saving grace

Epilogue Part 2

Year 2037

"Cate? My love?"

You walked into the bedroom in search of your blonde. Cate was taking yourself, your youngest daughter Lennon, Edith and a few of her friends, and some of Cate's crew on a trip to Vegas. Her screenplay was submitted into the city's Premiere Festival. Honestly, the script was, in your opinion, one of her best works to date. There was no way she was going to lose, despite the controversy of her being such a known figure. After Cate's inevitable win, you all were taking an extended vacation, simply relaxing and spending time with your favorite people.

"Catherine Eliseeeee," you tried again, this time in a sing-songy tone.

"In here, baby girl," she voiced.

You came to the entrance of the closet, leaning against the doorframe. "Are you almost ready to go? The car just pulled up."

"Yes, ma'am. I'm just trying to find my other gold earring. It has seemingly vanished," she spoke, quickly glancing up at you, before slowing down to do an obvious doubletake. "God, you are literally breathtaking."

You rolled your eyes at her, a smirk automatically dawning your face. She didn't say anything more, going back to the task at hand. "This is so annoying," she whined after about 30 more seconds of rifling.

"Let me, love," you insisted, going to her side and kissing her cheek before playfully bumping her out of the way with your hip.

"Those jeans are something else," she admired, her testy hand squeezing your left cheek.

You let her love on you, the two of you not having had enough alone time lately. Cate's schedule, combined with Lennon's show choir season and lessons, life had been insane. The two of you were running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

After a few moments, you found the escaped earring and brought it into Cate's field of vision. She harshly rolled her eyes and snatched the jewelry from your fingers. She placed a chaste kiss on your lips, wishing there was time for more. She smacked your ass roughly before walking over to a mirror to finish off her look. You rested back against the dresser, appreciating your view. Cate was wearing her infamous white jumpsuit with white and gold Armani low tops.

"Okay, I'm ready," she said, turning and running her hands down the front of her outfit.

"Gorgeous," you smiled, her hand reaching out for yours as the two of you made your way downstairs.

"Lennon, babes. Let's go!" You called out, unsure of where your 13-year-old had run off to.

"H-h-here mama!" Lennon replied, jumping up from where she laid on the couch.

Lennon was such a gift. The two of you officially made the decision to adopt a couple years after getting married. Life was amazing, of course, but Cate couldn't break away from the feeling of wanting another one, especially with you. You were a tiny bit apprehensive but ultimately went all in after some deep conversations and meetings with lawyers where you were able to delve in to the nitty-gritty. You were always honest with Lennon about her adoption. You had agreed to approach the subject earlier rather than later, always open to answering every question she had and never shying away from her curiosity, no matter how hard it was.

As Lennon grew, the two of you realized something wasn't quite right with her speech patterns. She was incredibly smart, advanced for her age even, but she seemed to clear her throat a lot and blink rapidly. When her voice came into it was as if she struggled on the first syllable of her words, often repeating it a couple times before being able to get out what she was saying. She was officially diagnosed with Tourette syndrome at the age of 8.