𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄ᵃʳⁱᵃⁿᵃ ᵍʳᵃⁿᵈᵉ

epilogue , 2

vanessa's epilogue ;) there's a little surprise lol 😏

   my head bonked against the headrest of my car seat as i sighed. i was currently on my way to ariana's home after nearly four months of being away. i was setting up another parlor that was in a completely different state, so i never had time to come home for a long amount of time. i missed elijah like crazy, and i also missed mariana, if i was completely honest.

   ariana and i had split up officially seven months ago. it wasn't for a big reason, really. neither of us just felt right in the relationship. after the whole happening at the pizza diner with vanessa (who didn't contact me at all, like she promised she would), ariana and i were together for a whole year and a half. i was so incredibly grateful for the time i had spent with her, but we just ran dry. i still loved her so much, but not like i used to. we still remained friends and we co-parented surprisingly well. elijah was still happy—he even understood why we split. he said he still loved us both with all of his might, and we said the same to him.

   i bit my lip nervously as i turned onto ariana's road, my eyes landing on the home we once shared. i let her take the house, obviously, since she would have two kids to take care of. and she in general like big ass houses. i didn't mind, i just bought myself a smaller home that wasn't too far away. i pulled into the driveway as my hands shook. i had no idea why i was so nervous, i just was.

   elijah had started second grade the week i left, and he told me all about his teacher over facetime. he was super giddy for some reason when he told me about her, whom of which i did not know the name of. i assumed it was just because he had an innocent little crush on her or something.

   i turned off the car and stepped out, rolling my neck out after the long drive. i took a second to take in the hot sun, using my hand to fan myself off. the sound of the front door swinging open brought me out of it, and i opened my eyes to see a very excited elijah running up to me.

   a smile spread on my face as he jumped into my arms, screaming my name. "you're finally home!" he cheered, squeezing his arms around my neck. i chuckled into his shoulder, lifting him up. "i know! god, i missed you so much."

   i swayed us back and forth, opening my eyes to see ariana standing there with mariana in her arms. i smiled at her, using one of my hands to wave at her. she smiled back, turning to mariana to show her that i was here.

  ri pouted, obviously very confused. ariana giggled, walking towards elijah and me. "look, baby! it's mama!" this caught mariana's attention, her small head whipping around as she stared at me with her mouth open.

   i smiled and set eli down, pressing a kiss to his temple. mariana squealed loudly and reached out for me, making ariana pout. she handed ri to me anyways, and i kissed her chubby cheeks repeatedly.

   "hi, princess! mama missed you sooo much!" i spoke, tickling her stomach gently. i glanced over at ariana, smiling at her crossed arms and her pout. i bent down in a crouch so i could be level with eli, mariana still in my arms.

"seriously, why do they like you so much!?" ariana frowned, sitting down with us. i just shrugged, keeping my attention on the kids. "i don't know. i'm just more huggable."

ariana cracked a smile, "i can't argue with that one." i giggled, turning to eli. "here, sit down with your legs crossed and hold your little sister." elijah's face lit up and he immediately obeyed. i carefully placed ri into his arms, a small giggle leaving her lips as she stared up at him.

my heart swelled at the sight and i turned to ariana, sticking my arms out. she smiled widely, scooting over to wrap her arms around me. i squeezed her tightly, a squeal leaving her mouth. "you have no idea how relieved i am that you're back. i missed you." she groaned, squeezing me back.