Stay With Me (Niall Horan Fan Fiction)

Epilogue: A Happy Ending Nonetheless

(A few years later)

            Emmaline, now three, ran ahead to chase a butterfly. Niall and I strolled along behind her holding hands. Beside me was Noah, who was observing every plant we happened to walk by. He had grown up to be very smart, and now that he was six and in first grade, excelled in every subject. There was even talk of him skipping ahead in school. He had also been as much as blessing as little Emi, taking the role as older brother/uncle very seriously.

            We watched our bouncy daughter burn off energy that we both knew was impossible to fully waste.

“Be careful, and look where you’re walking,” Niall called out to her, just being the overprotective father that he was.

“Yeah, yeah Dad,” she giggled, ramming into her father’s side.

            Niall released my hand to scoop her up in his arms. Her big blue eyes widened in surprise, expecting him to launch her in the air for another game of “Catch me Daddy, I’m a bird.” When he didn’t launch her up she pouted in disappointment.

            Life once Emmaline came into the picture got so much better. It helped to get Harry back in our lives. He was still torn apart over Sage’s death, but having such a young child thrown into our dysfunctional situation we called a family helped a lot with the healing process.

            I clearly remember a night when I had been much to exhausted from staying up all night with a fussy baby girl. I was new at this, and I had had a risky pregnancy to begin with, so I was drained from everything. It was on one of those days when most of the boys had separate interviews and I was left alone with both Noah and Emmaline.

            At one point I recall almost crying from so much frustration, and anger. Suddenly really wishing Sage had been there to help me with the crying baby, and needy toddler. Then just as if one of my prayers had been heard, someone walked into the apartment. I expected it to be Niall, to my rescue once again. But to my surprise it was Harry.

            Since Sage’s death, he and I had not been on the best of terms. But he took one look at my disheveled state and instantly stepped in to help. He took Emmaline from me and pointed me to the stairs.

“You don’t have to do this, I can manage!” I had protested.

“Violet, you look exhausted. Go take a short nap, I think I can hold the fort down for a few hours,” had been his reply.

            I had to admit that it had been the best nap I’d had in over a month, and that was saying a lot. I had hesitated on leaving him with the two kids, but I noticed that Emma had piped down once she was in his arms. Her little brow furrowed as he stared up at the messy haired brunet.

“You know, she kind of looks like Sage,” he pointed out, “Not to be creepy or anything.”

            I had to admit she sort of did, with her dirty blonde hair, that neither Niall nor I had known where she got from since he and I both had naturally dark hair. And her crystal like blue eyes were more the color of Sage’s had been than Niall’s.

            Call it a miracle of sorts, but in a way we had gotten Sage back. She may be a squishy bundle of poop and milk, but it was her; as close to Sage as it could get. Which we came to refer to more and more, the older she got; developing such an attitude and sass, she was definitely another Sage.

“Emmaline, you ready to see Auntie Sage?” Niall’s question brought me back from my thoughts. Reminding me what we were really doing here.

            I hugged the bouquet of white roses to my chest, letting their sweet aroma tickle my nostrils. The walk down the pathway towards her grave was long, but peaceful. This was actually the first time we brought Emmaline to see her.

“Yeah!” she responded, really enthusiastically.

            At last we arrived to our destination and stopped in front of the still fairly new tombstone.

“Hey Sage,” I greeted, as I knelt down to switch out the old flowers with the fresh ones.

            As I arranged them in the welded on vase, I felt Niall kneel down beside me. He had settled Emma down on his knee so she could see the head stone.

“Where is she Mommy?” Emmaline asked, looking really confused as to why we were talking to a fancy rock.

“She’s right here,” I pointed to the tomb, then to the ground, and then looked up.

            Emmaline tried to make sense of what I was saying but her three year old mind couldn’t grasp the information fully.

“Is she everywhere?” she asked, kind of in shock.

“No silly,” Noah piped up, sustaining back some laughter, “Auntie Sage had to go away early, so she had to say goodbye. This is where we get to visit what is left of her. To remember her by,” I was impressed by his response.           

            But Emma was still too young to really understand.

She cocked her little head to one side and then outstretched her chubby hand to run it over the smooth marble, “So she is in La la land?”

            I couldn’t help but smile at what she had said, but in a sense yes. Sage was in her own form of paradise. Or so we tell ourselves to make it easier on us.

“Why hello there Auntie Sage, I’m sorry I didn’t meet you, but I know I would have liked you,” she leaned forward, almost toppling off of Niall’s knee to hug the tomb stone.

            Watching my daughter do so nearly brought tears to my eyes; it was very sweet of her.

            Since the moment she was born she brought joy to everyone. In different ways, but she managed to steal everyone’s hearts; especially her dad’s heart. She even managed to melt Paul to a gushy puddle, and he and Liz loved playing with her. It even persuaded them into having kids of their own. Liz was now very pregnant with her first child and it was said to be a boy.

            Even after such a tragedy had struck it made things stronger and better. I have fully recovered, and not a single thought of suicide or wanting to starve myself has even crossed my mind.

            I learned that things do get better. Sure, not everyone will have some super cute boy-band member sweep you off your feet, but everyone will find their happy ending just like I have. And there is nothing I love more.

“Hey Violet?” Niall asked me once we had left the cemetery and were loading the kids in the car.

“Hmm?” I answered as I buckled in Emmaline.

“I’m really glad you decided to stay with me.”

            I turned to him, a sly smile on my face.

“Me too Niall,” I leaned in and kissed him.

Me too...