The Boy with the Whiplash Tattoo

Epilogue

There are still times when life catches up with them, in the quiet moments when the past rears it's desperate head, and the future stretches in front of them, uncertainty dragging its icy claws across their skin, making them cower in fear.

And yet, now it is different. They are, for the most part, happy, and when they're not they turn to-instead of on-each other.

Aaron's back is no longer a mess of angry scars, now a tattoo of a crouching tiger hiding in tall, dark grass covers them. It's not because he's ashamed, it's because he has moved on. Sometimes he still catches himself scratching at the skin, as if to remind himself of the pain they once caused. It is after all, what made him who he is.

Camilla no longer flinches at loud noises, or covers her head when she is caught in conflict, as if to protect herself from exploding shrapnel. She has always been strong, but now she can sometimes be vulnerable.

Their three young children will never face what they have had to.