Epilogue

EPILOGUE

Starlet

Two Years Later

“I cannot believe you’re getting married,” Whitney said as she finished pouring us mimosas. I sat in the hotel room with a stomach of butterflies, knowing I’d be saying “I do” to the love of my life in a few minutes. Whitney, of course, told me that prosecco would make all the nerves disappear.

I yawned once as I stood there in my wedding gown, making Whitney point a stern finger my way. “No! No yawning. I told you you should’ve taken a power nap as I did.”

“I know, but I was too nervous. I couldn’t sleep.”

“Fair enough, seeing how today’s the biggest day of your life.” She grinned from ear to ear. “Today’s the biggest day of your life!”

The sky was still pitch-black outside as we stood in the hotel room. It was only four in the morning, and I only had a little time left before walking down the hidden path to the lake to meet Milo.

Morning ceremonies might not have been everyone’s idea of a perfect wedding, yet how could we ever get married without the sunrise looking over us? How could we get married without the wind brushing against our cheeks? We needed our mothers there on the best day of our lives.

There was a knock on our hotel room door, and Whitney headed over to open it. To my surprise, Jacob was standing in his suit with a big smile. “Hi, sorry to interrupt. I was wondering if I could get a few seconds with the bride-to-be?” he asked.

“Of course. Not a problem at all. I’ll make sure everyone else is ready to go,” Whitney said, walking out of the room and shutting the door behind her.

Jacob smiled my way and shook his head. “Wow, Starlet. You look remarkable.”

I glanced at my gown and smiled as my hands smoothed over the lace fabric and crochet top. “Thank you. It was my mother’s. My something old,” I joked, then I kicked up my shoes, which were navy. “And my something blue. Whitney gave me her heart necklace for something borrowed.”

Jacob reached into his back pocket and pulled out an envelope. “And maybe this can work as your something new.” He walked over to me as I stood a little puzzled. He waved the envelope in the air. “Ana left another letter with Weston to deliver on this special day, too, and I asked him if I could be the one to deliver it to you.”

My heart began beating quickly as realization set in that in his grip was a letter from Milo’s mother—a letter crafted for me.

“Don’t cry yet, Star,” Jacob warned. “You can’t ruin your makeup this early.” He handed me the envelope, kissed my cheek, and hugged me. As he pulled back, his eyes were glassy, too. “She would’ve loved you, sweetheart, and she would’ve prayed for a woman like you to find our boy.”

I lightly chuckled, feeling a wave of emotions hitting my chest. “You can’t say don’t cry, and then tell me things like that, Jacob.”

“Sorry. It’s just a great day. For a long time, I thought it would only be Milo and me moving forward. Thankfully, the world brought me a daughter, too. Enjoy the letter, and I’ll see you soon.”

He turned to leave the room, and I called out to him. “Jacob?”

“Yes?”

I smiled. “Save me a dance today?”

He smiled back, the same warm, welcoming smile that his son held. “I promise.”

After he left, I took a deep breath. My hands were shaky as I went to sit on the couch. I opened the envelope, and my makeup was screwed because the tears began flowing as I read Ana’s words.

My world’s world,

Hello there, it’s nice to meet you. Today’s an exceptional day, and I’m sad that I’m not there physically to witness my son deliver his vows to the love of his life, but I am so grateful that I will be there in the spiritual realm, looking over you both.

I owe you many thanks. Thank you, my daughter. Thank you for loving my son. Thank you for being there for him when it’s easy and hard. Thank you for being his best friend and his other half. My son is filled with so much love in his heart, and I know he’d pick the best one of the best ones to share his love with.

My love for you both is infinite, and I hope you feel it long after the “I dos.”

Welcome to the family, mia figlia.

Eat an extra piece of cake for me, and make sure your life with Milo is just as sweet.

Con amore,

Mama-in-law

I read the letter repeatedly, studying how Ana dotted her i’s and crossed her t’s. I studied the curves of her penmanship and the love she left in every single word. It amazed me how you could feel someone’s love so much when it wasn’t physically there.

Whitney came back into the room, grinning ear-to-ear. “Okay, Star. It’s showtime. Everyone else is already down by the water, waiting for the bride to arrive. Are you ready to head over to the lake?”

