Dreader's Escape

Alternate Ending

A/N:

Okay! So this is the final chapter! This chapter makes up for all the angst :) Now, originally, when I first started writing this story, an alternate ending was not planned whatsoever. The story was just going to end at the last chapter, and there was going to be nothing else afterwards. It was just going to be a bad ending, because that is what was planned since I first started this story back in 2017. It was not going to have a happy ending at all, because I'm cruel like that. XD BUT... About a month or two ago, as I was writing one of the chapters, I wrote something which you will find familiar when you begin this chapter, and it suddenly gave me an idea to make this. I just decided why not, you know? The characters suffered a shit ton, and I was feeling generous, so I gave them another chance. But that doesn't mean I'm going to always do that with my stories that have bad endings XD I just really loved these characters and thought they deserved better.

Now... The sad part, I guess, is that this ending is not real. It's just an alternate ending, meaning what happened in the previous ending is exactly how the story concluded. That is the true ending, this isn't. Which means, everything that happened to the characters happened for real. Despite that, this chapter is still something to make up for all the sadness, and I hope you enjoy it even if it's not really how the story ended. :)

Okay, final thing-- The song above is basically the theme song of this story 😤 Every time I listen to it and think of these characters, I cry 😭 The few lyrics at the end of this chapter are from the song, so give it a listen! It just gives me this mountain vibe and the lyrics really fit well with the characters

That is all! Please enjoy the end of Dreader's Escape! Thank you for reading 🥺

. . .

"Cannon ballll!"

I sat up with a large gasp as my pool floaty was pushed back due to the waves of someone jumping in. I had gripped onto the straps by instinct, quickly sitting up straight and looking around in shock. That was when I saw Asher's head pop up out of the water, laughing while he pushed his wet hair out of his face. "Hey babe! Finally woke up that drunk girl in our bedroom and got her to go home, or at least back to the lodge," he spoke, continuing to ramble on about the drunk girl, while I just stared at him completely stunned and visibly confused. It was... Like I was seeing a ghost. "She wasn't even that cute either," he went on, laughing again which had my heart clenching.

No... No, no, no. This was a dream. I was... I'm dead. This is the afterlife for me. Right? He's not there. That's not him! How could it be?

Asher stopped rambling and looked at me, frowning a bit. "Hey, you okay? You're as pale as a ghost; sorry if I woke you. You must have been sleeping," he said to me, swimming a bit closer.

Sleeping? Sleeping...

I didn't even really want to accept that this was all happening; I keep hoping this is all just some bad dream and I'll wake up any minute now. Can't it just be a bad dream? Maybe I'm just passed out in the lounge floaty back at the pool right before Asher jumped in and freaked me out. God, I just... I desperately wish that was the case.

Oh my god... A dream. A bad dream.

"Lonnie? You okay?" Asher asked, sounding extremely worried. I felt tears well up in my eyes as I stared at him, hoping to God all of that really was a bad dream and that Asher was actually alive right in front of me. "Lon--"

I instantly jumped off of the pool floaty and quickly waded over to Asher, throwing my arms around him and giving him a tight hug. Asher tensed up, laughing a little as he wrapped his arms around my waist and hugged me back. "Hey, hey... You okay? Did you have a bad dream?" He asked me. I slowly pulled away, tears falling down my face as I stared at him, reaching out and holding his face in my hands. "Y-You're okay! Oh my god... This is real, right? You're real?" I cried, touching him all over just to make sure he really was here right in front of me. Asher chuckled a little and looked at himself. "I mean, I feel real," he joked, looking back up at me, smiling. "And of course I'm okay. What'd you think happened to me?"

Was I really having a bad dream?

I laughed softly, ready to answer him only Patience popped up into my head. Everyone... Everyone is alive, right!?

"Patience," I said quietly, rushing towards the edge of the pool without a second thought, alarming Asher as he called out to me, confused. I didn't even bother getting a towel as I dashed out of the pool room, slipping and sliding a bit on the way, only to immediately run into Taylor. During our collision, we both held onto each other's arms, spinning a bit before settling in one place, Taylor laughing. "Whoa there! I was just coming to get you--"

Before I let him finish, I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him tight, causing him to tense up a bit. "Ah, Av! You're soaking wet!" He groaned, gently patting my back with an uncomfortable look on his face. I honestly didn't care if I was dripping with water and only wearing my swimming trunks. I didn't have time to dry off, I had to see for myself that everyone was really alive.

