Epilogue

EPILOGUE

Six Months Later…

Dorian

He'll be here soon.

I check my phone for the millionth time, then set it down on the desk. There are yellow daisies spread out in front of me, work to be done. The warm, humid smell of the shop calms me.

Although I can't really be that calmed. Because he'll be here soon.

Did everything change?

Yeah. It did .

Rory moved into my room. And it was like something changed in him. He started to really believe, and with that, it was like he came to life even more. Finals and graduation all went as expected. Studying late into the night, and those last parties when it was all over. Between all of that, Rory and I sucked up every moment together. He took me on dates . Dinners and movies. Ice skating and even a formal dance.

And then we moved.

California and New York.

He had to complete a contract he'd signed for his job. The few weekends we've had—me flying back to see him or him flying here to see me—haven't been enough.

But we've been making it work. And he's only got another six months left.

"Hey, D." My dad, Julian, sweeps past, balancing a cornucopia as he heads toward the backdoor. "Did you get those online orders ready to go out?"

"Working on it," I call after him, although he's already out the door, no doubt heading to the truck for the wedding we've got later today. There's about a million things to do and hardly any time to do it. But I've got the orders set out on my table, the morning sun streaming through and highlighting the daisies to my right.

I take a swig from my tea and then reach for a ribbon. Tying a yellow bow around a vase that matches the flowers, I picture it all in my head, how it will fit together, the colors, the greenage, the details.

I reach for the scissors to cut the ribbon.

The daisies. The table. My half-drunk mint tea.

Holy fuck.

I glance around, the strongest sense of déjà vu I've ever felt slamming into me. Except not déjà vu, really.

That image.

The one in my head. It's not exactly right. The shop had been empty, not like it is now with…

I look up, and still.

"Rory," I croak out.

He's standing in the doorway wearing a checked button-down with his glasses peeking out of the pocket, suitcase by his side, backpack hanging over one shoulder.

His lips quirk into a shy smile. "Hi."

"Ohh fuck…" I'm over to him in a second, a laugh bursting out as I gather him up, lifting him off his feet, dragging in his smell, his exhale of breath, the feeling of having him against me. Everything. "I thought you were going to text me when you got in."

My arms are already aching from squeezing him so hard.

"I thought I'd just surprise you," he whispers. "I have something to tell you."

"Yeah?" I set him down. I'm just so glad that he's here . Oh fuck, I'm gonna cry.

"I got a new job assignment." He scrapes his teeth over his bottom lip. "To finish out my contract. It's virtual."

"Virtual? Like… you don't have to be in New York?"

He shakes his head. "Nope."

"You…" I fight for words.

He looks up at me. "I know we talked about six more months, but?—"

My dad busts through the back door. "Rory?" His face breaks into an instant smile. He twists back, catching the door just before it closes. "Hey, get in here! Rory's finally here!"

"What?" My other dad yells, and suddenly, people swarm into the shop. My dads basically tear Rory away from me to hug him and ask a million questions. Then my brother comes in and Yolla, my aunt, who runs the front counter and Michelle, my cousin, who drives the van. And the whole time, I'm just staring at Rory, watching as he's fawned and fussed over, his cheeks turning red from all the attention.

Until I finally get a minute with him, linking my fingers with his and pulling him to the side.

My heart hasn't stopped pounding, my brain churning through a thousand different images. "What were you saying?"

"I'm here for good," he says. "I want this . I want you. I want this life with you."

I close my eyes.

I breathe.

Everything's changed .

And I'd never go back, not for anything.

I wrap my arms around him. I pick him up, and I hug him to my chest. I don't have words. And, yes, I am crying.

And I know, with everything I have, that Rory and I are exactly as we should be. We're us .

And that's all that matters.

The End