CHAPTER FIFTY
epilogue
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"KAI, YOU'RE NOT ROBBING a bank," Mila told him, peering over the ajar trunk latch to see him leaning against the passenger side of the car. After double checking that they had everything they need, she closed it shut.
"Why not? Then we could live in a mansion. And have five pools. And a million rooms," Kai rambled on, his head angled up towards a bright sky like he was actually picturing what he was saying. "And hey, with all that square footage, our baby could get his exercise in."
Instead of a roll of her eyes or an unamused scoff, she found herself sighing lovingly at Kai's antics and whatever ridiculous nonsense he spewed. Kai, in his recently-acquired, black sunglasses that fought the unforgiving sun rays beaming down on them, had never looked more carefree, more himself. It was a comforting image of normalcy Mila thought she would never experience again. And now that she was, now that Kai had returned to her, she was going to try to soak it all in and appreciate what it was like to have him completely.
After their reunion in the blazing field, the repercussions that she believed they'd still have to face were nowhere to be found. There were no more tricks left up the Necromancer's sleeve. Ric was surprisingly understanding about Kai being brainwashed into behaving so catastrophically. Josie's tweak to the memory restoration spell so that they wouldn't forget their nemesis and his problematic intentions even after succumbing to Malivore was a success. Everything was falling into place.
Since there was nothing holding them here anymore, it didn't take very long for the both of them to come to the agreement that they definitely needed a vacation, especially because they were robbed of a honeymoon beforehand. They had already bid a goodbye to Damon and Elena and even stopped by Mila's parents house, using the excuse that they were passing through town. It was a relief to be around the people she loved without the absence of the most important person in her life. So much so that it had Mila considering that she, herself, should take up a more permanent residence here.
Mystic Falls was not a dark chapter of her past. It was no longer the reminder of sorrow and suffering. This town and its tendency to attract the supernatural had always been tucked away into a corner of her heart. She grew up here, met lifelong friends here, fell in love here... and her family is here, too. Her mom and dad, Lizzie and Josie, they were certainly people worth putting down roots for. She didn't want to miss out on anything else, anyone else, ever again.
Nothing was set in stone but she had a feeling Kai wouldn't mind living here, raising up the kid he's adamant on calling up Levi in this town. It was baffling how much he was already forming a habit of touching her stomach. He'd also talk to the baby, too, even though he wasn't developed enough to understand him but Kai didn't care. He would lie his head on Mila's lap, untuck the bottom of her shirt, and talk about anything and everything. Mila found the gesture sweet and adorable, encouraging her husband by stroking his hair and letting him plant the occasional kiss on her belly.
Mila joins Kai's side, feeling the hot surface of her car that had been victim to the sun all day through her blouse. "Yeah, and you'll be getting your exercise in the yard of a federal state prison."
"I could bust out of prison."
"And where would you go? I wouldn't take you back."
"You're just being unsupportive because you don't want to see my pretty face covered up with a Ski Mask." Kai reverts his shining blue eyes, revealed from his sunglasses sliding down his nose, from Mila to the ancient being watching their exchange from the sidewalk. "Zera, look into your crystal ball and tell Mila that I could be a successful bank robber if I wanted to be."
"Not a chance," Zera answered through a round of laughter.
"Not a chance as in you won't do it or-"
"Not a chance that you would be successful. You're motivated but you crack under pressure. I definitely would consider another career option if I were you."
"Thank you," Mila said. She pushes her body off the car and begins to search her purse for her keys.
Kai throws his hands up on the air. "Fine. I'll do something else with my life."
"You're not gonna use magic and cheat your way into becoming a professional baseball player, either."
"Damn it, Mila, you're killing me here."
With the set of keys bundled in her palm, Mila lazily props her arms up on his shoulders, folding her hands together at the nape of his neck. She smiles a rare, full smile up at him. The tip of her nose bumps the sunglasses dangerously close to falling from the bridge of his.
