SITTING WAITING WISHING
VAUDEVILLLE

original post: July 19th, 2009
repost: January 9th , 2010

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EPILOGUE
ISLAND IN THE SUN

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The shrill shriek rang out through the silence.

Boyd snapped her head up immediately and slapped her hand down on the alarm clock, ceasing the piercing cry. Her hair was wild about her head and her eyes still felt heavy. She was exhausted. She heaved herself into an upright position, her eyes immediately finding the empty place beside her.

It had been a while since that pillow had last had a head resting on it and that thought alone made her feel queasy. Boyd missed him. Unfortunately, she wouldn't be able to go on with her day, which happened to be one of the most important days of her life, if those thoughts plagued her brain, so she regretfully pushed them to the back of her mind.

Swinging her legs out of the bed, she shivered when the touched the cold wood of her, their, bedroom floor. That particular room always seemed to be cold, regardless of what temperature the heater was kept at. She quickly slipped her frozen feet into a pair of fuzzy pink slippers, a gift from Taryn last Christmas, and made her way down the hall to the bathroom. A scalding shower sounded like heaven.

Boyd wasn't sure how long she stood under the scorching water but her fingers were significantly wrinkled when she turned the tap off and wrapped herself in a towel. Scurrying her way back into the bedroom, she hurriedly dressed in a sweatshirt and sweatpants, not wanting to freeze her ass off.

As she threw her hair up into a ponytail, her eyes caught sight of something on the dresser. She took a step closer to survey the photograph. It was a picture of her and Deacon when they were younger. Deacon had pulled Boyd into a one-armed hug, his free hand reaching up to mess up her cropped hair, a giant smile on his face. She, on the other hand, was in the throes of laughter. It looked almost painful, she was laughing so hard. Boyd didn't particularly remember that day but a small smile formed on her lips as she thought about her one true love and best friend.

Letting out a sad sigh, she pulled herself away from the picture and headed into the kitchen, more than ready to prepare herself a couple slices of French toast. She'd been craving that the night before and the thought the she would finally get to eat some helped distract her from any gloomy thoughts that may have entered her mind... sort of.

It had been two years since Kurt had entered that apartment but she still remembered that night as if it was yesterday. She shivered at the thought and her hand automatically rose to her throat as if she could still feel the metal blade against her throat. At least the nightmares had stopped.

Kurt had woken up a week after he'd been admitted into the hospital. Then after a very speedy trail, he was whisked start to county lock-up. Boyd had sincerely hoped that all the other inmates were welcoming to the new comer. She'd heard neither hide-nor-hair from him in over a year.

Just as she was transferring her toast from the frying pan to a plate, the phone began to ring. She smiled, already knowing who it was. She made sure to turn off the stove before answering, paranoid that if she didn't then, she would forget to later. Sometimes she tended to forget the little things and a part of her wondered if it was because of the head trauma she'd suffered from.

"Hey Taryn," she greeted.

"Boyd! Ohmigawd, how excited are you right now?" Boyd was sure if she could see Taryn, the woman would be jumping up and down, clapping her hands.

"I'm nervous."

"You have nothing to be nervous about! You're gonna do great!"

Boyd laughed at her enthusiasm. Tonight she had her first gallery showing, she had a right to be anxious. About a week after getting out of the hospital, Boyd had worked up the nerve to call Taryn's magazine editor friend. Frankie had been ecstatic about her photos and wasted no time in printing some of them in his magazine. Since then, she'd been taking a few pictures for the magazine but nothing like this. This was a giant showing of just her photos. This could mean the make or break of her career.

"Thanks, Tare."

"I have the utmost faith in you, Boyd. You pictures are amazing."

Boyd was just about to reply when a piercing scream could be heard on Taryn's end. Taryn groaned.

"I should go check on Nadine. She'd feeling pretty cranky today," Taryn said. "And Kevin is not being very helpful. He claims the girl is my problem and the boy is his."

