Fake It 'Til You Make It

Epilogue

Midnight swimming turned into something that all of us joined in on. By all of us, I meant that Tala, Amara, and Asher were allowed to join in on the fun. Everyone splashed around as the sun creeped up the horizon. I smiled as oranges, yellows, and soft pinks painted the sky. It was a work of art that got progressively more beautiful the higher the sun got. Almost like my life did. It slowly got better and better, despite the few shortcomings.

I jumped as Asher splashed me in the face with the salty sea water. Laughing, I tackled him into the calmed water. Before we could have an all out battle, Tala shouted that it was time to get to school. Groaning, I got to my feet and held out a hand for Asher. Of course, he yanked me right back into the water, pressed his salty lips to mine, and then dragged me to shore. I laughed and smiled the whole way, wishing school wasn't something that had to exist.

"Come on," I whined. "Do we really have to go to school?"

It'd been a month since everything had happened. I wouldn't say life was perfect, because life would never be perfect. It was life, and it was meant to be flawed. That said, life was a whole lot better when you were yourself, not what the world wanted you to be. It was also a whole lot better when you had amazing people by your side.

"Yes, we do," Lydia sighed dramatically, trying to pry her damp hair away from her face. "I wish we didn't, but we do. Because life sucks."

"Just like you," Carson laughed, nudging his sister playfully. If I hadn't known any better, I'd say they'd been close their whole lives. 

"At least I don't almost burn down kitchens." Yes, that happened in the past month.

"No one told me not to put aluminum foil in the microwave!" Carson tried to defend himself.

"I've told you that countless times," Vienna pointed out.

We all trudged through the sand. We needed to get home and change, even if we didn't want to.

I walked up to Tala and nudged her with my shoulder. Her boyfriend broke up with her. She was down for about a week, but she'd be okay. Eventually, she'd find the person that was right for her. I knew she would.

"Hey," she grinned.

"How are you, today?" I asked her.

"Good."

Carl came up beside her. "Am I interrupting anything?"

Tala flushed. They'd gotten pretty close since I introduced my Carl and Shell to the rest of my friends. I knew who Tala's next boyfriend would be.

"Nah," I smiled innocently, starting to walk ahead of them. "You two go ahead and talk."

"Ada!" Tala laughed.

I winked. Well, I tried to wink. It just made my friends burst into laughter. If making fun of my winking skills brought them closer, so be it.

As the sun rose even higher, I stopped, then caught up to Asher. He grinned, leaning in to kiss me. I dodged him, grinning as well.

"Where's my breakfast?"

He cursed under his breath.

I stopped. "Hey guys!" I shouted, cupping my hands around my mouth. They all stopped in place. "Asher still has to buy us breakfast!"

So, that's exactly what he went to do. Only, he dragged me along with him. The breakfast was worth it, and so was the experience.

The end

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I CAN'T BELIEVE I ACTUALLY FINISHED THIS BOOK! It's 57,099 words not including the author's notes. So, a bit short. I was aiming for a bit more but ehh. I think I like it as it is now. Maybe. I put a lot of themes into this, a lot of imagination and passion and I still can't believe I just finished it. Of course, I'm doubting myself because that's part of being a writer, but I sincerely hope you guys enjoyed this piece of my imagination as much as I enjoyed writing it. This book was something- different. For sure. But I hope people can take something from it. I know I took something from writing it. Please leave your thoughts on the book in the comments. Likes, dislikes, constructive, and I mean CONSTRUCTIVE, criticism. Thank you guys for getting this to over 16k reads and 1k votes. Wow. This story broke so many personal Wattpad records of mine. Thank you to everyone who has voted, commented, or just simply read this story from beginning to end. Bonus points if you read the author's notes.

I might start another book, I might not for now. I'm still writing Inserted, which is the second book in my sci-fi series, the first being Removed. If you like Dystopian books, maybe give it a read?

-Sarah