Kai doesn't bother to contain the urge to smile back at her, enthralled by the sight of her so blissful and happy. His pink lips curl and his sparkling white teeth are displayed and it even invokes crinkles by his eyes. He couldn't imagine anything more perfect than what his reality had become.
"This is just the beginning of a marriage where I'll always just have to slap you with common sense," Mila hummed, maintaining her grin.
"That sounds promising," Kai murmured, and then his mouth twisted into the realm of a smirk. "And kinky."
"Ugh. Get a room." An effortlessly detectable voice rings through the air and slowly makes them roll their heads to the side.
Lizzie and Josie strut towards the car, both in variations of their school uniforms. Lizzie is grimacing at the two of them in an intimate embrace and Josie knocks her elbow against Lizzie, a nonverbal plea for her to knock of off. Josie is also holding a narrow, rectangular gift.
"Why would we get a room when we can use the hood of the car?" Mila responds with perched eyebrows. She can't help but chuckle at the gagging noise Lizzie makes.
"This is exactly why I married you," Kai mutters, stuffing his face into the crook of her neck.
When his innocent nuzzling turns obscene by provocative nips and a heavy groan, she is quick to shove him away. She gasps at his shamelessness and swings a hand to her neck, searching for tender areas he might have marked. She had only been kidding but Kai definitely took advantage of her suggestive comment. Mila was ready to chastise him but, lucky for him, she was interrupted.
"We came to say goodbye. And wish you well while you're off on your honeymoon," Josie clarified, coughing.
"And give you this." Lizzie snatched the gift from her sister's hold and shoved it into Mila's chest. "Consider it a wedding-slash-going-away present."
Mila unraveled the bow and lifted the lid of the box. On top of the tissue paper there was a small card, which she read aloud. "It's not that much of a surprise Mila got knocked up, you sex fiends. Have fun tainting other public places. Love, Lizzie and regretfully, Josie."
Baffled and a bit amused by what must have been Lizzie's wording, she peels back the tissue paper to see that they had purchased a bra, similar to the one she had left ripped to shreds in the tunnels. A snort is released from the gag gift, accompanied by a bit of sheepishness as she remembers how scandalous they had been upon their return.
"Aw, thanks you guys. That's so considerate. You should try this on later." Kai plucked the undergarment from where it lay smoothed out inside the shallow box and held it up to analyze all the fine and intricate details.
"You're not exactly proving them wrong here."
He merely shrugs , his eyes going back and forth from her chest to the piece of clothing he was examining. Mila grabs the bra out of his hands and places it back in its wrapping, putting a halt to his eccentric reaction.
Instead of drawing this joke out further, she decides to change the subject. Mila cleared her throat, attempting to remind Kai of what they discussed earlier and how now was the perfect time to bring up. He stared at her, the pout of his mouth jeering outward almost as if to say, "what?"
"Kai," she deadpanned, her head inclined in the twins' direction.
"Oh. Right." He turns to face Lizzie and Josie, his hands stuffed in his front pockets. "Sorry I tried to kill you, or whatever. Twice. Wait, no. Three times. Yeah, three. Nothing personal. Okay, maybe it was. But, point is, I'm... I'm glad I was stopped."
"Don't forget how you forced my sister to take in black magic," Lizzie reminded.
"Or how you murdered our biological mother," Josie mentioned.
"Alright, alright. Fine. Sorry for that, too. Not apologizing for trying to kill your dad, though. He had it coming."
Both sisters share a brief look before shrugging in unison. "We'll take it."
Both Kai and Mila wave them goodbye when they retreated back down the driveway towards the school. The same arm slung over her shoulders pulled her into his side, and he bent down to place a long-lasting kiss on the top of her head, an action Mila almost took as an apology for his craziness. Her eyelids drooped halfway and she relished the gentle, affectionate contact, nevertheless.
Zera didn't want to intrude on yet another intimate embrace she had witnessed between the two, but she, too, had places to be. She stepped towards them, her gold accessories glinting once she stepped out of the shade.
"I'll leave you both as well. You know how to summon me if you ever need my assistance."
