The truth was that I was finding it almost impossible to write this epilogue. How do I end a story that I've spent almost one year (eleven months to the day) writing? I started it quite a few times, got to about the three hundred word mark and then held my finger on the delete button until it all disappeared.

I hope you're all happy with this end result, I know a lot of you were waiting for Derena; and now that this is done – go read the prequel This Could Last Forever. That whole story consists of Derena, without all the drama of this fic =D

~GG~

"Serena, Olivia's gone, I still love you." He repeated her admission, and pulled her in for a hug. "I've always loved you – for exactly who you are."

He brushed his lips against her soft lips, stopping any more words that would be coming out of her mouth; he wasn't going to give her the chance to stop them again.

"We can do this again." He murmured, never moving his lips off hers. "We can become who we were again."

G~G

No matter how long or short it may be; everyone will experience a relationship like no other. They'll love stronger than they ever will in the future; they'll fight harder, they'll love longer.

It doesn't matter how old you'll be when you first meet this person, it doesn't matter how long it takes to get them to even glance back at you. In the end you'll know it all be worth it.

Dan drifted on the cusp of waking up and continuing to sleep. He could feel the early morning sun coming through the bedroom window, hitting his face; causing him to roll over in an attempt to ignore it.

An arm curled over the body curled up against him, pulling her closer to him as her face nuzzled into his neck.

"Good morning." He whispered into her ear, as she groaned; as reluctant as he was to wake up.

"Can we just stay like this forever?" Serena whispered into his neck, her breath tickling him. "In this room, in this bed?"

It was a good idea, it was an appealing idea even; but even as Serena proposed it they could hear the sounds of footsteps pounding the staircase.

"I don't think she would ever allow it." Dan moaned, struggling to sit up; if he didn't get up now, he would give in to temptation and spend the whole day in bed.

"Today's the day, today's the day, today's the day." Ten year old Emily burst through the closed door of her parent's bedroom, ignoring every time they had warned her about knocking first.

Dan laughed, climbing out of bed as Serena covered her face with his pillow; she still refused to wake up.

"You still have to go to school." Dan reminded his daughter as she jumped up and down on the spot, with too much energy for this early in the morning. He shuffled out of the bedroom, closely followed by Emily, to make his first cup of morning coffee.

The little blonde girl pouted, and stared up at her father with a puppy dog expression. "Can't I stay home with you and mommy today?" She asked sweetly. "You two get to spend the whole day getting ready, why can't I?"

"Because, you're ten; you don't need a whole day to get ready." Dan laughed, already pulling out her breakfast. "You can get ready after school."

Today was the day. After months of frustration and tension, unlocked memories and resurfaced feelings, A Life to Love was premiering to a sold out crowd. It had been labelled as the must see movie of the year, and Dan could only hope that his story could hope up to that sort of title.

Emily pouted again, at one last attempt to win a day off school; but Dan only shook his head.

"Go get dressed." He advised his daughter after the last of her breakfast and juice had been devoured. "And don't go ask your mom for the day off!" He warned as she disappeared from view.

~GG~

"Are we alone?" Dan returned home after dropping Emily off inside the school gates, to find that the mother of his daughter was still in bed, albeit now she was sitting up with a cup of tea on the table next to her, and a book in her lap.

Dan nodded, leaning over to kiss her cheek tenderly and run his fingers through the loose hair. "You're beautiful this morning." He whispered as his lips were pressed against her skin.

"My mother…is going to be here in an hour with her hairdresser." Serena dropped the book and wrapped her arms securely around Dan's neck, as he kissed her again. "We should really, make the most of it before I have to get out of this bed."

In the five months that had passed since Dan had declared that he still loved his ex-wife, they had been unable to kissing each other every chance they got. Acting like they were still teenagers they were always holding hands, and giggling; sneaking in kisses whenever possible.

Dan lowered himself back down on the bed, running his hands down the silk material of Serena's nightgown. "People are going to start to think we have a problem." He murmured between kisses.

"Let them think that." Serena moved her hands from his neck, to expertly pull the t-shirt he had thrown on to wear out, off. Her soft lips slowly worked their way down his bare torso

Before they could get any further though, the unmistakable tap of heels hitting the polished wooden floor echoed through the otherwise quiet house.

