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Begin the World Again

Chapter 40: Epilogue

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

The sun shone brightly in the blue sky as David and Patrick walked into the low brick building. They followed the signs to the gymnasium, converted into some kind of auditorium with rows of folding chairs facing a microphone. They sat, saying polite hellos as people filled in the other seats. 

It was a beautiful day. The gym door was propped open to allow in the warm June breeze. It was a Thursday, so they had Jen, one of their part-time associates, watching the store for the afternoon. 

"What time is it?" David asked. Patrick looked down at his watch, a beautiful Shinola that David had given him for their third wedding anniversary. 

"Five-til," he told his husband. "Should be starting any time now."

Soon, the door to the hallway opened and a blonde woman entered, followed by a parade of small children. They lined up against the wall (as well as 30 children can) as the woman stepped up to the microphone.

"Hello, parents and grandparents of Elm Creek Elementary!" The crowd clapped politely, with a few small cheers. "I'm Mrs. Thompson, and I've had the pleasure of teaching your kindergarteners this year!"

"A martyr if there ever was one," David muttered. 

Her class, still pressed against the front wall, was fidgety. All of the children were craning their necks to look for their parents in the audience. One little red-headed girl stood on her tip-toes, hand raised in a wave.

"Those are my daddies!" Juniper told the boy next to her. 

David grabbed Patrick's hand and squeezed. Even after all these years, through the scraped knees and learning to walk, trips to the doctor and late nights after bad dreams… he still swooned a little whenever she claimed him as her dad.

Mrs. Thompson began to read names off in alphabetical order, and another adult handed each child a rolled 'diploma.' After Xander Atkins got his,  they heard the name Juniper Brewer called. Juni, in her blue and white sundress and little cardboard graduation cap, reached out and took the paper. She looked back to her dads, flashing them a gap-toothed smile from where she lost a bottom incisor last week. 

"Kindergarten graduations are so dumb," David said, wiping a stray tear from his cheek. Patrick just chuckled and snapped another picture on his phone.

Down through the line the teacher went, each child receiving their own diploma. When they got to Roland Junior, Jocelyn and Roland Senior stood up and whooped for the little blonde boy with a mullet. He gave his parents a thumbs up, and Patrick heard Juni say, "That's my friend!" 

After singing some kind of indiscernible song, mostly just a cacophony of tempos and pitches, the Kindergarten class of 2023 was released to their parents. Juniper bound towards them, copper curls cascading down her back. 

"Daddy! Daddy! I graduated!" She cried, throwing her arms around them both. "I never have to go to school ever again!"

"Well, not exactly."

"You start first grade in September," David reminded.

"No," Juni corrected him. "Mrs. Thompson said that school is all done."

"We'll revisit this," David told her.

"Can I go play outside now?" The girl asked.

"For a few minutes," Patrick said, but she had turned and was running towards the open door before he could finish. 

He and David followed and stood by the playground fence while they watched kids climb around the jungle gym. They chatted with Meg, one of the few class moms David could stand, while her son Ollie played with Juniper. 

"Can you believe we have first graders?" She said. 

"I won't tolerate such negative language," David snapped, and she laughed. 

"Yeah, I'm not ready either."

"It seems like just the other day she was falling asleep in my arms," Patrick said with a nostalgic pout.

"You mean she was falling asleep in my arms," David corrected. "She just cried for you."

"Yeah, yeah." Patrick wrapped his arm around his husband's waist, kissing his cheek. "We both love you the best."

"Any big summer plans?" Meg asked.

"We're headed to LA next month to visit David's parents," Patrick said. 

"That'll be so nice!" Meg exclaimed. "I wish I could go to California."

"Trade you," David muttered. Patrick swatted his arm playfully.

"Be nice."

"Ollie!" Meg called to her son. "Five more minutes!"

"You too, Bean!" Patrick added. "Daddy has to get back to the store."

The girl stopped at the top of a slide, her dress billowing around her. "Which Daddy?"

"Does it matter?" David asked, and she shrugged before sliding down.

 


 

"Are you wearing that dress to dinner?" Patrick asked. Juniper was sitting at the kitchen table, cutting an egg carton into pieces. She insisted it was an 'art project,' but he was sure it was mostly a mess he'd have to make sure was cleaned up before David got home.

"Yes," she said without looking up. "It's beautiful."

"That it is," he agreed. "Well we're leaving in twenty minutes. Do you want to pack your bag?"

"No, you can." Patrick nodded, turning to head towards the stairs. "But make sure to pack my purple shirt and Mr. Fluff the Sheep and my kitty blanket!" 

"Are you sure you don't want to pack?"

"No!" She called. 