Boyd found herself laughing at that. Although Taryn complained, Kevin had taken very well to fatherhood.

Nadine was their second child. Taryn had delivered their first, a boy named Francis –named for Kevin's father, the poor child, not long after the final Kurt incident. The stress of what had happened with Kurt, and the accident she'd been in earlier in the year, had caused her to go into labour early. The family had waited anxiously in the waiting room for news of the baby's birth. After hours of waiting, Kevin delivered the news that Francis had been born and was as healthy as could be hoped, albeit a little small- 4 lbs. 8 oz- and would have to spend some time at the hospital, but healthy none-the-less.

"I'll see you tonight. Don't stress too much."

"Have fun," Boyd bid her good bye.

She turned excited eyes to her French toast, more than ready to dig in. Unfortunately, she was distracted once again by the sound of the front door opening. She froze for a moment. Hadn't she locked that? Yes, she had. She was always sure to after that night. Kurt had been able to get into the apartment because she'd stupidly left the door unlocked.

Her slight bout of fear disappeared when she heard his voice call out. She immediately jumped out of her seat and raced for the front door.

There he was, the most beautiful person she'd ever seen, the love of her life, Deacon Hart. She hurried forward, jumping up and folding her body around him; her arms around his neck and her legs clasped firmly around his waist. His own hands moved to her bottom, to hold her up.

Boyd wouldn't even let him speak before she engaged him in a heated kiss. By the time they pulled away from each other, they were both breathing heavily. Her eyes stayed locked on his face, refusing to remove him from her gaze.

"I missed you," she whispered.

He leaned forward and pecked her lips lightly. "I missed you too."

Boyd hadn't seen him in a little less than a month, which was far too long in her opinion. The Edmonton branch had been going through a crises and Mr Hart had sent his son down to straighten things out. When Deacon had gotten there, it seemed that things were worse than they seemed and he had had to stay there for much longer than he'd originally thought.

"Never leave me again."

He grinned. "Not if I can help it."

Deacon pulled her left arm away from her neck and raised her hand to his lips, kissing the sparkling diamond ring on her ring finger.

After Deacon had gotten out of surgery, it had been pretty touch and go there for a while. Finally, he stabilized but it wasn't until a week later that he actually woke up. The first thing he said when he woke was "Fuck." The second was a proposal. Boyd's prompt answer was a swift but gentle smack to the back of his head.

"We have the rest of our lives to get engaged. Let's just live for right now."

He'd agreed but just before he left for Edmonton, he'd taken her to the park in her old neighbourhood during sunrise and asked her once again to marry him. This time she agreed and she still couldn't believe that Deacon Hart, her childhood best friend was her fiancé. They had yet to tell his parents. Mr Hart had been much more civil toward her but Boyd still, even years later, got a narrowed look from Mrs Hart now and then. The only difference was that Boyd didn't mind so much now. Deacon was hers and she had to come terms that no one would ever be good enough for Mrs Hart's precious little boy.

"Are you nervous?" he asked, setting her down.

She grabbed onto his hand and tugged him into the kitchen, still intent on eating her French toast. She was sure that he would jack one of the pieces but she could live with that as long as he was with her.

"Kind of," she answered.

"Don't be. You'll do great." He placed a gentle kiss on her nose.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too."

AN: Here we have arrived at the very sappy and happy ending. Everything wrapped up nicely, yes? Except for the friends I suppose, but there could be a Ben or Jimmy or Jasey sequel in the future. Maybe. But if that happens, that won't be for a while. If you guys feel like it (and here's a shameless plug), have some other stories that you may be interested in (hint, hint). Be sure to check out my livejournal account or website for updates. I hoped you guys enjoyed it. It was a great ride.

As for the poll, it looks like "The Romantics" and "Fast Cars & Caviar" are neck and neck. I can honestly tell you right now, it probably won't be "The Romantics". I've already got a "romantic/comedy" type story on the go, "Pretty Eyed Boys" and that is the story that has the least amount of work done on it.