I quickly pulled away and laughed, reaching out and holding his face. "Oh my god," I said quietly, Taylor staring at me with confusion, brows furrowed. "Uh... Everything okay?" He asked. "Someone's happy," I heard Leo joke from on the couch, surrounded by the others, all of them giving me an amused look. I looked over at everyone gathered around the coffee table, staring up at me with a visibly puzzled look on their faces. Tears fell down my face as I rushed over towards Patience, pulling her up out of her seat and holding her in my arms, making her giggle as she tried to push me away. "You're getting water everywhere!" She exclaimed. "Are you crying, dude?" I heard Charlie ask.

I pulled away from Patience and looked at each one of them, not being able to hold my emotions in any longer as I just collapsed to the floor, face in my hands. "Oh my god... It wasn't real... It was all a dream," I sobbed, body trembling while everyone immediately gathered around me, becoming extremely worried. "Whoa, Lonnie! What's going on?" Mollie asked. Asher came running into the room, towel wrapped around his shoulders as he used it to scrub at his hair and dry it off. "Asher, what did you do!?" I heard Leo grumble, shooting him a glare. "Me!? I didn't do anything! He was like this when I went into the pool," Asher defended, pouting a bit.

Heidi crouched down beside me and reached her hand out, touching my shoulder. "Avalon, are you okay? Talk to us," she spoke softly. I looked up at her, laughing through my tears as I reached out and pushed her hair out of her face, glancing down at her throat where a flash of the x like slices appeared from the memory of my dream. "I-I'm fine, I'm..." I paused, looking back up at her before pulling her in my arms, hugging her tight. "I love you so much... I love all of you so much, you have no idea," I whispered, slowly pulling away and looking up at all of them. "Lonnie, what happened? What's going on?" Mason asked, frowning down at me. I took a deep breath and glanced away, all the details of the dream coming back to me, each of their deaths flashing in my head.

What if that wasn't a dream, but... A premonition? That thought alone had me tense as I quickly stood up, Heidi standing up along with me, frowning. If it was a premonition, I had to to tell them. I could prevent all of that from happening all over again. I mean, there's a chance it's not even a premonition, but just a horrible nightmare. Either way, they needed to know in case it did mean something.

I made everyone gather around in the living room and sit down around me, my eyes quickly flashing to the ouija board that Taylor had laid out on the table. That's right... After Asher had jumped in the pool and nearly knocked me out of my floaty, Taylor was on his way to get us to go to the living room just so we could play with this ouija board. If we played with it now... Would we still contact Emma?

"So what's going on, Lon?" Leo asked, tilting his head with a frown as I wiped away the tears from my eyes. "I... I had a dream," I muttered, placing my hands in my lap and staring down at them, nervously fiddling with my fingers. I then went on to explain every little detail of my dream; the monsters, the ghosts... Their deaths. My death-- What had happened in the end. They all just looked at me, surprised. I could tell on their faces that my dream was making them a bit worried; confused why I would have such a dream in the first place.

"I'm scared that... What I dreamt could have been... Telling me something. Like... What if all that is really going to happen, you know? I don't... I don't want to go through all of that again; I don't want... I don't want to have to watch all of you die for a second time," I explained, feeling the tears well up in my eyes once again. "Please... It's just a dream, Avalon. No such thing as... Premonitions or whatever you called it. Not to mention... Monsters? Ghosts? Yeah right. So stupid," Cassidy scoffed, not once looking up at me as she filed her nails. I stared at her and before anyone else could speak, I figured I might divulge her in some specific details of my dream:

"Cassidy, this whole bitch act of yours is just that; an act," I started, causing her to pause her movements, everyone else going eerily silent as they stared at me with wide eyes before turning their attention on Cassidy, who was now staring at me with wide eyes as well. Her expression then fell into one of anger as she let out a frustrated huff, shaking her head. "Oh, what do you kn--"

"Everything you've ever teased people for is actually because you've secretly liked those things as well. You like reading-- You like playing video games. You acted like a bitch because you secretly struggle with a lot of self hate, and wanted people to see you as perfect in fear of being rejected and hated on like the people you always teased. You were scared people would see you as weird, so you chose to be fake, yet idolized. You wanted to be little miss perfect, but in reality you're just like everybody else; flaws and all," I interrupted, my expression blank as I stared at her. Cassidy went silent and the whole room stayed that way for a few minutes until Leo broke that silence by letting out a loud cackle, throwing his head back. "Oh my... Oh my god! That's rich, that's amazing!" He exclaimed, only to suddenly stop laughing when he realized Cassidy wasn't arguing back.

