A Different Kind of Friendship (IDk)

Epilogue 1 1/2 Years Later

      It has been exactly 1 ½ years since Kelly came into Eric's life. And honestly, he was quite glad that she did so. She seemed to enjoy it here. It took a while, but finally, he got her to open up. She opened up to him about her past and in the end, leaned against his body for support. She cried, letting her tears fall while Eric simply rubbed circles around her back, hugging her, comforting her. She was finally free. Free from her worries and her strife. She didn't have to carry the weight of the world upon her shoulders anymore. All that was gone. Her new life started. After about a month, he even got her to smile and laugh. Not one of those fake once to try and make other people around you feel better, but an actual genuine one. He understood the pain she had been through. Both her parents abandoned her at a young age making her feel unwanted, unloved.

Ever since she started living here, Eric could tell the dramatic change in the both of them. Not only had he had a new friend to talk to and hang out with, she had that too. The two both found their missing piece of the puzzle that happened to be the both of them. Eric was happier, now his life didn't feel like utter crap! His dad had gotten out of prison and after a few months of persuading them, he finally earned his way back into the house. Of course, nothing was ever going to be the same. Meeting him for the first time was scary at first for Kelly. Eric saw how she wanted to shrivel away into a dark corner and not be seen by the large man, and who could've blamed her? Though her wounds were healing just fine, she'd still stiffen when any man approached them to talk. It only took half the year to get her to warm up to Eric's father. She no longer went rigid when he entered the room, though she still did with other men, but this was an accomplishment itself. Eric's father wasn't like he was before. He was different. Eric liked that. He became the father Eric always wanted. His father was sober and now it will stay that way. He explained to Eric how he was the one who kept him going. It was him, who kept him striving to be better. The two now played ball outside like father and sons do, and he even taught Eric t o drive stick shift. Eric hoped that this, the feeling of family would always be the same. His prayers were answered. He had his father back, and he had a friend. What more could he ask for? The boy felt as if he had it all; and nothing in the world would ever pry him away from any of it.

Kelly was, you could say, adjusting. They'd taken baby steps, accomplishing things one small step at a time, which Kelly was quite grateful of actually. Even after a year being with Eric, she would still wake up in cold sweat her sheets tangled around her body and her clothes soaking. That was different now. She wasn't alone. She never was. She had people who cared about her, loved her, acknowledged her, not as an object, but as a human being. She didn't have to face her demons alone and she didn't have to try to rock herself to sleep instead of having someone do it for her. At first she wasn't used to it, but after a while, she began to grow comfortable with it. Liking it to an extent. Every nightmare she had woken up to, the first thing she saw was Eric's face. The concern in his eyes and understatement. He spent long nights hugging her and making sure she was safe. That she felt safe. A few times, he even stayed in her room and waited until she fell asleep before going to bed himself. But every time that happened, she'd always, always, wake up to see him smiling at her. A few times she'd see him sitting there in the corner sleeping uncomfortably in a chair with one arm folded while the other lay under his cheek.
Eric's mother had been quite hospitable towards her too. She treated her as if she was her own. She didn't treat her differently like she was a plague sent from hell, but she didn't treat her with pity, like she was some sort of doll made out of glass. No, the woman treated her like a daughter. Eric treated her like a friend, a brother even, and deep down in the young girl's heart, she hopes that it'd never change.

One in a half years ago, Kelly would've said that she didn't believe in love, didn't believe in hope of ever finding a place where she belonged. A place where she could stay and share all of her burdens not just with herself, but with others too. Others who wanted to have it, who wanted to share it with her. Now, her life story has only just begun. She had a second chance now. A chance she'd never regret making. A chance to have all that she's ever wanted, a chance for her dreams to come true. Going from a scared little girl who never got attached to anything for too long, to a brave, young woman who was graduating from high-school with her best friend. They could always count on each other to have their backs.

Over the year, the two had grown so close to each other. They shared their secrets, and scars, and burdens. They shared their problems and their pain and suffering. They shared everything to each other. The two have never been closer in all their lives. They never left each other sides. Neither could ever live in a world without the one another. The thought always sends shivers down their spines. For who could ever live in a world with just you in it?

The End