Runaway

Epilogue

Ten Years Later

I woke up again with the same cold band on my finger and the same warm body beside me. But it wasn't comfortable still yet it was the best I could do. Sage made me want to cringe sometimes but not in the way she looked. The woman was undoubtedly beautiful with her long, dark curls, pure, tanned complexion, and bright blue eyes. But...she made me cringe in the way she was.

She didn't look at people like a moment. She didn't have that half-smile that lit up her eyes or that fleeting, breath-taking smile. Her laugh didn't sound like silver bells that would make your heart sing and thump wildly but slow down all at the same time. And she was not a wild thing. 

Sage didn't have a wild bone in her body.

I moved away from her, upset that she was snuggled up so tightly to my side. Slowly she moved back to her own pillow, that dark mass of curls spanning over both of our pillows. I waited until she was at ease before going and getting ready for the day. The shower was scalding hot, clothes too rough, and boots too tight. My stomach grumbled as I made my way into town without a word to my wife. 

There was a quick stop at the local convenient store before I headed to my mechanics place. My eyes took in the empty place as I did my sweep, turning on the lights, looking over the couple of vehicles my employees would work on once they arrived. My thumb rubbed the inside of the band, running it around my finger as I walked back to my office.

I sat down at the desk and thought again, as I did every morning, about her.

It was a good thing I let her go when I did or she'd be stuck back in Mansfield wearing a piece of shit ring and doing the same thing day in and day out. But it was also the worst thing. I was a selfish man. I wanted her again with her green eyes and short red hair. I wanted that wild thing more than I wanted anything in the world, but I couldn't have her.

So I'd be stuck wondering what it'd be like not waking up to Sage but Savannah, what coming home after a long day of work to seeing her finishing up supper, what it'd be like to lounge around after dinner, what it'd be like going to bed with her in my arms, and what having kids and growing old would be like with her. 

I couldn't help but wonder where she was now and if she was in a big city. Had she settled down like me with a man that she didn't entirely love? Or was she still playing megastar with faked smiles and emotional breakdowns where no one could see? 

Twenty Years Later

I watched Flynn graduate with Sage's hand in mine--her hand was hot and sweaty in mine and still didn't fit right, but I managed to make it work. He had those trademark Kidwell green eyes and the same nose as Sage's dad. He'd turned out alright despite how horrible his childhood had been with the constant fighting and the inability to get away. In fact, he had a pretty redhead by his side for just about two years.

Despite what he thinks, I know how often they're together. They fight, don't see each other for a couple of days, resolve it, and then things are fine again. It was like nothing had ever happened. And they're both ambitious with goals of hitting up the big city and staying far away from Mansfield--that always made me smile.

We left shortly after the ceremony with Allison talking about how this will be her next year, heading home after getting our congratulations. No one had known that Flynn was going to be valedictorian. Thank God, he was so damned driven. 

Sage immediately went to our room once we were home and changed out of her dress into something comfortable. Allison had gone to her room. I didn't feel like talking much once she was back in the room so I went to go dispose of the suit. She grumbled as I passed her. 

I stripped down to my underwear, hanging the suit up as I went. The next time I'd need this was for Father's funeral if he didn't turn his health around. Mother would be a mess, unsure of what to do with herself. 

I shook my head to get rid of the thoughts as I dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. Taking the time to look in the mirror, I noticed my first gray hair standing out among the rest of it. My eyes closed after I'd pulled the hair out. 

"I'm getting old," I grumbled before wondering if she was getting old too.

Fourty Years Later

I looked over at withered up Sage with her hair that mixture of gray and white. Wrinkles litter her face and she's breathing from an oxygen tank. It almost hurts me to see her like this, in pain and suffering. But that's okay. The doctor said she's got days...if that. 

The doctor said I'm as healthy as a horse but need to stay in a home. I've got Alzheimers so memories come and go. They just want me to make sure I'm taken care of because Sage won't be able to do it anymore. Allison and Flynn are too busy with their own lives and kids to take care of me.

I don't want them to anyways.

I grab up my walking stick which seems to be my best friend now. The rest of them have died or are unable to be reached or maybe...I can't remember them. Things are so fuzzy. I manage to make it to the kitchen before I'm forced to sit down, unable to breathe. My chest is delightfully heavy.

In these moments as I suck for air, I remember her. I think about how true it is that you never forget your first love. Maybe I can't be able to remember what yesterday's skies were like but I can remember a cool September night fourty-two years ago. And how she smiled that wicked smile that at the time I had no idea would haunt me forever. And how those green eyes gleamed despite everything that had happened that day. It had felt amazing when her palm had connected with mine as our fingers intertwined.

"What are you thinking about, Oliver?" Sage asks from the doorway.

I look up at her and shake my head as if to tell her it was nothing. But Sage knows now that this is more than just nothing. Her blue eyes have lost their gleam after years of dealing with me and my loving but unloving ways.

"I'm about to die. I know it. I can feel it. So just tell me the truth," Sage says, pushing her oxygen tank in front of her.

"I was just thinking about an old friend," I say, nodding. Sage sighs and leaves the room. We both know that was a lie but neither of us has the energy to fight. We're done fighting now. 

"I wonder if she's happy," I whisper, looking at the linoleum flooring. I expect Sage to pop her head in like she'd heard every word but she didn't. Then suddenly, I don't care. "I wonder if Savannah got everything she had been looking for."

I bet she had. And I bet she was more than happy. 

*^*

I was asked to write an epilogue by many people so...here it is. It's sad. It sucks. It made me cry.

I love you guys so much for supporting it.

xoxo