Split

Happy Ending

It had been a long time since we'd last seen the beast and everything was as normal as it could be; Barry was working in the fashion industry and was loving it, not to mention getting almost twice the amount of money as he had at the zoo. Because of this we'd decided to move away from the city and to a quiet place in the country. We'd had our first child, which Dennis had freaked out about at first, but had since settled down and was adapting to being a dad pretty well. We'd discussed her name over the course of a few days and decided to call her Karen, which all the alters had agreed was appropritlate. Barry had cried when we told him the name we'd settled on and hugged me tightly, smiling through blurry vision and telling me how happy he was for us both. The other alters were just as thrilled and all congratulated us warmly, a few even bought gifts, but it was Hedwig's words that brought a tear to my eye; 'Does this mean I'm gonna have a little sister to play with?'
Dennis had been taken back by his words, realising that after everything they'd been through, the younger alter looked up to him as a father figure.
Patricia had been sceptical, reminding us that we had to make the right decision as the situation was so difficult, and also the risks there were to having a father with DID. I told her that we'd both thought about it and that we accepted the risks, and she had smiled thinly. She'd told us that she would support us and that if we needed anything then all we had to do was ask.
She had been better since Barry had started letting her have the light; it began as just a few minutes every couple of months but had been gradually going up. I had managed to persuade Barry to give her another chance and, as long as I was there and Barry was standing by, she was doing well with her hour in the light every three weeks.

So here we are, sitting outside while butterflies danced around the floral garden (courtesy of Jade and Polly), while little Karen played on her slide. She was three now and was a pretty young girl, I was so proud that I'd created something so perfect.
"Isn't she beautiful?" I asked Dennis who had his hand linked with mine as we sat on a blanket amongst the daisies.

He smiled fondly at her and then down at me, "she takes after her mother."

I blushed and shook my head in amusement, "not just me, she looks like you."

"Poor kid," he chuckled as I nudged him in the ribs.

"Did you imagine it would be like this?" I asked.

"No, I honestly have no idea how I got so lucky," I tried to brush off the gushy comment but he held his ground, "I'm serious, I thought I'd be behind Barry my whole life, kept in the dark away from any kind of life. I was so miserable..."

"I know," I smiled sympathetically and squeezed his hand.

"I thought that when I met the beast that my life was over. I thought I was going to keep doing bad things and then eventually have to face the consequences... but then I met you. And it still astounds me that you even gave me a chance. And now we're in a relationship, we have a house and Karen... I'm so happy with you; we all are."

I slipped my arm around his waist and nuzzled my face into his neck, "I'm happy too. I'm glad I did give you a chance."

Karen came stumbling over to us with a grin on her face, and Dennis held open his hands for her. She pretty much threw herself at him and he caught her with ease, used to the bulshy toddler's actions, and kissed the top of her head. She giggled up at him and he smiled back down at her, placing her on the grass as well so that she was sitting inbetween us.
I wiped a blade of grass from her cheek and she pawed furiously at her face in response to my touch.
"She's definitely got your attitude," I raised an eyebrow at her sulking face and Dennis laughed.

"Are you a little nightmare?" He asked her in a serious tone but Karen knew her dad better than that and laughed at his accusing expression. Pretty soon Dennis was smirking, unable to keep up the act, and grabbed her for a cuddle. She squealed in delight and he hoisted her into the air over his head, "you'd better be careful, young lady, you don't want the sock monster to get you, do you?"