Reality

Epilogue

The hot water cascaded down my body, putting my thoughts at ease as I breathed in the steamy air confined between my bathroom walls. My skin was slightly blotched in bits of pink and red from the close to boiling temperature of the water.

"Jasper!" bang bang bang. "You've been in there long enough! out!"  My sister screeched and banged against the bathroom door.

'twenty-three' I thought to myself. 'I'm so old now.'

I turned the showers faucet off, shivering from the lack of hot water now, and slowly stepping out of the shower. I heard my feet slap against the tiles as they hit the ground, and I heard them continue to slap as I walked towards the towel rack and wrapping my self up in one.

I stood before the fogged over bathroom mirror, taking a deep breath as I lifted my finger to the glass and drew lines through the fog, as if I was only a child again. I wrote letters across the reflective surface, writing the first thing to my mind, which is the thing always on my mind. His name.

as I stepped out from the bathroom in nothing but a towel, steam trailing behind me, and the letters now swiped from the mirror I saw my mother emerge from her bedroom, she smiled sweetly at me. Not hugging me due to the fact I was fresh from the shower, but instead muttering a sweet,

"Happy birthday, love."

"Thanks, mom." I smiled at her, as she went down the stairs as I went down the hall. I entered my room and took in the surroundings. The area had barely changed in the past few years and it makes me feel comfort.

As soon as I was dressed, I had trudged down the stairs, with still slightly damp hair to meet my family, all with huge grins on their faces and gifts in their hands.

Eve, Samuel and Tristan stampede towards me all at once to engulf me in a ridiculously tight hug.

"Old man!"

"Happy Birthday!" and

"Holy shit! You're growing too fast!"

echoed between them all at once as I embraced the group hug with a grin on my face.

"Thanks guys." I said with a grin as they all slowly detached from me, handing me gifts and such. After the whole gift exchange thing with the whole family, we all sat at the table, and ate breakfast. The whole table was filled with mindless chatter. We ate and we talked and we laughed, as always, the Wilkins household was one to be envied with our perfect suburban family. And as the chatter died down, and the plates became empty, my mom pulled out a cake. Nothing fancy, only a store bought one. But birthday cake was special to me. Because when you blow out the candles, you get a wish.

And as I blew out the candles in the shape of a 23, I wished for the same thing I did every year. I wished for my Miles.

>

As the afternoon came by and the birthday excitement had died down, My bestfriend of five years, Amelia was meant to arrive any minute now. I laid on the couch, scrolling through my phone when I heard the doorbell ring. I stood and made my way to the door, opening it to reveal a very nice looking Amelia.

As always, her hair was styled in some intricate manner that looked like it took hours, and her makeup was absolutely perfect to say the least. She grinned up at me with ruby red lips and curtsied in the very gothic looking old dress.

"Oooh, Amelia! Fancy! Going out are you?" I cooed at her.

"Happy birthday! And yes Wilkins, we are going out!"

"We?" I stuttered out

"Yep! Don't worry, nothing crazy! Your family is coming too, but-" She stopped, looking me up and down.

"Your casual attire just won't do." She tutted, walking into the house that she had grown to know like the back of her hand, and dragging me up the stairs to my room.

---
An hour later and Amelia had me in a nice black suit, with a tie and all, and with a nice pair of shoes and hair, somewhat done nicely. My whole family packed into the Texan girls tiny car, all dressed rather nicely. Everyone seemed to know what was happening, except for me.

"Can you at least tell me where we're going?"

"Nope!" She had replied, with her perfect white toothed grin.

And soon, we were at this beautiful old graveyard, I furrowed my eyebrows, not understanding why we were here at all. We walked through the old garden of the dead, with all the lost souls planted 6 feet under waiting for beauty to grow from where they rest. The headstones seemed to be older than time as I looked at them, still confused out of my mind.

Until we walked towards this old stone stair case, there was a boy sat there with his hands running through his brown locks nervously. I stopped in my tracks. It couldn't be. Surely not? Amelia turned around, and looked at me with a smug smile.

"Go on, you know you want to." I looked at her with my mouth open, ready to say something, I just wasn't sure what yet. "I-I"

"Hush, go. He's here to stay Jasper, I mean it. No catch." And my first instinct was to hug her tight. For the first time in a long time I felt complete.

"Thankyou so much, I mean it." And I let go of her and she smiled at me, pushing me to the stone staircase. I walked over, rather slowly. I had no idea what to say, or do. I was in a state of shock honestly. Soon my footsteps must have become loud enough for him to hear, because his head snapped up and his eyes met mine. In all their beautiful blue beauty, I felt a smile creep onto my face as he stood abruptly, clearly nervous.

"Jasper." He whispered, his angelic accent just the way I remembered it.

"Miles." I whispered back, seemingly breathless. He was so close. I reached out, caressing his cheek as he leaned into my touch.

Desperately, he pulled me to him, and hugged me. And we just stood there and held one another, actually scared that if we were to let go, the other would disappear.

"I'm so sorry!" He sobbed into my shoulder. "I shouldn't have said it, I should've tried. I just gave up! I'm so fucking sorry!" He choked out, stuttering in between words.

"Baby, it okay. Now we are together and it's almost as if no time has passed by Miles," I began, lifting his head by his chin to meet my gaze. "Because I'm still one hundred percent in love with you, and God I hope you're still in love with me too." Miles smiled through his tears.

"God, of course I still love you. If anything the time has made me fall even more in love." And then we both grinned a lovesick smile. He glanced down at my lips, the back up to my gaze, and he leaned in. And our lips met for the first time in what seemed to be millenniums. And as our lips moved in sync, I felt my body burn with this intense spark of warmth. I had my Miles back.

And as we pulled away he whispered, "I love you." and before I could even answer he had me lifted from the ground, spinning me around and shouting it from the top of his lungs.

"I love you! I love you! I love you!" He screamed, putting me down and giving me this grin that made a shiver run down my spine.

"I love you too." I whispered, so only he could hear, like it was a secret only he should know, and then our lips met again, and I had never been so happy in my life.