Two years later.
Ellie's POV
"Mommy, look! Another donation box filled!" Isabella cheers as she places an American Girl doll in a box in the donation pile.
"Good job, sweetie." I praise, returning to the outrageous pile of tutus my daughter has accumulated in the last two years. I place a handful of them in a bag to donate while placing Isabella's favorite, most worn ones in a box labeled 'Isabella's closet'. I tape the box shut before placing it with the rest of the boxes that line the wall closest to the door.
A loud noise from the master bedroom startles Isabella and me. I instruct Isabella to continue sorting her toys as I make my way through the cluttered hallway of boxes, bubble wrap, and packing paper.
This has been how Demi, Isabella, and I have spent the first two weeks of our summer. Slowly but surely weaning through the items in our house to get ready to move at the end of the month. The donation piles not accumulating to nearly as much as we would like. The new house is not much farther from where we live now, but it has much more space than our current house does. And space is a much-needed necessity for what's to come.
I hurdle over the last roll of bubble wrap before entering the master bedroom. Demi is standing in front of her closet, a box spilled out in front of her, memorabilia spread awry.
"What do you think you're doing, Demetria?" I ask, letting out a sigh of disappointment.
"There is a bag in the back of the closet. I can't reach it and I don't know what it is." Demi complains.
I let go of the door, letting it open until it can't anymore. I take a step inside, slowly gathering the lost items from Demi's memorabilia box.
For security reasons, Demi's management and security team takes most items gifted to her on tour and tosses them. However, without fail, Demi always sneaks as many items as she can back to her tour bus. When she returns home at the end of her tour, each item she manages to save makes its way into the blue and gold box in her closet. Friendship bracelets, letters, meet and greet photos.
Demi realizes reaching the bag in the back of her closet is pointless. She slowly backs up, taking in her cluttered surroundings. She turns around, her baby bump is now in full view. Her white tank top is overtly stretched against her ever-growing belly. Her shirt is wrinkled at the bottom, her belly button peeking out from between her shirt and sleep shorts.
"You heard what the doctor said. No more strenuous activities until the baby is here." I say.
Demi groans. "But you love when we engage in strenuous activities." Demi winks.
Blush rises to my cheeks. That I do, Mrs. Lovato-Welch. That I do.
"I'm serious, baby. I don't want you to hurt yourself or our baby."
Demi's eyes meet mine in a half-smile. She maneuvers through the clutter, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. "I just hate being useless." Demi sulks.
I drop the items on the edge of the bed before walking over to Demi. I take her hands in mine, resting them on her baby bump. "You are not useless. You are currently engaged in the most magical task on earth. You are creating life. A life that will forever change the rest of ours, okay? Your task is so much more important than a bag in the back of the closet!" I insist, placing a loving kiss on both of her hands.
Tears fall down her face, landing right where I kissed her. I canvas the room, spotting Isabella's green lightsaber in the corner of the room. I grab it, using it to push the mystery back to the front of the closet in arms reach. I return to my place on the bed next to Demi, undoing the double knot in the bag. I open it, taking the item out of the bag.
Inside was something I haven't seen in years. Three years to be exact.
"My jacket?" I question.
After Demi and I went shopping for a new jacket, she insisted on still trying to get the coffee stains out of my jacket. Unfortunately, the jacket sat too long, making a few of the stains permanent, most noticeably, the oblong stain on the collar. After Demi's fifth dry clean trip, I told her to throw the jacket away. It was the last day I saw the jacket.
"You kept it?"
Demi takes it from my hands, caressing her fingers over the belt buckle. "I didn't want to get rid of it."
"But why? It's a coffee-stained jacket." I reiterate.
"I know. But it's the whole reason we met. The reason we're what we are today."
My head begins to swirl with euphoria. I lean in, capturing Demi's lips between mine. She reciprocates eagerly. I slide my tongue against her bottom lip and she opens her mouth with anticipation. Careful not to hurt her or the baby, I slowly push her down on the bed, adjusting myself between her legs.
"Mrs. Lovato-Welch, now you heard the doctor. No strenuous activities." Demi mocks me as she slowly slides her heel up and down my leg sensually.
"Oh, shush." I silence her with a kiss. Our lips move in sync with each other intensely. Neither rushed nor savagely. Instead, it is full of love and passion.
We break apart when we hear the door creak open. Our eyes trail to Isabella who stands in the middle of the room.
"Hi, baby girl," Demi greets as I help her up and into a seated position. Her shirt now more disheveled than it was earlier.
"Hi, momma. Are you okay? Is it baby time, yet?" Isabella asks, her supergirl tucked safely in between her arms as usual.
"No sweetie, not yet. Momma just had a little accident, that's all." Demi explains.
"And Mommy was helping you?"
Demi nods her head before standing up. She stumbles for a few moments before catching her balance. I extend my arm out, but Demi declines, quickly gaining balance.
I watch as Demi's face suddenly changes and becomes blank, all emotions drained from her face. I follow her gaze down to her thighs, a large wet patch on the front of her shorts and glistening lines down her leg to the puddle around her feet.
Uh-oh. "I think it's baby time," Demi repeats.
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Wow. I cannot believe I am writing this. I cannot believe that this is officially the end of this story. I have dedicated so much of my life to this story! I cannot thank each and everyone one of you from the bottom of my heart. Whether you read the entire thing, or you read just one chapter. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I hope that you all give my new books a chance! I will start posting them once I get back from a wedding in Texas next week. I cannot wait to see where these new stories bring me! I will always be grateful for this story.
Thank you all. Be safe, take care and I hope to see you in the comment section of my other books!