[TW] Pyrophobia

Epilogue | "Meant to Be"

DOC

It'd been a very rough week, but at least the war was over. At least RED and Scope were gone, and everything had finally ended at last. To celebrate, Doc took Duh and... something else he prized to a restaurant. Nothing too special, to Duh, probably.

This would be special for Doc, though. Perhaps the gift of a lifetime.

"Thank God that's over." Duh relaxed in his chair, letting out a relieved sigh. "I couldn't go on much longer fighting against RED. He's so persistent."

"He is." Doc nodded. "Although, it makes me wonder what would've happened if Scope hadn't killed him like that, you know?"

"Have you seen him as a ghost? Or Scope?"

"Sadly, yes. RED acts differently now. He seems to take it back. Is it bad for me to not trust him? He could be watching me say this. I could check at any time, but I'm not going to bother doing that in public."

"Fair." Duh shrugged. "And Scope?"

"Haven't seen her. She probably just doesn't want to show her face. I mean, have you seen the way I threw her during that battle? She's probably scared shitless!"

"Right?" Duh chuckled.

Doc tried to keep calm, but his nervousness grew as he fidgeted in his pocket at the item. Any moment. Any moment. "Or maybe she's too busy trying to actually find herself a ghost life now that she realized it's too late to get a real one."

"Yeah, right." Duh rolled his eyes playfully.

"When would she do that?" Doc agreed.

It fell quiet. Neither of them really had anything to say. Doc just sat across the table from Duh, anxious about what he was about to do. He had to do it at some point... why was he hesitating?

"...How about Mateo? Do you see him?"

"All the time." Doc sighed. "He tries to get along with Justin and Walton, but they confuse him too much. Old dudes like him can never understand teenagers who died severe deaths, you know?"

"His death was severe, too. He got his whole arm chopped off."

"I guess so. You make me not want to eat. Egh. I'll do something else instead." Doc breathed in. Just take it slowly, Doc. "Duh. Can I... say something?"

Duh tilted his head. "Yeah. Of course."

"It's been since day one, all those years ago, when I first laid eyes upon you that I've been in love with you, you know?" Doc forced the trembling to stop, taking another deep, steady breath. "And ever since we reunited back at the old OneLife center, I've always had this feeling deep inside me. At first, I was just... blissfully unaware of what it was. But I realized now what that feeling was telling me. It was telling me that we were meant to be together." He slowly stood up from his chair.

"Where are you going?" Duh stood as well.

"Come on." Doc smiled, glancing over his shoulder. He grabbed both of Duh's hands, staring up at him. "That dance at the beach felt like Heaven, and we both knew that straight away as soon as it had happened. It was true love, and that love was what brought us back together after all the hardships. So... I ask."

He took a final deep breath and kneeled down on one knee. Here goes nothing.

"Duh Rhodes, love of my life, meant to be mine by destiny's choosing in time." He pulled out the small object out of his pocket and slowly opened the box. Within it was a sparkling ring which reflected the surface of the light off of the shining gem. "Will you marry me?"

Duh seemed to be in awe, his hands covering his mouth in surprise. His eyes sparkled and a smile crept onto his face. He fell onto his knees and pulled Doc into a hug, letting out happy sobs. "Y-Yes. I'd love to."

Doc took his embrace, beginning to beam. His blind eye slowly opened, and he heard the happy cheers of all the spirits around him. Justin, Walton, Mateo, even RED. Within his grasp he held the now closed wedding ring box. And all he could do was take in Duh's hug with a tight grasp of his own, tears streaming down his eyes.

"Thank you... thank you..." Duh whispered.

"No, thank you." Doc murmured back. "You saved me."

It was true. He did save him. But perhaps Doc maybe even saved himself, just with Duh's help. God, he missed this feeling of love. He didn't feel vulnerable anymore. After all, he had his other half.

They were truly Meant to Be.