little lies (an e.d. fanfiction)

epilogue

song for epilogue: us by james bay + play on repeat if needed!!

claire's pov

life has a funny way of surprising people.

you see, i would've never expected the amount of surprises that it's thrown my way– the good and the bad.

to my father's tragic accident, all the way to finding the boy who i claim to be the love of my life.

things are different than how they used to be, but it's a healthy different.

jade's gone, she's back home in oklahoma and living with her aunt, free from her alcoholic parents– something that the both of us never expected to happen so early.

and man, is she happy.

she's also six months strong with grayson, their relationship being the best thing that's ever happened to her.

she plans to come up in the summer and be with all of us again like she had spent this past summer with us, and continue to come up to visit every summer after that.

maddie's now dating jack, their relationship being something that i would've never expected, but glad more than anything that it's happening.

cameron and the other girls in our friend group have yet to find a significant other, but we're all so young and they have so much time ahead of them to find love.

ethan and grayson have been doing well in college, coming home as often as they can to visit, but only when they don't have too much school work on their hands.

lily, maddie, skylar, hannah, and i are spending another great year together on the cheer team.

liz got kicked off of the cheer team for obviously getting caught from the mess that her and serena had made at prom last year.

she didn't just get kicked off of the cheer team, though, her and serena both got suspended–meaning that the both of them will never be able to get involved in any club, sport, or organization in school for the rest of their high school years.

ethan and i's relationship has remained amazing, and even though he's off and in college, it hasn't gotten in the way of our relationship.

my mother has learned to accept me and ethan's relationship, and was actually quite fond of the boy once she had finally met him.

my mom has surprised me with the way she's changed over the course of this year, and i'm glad to finally see her healing from the passing of my father.

liam now goes to the same school as me, him now being a freshman in high school.

ever since liam's entered high school, his mental health has been taking a turn for the better, and he's made an entire new friend group full of people that actually want what's best for him.

i've been there for liam this year more than i ever have been in my entire life, and i'm proud to be helping and mentoring him as his big sister.

he reminds me of my dad a lot, and sometimes, i swear that i can actually see him in liam.

i've spent this year not trying to run away from my father's death, but trying to face it and allow myself to accept it, my mother and brother doing the same.

no matter how grown i get, i know i'll always be daddy's little girl, even if he's not here on earth with me anymore.

i know my dad would've wanted nothing more but for me and the rest of our family to find peace with his loss, and i know he's proud of the relationship that i've formed with ethan.

i'm growing up, and so is ethan, and this journey that we're facing in life is teaching us how to grow together.

ethan and grayson have also made sure to invite me to plenty of college parties, cameron and jack as well, and they're some of the most thrilling experiences i've ever had.

it makes me think about how in two years it'll be me off and going to college, and branching out into the real world like i've always wanted to do.

a lot can happen in two years, and i don't know if i'm ready for whatever life is planning to throw my way, but i do know that i'm excited for it.

things can change, but i just know that the only thing that won't change is the way i feel about ethan.

it's funny how initially ethan and i's feelings for each other developed from nothing more than a little lie i had created, and now i've never been so truthful and real with someone in my entire life than i am with him.

i've definitely learned a valuable lesson from this entire experience, and it makes me excited for the many new lessons to come in not only the next chapter of my life, but in the next chapter of our relationship.

i don't know if i could've made it this far without ethan, because he's someone that has changed my life for the rest of it's eternity.

maybe i could've made it this far on my own, but i do know that i wouldn't be nearly as happy as i am today.

i've never felt something more amazing than the feeling of being in love, and that's how i feel spending every damn second with ethan.

i know that whatever happens next will be far from a lie, and instead, it'll be the start of something new and real.

and because of that, i can't wait for what the future holds.

so, thank you ethan, for giving me all of the love that the rest of this world could never possibly give to me.