E P I L O G U E :

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Several years later ~

"Oh Hazel, where are you?" I tiredly swung my arms around, moments away from giving up on finding her. Bending down I peeked once and for all under the coffee table, finally accepting the fact she wasn't under there.

I blinked back at our most recent game of hide and go seek, reminiscing about where she last hid. Something snapped.

I grinned like I never had before, delicately sliding across the timber flooring. Once I was in front of the wooden cabinets, my feet came to a stop. Slowly turning the knob, I suddenly flung the cabinet open, doing my very best to surprise her. "Found you! You're so cheeky."

She came tumbling down into my sturdy arms in a pit of laughter. She kept clamming her small hands together in attempt to clap—in which I tend to precise failed miserably. The fact I gave her a scare brought so much satisfaction and content to her pea-sized face that I couldn't hold back the tears.

I held her up in the air, smiling whilst tears of joy uncontrollably swirled down my cheeks, "Look at you, you're getting so big. In fact, you're getting too big for the cabinet." I gently flicked her nose, bringing her back to my chest.

Carrying her with one arm, I made my way to the sofa, making sure to grab my coffee. We settled down on the plush couch, deciding to watch the news—well, it was mostly my choice, considering she was too young to be interested in TV.

Switching through the numerous channels, I decided to go with CNN, which in my opinion was more resourceful than fox news. The host started off with the usual cup of tea including weather, politics, and special events.

At around 1:00 pm, my phone buzzed, showing I had just received a new message. My finger slid across the screen, unlocked my home page, and started typing back a response.

Hey babe, how's your day? I'm sorry I won't be back before 10 tonight.. gotta finish the last of my paperwork.

- Why don't you finish it at home? I'm sure your boss could let you off just this once (;

I'd love too, but you know I can't.

- And you know I can't go any longer like this. I miss you. I need you. The baby needs you, too.

And I'm looking forward to that trip to Mexico. Just think of all the time we'll have for us, just me and you, enjoying ourselves. But till then I have to work extra hard.

- And till then I'll be here missing you, taking care of our daughter.

What did I do to deserve someone like you! You're amazing, Zar.

- Yep. Love you too, Matt.

I growled in frustration, disappointment beaming off of me as I threw my phone away. He was always caught up in his job, he was never around, he was basically controlled by his paycheck.

Sometimes I wished I could go back to being nineteen when my life was a wreck. I remembered there was this period of time when nothing mattered, I would get drunk at parties, live recklessly, skip school, and fail classes. Of course I wasn't exactly proud of what I did, but I sure did enjoy the adrenaline flowing freely through my veins, giving me the energy to push forward.

Now, even though I was married to a marvelous man who gave me a wonderful child, I longed for action and turbulence. My peaceful life was dull, still, slow...

Hazel's cries brought me back to reality, realizing I had yet blanked out once more. I swiftly stood up and started to rock her back and forth, humming a melody from long ago. "Shh," I hushed, slowly making my way to her crib, "Now don't you cry. You know what, how about another daytime story?" Her sobbing slowed down as I kept whispering in her ear, "Once upon a time [...]"

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