A Little Side Note: If you guys are looking for some great stories to read I suggest checking out castiel89's "You Belong With Me" or if you're looking for a good supernatural fic, Kazic's "Maelstrom".

I have to say to new readers, old readers, silent readers, reviewers, those that alerted or favourited, anyone that even peeked at this story, thank you so, so, so much. It really means a lot that you guys took a chance on this story and that you enjoyed it. For those who gave me advice, criticism, even just a hello, I appreciate each and every word that you guys wrote. I mean, this story wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the readers. So thank you, thank you, thank you, to each and everyone one of you. I don't think I could say it enough. THANK YOU!

THANKS TO:
pbgurl: Deacon did not die. Did you really think that I would do that to you guys? No way. Well, I guess I mostly did it because you scared me. I didn't want Kurt to die either for the same reason. I don't think Boyd would have been able to live with herself if he had died. Also, death would have been like he was getting off scot-free. Boyd does kick ass. I wanted her to have a little pay back toward Kurt. As for the secret project, the only thing I can tell you is that it will be a short story. I can't tell you because I don't really have it all worked out yet. I may put a little hint on my livejournal account possibly. For the upcoming stories, I have to say you made good choices. Those are the two are on the top of my list for consideration. I hope to hear from you again in my other stories. I absolutely love your reviews!
MidnightOpal: Not just the headbutt, but the crushing of his skull with a frying pan. I know, that was a terrible ending but I'm hoping that this epilogue made up for that. I assure you the original ending was much worse. I thought that Kurt needed to go to prison. If anything else happened to him, it would feel like he was getting off too easily. Of course, I'm going to continue writing. I have two other stories on here already, and two one-shots, but I've got many more ideas. There's a link in my profile if you wanted to check them out. I'm really glad I got to hear your opinions. Thanks so much for reviewing.
Bangle Meister: I agree. I like this ending so much more than what I had before. The first draft of that last chapter and this epilogue tied things up too much, I thought. I made sure not to make anyone in this story perfect and the way I ended this last time was too perfect. It makes me sick to think about it. I'm glad you found you preferred the rewrite of the last chapter as opposed to the original. I hope you enjoyed this one a little more! Thanks for giving it another chance, especially when I know how much of a mess the first draft was.
funnechick: Don't you worry what the original ending was. All you need to know is that it was terrible... to fairy tale-y, which is not what this story is about. Deacon probably didn't try to get the knife away from Kurt because he wasn't really thinking straight. He was just so angry and wanted to get him as far away from Boyd as he could. Hope you're satisfied with the outcome of Kurt's future. I didn't really want to dive into Boyd's psyche as that would just open up a whole new bundle of problems. I assume that she would blame herself initially but Deacon would probably help her through it once he woke. Thanks so much for your opinion throughout this story. I really appreciate it!
ghurl00: This update was a little slower and I apologize for that. This epilogue had to be completely rewritten about twelve times before I was happy with it. And I agree wholeheartedly, Deacon is such a sweetheart. Thanks so much for your reviews!
cytl101: You're right! Deacon must be magical because he didn't die. Whoopee! Thanks for the review.
passiononfire: Of course, Deacon was going to survive. I would never do that to you guys. I'm not completely heartless. And Kurt didn't die, I thought that would be too easy of a way out for him, but I hope you'll be able to live with that decision. I'm so, so, so glad you like the chapter. It was an all new thing so I wasn't sure how people would react to it. I'm glad it mostly went over well. Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!
Fiasco Can Fly: I have to say, most Canadians rarely hold a grudge. So, it's not surprising you were able to win her over with a cup of coffee. We're cheap whores when it comes to caffeine. Thanks for having these little chats with me. I kind of missed them at the beginning of this rewrite.