Serena groaned in frustration, the back of her head hitting the soft pillow underneath her. "She's early." Serena sobbed, all thoughts of a romantic morning tryst with her fiancé disappearing before her eyes.

Dan pulled his discarded shirt back over his head, kissing Serena's cheek one more time. "I'll stall her." He promised, allowing her to have some time to make herself look presentable for the always judging Lily van der Woodsen.

G~G

"Lily." Dan put on his best smile as he entered the living room to find his soon to be again mother-in-law standing in the middle of the living room, conversing quietly with her hairdresser, who was to do Serena's hair for the premiere that evening. "You're early."

"Oh, I know Daniel." Lily beamed at him with her best smile; there was still tension between them, it had been like that from the beginning, and it would always be like that. "We were just in the neighbourhood and decided to come over now. We didn't interrupt anything did we?"

"Of course not." He lied between clenched teeth. "Serena will be out in just a minute, she was just finishing getting ready." He left the woman and the hairdresser in the living room as he headed back into the kitchen, needing another cup of coffee if he was to get through the next couple of hours.

"Mom!" Dan was still hiding in the kitchen, waiting for the water to boil, when he heard Serena's voice greet her mother. "You had to come this early? Seriously?" Dan laughed at the bluntness in her voice; at least she wasn't afraid to scold the older woman.

"Oh, get over it Serena darling. You're parents, not giddy school children." Dan resolved to hide in the kitchen, away from the bickering of mother and daughter for as long as possible.

He lasted twenty minutes before Serena's desperate voice began calling his name. "Dan. Dan. Dan, babe." Each time she said his name, her voice grew in desperation. "Can you please come in here?"

He considered staying, but he couldn't listen to Serena in distress. With a placid smile on his face he entered the activity hub of his penthouse home.

"Please, tell my mother and Juan that this is a movie premiere and not a ball." She begged, as the two people in question debated behind her on how her hair should be done. "And that I'm a grown woman and I can do my own hair, and make my own choices." She smiled tightly at him, determined not to take her frustration out on him.

He looked between the two choices, and decided to play it safe by not aggravating the hormones in his fiancée.

"Lily," Dan smiled. "I think Serena's right. Juan can come back this afternoon to do Emily's hair though; I'm sure she'd love that."

Lily grumbled for a second, but realising that there was no possible way for her to win, made a quick and gracious exit with Juan the hairdresser, both of them promising to come back to fix up Emily's hair for her night out.

"Have I told you lately that you're hot?" With another couple of hours to themselves now, Dan had snaked his arms around Serena again.

"I'm not hot, I feel fat." Serena grumbled; her great mood from earlier disappearing after the brief albeit stressful encounter with her mother.

"You're gorgeous." Dan promised, rubbing his hands over the swollen bump in the front of her stomach. "You're always gorgeous."

Serena smiled; she couldn't help it as she melted against Dan. "If we hadn't been so stupid…"

She had tried to have this conversation with him a couple of times now. If we hadn't been so stupid and stubborn, we could have had the last seven years together.

"Don't say it." Dan murmured, pressing his mouth to her hair. "What happened happened. We're a family now. That's the important thing."

~GG~

Dan smiled as he watched Emily sitting patiently, her legs swinging from the dining chair as the hairdresser that had been sent away that morning, worked on her blonde hair; curling her locks and pinning them back so she would look perfect for the evening.

The huge grin that had been on her face since she had arrived home from school was evidence enough that her distraught wait had been worth it.

"Nothing fits me anymore." Serena grumbled, standing in front of the large room that was technically the walk in wardrobe for the master bedroom; staring at the rows of designer dresses that were regularly rotated each season.

Blair Waldorf sat on one of the armchairs in the wardrobe, choosing wisely to stay silent as her best friend grumbled her way through each piece. Dan leant against the doorframe, also choosing to stay silent.

"There has to be something that fits S." Blair finally responded, unable to take the grumbling anymore. "You're not that big yet."

Dan considered advising her to wear one of the simple black dresses she'd bought while pregnant with Emily, but decided against it; the two fashion-conscious women in the room would probably shun him if he considered wearing something that was a decade old.

