Chapter Sixteen

December came with the beginning of a winter filled with snow and cold. The city had been filled with snow, but not nearly as much as the small town. Rebecca found it enjoyable yet annoying having a yard and driveway full of snow.

With December came Christmas vacation, a welcome break from school. Christmas Eve, the Adams hosted a party at their house and invited Rebecca and her mom.

Lyn enjoyed the company of all the adults, even meeting a few old friends. The twins, Rebecca, and Jake joined the adults for a while, but then decided to grab some food and retreat downstairs

As they sat on the couches talking, Matt turned to Rebecca, saying, "I have a Christmas present for you."

Before she could say anything, he bounded to his room and came back out holding a folded piece of paper. He sat and said as he handed it to her, "You know how you emailed me a finished copy of your story? I had my dad read it."

Rebecca opened the paper to find it was a copy of an email. As she read through it, her eyes grew wide in realization. She looked up at Matt. "Is this... You mean... They..."

"My dad sent a copy to a publisher he's worked with for years. They emailed him saying they loved it." Matt placed his hands on either side of her shocked face. "They want to publish your story. Your dream of becoming an author can finally come true."

Rebecca was speechless. She wanted to thank him a million times, but her mouth wouldn't find the words. Overcome with emotion, she threw her arms around him, holding him tight. Her voice finally found itself in the form of a happy laugh.

"This the best gift anyone could ever give me," she said, pulling back from the embrace. "Thank you, for this and for everything."

Matt smiled and wiped the tears of joy from her cheeks. "You're welcome."

Rebecca hugged him again, happiness flooding her. Ever since she had met Matt, her life had taken a turn for the better. Over the months the ache in her chest had begun to turn back into a heart. She finally felt whole again.

Author's Note: Very very short chapter, I know, but I just wanted this one to be about Rebecca finally getting published and wrapping everything up. Long chapter or short chapter, this is the end. Thank you to all that read this thing from start to end. One story down, many many more to go :) Feel free to leave me a last comment before you go.