Mila tilted her chin up, her eyes now squinting from confusion. "Where are you heading off to?"
"Wherever I'm needed. I have other futures to unfold, including my own," Zera answered, sensing why there was a hint of a scowl on Mila's expression; she didn't want her to go.
Despite the lingering sadness from parting ways, Mila doesn't make things difficult. Her arms wrap around Zera for a quick hug, reminding herself that she would be okay on her own and that, if she did ever need Zera for a second opinion, she was only a call away. Zera smiled through the curtain of Mila's honey-colored hair, reciprocating similar feelings from their departure.
"Stay safe, okay?"
"I will."
"And call me if you ever need me to turn anyone's blood into acid. Oh! I got it! I could be a hitman!" Kai's inclusion causes Mila to pull back, shaking her head. Zera is chuckling at Kai's version of saying he was there whenever she needed.
"Kai, just get in the car," Mila breaths out, laughing. Her hands are at his side, pushing him along. "Please."
The keys were taken from Mila's grasp to end up in Kai's since he had insisted on driving. She opens the passenger door, fingers curled loosely over the edge to watch Zera walk away for a moment. Mila knew that if it wasn't for her involvement, they wouldn't even be on the brink of freedom and tranquility. The small uplift of her mouth translated her belief that wherever Zera was going, the Seer would bring solace to people's lives like she had done with hers.
When Mila eventually ducked down into the car, putting her given present at her feet, Kai had already started the ignition and switched on the air conditioning. He was currently roaming through different stations, looking rather concentrated for someone who's been known to have a short attention span. She decided to take the opportunity to study him after clicking her seatbelt into place.
The jean jacket he had thrown on this morning was now tied around his waist from the humidity and engulfing heat wave plaguing Mystic Falls. The short sleeves of his t-shirt joined the cuffs of his pants in being rolled up, granting Mila an eyeful of his toned biceps. And his sunglasses now rested on the top of his head, flawless sections of hair keeping them in place. They were all attributes, little details, that made him, him. Handsome, intentional, and maddening.
"Okay. I get it. You want me to pick a career that's not violent. And I agree." Kai began speaking, only partially retracting Mila from her captivity. "I have to set an example, right? So, I figured, now that I'm, like, the town hero and practically an ordained knight, I could be something awesome like a firefighter. Or an astronaut! Is it too late to uncross rockstar off the list? Because I'm telling you that I'm amazing with a drum set. You are not the only thing I know how to bang."
A song heavily littered with acoustic strums played at a low volume while Kai looked over to gauge a reaction from Mila. His bizarre suggestions didn't surprise her in the slightest. She just continued on staring at him, temple to the headrest, feeling like she could say or do anything she wanted without fearing the repercussions.
His mouth twitched, almost forming another grin from perceiving how different his wife had seemed lately, especially now. Usually, she would be so focused on what's next, on the after of whatever depleting and perilous event had struck them down. But Mila wasn't bitter from their problems or moving with haste to find something better because she had already found it. She was safe and happy living in the moment with Kai, so what was there to worry about? What more could she ask for than everything she's already been blessed with?
"As much as I would love to hear more of this rant and the sex jokes you throw in here and there, I have something that I want to tell you before we go," she announces before he could comment on her peculiar expression.
"So now it's you that has some dark secret to confess? Oh, how have the tables have turned." Kai gasps dramatically from his side of the vehicle.
"It's not dark. I don't have murderous tendencies like you."
"Valid point. Okay, lay it on me, princess."
Mila shifts her body towards him, earnest eyes meeting his. "You remember the day I came back to town, right? I came to the school and you were there acting out a charade but I didn't know you because of the whole Malivore amnesia effect."
"Of course I remember, Mila. It was the first time I saw you in over a decade. And, you know, we died together. It's not a day that would slip my mind."
"Yeah. Very memorable day for me as well. But what you don't know is... I called off my engagement to Alex because of you. You were the reason I couldn't go through with it. Everything about our relationship ran smoothly and he always treated me right but it didn't matter because I didn't love him. I loved you.