Fifteen minutes later they were in the car, pulling out of the cottage driveway. 

They parked in front of the store, leaving her Frozen suitcase in the car. 

"Daddy!" She called as she strutted into Rose Apothecary like she owned the place. Which, well, she kind of did.

"Oh, good," David said, looking up from the table he was stocking. "The closing crew is here."

"Nooooo," she whined. "I don't want to wooooork."

"How else are you going to pay for college?" He smiled. 

"What if," Patrick offered, "we all worked together to close the store?"

David and Juniper looked at each other for a pause before both turning to Patrick. "No," they said in unison.

Despite their protests, Juni actually enjoyed using the dry mop, and wiping down the floors as Patrick helped David straighten the shelves. 

"Bean, why don't you have Daddy put your hair up for dinner while I count the till?" Patrick suggested. 

"Deal," David said immediately. 

Patrick chuckled, following them behind the counter where he opened the cash register when Juniper climbed up onto the stool next to him. David withdrew a comb and hair tie from a drawer that'd been long converted into Juni's hair accessory drawer. Patrick watched as his husband deftly braided an even plait, something he himself had yet to conquer, despite having a daughter with waist-length hair. When David was finished, the two of them headed across the street while Patrick finished the deposit. 

When he walked into the restaurant, his parents were already there, sitting at a long table in the middle of the room. Marcy's school let out a few days earlier, and she insisted on taking Juniper for no less than a long weekend. 

"Mimi said we're going to the zoo!" Juni announced when Patrick sat down next to his own father. "And I'll get to go swimming at Aunt Becca's!"

Two summers back, Becca had moved into a new complex with a community pool. The summer of her fourth year, Juni learned to swim. She took to it like a fish, though she scoffed when David said so.

"No, not a fish! A mermaid!"

"Yeah, Dad," Patrick teased.

Now, the five of them settled into the table. Juni was propped up on her knees between her grandparents, coloring on the back of the paper placemat.

"So what are you boys gonna do with your five whole kid-free days?" Marcy asked.

"Sleep," David said immediately.

"Daddy, you always sleep," Juniper giggled.

"Not enough," he grumbled.

"It's hard getting old," Patrick placated, placing a hand on his husband's back.

"Excuse you!" David scoffed. "It's hard sharing a bed with a human tornado." He looked pointedly at his daughter. She shrugged.

"Sometimes Mr. Fluff gets scared and needs to sleep in your bed." David just hummed in response, pretending not to smile. Patrick knew some of their best mornings started when they all woke up together.

"We have an Open Mic Night on Saturday," Patrick told his parents. "And Monday we're having the carpets steamed."

"Because someone can't remember to take off her shoes when she goes inside." David pointed at Juniper.

"It's not my fault," she told him. "I'm only six."

"And who spilled the red wine in the hallway?" Patrick asked.

"Stevie!" David exclaimed. 

Patrick laughed. He knew it was a hot-button topic between the friends, since the evening last fall when they were celebrating yet another Rosebud expansion. This time, she'd flown to Saskatchewan and closed the deal all on her own, bringing in a large historic motel. When she returned, David brought her favorite vintage of a local Merlot and they celebrated. Maybe a little too much, because when Patrick and Juni returned home from an afternoon playdate, there was a stain on the dark grey carpet, and two sleeping adults curled on the couch, an empty wine bottle between them.

"Is Aunt Stevie coming to dinner?" Juni asked now. She was working on a maze, though not very well.

"Not tonight, she's traveling."

"She's always traveling!" Bean whined.

"She was literally over for dinner on Sunday," David pointed out. "And she'll be back by the time you come home from Mimi and Papa's."

"If this one ever comes home!" Clint declared, tickling his granddaughter.

"Is Stevie still going with that guy from the brewery?" Marcy asked. 

"Wallace," Patrick reminded. "And yes, she is."

"He made me a pie!" Juni announced. "He's a super good baker man."

The second year of Rose Apothecary was truly the kick-off point for the town's success. There was a huge Easter egg hunt put on by local businesses, and attendance grew every year since. They also had their first Harvest Festival that year, as well as the second annual Singles Week. Alexis still returned every summer to host it (despite that, thanks to an investment banker named Otto, she hadn't been single for this last one). 

As the town became a Mecca of rural Ontario, more businesses began sprouting up: a coffee shop, a pilates studio, and then a few years ago, a brewery. It was somewhere David, Patrick and Stevie visited semi-regularly; the food was great, their micro-brews were inventive, and the atmosphere was fun and welcoming. That's where Stevie met Wallace, head cook and brother to one of the owners. He was a 6-foot, 300-pound bearded and tatted hulk of a man who looked and sounded like a member of the Hells Angels. He even had a motorcycle.