I’d never been so ready for something in my life.

We reached the lake, and I met my father’s eyes. He was seconds away from crying when he first looked at me. “My baby’s all grown up,” he whimpered, walking over to me and pulling me into a hug. “You look astonishing, Star.”

I smiled and wiped Dad’s tears away. “Do you see her in me?” I asked, speaking of Mom.

He let out an emotion-packed laugh and nodded. “I see her in every piece of you. You are our greatest dream come true, and it is an honor to be your father and to deliver you to the love of your life today.” He held me tight in his embrace. “Do you feel her?” he whispered. “Do you feel her in the wind?”

I did.

I felt her every day, even more so during the dawn.

“Are you ready?” he asked.

“I am.”

Dad looped his arm with mine, and after Whitney handed me my bouquet of peonies, we began to take the trail toward the lake.

The music began to play as my father and I walked toward Milo, my happily ever after. He looked so handsome in his navy-blue suit with brown suede shoes. A peony flower sat in his pocket, and he was smiling the whole time as Dad and I approached him.

When we reached him, Dad shook his hand and then pulled Milo into a hug. Dad whispered something into his ear that made Milo smile widely and hug Dad even tighter. When they let go, I took Milo’s hand and stepped forward.

“Hi,” I whispered.

“You’re the most beautiful thing in this world,” he softly replied, giving me the same butterflies he had since the beginning. Our lives over the past few years have been quite the journey. After our epic road trip, we decided we weren’t ready to let go of our adventure. I finished my college degree, yet I didn’t go into teaching afterward. Milo and I decided to give our true dreams a shot, and we started our vlog of our travels. We showed up to the world, sharing our ups and downs in life. Milo shared his most authentic self with the world, bringing awareness to blindness and showcasing how his diagnosis wasn’t a death sentence. It was simply a new chapter to his story. His story was one hundred percent his, and what a beautiful story it was becoming.

I wasn’t too mad about how my life had turned out. It turned out I still loved teaching. The only thing that shifted was how I taught my lessons through our vlogs. On our adventures, we’d cross historical monuments, and I’d do episodes on the backstories of said places. We’d spent the past two years seeing the world, exploring, and somehow, we’d managed to make a life out of it—a life built around our dreams and passions. I might not have officially been a teacher, but I was sharing my knowledge with hundreds of thousands worldwide. Dad called Milo and me his favorite educators.

I knew it probably seemed crazy to others, the two of us traveling in an RV and making a living from uploading videos online, but we felt more like ourselves than we’d ever had.

And now, as we stood there, seconds away from saying, “I do,” I couldn’t help but smile at the idea of all the adventures before us.

As Milo held my hands in his, the sun rose as he said his vows. “My favorite Star... There was a point in my life when I never thought I’d get here. Most days felt like harsh, cold nights. I was frozen in despair, unable to find my way out of the darkness. I struggled with the idea that love would find its way to a damaged heart like mine, but then you came and whispered your love into my soul. You taught me how to breathe again. You taught me that even broken hearts like mine could someday heal and beat even stronger.

“While my eyesight might be worsening, my vision has far from faded. Because I see it all. I see you, I see me, and the many years of love and joy before us. I hear your laughter in the darkness and your heartbeats in the silence. Loving you is the greatest gift ever bestowed upon me, and I will do it until my very dying day. I will love you forever, Star, because loving you comes easy. I’m forever grateful for you and your love. So today, on the best day of my life, I say I do. I say I do to protecting you. I say I do to providing for you. I say I do to forever. You are my forever, and I promise you today that I will remain yours always. I love you as wildly as the wind blows and as peacefully as the sun rises. Thank you for your love. Thank you for being so patient with me. And thank you, most of all, for existing in the same world as me.”

And just like that, I fell even more in love with my best friend.

Milo Corti was the man who stirred my world awake after years of sleepwalking. He brought me closer to myself by allowing me to fall apart at times. He comforted me during the hard parts and laughed with me during the soft ones. He was my person. My one and only.

From that day on, all I wanted was a little more of him every day for the rest of my life. I wanted his rainy springs and his crisp autumns. I craved his summer days and his winter nights. I wanted more of him and more of us.

That was it, and that was all I needed from now until forever.

More, more, more.