"So I broke up with him and planned a trip back to Mystic Falls. It took awhile to get time off work and get everything situated from canceling a wedding but I did it. I came back with every intention of fixing things with you. I had no foolproof plan. I had no idea how I was going to get the ascendant and find you and get you out but I had some of Bonnie's blood and Ric's trust so I figured that was enough."
His body leaned back at her confession. Shock and disbelief contorted his previously dopey, fascinated features. He almost couldn't comprehend everything she had said, that the reason she showed up, interrupting his plans and quite literally turning his whole world upside down, had been to see him again. He had left her burned, scorned, and alone to face the difficult transition from human to vampire and yet... a part of her still thought he was worth all of the trouble. That he was more than his faults.
"That's why I was so pissed when you gave me back my memories and I found out you were back to doing what you always did. You escaped and the first thing you did was resort to a petty revenge scheme instead of finding me. Instead of being with me. It was just more evidence of how you couldn't change and would put yourself and what you wanted over me every single time. But then we died and we went through everything that we went through and I realized that I had been right all along and that there was something worth fighting for with us," Mila continued. She reached for his hand with her own, and he allowed them to bundle together on the armrest of the center console; it was what finally convinced him to meet her heartwarming gaze again after being overwhelmed by regret, swallowing through the tightness of his throat.
"I mean, I turned human again, we got married, the Necromancer caused a heapload of problems, and then throw in a surprise pregnancy. That's a lot. And after all of that, you should know that I was coming back to you all along," Mila utters softly, the gloss of her wide, genuine eyes making her look so alive, so delicately human. "I came back for you, Kai."
Kai fights through the pressure restricting his chest to whisper, "You... you were to going set me free? After everything I did?"
"I figured you'd spent enough time in there and that I kept you waiting long enough. I was just... hoping things would be different. I missed you everyday you were trapped in the prison world."
"I'm... such an idiot. I am so sorry I ever made you feel less important than you actually are. The reason I didn't go to you when I escaped was because I thought you wouldn't want to see me. I thought you moved on. I thought you gave up on me like I deserved and didn't love me anymore."
"I'm sorry it took me so long to tell you." Her head shook at all of his wrong but reasonable assumptions. "I probably would have saved us both a lot of trouble if I would have just admitted it from the start."
"No, Mila. Don't blame yourself. I'm the one who seriously needed to get their priorities straight," he argued, his eyebrows knitted together at how she was putting signature all over the blame.
He moved to cup her face, stretching his upper half over the middle of the interior to get closer. Neither of them were upset, they weren't weighed down by the past because they both knew there was nothing they could do to change it, but that doesn't mean there wasn't something to learn from it. And that's what they're doing now with their fond caresses and unspoken promises, declaring that they would do better in the name of each other.
"You thought I gave up on you and I thought you gave up on me," Mila voiced her thoughts, melting into Kai's embrace. "We both could have been more honest, I guess."
"I promise I will be from here on out."
"Me too."
Kai smiled at her, allowing himself to be consumed by the truth that meant maybe she did love him as much as he loved her, and he defeatedly rested his forehead against hers. "Oh, Mila. My remarkable wife who makes me remarkable, too."
"You're giving me a lot of credit, you know?"
"Not nearly enough, actually."
The impulse to kiss him rapidly rises within her, but it's clear Kai has more to say when he pulls back and his attentive eyes flicker over her face. He drops his hold on her. The same feeling that left her unbound and liberated to admit everything was now affecting him.
"Also, just to get everything off my chest, you should know while I wasn't myself I, uh, kissed another woman."
She blinks a few times, caught off guard because that was the last thing she expected him to confess. "Really?"
"Yes, but it was a horrible kiss. Like really bad. Did not enjoy it," he clarified, a shiver racking his body from the foul memory. She almost chuckled at how disturbed he was.
"Did it end with you getting a drink thrown on you?"
"No, but she did tell me to go fuck myself."