"That's it." Serena threw her hands up in the air. "I have to go buy a new dress." She stalked out of the bedroom to hunt down one of her credit cards. "I'll be back later Dan." She brushed a quick kiss against his cheek. "Are you coming, B?"

The penthouse was still devoid of Serena van der Woodsen; last time Dan had text her she was entering the fifth boutique, and she was growing more and more frustrated with each rack of dresses she looked at.

"How do I look daddy?" Emily asked him, pulling him out of his thoughts. Dan looked up at his daughter; her hair now completely curled and pinned back to frame her face.

"You look just like your mother." He complimented her, and Juan. "It's perfect."

Emily run off to go show off her hair to her grandmother who had excused herself to another room to make a phone call, and the hairdresser started packing up. Dan decided it was going to be a long afternoon as his two girls finished getting ready.

G~G

"Finally." Dan grinned good naturedly, as Serena and Emily both emerged from the younger girl's room; her hair still intact due to half a can of hairspray, her brand new pale pink dress fitting her perfectly.

"You both look gorgeous." He stood up out of his armchair; smoothing out the pants of his tuxedo, and grabbed Serena's hand squeezing lightly. "Are you ready to do this?"

Emily nodded excitedly; running off to the elevator that would take them down to the waiting limo that had been sent over from Brian Goldberg.

Dan ran a finger over the diamond bump on Serena's finger, the ring he had first given her eleven years ago; the same ring he had slipped back onto her finger four and a half months ago.

The model had ended up finding a dress that she decided was a perfect match against her pregnant stomach, from a designer that Dan couldn't pronounce. The emerald green material suited the blonde hair that she had styled herself, and all he was really concerned about was that it showed every beautiful curve.

The strapless design would also make it a lot easier for him to get her out of it tonight.

~GG~

"You have to be on your best behaviour tonight." Serena warned Emily as they both sipped at their orange juice. "You have to stay with me and daddy the entire time." The last thing either of her parent's wanted was for her to run off and start talking freely to a reporter.

Emily nodded and smiled innocently.

The lights and the crowds warned them that they reached their destination, and as their chauffeur pulled up behind the limo that was currently in front of the carpet Dan and Serena watched as the two stars of the movie stepped out, amidst the camera flashes and fans screaming.

Dan rubbed a hand against Serena's thigh, lifting her hand to kiss the back of her palm. "This will be alright." He promised, as the limo crept forward to the now vacant place.

Emily climbed out of the limo first, waiting patiently for her parents to follow her, staying true to the promise she had made earlier. Dan climbed out, holding his hand out to help Serena and the flashes of the camera multiplied as everyone vied for the perfect shot.

"Serena, Serena. Dan. Serena. Dan." Their names were being called out from every direction as they slowly walked up the carpet, stopping every couple of minutes to pose and smile for the cameras.

"Emily." Dan held on tightly to his daughter's hand when her name started to be called out, stopping her from running off to talk to someone.

They eventually made it to the end of the red carpet where Olivia and Max seemed to be having an interview with an entertainment program.

"Dan and Serena," The reporter beamed as the couple approached them. "How about a couple of shots of the four of you?" He didn't stop to consider the implications in this, and was oblivious to the frozen smile now on Olivia's face.

He didn't know how it ended up so that Serena was on the other side of the shot, or how it was Olivia's shoulders he had his arm wrapped around; all he knew was that it was the most uncomfortable minute of his life.

"This is ridiculous." He heard Olivia grumble behind closed teeth, and Dan couldn't help but smile.

"I'm sorry." Why did he still feel the need to apologise to the girl he hadn't been with for five months? It was possible that he still did feel guilty for kissing Serena while he was still technically with her. Or that he had dumped her suddenly to run back to Serena. Or that Serena was pregnant within a couple of weeks.

"Don't talk to me." Olivia turned her back on him the second the last photo had been taken. It was obvious that she still harboured the same cold feelings that she had during the six weeks of shooting.

He wrapped his arm back around his fiancée's waist, kissing her one last time before they disappeared into the movie theatre. "I really love you." He whispered to her, "I'll love you forever."

Then they disappeared from the view of the cameras, Emily in front of them as she went to find the perfect seat.

G~G

And so she smiled at him, a smile that was so pure and so true, that he felt like all the problems that existed in today's world were only the tiniest obstacles to be overcome.

The End

Casey xXx