𝑱𝑼𝑺𝑻 𝑭𝑶𝑹 𝑨 𝑴𝑶𝑴𝑬𝑵𝑻 (18+)

Epilogue

Yes, there is sex.

Five years later, September

➳♥

"Ms. Nolan, why are you leaving early?" I glanced up from my papers and smiled at the curious toddler who was standing at my desk. "Because I have to attend a very important game, Mrs. Porter is going to sub for me until I come back to class okay Sarah?" She pouted, her pigtails swaying as tears began to pool in her eyes. Sarah was one of my more sensitive students, she got worked up easily and got attached to others rather quickly. Her parents warned me when she joined my class that she would be a handful, I underestimated how true that statement was.

"So, but- when are you coming back?"

"I'll be back on Monday, just in time for the class's talent show performance."

She mustered up a smile and wiped the tears away from her rosy red cheeks, taking some snot with her. "What do we do when we have a runny nose?" Handing her a tissue she giggled and wiped her hands and nose off, "we ask for a tissue."

"Uh-huh, and what do we do when we're done?"

"Throw it away and wash our hands!"

"Very good!"

I placed a sticker on her shirt, going the extra mile to cheer her up. She finished blowing her nose and tossed out her tissue, asking the class aid for help washing her hands. I looked at the other students in the classroom and smiled, resting my head in my hands. I knew I would fall in love with this job, but I didn't realize how rewarding it would truly be. I had been working as a pre-school teacher for four years and I still cried leaving the students, it was a feeling I'd never get used to.

"Okay kids, I'll be back on Monday. I'd like everyone to be super prepared for the talent show by the time I'm back, deal?"

The kids all shouted back in unison, agreeing to my terms. I quickly grabbed my things and checked my watch on the way out of the door. Devon's game was in an hour and I still had to run home and change and make the thirty-minute drive to the stadium.

Life in California was going well for both of us. We got a place together a month after moving and learned a lot about each other in the process. I was now a full-hearted believer in not knowing a person until you lived with them. Devon had always kept his room at school and home clean, but I just thought he liked to stay organized. Turned out he was a closet neat-freak and liked to keep things a lot cleaner than I expected. I didn't mind it, I was happy to have a partner who didn't leave the seat up or dishes in the sink. We shared the chores in the house, but he did most of them which I also didn't complain about.

Everything wasn't as easy as deciding who did the chores and when though. The first year or two was the hardest in our relationship and for a brief moment, I didn't think we would make it. We got hit with reality quickly and we couldn't keep up with how fast our lives were moving. I spent most nights alone with my thoughts in our apartment and it really got to me. Devon tried his best to be present but he was so busy he was barely around. I didn't resent him for it I knew what I was signing up for when we got on that plane, but I missed who we were before we had real responsibilities.

We also argued, a lot. We both hated it and did what we could to avoid it but we were bumping heads so often, it was nearly impossible not to get frustrated with each other. My mother assured me it was natural for relationships to have rough patches. We were taking big steps in our new and scary lives, emotions were all over the place and it was bound to reach a boiling point. She'd also pointed out that we moved across the country, away from our friends and family. If all we had was each other and we barely spent time together, of course, insecurities would arise. We had to learn to continue communicating with each other and expressing our fears and once we did, we were stronger than ever.