Stay -Kleo- ✅

46 - Epilogue

"All good things must come to an end." I hate that phrase. Be warned, even though this may be the last part of this story, Kleo stories are and will always be my #1. Stay woke, bitches, I'm not done.

-|Narrator's POV|-

Saying things took a wrong turn for the perfect couple would be an understatement.

After months of fighting with attorneys over many lies and custody issues and getting lectures from assistants and managers over crossing the line, Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio were emotionally and physically exhausted.

"I told you to watch Bear while I talked to my lawyer!" Kate howled at Leo.

"How can I watch over him when I've got to meet my manager over your fantastic idea of telling Ned about us?!" Leo screamed back.

With a huff and a scrape of her dirty white trainers on the pavement, Kate was in her car and starting the engine.

"God, why did I ever get myself into this!" Leo's frustrated hands pressed into his temples in an attempt to find some control.

As the months went by, the tension factor went up and down and did crazy loops like a rollercoaster in the Winslet household.

For some, it showed in academic performance.

"Joe, please, you've got to get your grades up. What happened? You've never had any trouble with maths," his mother's concerned voice reached poor Joe's ears.

He'd had enough.

"How am I supposed to do homework or even concentrate on anything other than your stupid fights with Uncle Leo, mum! It's worse than when Ned was here!" He snapped at her.

Her tears were audible that night, but Leo wasn't there to hold her.

For others, the mood was just never right to be happy.

"Wanna go get some ice cream, Blitz? I know you want some."

The thin curtain of happiness covering Leo's real feelings was not good enough for Bear.

He softly nodded "no" and kept droopily stacking blocks together.

"I don't want any ice cream, daddy. Ice cream is happy, and no one here is happy."

Leo's heartbroken heart for his son beats weakly with disappointment for himself.

He finally had a family, and this is what he'd done to it.

Of course, there could never be a tragedy without any lifesavers, however subtle they might be.

"Come on, mum, this will pass, you know it will."

Mia softly patted her mother's back in an attempt to soothe her.

"Uncle Leo and you are just meant to be. Every couple has problems, and you're not an ordinary couple, but you'll pull through. He loves you so much."

Wise words were the only thing Mia would ever speak.

"I don't know, baby, I just don't know..."

Mia was not the only person salvaging the crumbling relationship. Of course, some counsellors are sweeter than others. Kate and Leo just had to keep in mind that time heals all.

"It really does, trust me."

Irmelin Indenbirken was fed up with her son's bad choices when it came to his partners, and she was not willing to let the perfect girl drain through his fingers.

"But Ma, she's so tired of me. I don't know what else to do. I used to make her so happy, and now I've screwed it all up," no amount of cookies and tea could satisfy Leo's appetite when he was sad.

"Stop eating before you burst out of your pants and listen to me. That girl you've got there is the only one you'll ever get, trust me. You know how to make it work, so go and do it. No 'hurt pride' bullshit in this house. Fix this now."

Eventually, there came a time when things turned more bland than sour. The house was no longer filled with rage and despair, but it was the absence of any feeling that stood out.

Not even Mia could take the amount of sadness surrounding her parents, so the three siblings did what any other intelligent offspring would do: call their grandma.

"Be good to grandma Irmie, don't fight, behave yourselves. I love you all."

Kate planted a kiss on each of her kid's heads- yes, even Mia even though she had to go on her tiptoes.

"Don't worry mum, I've got this," Mia whispered to her mother with loving eyes.

"I'll miss you, Alfie," Leo said to Joe as he ruffled his brown curls.

Bear turned around and ran straight into his father's arms.

"I'll miss you too, Wookie, be good to your big sister and brother, okay?" Leo kindly asked as he picked his boy up.

"I promise, daddy."

A pinky promise sealed the deal.

As soon as that door closed, the curtain opened.

There were no stage lights or applause, just an empty theatre with the two leads about to act out the finale of the play.

Kate's exhausted sigh followed her suit as she walked into the kitchen to brew some tea, and Leo slid the backyard door open to be welcomed with a cold breeze from the darkening sky.

Only absolutely necessary words had been exchanged between the couple for the past weeks, and they had not slept in the same room together for months.

That was the thing with Kate and Leo. When things were good, they were great, but when things were bad... they were bad.

They stumbled into each other as Kate made her way upstairs with her half-drank cup of tea and Leo went to the studio to get his script.

"Sorry," they both said.

A tear rolled down Kate's cheeks as she faced the stairs with Leo's warmth getting further from her and she wiped it off with a trembling hand.

One foot in front of the other, her will crumbled to pieces just as her heart was shattering. She knew if things did not change soon, they never would.

Neither of them could take much more of it.

Kate was about to take the first step up the stairs, her symbolical walk away from Leo forever when he reached out and firmly took her hand.

It was like a light had been switched on in an old room for the first time in years. A shock of electricity.

"Stay," he whispered so faintly even he couldn't hear himself.

And she turned around.

She turned around and that's all y'all need to know. 😉
-KateWinsletor265

Edit (Oct 2020) - I can't believe this is the last chapter of this story. What was I thinking?