Unspoken

Epilogue

Epilogue

“Say it again,” Declan pleads, his green eyes sparkling with happiness.

“I already said it like a hundred times!” I complain, but laugh anyway.

He obviously isn’t used to the fact that I am now talking. Every word that comes out of my mouth has him staring at me in amazement. He never thought that I would talk and now he can’t get me to shut up. Not that he would ever complain.

For me it has been really strange talking again. I have been quiet for so long now that I have a chance to say all of the things I want, I have trouble finding the words. Sometimes I don’t say anything for hours, lost inside my thoughts, but Declan always brings me back. He can still read me like a book, whether I’m talking or not. I’m still getting used to being able to communicate so easily with everyone, but every day it gets easier.

“All this time I never thought I would hear you say the words. I never needed to, but now that you are talking it is nice to hear. Honestly, I just love listening to the sound of your voice and will do anything to keep you talking,” he replies, smiling sweetly. I roll my eyes at him, but say the words he wants to hear anyway.

“I love you,” I whisper shyly and a gigantic grin spreads across his face.

“It never gets old,” he says and kisses me. “Oh and in case you were wondering, I love you too.”

“You’re so cheesy!” I giggle before pressing my lips hard against his.

“Whoa! Not in the living room!” Matthew says while covering his eyes like a little kid.

“Sorry,” I mumble as my cheeks heat up.

“I was actually coming to tell you that your mother is asking to see you. I understand if you don’t want to go, but I thought you should know,” he informs me gently, looking nervous about what my reaction will be.

“Oh,” I reply, trying to shrug it off.

I have been doing my best not to think about my mother and all of the terrible things she did. It probably isn’t healthy to push things aside like that, but I can’t handle it. It would have been hard enough for me to deal with the fact that she killed my brother, but I also have to get over her trying to kill me and Declan. In the end I lost my mother no matter what. Whether she died from the gunshot or not there was no way things could ever be the same. Not now that I know how truly insane she really is.

The worst part, I think, is how she started to treat me differently towards the end. She was so much nicer to me and I actually thought we had a chance of being a real family again. I tried so hard to protect her from Richard and to comfort her over my father’s death. Little did I know that she wasn’t being nicer because she loved me, but because she was trying to gain my trust to kill me. Every single good memory I have of her feels like a lie. Not that I had many good memories with her anyway.

Processing everything that happened at the cabin has been difficult for me. There are times when I still try to pretend that it was all just a terrible dream. Reality prevails, though, and I’m forced to face the memories that will forever haunt me. Declan has been amazing with helping me sort through things. He has been patient and sweet no matter what is going on with me. In my mess of a life, he is one thing I can be truly grateful for.

Matthew, my uncle, has actually been pretty awesome as well. Since I obviously won’t be living with my mother anymore, I wasn’t really sure what was going to happen to me. I was afraid that I would end up in foster care or something, but luckily that wasn’t the case. Declan’s family offered for me to stay with them, of course, but when Matthew asked me to live with him I couldn’t refuse. I was really surprised when he asked me, but I’m looking forward to the chance of getting to know one of the few remaining relatives I have left that isn’t completely crazy. Since Matthew’s house was not the best place to live and was kind of far from Declan, I asked if he would be able to move into my house. No one will be staying there and the place is technically mine since my mom won’t be coming home. He agreed that it would be easier for me to stay there and moved in immediately.