cookiewolf: wwweeeeird. That writing , I mean. Why did it change like that? Strange. I didn't kill the Kurt. I felt he had to do a little suffering for his evil deeds. Thanks for all your reviews and I hope to hear from you again in future stories! I really appreciate your reviews.
castiel89: I'm sorry. I can't help myself. I always have to leave people hanging. The original chapter revealed everything right away and I didn't like that, so I had to rewrite the whole last part. And voila, a cliffhanger. Did you actually think I would ever kill Deacon off? I just wanted to guys to suffer a little bit. Haha. But I would be devastated myself if I had the nerve to do that. Deacon is just too... great to kill off. I'm glad that you felt all the tension. I had hoped that it would come off as a very tense situation but you seem to be the only one who mentioned it. Well, that's good enough for me! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE when a story gave you goosebumps, so I'm happy you got to experience that and WITH MY STORY TOO!!! That makes me incandescently happy! I'm also pretty happy that you that you didn't even wait to read the last chapter on a computer. I shouldn't encourage your slacking at work but... wait, what was I saying? I don't know why I said that. I'm perfectly okay with slacking at work. When I was in grade eleven, I worked as a cashier for a gas station and the pumper and I would always have creamer fights. It was a mess. I look forward to hearing from you about the potential stories. I value your opinion very much and I'm so, so, so freakin' happy that you decided to read this story!
flipflopgal: Thanks for the review! Unfortunately, after this update, you won't be getting much more. Actually you won't be getting anymore as this is the end but feel free to check out some of my other stories.
readaholicxxx: So, last night, my stupid neighbour played his bass-y music from 12 AM to 7 AM. I had to miss all my classes because I didn't get any sleep. It was the worst. I marched right down to the residence desk yesterday and I talked them into giving me a new room! I can't move in until tomorrow (the music is a-playing as we speak) but I'm so freakin' excited!! I'm glad my lil' ol' chappies could maybe brighten your ever snowy day up a little bit. Best feeling ever is when you have to wait all day to read something you really want to read and then when you finally do... ah. Love it. Thank you, thank you, thank you for going through this with me twice. At times it was agony but we made it through. Hurrah! I'm really glad you stuck around to review it the second time!
Devoted reader 12: Well, there will be no more double updates from me for this story. As for the ending, it basically was the same. The chapter before the epilogue had no cliffhanger. You knew that Deacon survived and his wounds weren't anywhere near as serious in the rewrite version. The epilogue took place at a dinner at Deacon's parents' house where they announced their engagement. Everything wrapped up nicely. Deacon's parents welcomed her with open arms, loved her even. I hated how it turned out. It was out of character for everyone. Trust me, this version is so much better. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!
babyonyee: I know! It's over. I know that it was over a while ago when I finished the rough draft of this but I'd already decided halfway through that it needed to be redone. I'm sure, if given the time or energy, I might be taking another look at this but for now, I'm semi-happy with how it turned out. As for the drama about Deacon's playboy past, I actually had a whole section that I took out with Boyd and Deacon talking about it. But then I was like... "blah" and cut it. I like to think Deacon just needed to realize that he was just waiting for Boyd. Plus, there was a little too much drama already. But, I think if I ever rewrite this again, I probably will keep the stuff I cut in. Just fo' fun. Thanks for reviewing!
Foxxtears: As you can see, Deacon is a-okay! Huzzah! And now it's over. I hope you enjoyed it and I wanted to thank you for reading and reviewing. I really do appreciate it.

THE FIRSTIES:
-its-sparkle-, this-is-me-exposed, Fiasco Can Fly, Poptard, Loner, romanceaddict, AlphaBeatKayGee, shinee19, DaniD3, xlovextimesx, animegirl214, Lady R, readaholicxxx, Midnightfantasy7860, Sacred Flower, donttrustme, blah248, dreamercrys, Misery Business,

Chapter Playlist: Island In The Sun- Weezer