Insane Doesn't Even Begin to Cover It...

Insane Doesn't Even Begin To Cover It... EPILOGUE

Epilogue

            “Senna?” Caden’s voice behind me startles me out of my reverie, and I turn away from the mirror to look at him. He’s standing at the bathroom door, one hand on the handle and the other slightly extended towards me. He gives me an uncertain smile that I return, after a few moments.

            “Hey…” I murmur, taking a step away from the sink and meeting him, allowing him to wrap me up in his arms. We stand like that for a moment, breathing each other in.

            “How are you doing?” He asks, pushing me an arm’s length away and giving me an assessing glance, as if there’s something that’s supposed to be wrong.

            “I’m fine, I suppose.” I say, smiling at him with more reassurance.

            It’s been nearly a year since I was released from the hospital, and I’ve progressed majorly in my time away. My speech has almost fully recovered from being mute, and most of my phobias are just a thing of the past.

            “That’s good… I have a surprise for you.” Caden grins at me, then takes my hand and leads me out of the bathroom. Stopping in the bedroom, he motions to a box on the bed. “Go on, open it.” He says, when I give him a skeptical look.

            “Caden…” I say, a little exasperated as I grab the box and undo the bow that was tied around it, and lift off the lid. Carefully, I move the packing paper out of the way and almost tear up at what’s inside. “Oh my, it’s beautiful.” I whisper, reaching in and pulling the dress out, pressing it against myself and turning to look in the mirror.

            The dress goes down to my knees, and is a deep, beautiful red. It has a V neckline, and the sleeves go three quarters the way down my arm. There’s a dark black bow tied around the middle, just adding to its charm.

            “I love it.” I say, turning giddily to Caden, who has just been standing there quietly. A huge smile spreads across my face when I speak, but he just shrugs.

            “Get dressed, we’re going out.” He says, winking at me and then turning to walk out of the room, closing the door softly behind himself. I stand there for a moment, looking after him, before I hurriedly start to get changed. Off goes the old pajamas, to make way for nice underwear and the beautiful dress. At first, I have a dilemma over what shoes to wear, but eventually I find the perfect pair, some that I haven’t ever worn, that Becca bought me for my 6 month anniversary from the hospital.

            Glancing outside the window as I curl my hair and tie it up slightly, I see that it’s started to snow just a little bit, even though it’s almost the end of January. I quickly grab a nice jacket from my closet and start out of the room, meeting up with Caden in the living room. He’s somehow gotten changed into a nice suit, and has managed to get his wild hair nice and neat. The sight of him brings a smile to my face and I blush a little when he winks at me again.

            “You look gorgeous, come on.” He wraps an arm around my shoulder and we leave the apartment, catching a taxi once we’re on the street. I have absolutely no idea where we’re going, but I allow myself to trust Caden with whatever he has planned.

            Soon enough, we pull up in front of one of the higher-end restaurants in the city, much to my surprise. “Caden, are you sure we can afford this?” I ask, as we stand in front of the entrance.

            “I’m sure, don’t worry.” He doesn’t allow for any more of my questions, instead just grabbing my hand and tugging me inside, telling the maître d’hôtelhis last name, and continues to pull me after him as the man leads us to our table. The table is in a quiet and secluded window, almost in the corner, but very charming. The view from said window looks out on the street with its winter decorations, and the many lights of the surrounding boutiques and shops.

            I take my seat, across from Caden and just sit there staring at him, dumbfounded. I had absolutely no idea that this was going to happen, I wouldn’t have ever even considered it. He looks up from the menu in front of him and smiles at me when he catches me staring.

            “Are you surprised?” He asks, gently putting one of his hands on top of mine, on the table.

            “Yes, of course. I had no idea that you were going to do this.” I say, slightly stumbling over the words but refusing to be embarrassed by it. That was one thing I’d learned during my release… don’t let the small things get to you.

            “Good, I hope that you’ll keep that feeling… because this isn’t all of the surprise.” He says, a glint of amusement in his eyes.

            Dinner passes quickly, with the most delicious food I think I’ve ever tasted. Towards the end, when I finish my dessert and begin to look out the window, I hear Caden sort of rustling around. Decidedly ignoring it, my heart pounding a bit faster, I continue to stare at the passing people outside. It’s snowing a little harder, but not enough to be a hazard, and it just adds to the feeling of the moment.

            Someone clears their throat, right next to my chair, closer than I thought. A little startled, I turn my head to look and adjust my view when I see that it’s Caden, on one knee, by my seat. Eyes getting wide, I turn a little and stare at him.

            “U-um…” I stutter, face flushed. He grins, but also seems a little flustered.

            “Senna… I know we haven’t know each other for that long. But I am so glad I ended up in that hospital with you, as bad as that may sound to other ears. I adore you. I fell in love with you, and I resolved myself to stay until I could see and be sure that you were okay. Before I met you my life was a total wreck. I was ruining myself, and those around me. The lives of my family and friends, and their families… I was evidently shaming myself and I didn’t care. But then, I met you, just by chance. And everything changed.” He pauses, taking a deep breath.

            “I wanted to impress you. I wanted to show you that I was a good guy, someone you could trust. I cared about whether or not you liked me, about your thoughts and opinions, everything. At first, you didn’t let me in and I was so disappointed, but then the ice thawed and you were… well… mine. Or as close to mine as I thought you could get. Then, your recovery started and it was like a bright light shining a path, and I knew what I was going to do. I decided I would help you with your recovery, and we would both leave that dreaded place and end up together, no matter what it took.”

            “And my, did it take a lot. You fought me along the way, but I admit, I fought you back. You have such a bright spirit, a spark that just lights up the room. A smile that melts anyone who sees… Or at least that’s what it did to me. I love you, Senna. I love you.” At that moment, he pulls a ring case out of his pocket and opens it, to expose a beautiful ring in deep blue padding.

            “This isn’t an engagement ring. I know you aren’t ready for that, because we’ve talked about it. And I know how you feel about moving too fast… about change. But… this is a promise ring.” He takes the ring out and grips my left hand, slowly sliding the ring onto my finger, and then kissing my hand. “And my promise to you is that I won’t ever leave, no matter how tough things get, no matter what goes wrong. I will always be here, because I can never repay you for what you did for me, and because… I love you to death.”

            For one heart-stopping moment, everything is quiet. Then, the rest of the restaurant bursts into loud applause. I had totally forgotten they were even there. My face grows even hotter, and I lean forwards, wrapping my arms around him and kissing him, full on the lips.

            Later that night, I find myself in the bathroom again, in front of the mirror. My hands are braced on the sink, and I’m staring at my reflection. My face is pale, my hair is dark, and so are my eyes. However, there is one bright thing in the room. Lifting up my hand, I stare at the ring. It’s absolutely gorgeous.

            And I just know that I had made my own promise to him earlier that night, a promise that I wouldn’t relapse. A promise that I would stay okay, for as long as possible. A promise that I wouldn’t leave.

            And I plan on keeping it.