*whistles* Man, I did not intend on being so late with getting the epilogue for this finished. I've been busy helping another writer here beta read his stuff, so that took up a huge chunk of my writing focus. But, I have prevailed in getting the epilogue finished, so here it is for your reading pleasure. I hope you guys enjoy. =)
(Caution: Have tissues on hand, because you might need them with this chapter. Also, if any of you guys get irked at the parts where Isabelle talks, I deeply apologize. Since in this Isabelle would be 1, I wanted her dialogue to feel as much like a 1 year old toddler's as it could be...that's why it seems so broken and choppy in places.)
One Year Later
"Mommy, daddy. Whe' we goin'?" the curly-haired infant asked from her car seat.
Turning in her seat beside the infant in the back of the car they were riding in, Alex said "We're going to visit your grandpa today, Izzy."
"Isn' gwan'pa at home wit' Unca Matt an' Unca Jeff?" Isabelle asked.
"Yes, but this is your grandpa that's daddy's dad," Alex said, explaining to the infant in terms she could understand.
"Oh. You mean like how Ma'cus and Annie have two gwan'pas?" Isabelle asked.
"Yep," Alex said, smiling over at her daughter. "And we decided that since you're old enough, you can come visit your other grandpa."
"OK. I'll be good fo' him," Isabelle said, her head lolling back slightly.
Smiling at the talk that was going on in the backseat of the car, Cody kept driving down the road as another car followed behind him. It had been one whole year since the death of his father and it was definitely a bit of a rocky time for him, Dustin, their family, Mary, and Alex. As time went on through the year, everyone had come to accept Dusty's death and, rather than be miserable about it for a prolonged period, the group felt it'd be best to do their grieving and then move on. Sure, the loss of Dusty hurt them all, but it was something that they felt grieving over wouldn't help the situation; and with the support and consolation of everyone around them, the quartet was able to move on from their grief-riddled states and move forward in their lives.
"Not too much further now," Dustin said from the passenger's seat of the car Cody, Alex, and Isabelle were all riding in.
"Nope," Cody said. While navigating the Florida roads to the cemetery where his father was buried seemed all but ingrained into his memory, it was still something that always gave Cody the chills when he drove through. "Not much further now."
A few more minutes of driving were passed in near silence until both cars reached the church and cemetery where Dusty's funeral was held and where his body was buried. Pulling into the parking lot next to the church, both cars parked and the passengers in both spilled out as they looked around their surroundings.
"Man. Even though I know we've come to visit here a few times over the past year, it just amazes me how it seems like places like this never really change," Mary said, looking around as she helped get Annaleigh out of the car.
"Guess that's just the beauty of graveyards and churches, Mare," Ted Dibiase Jr. said as he came around the side of the car, holding Marcus's hand. "Timeless things just never seem to change."
"Kinda like us. Huh, Teddy bear?" Mary asked, grinning over at her husband as she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Ugh. Get a room, you two," Alex jokingly said as she closed the car door with Dustin following behind her. "Need I remind you both that there are three young children with us?"
"Oh hush, Alex. Me and Ted know. Besides, we're keeping it G for the kids," Mary said, playfully sticking her tongue out at the younger woman.
"Well, good. We wouldn't want any of these three to pick up bad habits from you," Cody said jokingly as he balanced Isabelle in his arms.
The talking among the five adults went on for a few minutes more before Dustin suggested that they all head to Dusty's grave so that they could have their time there before it got too late. Walking away from the parking lot, the group headed out to the cemetery where they made their way through the rows of tombstones. The group had actually traversed this area so many times that they pretty much knew the way by heart. It had only been about a five or so minute walk before they reached the tombstone that said Virgil "Dusty Rhodes" Runnels.
Standing in front of the tombstone, Ted looked over to Cody and said "I'm not sure if I've ever said this, but you did good eulogizing him, Codes."
