Mess Is Mine | Elijah Mikaelson

Epilogue

Epilogue

"Eggs. Check!" Evie carefully placed the carton of eggs into her tiny shopping cart beside mine. "What's next?"

I glanced down at my list with an uneasy sigh. Even after all this time, I still had difficulty shopping at the market.

"Let's see. Next I need some eggplant."

"Did someone say eggplant?" Elijah arched an eyebrow as he sidled up beside me, pressing a kiss to my temple. He dropped the purple vegetable into the cart with a wink.

"We did," I smiled, wrapping my arms around his waist.

"I thought you had all the eggplant you could handle," he whispered in that low voice that never failed to get my heart racing.

"Wow, would you look at that? All done shopping," I panted, fanning myself dramatically. "Time to go home and go to bed!"

Elijah smirked as he took the shopping cart and began to steer it towards the register.

"It's not bedtime yet, silly!" Evelyn's tiny brows knit together in confusion. "We have our appointment with Dr. Fell after this, Amelia. I like her. She gives me stickers."

"She likes you too, sweet girl."

We had all begun to see my psychiatrist, Dr. Fell, together as a family after the kidnapping. It made it easier for Elijah and me to understand Evelyn's feelings and struggles when we talked about it as a group.

Overall, she was handling things remarkably well for a four-year-old.

I was still having the occasional nightmare, but things had gotten easier over the last few months since I moved into the Mikaelson mansion.

I peeked at Elijah from the corner of my eye and felt my cheeks grow hot. I still had to pinch myself sometimes when I remembered he was mine to touch whenever I wanted.

I was pulled from my daydream by familiar lyrics flowing through the overhead speaker.

It's not a silly little moment
It's not the storm before the calm
This is the deep and dyin' breath of
This love we've been workin' on

I held my breath as the feelings of panic washed over me. The last time I'd heard this song, I was overwhelmed by heartache and sadness after a breakup with Stefan.

I eyed the full cart, stocked with enough food for a family and the anxiety melted away.

I was able to take deep, relaxing breaths when we moved towards the register, knowing Mikael was locked away, and would never be able to hurt us again.

And after we checked out, Evelyn's tiny hand clutched mine in happiness instead of fear.

"Oh! I almost forgot," I grinned. "Tyler and Caroline are coming over for dinner tomorrow. You know, he's already talking about buying a ring."

"You're kidding," Elijah's eyes crinkled at the edges. "I suppose it's true what they say: when you know, you know," he said, entwining our fingers as we walked to the car. Our new driver Aiden was waiting for us inside, but quickly jumped out to help load the bags into the trunk.

"I spoke to Carol Lockwood this morning," Elijah shared, as we climbed in the backseat. "She has another date with Sheriff Stilinski tonight."

"Really? They are so sweet together. I'm glad she's moving on to a less toxic relationship," I whispered, buckling Evie into her car seat. I still couldn't believe such an intelligent woman could fall for a psychopath like Mikael.

"Yes, she deserves happiness as well. Now, if only we could get Niklaus to settle down with Hayley instead of sneaking around like teenagers." Elijah sighed, shaking his head. "I suppose they both still have some growing up to do."

"They'll get there," I assured him. "I mean, look at Kol and Bonnie Bennett. They hated each other for years before finally admitting the truth. Now they're having a baby together."

"That's true," Elijah nodded.

Glancing out the window, he spotted a sign that made him smile.

"Look at that. The carnival is coming back to town already," he smirked.

"Maybe this time you'll work up the nerve to kiss me at the top of the Ferris wheel," I giggled, smacking him playfully in the chest.

"Something tells me this year, you'll love the Ferris wheel more than ever."

He discreetly patted the square velvet box he'd had hidden in his pocket, and wrapped his hand around mine, pressing a kiss to the back.

"I love you," I whispered, settling back against his chest, with my free hand on Evie's.

"I love you too, Amelia. Always and forever."

[The end.]

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading, friends!