Be Alright

Epilogue

     
Epilogue: The Final Chapter

I smile as my eyes scan the booth where I first met Jace. The leather on the seats have been replaced with a newer, less worn material, but the tables and set up is still the same. The brown leather gives off a sports vibe, and I know Joeli would be happy that almost everything is the same way he left it.

    The sounds of laughter fill up the room, along with the sound of music and sports coming from the TVs that line the wall. People crowd around the bad, every table is taken, and my group and I crowd around the pool table, Haley once again showing off her pool skills. I feel at home.

    It's been three months since everything went down that night with Kensley. I never thought I would be able to feel happy or safe again, but being here with my people has made it come true.

    Nobody ever thought Joeli's would be open again, but with a little donation from some young millionaire who owns a restaurant in Madison, things were able to happen. Joeli's daughter now runs Joeli's, and even with Joeli no longer being alive, the spirit and legacy lives on. I've never seen it so packed here.

    Of course, people are calling it the bloody bar and people from all over the state are pouring in to see if this place is haunted after five people were murdered in cold blood. That definitely adds a good amount of business.

     "I'm so glad we're all here," Anthony declares, looking down at all of us gathered around him. "I have missed this."

      I look around at everyone gathered around the pool table. There is so many of us, I'm sure it's making Haley and Evan's intense game of pool a little more nerve-racking than usual.

      In the past three months, Anthony and Kaitlyn went on a much needed honeymoon. Of course it was a bit of a delayed one after dealing with the whole 'Octavia has been kidnapped' ordeal. Haley and Evan have been pretty much inseparable, but that's not a surprise. Harley and McKenzie are expecting a baby. Will has not only found himself a love interest and has moved on from Haley, but has also taken a job in New York and leaves in a month. Caleb and Kora are still going strong, and thankfully their obsession with each other keeps them away from the group most of the time.

     "Things have definitely been a little stressful lately," Kaitlyn chimes in before taking a sip of her beer.

      I nearly cringe as I watch her drink it. I've never been a beer person and I probably never will. The taste is just too poor for my liking.

     As soon as the words leave her lips, the bell at the entrance to Joeli's rings, and a grin spreads across my face.

    "Here comes the overload of PDA," Evan jokes.

     I want to roll my eyes at him, but I can't even manage that with how happy I am.

     When Tyler finally pushes his way through the crowd and makes it to me, I wrap my arms around him and pull him in for a hug. It doesn't matter if I hug him everyday, or if I hug him once a month, every hug makes me feel loved and a tad bit more relaxed.

    "Missed you," he mumbles into my hair before letting my body go. 

     I miss the feeling of his body on mine as soon as he does, but I know that I can't stay latched onto him forever, even if he would prefer it that way.

Ever since that night three months ago, Tyler has been at my side any moment he can be. While most would feel smothered, I feel happy. It allows me to have my guard down and not feel paranoid every time I leave the house.