Array
(
[text] =>

That's it... That's the very last chapter of this story.... This chapter is going to be a bit different and will be from Arthur's point of view!

♂+♂=♥

*20 years later*

I woke up feeling the warmth of the sun on my face; I turned around, burying my face into my husband's chest, wanting to sleep a bit longer. I was having a nice dream, well to be honest it was mostly memories but it felt so good. In my dreams, I was a teenager again, I was with my boyfriend and his friends and everything was so great; I wanted to stay in this illusion a bit longer, just a few more minutes. 

Suddenly, I felt something on the bed and I knew Michael just entered into the bed. He crawled until he was in front of my face, waiting for me to open my eyes. Slowly, I opened my eyes, a small smile on my lips. "Hey baby." I whispered, not wanting to wake my husband up.

He smiled back before crawling between us. Now, there were no doubts he was awake.  He giggled, happy to be between us and kissed my cheek. "Good morning daddy." He whispered back with a big, cute smile. He suddenly yelped when he felt two big arms hugging him from behind. "DAD LET ME GOOO!!!" He screamed while laughing, trying to get away. I couldn't help but laugh at the scene, seeing my husband and my son spending time together always made me happy.

I guess I should explain what happened during all these years. Well... Back then, at the hospital I mean, Michael died just after we shared our last kiss... The doctors tried to resuscitate him but it was impossible. I thought my world was ending right there and I couldn't imagine myself living without him. The funeral was heartbreaking and I often thought about killing myself but I never did. For years, I stayed at home, refusing to meet people except for my family as well as Eddy who stayed friends with us even after Michael's death.

Ten years after his death, I began to go out... Well, Amelia forced me and at first it was really hard. She was tired of me staying in my room all the time and she told me I should try to enjoy life as much as I could... I was almost 30 years old at the time and I thought - and wanted - to spend the rest of my life alone; waiting for my time to come so I could be with Michael again. 

My life totally changed when Amelia took me to the ice cream shop; there was this waiter who kept flirting with me and at first I really hated it. But the more we went there, the more I remarked that I enjoyed his company and one day he just kissed me.... And that's how our story began. Finally, three years ago we adopted a little boy who was abandoned by his parents at birth. As soon as we saw him, our hearts melted and we knew he was perfect. We decided to call him Michael; and I couldn't be happier. He was just gorgeous; he had a cute little face; big brown curls all over his face and baby blue eyes. In a way, he kind of looked like my first love, except for the eyes. And, even if I didn't want to admit it, it almost looked like he was our biological son; he was looking so much like him and I. 

I was pulled out of my thoughts by my son, giving me a worried look. That's when I realized I began to cry a little; I was always getting emotional just thinking about the past. My husband, Alex, kissed his cheek and whispered something into his ear. He nodded and left the room not too long after. Alex pulled me into his arms and kissed my neck, my cheeks and finally my mouth. Then, he took my face into his hands and began to speak. "I'm going to take him to the park today so you can spend time with Amelia and Eddy for this special day. But don't hesitate to call me if you need something, anything, alright?" He asked, staring at me while he was waiting for my answer. 

"Wait." I said, holding his hand, not wanting him to leave. "I-I want the both of you to come with us... He has the right to know too..." I said in a small voice, not thinking he would agree with me.

"Alright. Get ready, I'm going to take care of him now." He said, giving me a sweet kiss before leaving the room. I swear I was often wondering how he could stay with someone like me. He accepted me even if I was deaf, even if I still missed more than anything my first love and even if I asked if it was alright to call our son like that. But he really understood and still loved me more than anything. In my mind, I didn't really deserve him but I loved him even more for liking all my flaws.

I sighed and got out of the bed, walking toward the bathroom to take a quick shower. Once I was done, I brushed my teeth and dressed myself. When I entered into the kitchen, Michael was eating his cereals while Alex was drinking his coffee. I kissed Michael's head before sitting next to my husband who already prepared a cup of coffee for me. I silently thanked him and began to drink it slowly, enjoying the warmth of the beverage.

"Do you feel better daddy? I don't like when you cry; it makes me want to cry too." Michael said, looking at me withworriedeyes.

"I'm alright, don't worry." I answered, giving him a little smile. He only nodded before continuing his meal. I liked how he always made sure I was looking at him before speaking; he knew I couldn't hear him and was always making sure not to speak too fast. He was only three but he was really, really smart and tolerant, I was so proud of him.

