“I honestly believed that this day would never come,” he admits.
“Yes,” I smile. “Sometimes, you wait for something for so long, and if you’re lucky, it eventually reaches you.”
I turn to Lilly and smile at her. She is so beautiful. I can’t wait to make her my wife but not yet. I want all her family to be present, her dad included, which is why I’ve decided to ask her to marry me on that very same day that her father receives his freedom. That will make the whole day even more unforgettable. It will be truly perfect.
We spend the following hour talking about things that seem irrelevant, but they serve a very important purpose, to bring us all closer together. When it’s time for us to say our goodbyes, instead of shaking hands, Stephen hugs me as well. I’m a little surprised, but I hug him back instantly. Just like with Lilly, he pulls away immediately.
“Thank you,” he repeats, and for a moment, I think I see tears in his eyes. “Not just for what you’re doing for me, but for Lilly as well.”
“I should be thanking Lilly,” I smile. “She is a rare find.”
“Indeed, she is,” he nods, caressing her cheek with his hand, and then the magic of the moment is broken. The guard approaches him, puts on his handcuffs and takes him out. We follow him with our gaze, then we head out as well.
As soon as we get back in the car, I notice that Lilly’s cheeks are wet.
“Are you crying?” I ask, wrapping my arm around her to pull her closer.
“Sorry,” she says, smiling through the tears. “I know there is no reason to cry, especially not now, but this is what I always do, after I come to see him. The emotions are overwhelming, and I allow them to take over only after he can’t see me anymore.”
She quickly tries to wipe away the tears, which are now streaming down her face, but I gently grab her hand.
“You never have to be ashamed of the way you feel with me, Lilly,” I whisper. “If you want to cry, then cry. I will be here while you do so. We’ll stay here as long as you need us to, OK?”
Still smiling through the tears, she gazes deeply into my eyes.
“What did I do to deserve you?” she asks.
“I should be the one asking that question,” I correct her.
Suddenly, at that very moment, we both can hear the light tapping of rain on the windshield.
“How appropriate,” she says, with a chuckle.
“Right?” I smile back, staring at the little droplets, now sliding downward, as the rain intensifies. “It sort of feels soothing.”
“Mhm,” she murmurs, sniveling.
I look down. She isn’t crying anymore, although her cheeks are still wet.
“Thank you,” she says unexpectedly. “For doing this for me.”
“I didn’t do it for you,” I say softly. “I did it with you. That is how we’ll be doing things from now on, with each other.”
She doesn’t say anything to that. The silence says it all.
We remain like that, hugging in the car, while the rain keeps drumming outside. I can’t remember the last time I felt this calm, this much at ease with the world and with myself in it. I guess that’s because I never knew my place. Not my right place, at least. I occupied the top of the food chain and that was all. I neglected everything else, everything that mattered. Without even planning to, Lilly reminded me of that.
I look down and kiss her forehead. I can’t resist kissing her, especially not when she’s in my arms, where I always want to keep her, close to myself, close to my heart.
As soon as the rain stops, she pulls away, adjusting on the passenger seat.
“Take me home,” she whispers.
That is exactly what I plan on doing.
Five Years Later