"That sounds about right."
"So... you aren't mad?"
"Kai, I know you only did it to prove to yourself that you didn't have feelings for me," Mila explains, entertained more than anything. Humor highlights her tilted head and tucked lips, attributes meant to amplify her teasing tone. "And, predictably, that failed, so... if anything, I just come out winning from that situation."
"Oh, really? You just think everything I do is about you?" Kai questioned, dragging his words out and faking offense.
"Am I wrong?"
"No."
A brief meeting of their mouths is the end result of that topic of conversation. It was supposed to be a sweet, short-lived kiss, but Kai decided to go overboard by pecking her all over her face. Her cheeks, jaw, nose... he even managed to let his lips brush over her eyelid, his bottom lip streaked with a subtle line of mascara. The smack of every pucker resonated around the confined space, joined by childish giggles that erupted from Mila, and the boisterous noises only died out once she had forced him back to his side of the car.
"That was totally uncalled for." Mila ejected the last remnants of laughter Kai provoked while he finally put his own seat belt on and prepared to leave. She checked to make sure he hadn't messed up her makeup by unfolding the overhead mirror. "Where are we going, anyway? We still haven't decided on a honeymoon location."
"Doesn't matter where we go. Not like we're going to leave the hotel room."
"Bro, I'm already pregnant. Don't you think you should cool it?"
It was Kai's turn to laugh."Bro? What, are you trying to friendzone me again?"
"Maybe."
"Please. As if you could keep your hands off of me. I'm irresist-
The repetition of his infamous claim he often worked into conversation was interrupted by the sudden undoing of her seatbelt and the echoing thump of the passenger door swinging open. Kai glanced over to see Mila hurled over, and from the jolt of her body and the gagging noises that followed, he knew that she was definitely throwing up what was left of her undigested breakfast.
"Okay that means nothing," Kai reassures, mostly himself, at the unfortunate timing of Mila's morning sickness.
Heavy breaths are inhaled and exhaled by Mila after her nausea resided. She grimaced at the mess she made on the curb and tucked herself back into the car. Kai offered her a half filled water bottle he found in the side compartment of his door, which Mila took from him and chugged until it was empty.
"This is all your fault," Mila muttered, pouting. She threw the water bottle behind her into the backseat.
"Oh, we're already starting that, are we? Blaming me for everything that happens to you while you're pregnant?" Kai mused, both hands on the wheel as he turned the car onto the street.
"Absolutely. With every pregnancy symptom I get, you're going to be getting an earful."
"Wouldn't you rather be filled with me?" Kai shifts his eyebrows suggestively.
"Why would I when it's very clear you're already full of yourself?" Mila throws back at him, poorly hiding her brightened mood that came in response to his ridiculous replies.
"I have a feeling I'm going to have to do a lot of things myself from now on."
"You're catching on quick. And people say you're unhinged."
"I honestly have no clue where they get that from."
"You know what?" Mila begins, fully prepared to delve into another lighthearted argument and make points that would paint her in the right, but the formulation of her rebuttal is put to a stop once Kai flashed her his time-stopping, heart-soaring grin. Instead, she finds herself mimicking his beaming visage. "Me neither."
They share a knowing look, one of private and rare understanding. Kai takes her hand and interlaces their fingers on his lap, his sight focused ahead of him. Mila follows his lead and peers over the dashboard, calmed by the dashed yellow lines that would be taking them somewhere where their only obligation was to be together.
It had Mila thinking that some lines are just fine; they're what you tiptoe across when no one is looking, when you're inspired by curiosity or mischief.
Others are far more momentous. They intertwine together and make up the bold, single stroke of your life. Through the abrupt turns, complete spirals, sometimes you might find yourself going off track. But sometimes you find another course. Sometimes you cross paths and intersect and you may be entitled to more loops and zigzags but all of those misdirections lead you to something greater. Something that makes the journey worthwhile. And, if you're lucky, your lifeline may just run parallel with another. Side by side, hand in hand, until the ink runs out.
THE END