The Stranger's Wife | Rewritten

42 ~ Epilogue

Dear Amelia & Willem

My daughter, I don't have to see you walking down the aisle in your wedding dress to know how beautiful you'll look.

One thing I didn't see coming is how young you would be when that day came. Younger than I would have liked.

You will be eighteen by the time you read this letter and I guess it's time I started treating you like an adult. You and Willem are married for a year now and I know the two of you have figured out by now that marriage isn't as easy as eating ice cream in the park. I wanted to go down the cliche route and say a walk in the park, but the older you get, walking becomes a struggle for some of us.

Your father and I haven't exactly been honest about the reason you're getting married to Willem, but your father has squandered all our money. There's nothing left. You know what that means for the restaurant. Your father is devastated.

As a mother, I had to do something. I couldn't let your dream and the life you'd grown accustomed to, to be taken away from you like that. Was it the best decision? No.

But know this, Willem is a good man. He was raised by two amazing women who I've come to consider my friends. His father, on the other hand, is a troubled and controlling man. But I think you've figured that out by now.

I know deep in my heart that you and Willem can make your marriage work. But please, Amy, all I ask is that you stand up for yourself in your marriage. Hopefully, Willem is sitting next to you while you read this letter. If he isn't, get him.

Your father and I have sheltered you from almost everything bad in this world, and if I could go back, that's something I would change. You're seventeen and I don't think you've even kissed a boy yet.

You've been living your life up until now in a fairytale, but life and marriage are anything but. There will be days where the sight of your significant other will annoy you. Maybe it's because he left your daughter in shitty diapers the whole day because you had to go away for a work conference.

But don't worry, you'll get on his nerve too. One surefire way to do that is not to listen to his outrageous demands, both in and out of the bedroom. Don't tell him I told you that. Oh crap, I forgot he's reading this with you. Oh well.

Now Willem, my son by marriage. You accepted the offer to marry my daughter with open arms, although I must admit some of your reasons for doing so were a bit shady. Shady... such a cool word. Learned that one on the gram.

As I was saying, this might be a marriage of convenience but I'm hoping that's not all it's ever going to be. Amelia may take a minute to warm up to you when it comes to executing her wifely duties. Be patient with her. Give her space when she needs it and I promise she'll come back to you.

I want to conclude this letter by saying that I couldn't dream of a better son-in-law for my daughter. And Amelia, you're going to be a great mother. You've always been great with children, however, you two should hold off with the children for now. Take time to get to know each other first. But if the children come, I will welcome them with open arms.

Happy first anniversary, my loves. That's quite an achievement. I wish you all the best moving forward.

I will also write a letter for five years down the road. I tend to get ahead of myself sometimes, you know how I am. I think I'll talk more about marriage after kids in that one. For now, love upon each other. Be kind to each other. And last, but not least, never lose respect for your significant other. Because if you can't respect the person you sleep next to every night, you might as well throw the whole relationship away. Without respect, there's no trust, and without trust, there's no love.