Be My Forever [COMPLETE]

Chapter 118

-1 YEAR LATER-

I stood in the hallway, admiring the pictures of Toby's mother that hung on our wall. One was of her holding a newborn Toby, and another was of her on her wedding day.

"You ready to go?" Toby asked, fixing his sleeves.

"What was she like?" I ask, grabbing onto his hand.

"She was amazing," he said, "she was a lot like... Sunshine. She loved everyone she met and always saw the best in people."

"You know, Claire looks a lot like her."

"Claire looks like you. Alright, we're going to be late if we don't go now."  He said.

"Bye, mommy!!" Valerie exclaimed, running up to me and hugging my legs. Claire joined her soon after.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow morning." I said, giving them several kisses on their cheeks.

"Go, Spencer, I'll take good care of them." Hanna insisted. She was going to watch the kids with Jordan while Toby and I were out in the city.

My book was nominated to win The Pulitzer Prize. It was a bestseller, which was hard for me to believe. People really enjoyed my book, and it actually was number one on the New York Times reading list for eight weeks straight.

I got into the car, and Toby started it. "You look beautiful." Toby said to me, "I know you're going to win."

"I'm not. We're talking about the same award Harper Lee won for To Kill A Mockingbird. There's no chance in hell I'm going to win."

Toby began to drive. "You have to believe in yourself, Spence. You're talented."

I playfully rolled my eyes. "If you say so." I said. I admired my wedding ring as we continued to drive. Toby and I drove all the way to New York City, where we parked in front of Columbia University.

"I'm nervous."

"Don't be, Spencer. I know you're going to win this."

-:-

"Congratulations to everyone who was nominated. And now, the winner of the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction is..."

I felt my heart stop. This was my make or break moment. I squeezed tightly onto Toby's hand, and I didn't want to let go. I wanted to stay in this moment, where I was completely unaware of what was going to happen.

"...Spencer Hastings!"

The audience started to cheer, and I stood up, as Toby hugged me.

I couldn't believe it. It was like a dream. I hoped it wasn't a dream. The audience continued to applaud as I made my way onto the stage. Then it hit me: what the hell am I going to say?

"Um, I would just like to thank my amazing husband, for always supporting me no matter what," I started. With every word I could feel myself getting more and more emotional. "And my two little girls, Valerie and Claire for being two perfect little rays of sunshine in my life. Thank you all so much."

I walked offstage with the biggest smile on my face. I held the award in my hands, too shocked to say anything else. People whom I walked past congratulated me, and I thanked them, but the only person I really wanted to see was Toby.

Toby met me backstage and hugged me. "I knew you could do it." He said, then proceeding to give me a long kiss on my lips. "Do you want to stay for the after party?" He asked me. I shook my head. "Right now, I just want to go home and see our girls." I said, kissing Toby one more time before we made our way back to the car.