Memories (River Phoenix FF)

December 13th, 1992

After Thanksgiving, I guess he and I made up, because by December 13th, the six month anniversary of the day we met, we were smiling and hugging and kissing like nothing ever happened. Although still depressed about losing my mother, as it had only been a few months any you can't get over something like that so quickly, I cleaned up for our date.

He took me out to dinner at a fancy and romantic vegan restaurant, and we both had tons of fun.

I don't remember how it happened, but we ended up having a very deep conversation. When the waitress, who looked about as old as River and I, came and asked us what we wanted for drinks, I noticed the ring on her finger, big and beautiful, and asked her about it. Maybe it was a personal thing to ask about, but she seemed okay with it as she took it off of her finger and handed it to me.

"Oh, this?" She asked, watching me intently as I roll it around in my fingers.

"It's my wedding ring. My husband and I got married about six months back. Isn't it gorgeous?" She asked me. I nodded. After we ordered our drinks, I looked at River.

"Am I ever going to get a ring like that?" I asked him. He blushed.

"A-are you asking if we're going to get married?" He stuttered. I nodded, smiling and not taking my eyes off of him. We'd discussed this during Thanksgiving too, but not as much in depth as I'd hoped.

"Maybe one day. We sure love each other enough," he said. I nodded.

"I agree. River? What do you want for your life?" I asked him, the words out of my mouth before I could even decide if it was an okay thing to ask or not.

"Well, I want a wife. And a few kids too. Three or four maybe. Two girls named Helen and Ashley, I've always really liked those names. A boy or two, too, but I'm not sure of the names," he admitted.

"Jackson and Tyler," I said without thinking.

"Jackson and Tyler... I like it. Tyler will be the oldest, and Ash will be a year or two younger. Then we'll wait three years and have Jackson, and Helen will be the youngest," he said, planning our lives right there. I smiled.

"It sounds perfect. And we'll live in a little cottage by the beach with a tiny golden retriever puppy and homeschool the kids and live happily ever after," I said, but he shook his head.

"No, they'll go to school. Public school maybe, or private if we have the money. You'll be a Kindergarten teacher like you wanted, and take a few years off when the kids are young, but when they're ready for school, they'll go. I never got the chance to, but I want my children to get that opportunity," he told me.

"And every day after school, you and I'll be sitting on the couch in front of the fire, waiting for them. And they'll sit down and have a snack and tell us about their day. Then afterword we'll teach them guitar and piano, give them lessons, and maybe one day they'll start a band like you and your siblings did," I said.

Our hearts will beat for each other, forever and always. We'll love each other as much as we love our own children, and we'll be together forever.

I'd fantasized about this for a while now, and it seemed to be coming true once we really talked about it. I just never expected what happened to get in the way of our happily ever after...

A/N: I really like this chapter. I'll update soon! Let me know what you think so I know how I'm doing! :) -Katy