Once the breakfast was finished, we left the house and went in the car. After making sure Michael was in his seat with the belt on, we left toward our destination. During the travel, I saw Alex talking, probably saying something to our son. I looked at him and raised an eyebrow, curious to know what they were talking about. He explained it to me, making sure to speak slowly while looking at the road. He explained that Michael was asking where we were going but that he only told him that it was a surprise and that it was a particular and important day to me. I nodded, thanking him before looking out of the window, lost in my thoughts.

After more or less ten minutes of road, we reached our destination: the cemetery. I took another deep breath and got out of the car before opening the door to Michael. I helped him to get out of the car, closing the door just after. I took his small hand into mine while Alex took my other hand, squeezing it a little to show me he was there to support me. 

We entered into the cemetery and walked toward a grave I knew way too well. Amelia and Eddy were supposed to come in about twenty minutes while Michael's parents were supposed to come later in the afternoon. I knelt in front of the grave, hugging my son from behind while Alex sat next to me, a hand on my back. My baby turned around and looked at me in the eyes. "Why are we there? What is it?" He asked a small frown on his cute little face.

I smiled sadly at him and took a deep breath before beginning to speak. This was going to be hard. "This was my first boyfriend... The one before your dad. I loved him more than anything but he-he was sick. The doctors did everything they could to save him but he died... Exactly twenty years ago... For a long time, I wanted to die but I never did... A-About ten years ago I met your dad and we got together. And then we decided to adopt you and we love you more than anything." I said, making a short breath to wipe my eyes before continuing. "His name was Michael... Just like you. And I have to admit that you look a lot like him. Look..." I said, taking my phone out of the pocket of my jeans to show him some pictures.

I began to cry harder when I saw the pictures, reliving the memories at the same time. God, I missed him so much.  Alex was rubbing my back while looking at me with sad eyes. Suddenly, Michael hugged me as strong as he could with his small, chubby arms before kissing my cheek. When he pulled away, I remarked that he was crying too. "Daddy, don't cry. Wanna hear what I think?" He asked while staring at me, the tears still rolling down his cheeks. I only nodded, not capable of speaking at the moment. "He looks just like me! And we have the same name! Maybe a part of him is in me! It's like he will live through me! Don't be sad, daddy! You have two Michael inside of me! And we love you! And Dad loves you too!" He exclaimed, whipping his eyes before giving me a big smile. 

Alex kissed my cheek before taking me and Michael in his arms. After a while, he looked at me before speaking. "I think he's right. There are too many things just to be only a coincidence. He will live forever, in your heart as well as in our son. I'm sure he's proud of you." He said before kissing me. 

We stayed like that for a while, just the three of us then we felt a presence. Amelia and Eddy just arrived. I hugged my sister and then Eddy. Amelia changed a lot during these years. She still looked the same physically except that she put on some weight as she was currently pregnant of her second child. Eddy didn't change a lot, except that he cut his long hair and had a more normal haircut at the moment. He was still single but it was his own choice; he wanted to 'have fun as long as he could'.

We stayed with them a few minutes before saying our goodbye. We left the cemetery and went to our car. On our way back home, I blown on the window and draw a heart before looking at the sky one last time and smiled. It wasn't a fake smile, no. It was a true smile, knowing someone very special to me would see it. 

"Forever and always." I whispered, watching the clouds. And, I swear I saw something in the sky. Something which definitively wasn't a plane or a bird nor a cloud. Could it be my guardian angel? In my mind, it definitively was. Maybe he wasn't on Earth anymore but I was sure he was watching me from above; protecting me and my family and I was sure we will see each other when the time will come...

END

♂+♂=♥

It was so hard to write this last chapter! Saying goodbye to a character you loved and spent hours creating is always so hard... It didn't help that I listened this amazingly beautiful song which is on the right....

Also, I wanted to say a big THANK YOU to all of you who read the story and supported me while writing it. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! 

Don't hesitate to tell me what you think about this chapter, reading your comments always makes me happy! :)

If you want to buy this story, I put it on smashwords here https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/501756 ; if the link doesn't work I'm TheOriginOfLove2014 there :)

[text_hash] => 241a81b1
)