Until There Was You

epilogue

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NOTE:
Let me know your thoughts after reading this. And if you have questions I'll be happy to answer them. Thank you guys so much for reading and for your support. I am so grateful!! <3

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E p i l o g u e

A few months later

Jude stared out at the crowds of people outstretched like an infinite sea of beings, swarming the auditorium with their rowdy chatter and melancholy faces. Smiles. Tears. Excitement. It was always hard to face the truth, to say goodbye to this lifestyle.

The clapping and congratulations continued to erupt at the sound of each name being announced into the microphone. Jude's heart exploded in his chest, a violent rush of delight dripping through his ribs. He hadn't felt like this since the championship football game, the one they had lost. The defeat was hard to take in at first, but it was a matter of time before Jude realized he wanted to continue playing football in college too.

College...

He'd actually be going there. In a place far away from there. He was made for better things than this town, and that was the frankness Jude had been keen on discovering from the start. He'd no longer suffocate and hold himself back from his own liberation. He'd be free to make more of his own decisions; those said decisions becoming more stressful and harder to make over time. It'd always get more difficult as he aged.

The best part about going to college was that he wouldn't be alone because Lincoln's university was an hour away from his. He'd have one of his closest friends near. Jude looked off once more, searching the rows for his parents, who were probably sitting in two different spots. To Jude's dismay, they weren't. They had been sitting next to each other with smiles as bright as the stars. Jude smiled back and continued to listen for his name, awaiting the moment he'd no longer be a high school student or have to take over his parents business completely. Somehow, Jude found a way to own the company in the future without having to dedicate all his time to something he didn't have a passion in. It was good for Jude because he still had his freedom.

"Waverly Clarke," they called out and Jude watched as she retrieved her diploma with a small smile gracing her lips. Her hair had been straightened and although Jude had missed it while it was wild, she still looked beautiful nevertheless. He'd miss seeing her. Deep down, Jude longed for Waverly to stay over the summer, but knew that was selfish of him to think. He didn't want to hold her back from something she had been planning for years. He just wished she'd stay. Only for a little while because he wasn't ready to leave her. He didn't want to say goodbye if he didn't have to just yet. While Jude would be spending his time there for the summer, Waverly would be going on her own life adventures with the amount of money she had for the time. When school came into session Waverly had informed him how she would get a job, save up, and travel the next summer until she experienced and saw every place out there. She wanted to see the greater things in life, no longer stringed to this city and its people. It was the kind of happiness that made you giddy.

Jude wasn't sure where she had in mind or what her exact life plans were. All he knew was that he'd miss her, and if he saw her somewhere in a different city he'd never pass her off as a stranger. He'd speak of those memories they shared and the what if's never shared. Jude knew from the beginning what would happen, but he cherished each day as if it were their last together. Thinking of it brought Jude back to prom night when they decided to skip and laughed their way to that hidden rooftop of that building that overlooked the city. They stared out at the dark void soaked with trickling stars, their breathing whispers in the wind. Jude had remembered the dress she wore, the only other time he had ever seen her in a dress, a turquoise tone hugging her knees.