed down, the employees were supposed to be responsible for disposing of all the goods they couldn't sell…but most of them just took whatever they could grab. He took so many that he's having a hard time using them all before they expire."
Sebastian laughed. "Sam did the same thing with those awful colas. His mom got mad and threw them out, though."
For a split second, I had expected him to get a little jealous at the mention of another guy's name. We've both grown a lot, but I think there's always more to learn…baby steps, and all that. I felt our baby kick, right on cue.
Sebastian reached over and took my hand in his. "I may be a reclusive guy, but I'm always happy when you're around."
I squeezed his hand affectionately. "I'm glad I'm the one who can make you happy."
"Do you think your grandpa would be proud of the work we've done?"
I smiled. "I think we're doing the best we can."
[THE END]
