Gone Without You

Epilogue

Leafy struggled to sleep if Firey wasn't there beside her, she worried whenever he left the house alone and after what Two did, loud, sudden bangs terrified her.

She often woke up in the night after having vivid dreams of Two and the horribly dark and cold warehouse.

The scars on her arms and stomach were so hatefully clear, like a sick reminder of everything.

She realized that whenever she woke from a nightmare, her hand would clutch her stomach for some strange reason, as though she was trying to protect the scar.

Her nightmares left her feeling scared with tears in her eyes and an anxious feeling that thankfully ebbed away when Firey would realize what was going on and he'd hold her until he was certain she had fallen back asleep.

But sadly, Firey was no different when it came to his dreams or emotions.

He was still wracked with guilt and hatred at himself for leaving and the sight of blood in any way made him feel physically sick to the stomach.

He could no longer stand strong alcohol or the dark, these things among others, reminded him of a version of himself he couldn't stand to remember.

And just like Leafy, he had nightmares but his were much more frequent.

He remembered faces, screams and pain, that horrible smile that tortured him still followed into his sleep.

The warm sensation of blood on his hands remained in his mind, the feeling of pulling a trigger or watching life fade away would stay with him.

He would wake in a cold sweat, unable to breathe and terrified of what lurked in the shadows.

But Leafy was always there, she could always bring him back around and calm him with just the sound of her voice.

She would sit up and hold him, reminding him that she was right beside him and that he was in her arms, no one would be able to hurt anyone he cared about anymore.

He would gaze tiredly up at her and focus on her beautiful, loving face while her soft voice soothed him to sleep.

Neither had come out unscathed, both of them were scarred physically and mentally but with the support the had in each other they could help themselves find the good things and slowly disconnect from the memories they didn't want to be part of.

After much talk and consideration, they decided to move out of the city, away from the noise and the reminders of it all.

Firey received the money he earned from his years of service and Leafy had been promoted to a high position in her job and was now on the managers board alongside Gelatin.

Her position allowed her to work remotely and she was only required to be in the office once a week and the pay was excellent.

All of this combined with savings allowed them to buy a gorgeous house in the mountain scattered countryside, with fields and meadows as far as the eye could see.

Leafy had dreamed of a home like that for so long, it felt like a dream come true.

There was a bit of fixing up to do but Firey was actually surprisingly good at handiwork.

Almost as good as Leafy.

Once they settled in and got to know the area and the people, Firey began helping out in the local fields and farms, this made him very popular.

Grove was also fitting well to his new home, once again, he was popular in school and he loved running around the field or the forests and going for long hikes with his mama and papa.