A Thousand Years- Snowbarry Soulmate AU

Epilogue

Five Months Later

Although it hadn't been easy, the couple finally found themselves getting married. The ceremony itself was routine for all soulmate couples but for this particular couple, it held an even stronger meaning. The past five months hadn't been easy but things had gotten better since then. They'd spent more and more time together whilst slowly things felt better and better between the two of them. 

Not only had their relationship become stronger, Barry had also become more confident at school. He'd made more friends and begun to come out of his shell. Things had been going much better for him now and suddenly he felt much better. 

They had a small and short ceremony surrounded by only their closest friends and family. They stood at the altar in the sacred Evergreen garden in their town in front of the priest as they said their vows in front of one another.

"Today the two of you are taking the next step in your divine journey as soulmates. From this day forth all parts of creation will know of the everlasting love that you share. Through trials and tribulations and all infinite levels of joy. Please, take each other's hands" the couple did so tentatively with smiles. "Are you, half of this whole, ready for this commitment?" the priest gestured to Barry.

"Yes, I am" he replied. 

"And you, half of this whole, ready for this commitment?" the priest said to Caitlin.

"I am"

"Now declare your love surrounded by the nature that brought you together" 

"When I am strong, we will be impenetrable. When I am weak, your arms I will hold. And when we are apart, my heart will weep" they both vowed in unison.

"Then by the power of The Evergreen which gave us our holy marks, I pronounce you soulmates now and forever"

The couple shared a short kiss followed by applause then they quickly moved onto the celebration. Though the 'newlyweds' desperately sought a moment alone where they could talk a little while. 

"I never thought that we would get here... if I'm honest," Barry said, loosening his tie as they walked into the spare room to get some air.

"Well, we said that we had a lot to work on but we got through it, didn't we? We had a rocky start but I've never been happier than I am now especially today on our wedding day" Caitlin replied cheerfully, wrapping her arms around his neck. "We both know that it hasn't been a walk in the park but we've made it through together. I have always had faith in us and that we would get here someday"

"We have overcome quite a lot, haven't we? I remember when you couldn't look at me without thinking about how you didn't know whether our love was just because we are soulmates and not because we were genuinely in love or even attracted to each other. You used to wonder what our lives would've been like if you and I had never found each other" Barry replied, encircling his arms around her waist. 

"Well, I certainly don't feel that way anymore. Sure, it would have been nice if we met under different and less painful circumstances-"

"Near-death circumstances" he interrupted teasingly, quickly kissing her forehead. 

"Yes. It might have been better if we met differently but I suppose I realised that we can't change any of that now. That we have to just live with what we're given and make the best of it. I guess I learnt to be happy for once rather than trying to self-sabotage all the time" she continued.

"Hey, we don't need to talk about all that. It's all in the past now, we both have moved on from all of that. Besides, we're about to start our life together properly. I think it's time we stop worrying about the past and start thinking about our future" he finished, kissing the tip of her nose playfully. 

"Yes, our future- it sounds wonderful. Our future including our wedding night... are you excited?" she asked softly, biting her lip.

"Of course, we've waited long enough for this, haven't we? Why? Aren't you?" Barry replied, kissing her cheek.

"Of course I am. The last time we planned to it all went very wrong. If I remember correctly, we had an argument over dinner over our relationship. So forgive me for being excited about tonight... love" she smiled, leaning in for a quick kiss and then a hug. "We should probably be getting back. People will be missing us soon. The bride and groom can hardly be missing at their own ceremony" 

He nodded and they quickly headed back to the party and rejoined their guests. So far everyone was having a great time and the celebrations were merry and jovial. There were much dancing and toasts from everyone, after all, weddings were one of the most important ceremonies in their society. There was nothing more important to them than their soulmates. 

Caitlin found herself sitting by herself, watching the festivities and sipping her drink whilst watching Barry dance with his mother. The sight made her smile- she loved how close he was with his family and she had gotten quite close with his parents too over the last few months. In between the time that they spent together and their final exams, she enjoyed spending time with his family as well as him enjoying time with her family too. 

Her parents had taken a liking to him as soon as they first met him and very quickly gotten their blessing. It surprised her how much she loved the fact that he had such a great relationship with her family. It wasn't something she realised that meant so much to her and was important to her until she saw it herself and experienced it with Barry. 

She always used to think that they were so different and possibly incompatible. But the longer they had been together and the more time they had spent together after the last few months, she began to realise that they weren't so different after all or that they were a lot more compatible than she first thought. In ways she never even knew, it turned out that they were a lot more right together than they thought. 

Once they had spent enough time together, she had begun to realise that perhaps she was wrong the whole time. All this time, Caitlin had worried that if they hadn't been soulmates then she never would have felt attracted to him. She always knew that was a horrible thing to think and selfish but for the first couple of months, she couldn't help but worry about it. But as time went on and she truly got to know him and saw the person that he really was inside she began to realise that she had to be wrong. 

If they weren't soulmates, if she met him before or later, and they had no idea their significance to each other then she finally realised that she would've liked him. She really and truly would have. She could've fallen in love with him whether they were soulmates or not. After all this time, Caitlin was finally able to put every single one of her doubts to bed.

"Hey, beautiful" Barry greeted, kissing the top of her head as he sat down in the chair beside her after he finished dancing with his mother.

"Hey... having fun?" Caitlin asked, quickly pecking his cheek and grabbing his hand and squeezing gently.

"Of course... it's our wedding day. Why wouldn't I be having fun? It would be a crime not to, after all" he replied, kissing the side of her head with a happy smile. 

"I think we should be dancing together, shouldn't we? We are the bride and groom. It would be strange if we weren't, people will think we're unhappy or something" she suggested, pulling him and herself off the chair and towards the dancefloor. 

"Do these look like the faces of an unhappy bride and groom to you?" he teased, kissing her quickly as they began to sway together to the beat of the music playing. 

"No, but you know what people are like- they like to talk and gossip. And when it comes to soulmates, people get particularly nosy" she replied with a giggle as he spun her around and pulled her back towards him.

"I love you... you know that right?" he suddenly said very seriously, their foreheads resting against each other as the music slowed and they began to sway slower. 

"I know and I love you too" she replied softly, moving her head to nestle it in his shoulder and placed a small but gentle kiss on his collar. "I know we can handle anything that comes our way now... If we can handle what we've been through before then I have no doubt we can work through anything now"

"I know we can, Cait"