"Thanks, man," Cody said, looking over to Ted before he looked back down at his father's tombstone. It was still something that touched him when he thought back to it. He was initially worried that the eulogy he would deliver wouldn't be fitting enough for his father, but this proven wrong when everyone told him that his eulogy was something that did Dusty proud. Cody couldn't help but smile at the memory because it was something that he felt proud of doing for his dad. Tugging on the collar of his shirt brought Cody out of his reverie as he looked at Isabelle. "What is it, darlin'?"
"Daddy, you cwyin'," Isabelle said, her forehead crinkled a bit as she looked at her father.
Wiping his eyes as he let out a somewhat shaky laugh, Cody said "Yeah, I guess I am."
"You OK, Daddy?" Isabelle asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking about grandpa," Cody said, letting Isabelle know who he was talking about.
"Oh. Why you cwy when you think abou' gwan'pa?" Isabelle asked.
"He was…he was really helpful to me when he was here," Cody said, memories of him and his dad starting to flood his thoughts. "He helped me learn to do a lot of things. And, he even came to visit you when you were smaller."
"He did?" Isabelle asked. Seeing her father nod his head, Isabelle asked "Did he like me?"
Hearing this, Dustin piped up and, ruffling Isabelle's hair, said "Of course he liked you, kiddo. I'd go so far as to say that he absolutely loved you."
"He did?" Isabelle asked again. Seeing both her father and one of her uncles nodding their heads, Isabelle said "Wow."
Hearing Cody and Dustin bring up Dusty having met Isabelle, Mary looked down to Annaleigh and said "Grandpa Dusty thought the same thing about you too, sweetheart."
"Did he meet me when I was little, too?" Annaleigh asked, looking up at her mother.
"Yep. He loved you just as much as he loved Izzy when she was smaller," Ted said, remembering when Cody had told him about how Dusty meeting Isabelle went and when Dusty had come to visit Annaleigh.
"Wow," Annaleigh said, the same amount of surprise in her voice that was in Isabelle's.
Smiling at Annaleigh saying that, Mary then felt tugging on the hem of her shirt. Looking down at Marcus, Mary asked "What is it, bud?"
"It's nothing, mama. I was just making sure you were OK," Marcus said, looking up at his mother.
Her smile still in place, Mary said "I'm fine, baby. No need to worry about me."
"OK," Marcus said before looking back to Dusty's tombstone.
The group of eight stood and talked for a few more minutes before doing what they would normally do when they came to visit Dusty.
"So, Dusty. I think it's about time we let you know what's been going on with us," Mary said as she readjusted Annaleigh on her hip. "I'll start this time. I'm getting a shot at the Intercontinental Championship. Hopefully, I can get it away from Miz and put on a good match as I win it."
"I'll go next," Alex said. "Um, nothing all that new is really happening with me. Well, actually, that's not true. Bayley got her main roster call-up a few months ago, and we've been teaming up together a lot. So, that's been pretty cool and a lot of fun. I just hope that the Powers That Be don't do anything to wreck our roll."
"And if they do, I'll personally go to Connecticut myself to ask what's their deal," Mary cut in, causing the others to laugh at her.
"Guess we're next, Cody," Dustin said. Taking the initiative to go first, Dustin said "My shoulder's all healed up after surgery and everything after that. And, believe it or not, me and Cody actually got to continue our Goldust vs Stardust feud. We had to restart it, but that was fine with me. I just wanted to see it through after Creative cut it so short in the first place. We're coming up on our match at PayBack, so that's something big for us."
As Dustin continued, Cody was trying to sort through what he was going to say. He wanted to let his dad know that things were going well for him too, but he just didn't know what to say. So, when Dustin was finished, Cody felt his older brother nudge him in the side and he took that as a sign that he should at least say something. Taking a breath, Cody said "Guess it's my turn now. So, like Dustin, me and him have been able to go back to our Goldust vs Stardust feud. And, so far, it's felt like one of the best feuds I've ever had. Sure, it's not Cody vs Goldust like so many people may have wanted, but people are eating it up all the same. I wish you could be here to see us, dad."
