9/11♡

penny jugs

The healing will be the hard part for them.

Everyone cried at Ashton, Michael, and Jenna's services. Little did they know, the three of them were right there, listening to the speeches and laughing at the stories and enjoying the slideshow full of tour and childhood memories.

The fans took it especially hard.

The wedding that never happened, the baby that was never born, the baby girl who would grow up parentless. All of these are hard facts to comprehend.

15 years later

Leo

"My childhood started out rough. My mother passed away before I ever got to see her face. My dad was in a band at the time, so we coped with our closest friends on the road, traveling and making memories, forming the chain. I remember when I was four years old. Dad and his friends had sold out Madison Square Garden on the night of September eleventh, two thousand one. My father, my 'second mother', and my 'third father', did not make it out of the Twin Towers. Our chain was fractured badly that day. Yes, I know, sympathy is appreciated, but I'm not up here to tell you my sob story, even though its suppose to start out like that to get everyone's attention, right Mom?" Logan laughs.

I chuckle as she calls me out in front of all these people. Josh, Tyler, Luke, Calum, and Kelly, my husband as of three years, are all at Logan's highschool graduation.

We had been practicing her valedictorian speech for literally months, she even insisted on presenting it in front of one of the crowd at a tøp concert recently.

"Years passed, and things got harder before they got easier, but they did get easier. We all came together as a family, even though we sadly don't share the same genes. I honestly believe God didn't make us a blood related family because I don't know of a human being who would be able to handle our crazy asses. Anyways, staying strong is hard in difficult times, but the people around you are the ones who make it easier. These past five years, sorry Mr. Patterson, I really hated PE."

She chuckles, covering her face with her hands, remembering the fact that she had to repeat senior year due to no PE credits.

The crowd laughs with her. She straightens out her cap, adjusts her gown and continues.

"Over these past five years," she begins with a quivering voice, "I have found out what family means. Family doesn't have to mean blood related or genetically similar. Your family is the people who ride the wave with you at your best, and cry with you at your worst, but no matter what, they're hand never leaves yours. Your family keeps their arms linked on this chain of life, and will never let anything break that chain. I met my family over the years." She says, glancing over at her group of three best friends in the crowd of cap and gowns.

"And I stayed close to my family." She says, looking up and smiling at us in the bleachers.

"So, high school may have been rough, but guess what? We are all a family. Once a bulldog, always a bulldog, and nothing can change that, nothing can break our chain. I hope you know who your family is and I hope you stay with them for as long as time and life will alow. So congrats Bulldogs. Congrats fam. We did it."

She waves and walks off of the stage to take her seat in the front row.

Everyone stands to their feet and claps and whistles and cries. Luke, Calum, and Kelly all brought milk jugs with a handfull of pennies in them to shake after her speech, and damn did they make some noise for our babygirl.

"Logan Bry Irwin." The principal says over the loud speaker.

Logan walks across the stage, gets her diploma, and the guys start up with the penny jugs again.

They rang the jugs after they called Logan's three friends names too, because we practically raised them as well.

After the ceremony, everyone met in the lobby for pictures.

Luke, Calum, Tyler, Josh, Logan, Kelly, and I all huddled in as the photographer took our picture.

Who knew? Who knew that after all of the hurt and ache, that there was actually a light at the end? That we would all be happy again?

I knew, as the camera flashed, that everything was okay now.

I got the feeling in my chest and smiled.

They are with us, and I know they are okay too.
_____________

the end :)