Distance (Aruani - SNK/AOT) ✔

The Last Part

Life is beautiful. I've really come to realise that these past few year. It's short, and can change at any given moment. It's fragile and delicate, it shouldn't be tampered with or destroyed; there's no time for that. It can change in the blink of an eye, be it for the better, or for the worse.

One thing is said, and that can change the course of it forever, change the way you look at it, the way your future is going to be.

My life changed the moment Armin walked out of my life, the moment our future was finished. It seemed as though our story had come to a dramatic, life-changing end.

But when the doctor told me I was pregnant, that changed my life once again. In the blink of an eye, it changed for the better. I had something to live for, something special, something beautiful. When Emilee was born, I had a new story to write. Armin's was no longer important, he had his own story.

It wasn't long though, before his story became entwined with mine. I suppose he was always there, in many respects. Always in my mind, always in my loneliest nights.

Every single day was harder to bear, as I wondered about what he was doing. My mind was at war with itself, trying to decide where in my wasted, lonely life would he fit. He was away, making his own story, far away from our reach, and I was worried about him. I didn't want his story to come to an end. His long expedition, his life-threatening injuries, everything made each strand of his life thinner, and even more delicate and fragile. The distance between us only grew, as did the aching pain we felt as the lonely void engulfed up.

But, alas, the strands grew thicker and stronger, and he came back to us. After years and years of separation, living out our far from ordinary lives, he made that split-second decision to change his life and come back to us. His life was now ours as well, and that was the best thing that could have happened.

After only a matter of weeks from coming back, Armin Arlert proposed. We were married by the end of that month, our previous lives in the past. That day we made a promise, that whatever happened, whatever obsticles were thrown our way, we would face them, overcome them, learn from them and heal. We wouldnt let our lives be changed by simple, stupid mistakes. Not again, not ever. Now every blink of an eye doesn't change anything, in fact, it only makes our short lives go faster.

Time does fly, I'll admit. The next year was the perfect example. When we visit Sasha and Connie on their farm, when Emilee rides on Sasha's shoulders, laughing in the fresh air, the only thing I want to do is to freeze time and enjoy that moment for the rest of my life. When Simon and Anna got married, Sasha's pregnancy, Emilee's tenth birthday, everything was thrown at us, as soon as things had started to calm down after our wedding, but that was okay. That was fine. Better to have an exciting, fast life, than a slow, uneventful one.

I no longer think about the past. That part of my life isn't important anymore. The key to a long and happy life is to live in it, no regrets, no hesitations. Let each passing second be a reminder of how lucky you are, how great the people aroud you are, and how happy you are. No setbacks, no limits. To live, and not just survive.

The Military Branch assessments were held a few months after the Scouts had returned. When asked whether I was married, I could finally tell the Council members with a proud and confident smile, that "yes, I was. To Armin Arlert, former member of the Scouts, now head developer for the technology of the military."

Now my husband comes home from a long days work, he walks over and kisses me, then leans down on both knees to hug his daughter, who runs down the corridor to meet him. She'll take his hand and show him what she learned today, or what she drew. Armin would then come into the kitchen and make dinner with me. If I was working late, or at a meeting, I would come home and find my food warming up on the fire, with Emilee fast asleep, holding Armin's hand, as he quietly sang her to sleep. These little moments were the ones that meant the most to me. The ones that, in my eyes, just aren't long enough.

My family's happiness is what I strive for most. My life revolves around them. They are my everything. Emilee, Armin, and the little one that's on the way.

And I am certain, that for the remainder of our small, delicate and beautiful life, I am not going to waste a moment. We'll spent it together, and never will we let anything happen to it. For there is still so much to look forward to. The lives of our children, their wonderful, prosperous lives, are only beginning, and each day feels like a new beginning to me.

A new beginning, a new life. Armin and I, taking each day one step at a time, no hesitations, no obstacles to stop us.

See, life is fragile. It may be short and delicate, but that just makes it even more amazing and worthwhile in the end. I had to wait, a very long time, for my happily ever after, but now I've got it. A new story can begin, and the old one can close.

A happily ever after, with everybody in it. To live this short and sweet life with me forever.