Whispers that Scream

Epilogue

Epilogue

1 Year Later

Jane

Jane was just leaving the office after a long day's work. She was still working as an assistant interior designer, but her role had increased in scope over the past year. She was well on her way to becoming certified at this rate. She was blessed to be one of those few lucky people who truly loved their jobs. She was still at B&L and still in the same office building that she had started in. She got in her Sonata and started the commute home. Ten minutes later, she pulled into the driveway, briefly staring at her new home. Not "her home," she thought with a wicked smile. "Their home."

A few months ago, they had been sitting on Jane's porch, enjoying the sunset while sitting on the porch swing. Jane had her head laying on Adam's shoulder perfectly content with her life. "I was thinking of selling my home Jane," he confessed, causing her to lift her head to look at him.

Not sure how to respond, she asked, "Are you going to move somewhere? Where are you going?" she started to panic. She didn't want to live apart from Adam.

"I was thinking that the hour commute you do is too far. I was hoping we could look at homes closer to New Orleans and to your office. I work remotely so it doesn't matter for my work, and I know how much this house means to you because of your father. If I sell mine, we could get a home together while keeping this house as a retreat for when we want to get out of the city," he rushed out, trying to convince her. 

"I honestly don't know if this is too soon or if you'd even want to move from here. I just thought I'd throw this out there and let you know it's an option I'd be willing to do."

God dammit, I love this man.  She smiled up at him. "I'd love to move in together with you Adam. We can start looking at places next week."

They had purchased a home a month later in a nice suburban neighborhood only about 10-15 minutes from her office, depending on traffic. They'd still go out to the vacation home a few times a month to enjoy the peace and tranquility that only that place could bring. 

She couldn't be happier with her life. Her relationship with her mom was vastly improved, and Martha would randomly stop by a few times a week to check in on them. Her friendship with Sarah was still her most important and most sacred, but she had made other friends that she enjoyed being around and would often hang out with. She still went to therapy regularly and had made vast improvements. She slept better now, and even if she wasn't able to completely stop the flashbacks, they were less frequent and she handled them much better now. 

There were a few more things she wanted, that in her mind, would make her life so complete that if she died the next day, she'd have no regrets. She wanted to marry Adam. Be his wife and make it official. It was important that in things regarding milestones in their relationship, she let Adam go at his own pace. She wanted him to be 100% sure before he committed to something and one day, he would get over his fears and propose to her. How sweet that day would be. A wicked smile formed on her face. And...he would be Her husband. 

The power dynamic of their relationship was unique from most other couples. She loved taking the lead in things and loved how powerful it made her feel. Their relationship would seem odd to most people, but it worked for them perfectly.

 Oh god. She flushed. I can't wait to tell him what to do tonight, direct him to exactly where I want him to go, and tell him exactly what I want him to do. Anticipation rose within her. She turned off her car and headed into the home.

 "Adam, I'm back," she called out.

He walked out from the room he used as his work office and smiled at her, meeting her eyes. He had made it a point to meet her eyes when she got home to let her know how important it was to him that she came home to him at the end of every day. He walked over to her and gave her a kiss and hug. "Welcome home, Jane."

Adam

1.5 years later

Adam sat with Jane on the porch swing at her vacation home. They had some struggles after they moved in together. Jane saw that being with him all day every day had challenges that she hadn't been exposed to before. They had figured it out together though. They had found solutions together and compromised when needed. They had figured out pretty early on after they had moved in together that Adam needed space sometimes. Even from Jane. He could tell that she hated it when he needed to isolate for a few hours or maybe even a few days, but she knew that he needed it. Forcing him to be with her in those times, would have a negative effect and only prolong the episode. 

He loved her for that. It wasn't easy for her, but she did it for him. She pushed him outside of his comfort zone and tried to get him to do new things. He needed that push from someone to keep making strides. However, she also understood that when he felt it was too much and he would dig his heels in, she had to let it go and not be angry or disappointed in him. 

It took them a while to find the right balance that worked for them, but they had done it together, and every day he fell more and more in love with her.

 Is this the right time? Has it been long enough? Am I ready to take this step? What if she didn't want to? Doubts rushed through his mind, threatening to paralyze him into inaction. He shook those off though. He trusted Jane would be honest with him and that's all he wanted. He pushed Jane off of him, his nervousness causing him to jerk a little bit.

Jane was thrown off of him less gently than he'd like, and she let out a shriek of protest. "That scared the shit out of me Adam. What the hell are you doing?" she asked angrily, staring at him as he got up to stand in front of her. Her hair was free of the platinum dye that once hid her and hung at her shoulders. The dark brown it was always meant to be.

He saw her eyes widen and her mouth form an o shape as he started to get down on one knee. He dug into his pocket to grab the box that he had hidden from Jane for the past three months. He had hidden it so well, constantly moving its hiding place, that he had almost lost it a few times. 

"Jane," he began. "These past few years, I've experienced a happiness and peace that I didn't think I would ever find in this lifetime. You challenge me when I need to be challenged, push me when you know I can do more, and comfort me when I reach my limits. I don't want to spend the rest of my life with anyone other than you. I can't promise that I'll be able to do everything a normal husband would be able to do. I can't promise that I will never have struggles or that we won't go through tough times because of my condition. I can't promise that I will always be the husband that you deserve."

He could see her about to protest but cut her off. "What I can promise is that I love you more than anyone in the world. I promise I will support you always and help you when you need it. I promise to share in your happiness at your accomplishments. I promise to never stop trying to improve myself, to never give up, and to give you all that I can every day. I promise to always be honest with you and trust in you fully. And, I promise that I want to spend every day with you for the rest of my life. Jane, will you marry me?" he asked as he held up the ring to her. 

The sun set over the marsh, creating a striking scene of colors in the backdrop. He held Jane's eyes as she started to smile with tears rolling down her face.

Jane

"Finally."

I wonder what his reaction will be when I tell him that I'm pregnant. I need to have my camera ready to capture his reaction.