But Wallace was the biggest teddy bear Patrick had ever met. Sure, he was snarky and could keep up with Stevie's wit as well as the rest of them. But he also was the first one to lend a hand, always offering to help wherever needed. Juniper adored him, especially after her sixth birthday party where she insisted on doing everyone's makeup, and Wallace was the first volunteer. She painted his eyelids (and cheeks and forehead and nose) sparkly pink and told him he was a unicorn princess.

Stevie still held her cards close to the chest, playing it cool, but everyone could tell she was just as crazy about him as he was about her. Patrick was sure that one of these days she'd pop by with the news that they'd eloped and leave it at that. David was still holding out for pageantry.

"I thought you didn't like pie?" Clint teased.

"I do!" Juni insisted. "It's literally my favorite dessert."

"What about my cookies?" Marcy asked.

"Those, too. And Rollie's mom's nanimal bars."

"Nanaimo," David corrected with a smile. He loved when she mispronounced words with such confidence; as a family, they still said 'abocabo' in reference to the summer that Juni fell in love with, but could not pronounce avocados.

"Can I have pie tonight ?" She asked, ignoring her daddy. They were finishing up dinner, and desert was always her first suggestion. And David normally went along.

"Don't you want to get on the road to Mimi and Papa's?" Patrick asked. 

"We can stop for ice cream on the way," Marcy whispered loudly.

"Okay!" Juni grinned. 

Candice, a waitress Twyla had hired a few years ago, brought over the check.

"Thank you, dear," Marcy said as David grabbed the bill before Clint.

"You're taking her for a week, it's the least we can do," Patrick joked. In reality, though, they would miss her. It would only be five days, and while she was a never-ending tornado of toys and dress-up clothes and arts and craft supplies, the house seemed too quiet without her. 

"It's Stockholm Syndrome," David said the first time she had a sleepover.

They said goodbye on the sidewalk, giving extra hugs and kisses, standing and waving until the Brewer's car was out of sight.

Patrick drove them home, about a seven-minute trip now that they had moved their cottage. Gone were the days of walking to work, or anywhere in town, except for the little bungalow Stevie had bought that was just around the corner from them. 

David put away the few groceries he'd gotten from the Apothecary while Patrick cleaned up Juni's art project. When he walked into the kitchen, David handed him a glass of wine, the two of them walking silently to the back porch. It was their favorite evening activity: sitting together on the swing. They'd read books or do puzzles or watch Juni run through the sprinkler, chasing the cat. 

Tonight, David had his work notebook, sketching ideas for the space upstairs of the store. They had been discussing using it as a gallery space, allowing local artists to showcase their work a few times a year, and David awoke the next morning with a hundred new ideas.

Patrick wrapped an arm around his husband, using the other to hold the kindle he was reading from. 

"What if we have the artist in the back room," David thought aloud. "That way when the patrons get there, they've already had a chance to experience some of the pieces and open conversation channels."

"That's a good idea," Patrick said, unsurprised. His husband always had good ideas, and he tried not to take that for granted. 

Patrick looked up, over their yard. The green grass that probably needed a cut, the wildflowers that grew along the back fence. Off to one side was the jungle gym that Clint and Marcy bought when they moved in. He thought of the ranunculus in the front of the house that he'd planted on their first monthiversary as homeowners. David made him promise it would be the last of the monthiversary celebrations, and Patrick agreed. For now.

He thought of the whole life he and David had created together over the past six years, so much that their lives had flourished.

Patrick leaned in and kissed his husband deeply. He kissed him for now, for this moment on the porch on a cool June night. He kissed him for earlier today, for the two dads watching their daughter graduate kindergarten. He kissed him for their pasts, the ones they had separately, both looking for the other. The ones they had together, walking blindly through a tumultuous first year. And he kissed him for the future, for all the things they'd face together, hand-in-hand.

They parted, and David rested his head on Patrick's shoulder. And this right here? It was all he ever wanted.

 

Notes:

This was a seven-month-long labor of love.
Thank you so much for following along with me over the past four months of posting. Every single one of your comments and kudos and messages made a huge impact on me, and I'm thankful for every single one of you.

I want to give a special shout out to my found family of Carnies, my Rishtha and my Butts and my favorite people. You've kept me sane.
Thanks to mom friends Meg, Jen and Katie for giving me kid fodder with your hilarious children.

And above all else, thank you YouWereAlwaysGonnaBeTheOne for being my beta and my rock. Thanks for following me on this journey and keeping track of all of my wild trains of thought. As always, I can't do it without you.

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