Hearing her boyfriend say this and looking over to see a few tears rolling down Cody's face, Alex rested one of her hands on Cody's forearm and said "Wherever he's watching us from, he's proud of you and Dustin, babe. I just know he is."
Looking over to his girlfriend, Cody said "I know" as his voice cracked a tiny bit.
Looking up at her father's face, Isabelle said "It OK, Daddy. Don' cwy."
Laughing a bit at what his daughter said, Cody wiped his face and said "I'm fine, darlin'. Thinking about grandpa just…makes me a bit teary-eyed."
"Di' gwan'pa lo' you and Unca Dustin a lot?" Isabelle asked.
"Yeah. He did. He was one of our biggest supporters and he taught us a lot," Cody said, smiling at memories of things he and Dustin would do with their dad together.
"Oh. Can I give gwan'pa a hug?" Isabelle asked.
Hearing his daughter ask him this had caused even more tears to roll down Cody's face. He and Alex had did their best to tell Isabelle about Dusty passing away in a way that she'd understand; so, hearing her say that she wanted to give her grandpa a hug was something that touched Cody very deeply. Biting down on his lip to hold back the sob that was threatening to escape him, Cody carefully set Isabelle on the ground.
As soon as her little feet hit the ground, Isabelle toddled her way over to Dusty's tombstone. Once she reached the tombstone, Isabelle hugged it to the best of her ability and, laying her head against the tombstone, said "I lo' you, gwan'pa."
This display was enough to draw tears out of the other four adults, along with more from Cody; this being because, while Isabelle didn't have the chance to meet Dusty herself, she still loved him like she had a love for him that was similar to the love they had for Dusty. And that was something that proved to be pretty moving for the five adults to see.
Pulling on the hem of his mother's shirt, Marcus asked "Mama, can me and Annaleigh give Grandpa Dusty's stone a hug too?" once he had his mother's attention.
"Sure, bud," Mary said, wiping her face. Setting Annaleigh on the ground, Mary watched as Marcus took hold of his sister's hand and walked with her over to Dusty's tombstone. Once the two reached the tombstone and did the same thing Isabelle did, Mary had become all but completely undone at the seams emotionally and smiled at the sight of her kids and her goddaughter giving the man they so affectionately called "grandpa" hugs.
The adults had decided to let the kids keep their holds on Dusty's tombstone for another minute or so before Dustin checked the time on his phone and, wiping his face and clearing his throat, said "I think we should be getting ready to leave for today, guys."
Wiping her face, Alex said "OK, Dustin." Looking ahead, Alex said "Come on, Izzy. We have to leave for today."
"OK, mommy," Isabelle said. Turning her gaze back to the tombstone, Isabelle gave the smooth stone a quick peck and said "Bye bye, gwan'pa. See you latew" before toddling back over to and getting picked up by her mother.
Marcus and Annaleigh did the same thing before walking back over to their parents. Once the adults saw that the kids were ready to leave, everyone turned to leave with Cody and Dustin being the last to fall into step with the others. While it still hurt them pretty deeply that their father had passed away a year ago, they had moments like this that showed that their dad left more of an impact on the world around them than most people would ever realize; and just this impact alone was enough to fill both Rhodes men with an immense amount of pride and happiness as they could share his memory with the people closest to them. And that…that was good enough for both men.
'Rest easy, dad. The legacy of the American Dream lives on and is stronger than ever,' both men similarly thought.
And with this installation, I can now say that Remembering The Dream has reached its end. I would like to take a moment and say a huge thank you to everyone that took the time to read, favorite, and follow this story. I'm glad that everyone that gave this a read enjoyed it so much. Thanks again, and I'll see you guys later. And, for the last time, don't forget to R&R please. =)