Everyone looked at her, noticing that her face was completely pale as if she'd just seen all the monsters and ghosts I was talking about.

"H-How... How did you," Cassidy paused and shook her head, her usual demeanor reappearing on her face as she settled with a glare, sighing deeply. "I don't know what you think you know about me, but--"

"I know other things, too... From that dream, I mean. Leo said his big secret was that he was gay, because he didn't think we knew, but... I mean, we all knew that," I went on, smiling a little. Leo gasped, eyes widening. "What!? No, I never officially told you guys I was! How did you know that?" He asked, pouting. Mason sighed and shook his head, rubbing his eyes. "Seriously, Leo?" He mumbled. "I mean... We kind of figured you were gay without you telling us, Leo. You've never shown interests in girls; not in all the years we've known you," Taylor pointed out, chuckling. Leo grumbled to himself and crossed his arms, looking away. "Man... Guess it wasn't that big of a secret then."

I smiled softly and looked at Mollie, frowning. "I... Know your secret, too. Something you've wanted to get off your chest for a while, but... I'll let you tell that when you're ready. You guys... You only started talking about everything you've kept hidden because people were dying all around us... We all thought we might not have ever gotten the chance to say what we've really wanted to say to each other. We thought... If we were going to die, we might as well die knowing we told everyone what we wanted to tell them," I said, glancing away. Mollie's eyes widened and she leaned in close, terrified of what I actually knew about her. "You mean... You know about--"

"Everything with Todd? Yeah I do," I answered. Mollie gasped slightly and sat back in her seat, eyes glancing everywhere as the memories of what happened to her flashed inside her head. "I... Only my sister knows that. I-I... Was going to tell all of you, I just... I didn't know when the time was right, I--"

"It's okay, Mollie. You don't have to get into it now. And, Cassidy... I'm sorry about spilling your secret when it wasn't mine to share. None of your guys' secrets are mine to share, but... I just needed something to get you all to believe me. Maybe that dream wasn't a premonition, but you never know right? If I know these things about you guys, then that dream... Could really mean something," I spoke, fiddling with my fingers.

"Wait, wait... So you're saying... If we play with this ouija board, we're going to contact someone known as Emma? And if we go to the asylum like I apparently planned, and also play the ouija board, we're going encounter a bunch of horrifying shit?" Taylor questioned with furrowed brows, trying to process everything. I sighed and looked up at them, scratching the back of my head. "I'm not saying it'll actually happen, but what if it does?" I replied. Everyone stayed quiet for a second, probably all pondering the thought on what would happened if we really did do all those things we did in my dream.

I heard Asher clear his throat, then he sat up beside me, looking at me with a small smile. "Okay, so... How about we call that Lola girl? The one you said is friends with Kathy's friends. If she's real, that is. I mean... We can go talk to all of them, and she can maybe come down here and help ease your mind about all this. What do you think?" He suggested. I smiled at him and nodded, staring into his eyes.

Asher and I have kissed; I mean... Before I had this "dream." He said he was open to experimenting, but... The feelings in that dream; I can't help but think of them. Asher and I fell for each other in the dream-- We started dating. Is that real, too? Are my feelings for Asher really that deep to the point I would date him? I mean... They have to be if I had a dream that ended up with us like that. After that dream, now I can't help but to look at Asher in a different light. Even before the dream, the kiss we shared I didn't hate it. Asher didn't hate it either. At the party, Heidi helped me see that thinking of Asher as like... An annoying older brother could have been a way of me hiding how I really felt. Which I thought was true, yet I still couldn't decipher my feelings. My heart was open; scared, but open.

Even now... It's still open, only a lot more than it was before this dream. Even when I explained all details of my dream, I left out the romance part of it. I felt that shouldn't come up until later. Right now, the main issue is seeing if the things that happened in my dream are going to actually happen. Or if only parts of it were true, like the secrets. The feelings.

We decided not to play with the ouija board that night, as the others didn't want to do anything that would further freak me out more than I already was. When Charlie had called Kathy the next morning and put her on speaker, Kathy was a little surprised that we were calling so soon, given that we just had the party the night before. She was also confused on how we knew about Brody and his friends, seeing as she never told us about them, and they didn't come to our party. The others were a bit shocked that I actually knew about Brody's existence just from a dream, and it kind of freaked them out. I just made up a lie about how we knew of some of the people that explored Dreader's Asylum, and that Brody and his group were one of them. I told her we were thinking about going there and we just wanted to know if it was a good idea, and if they maybe knew of anyone that was a psychic medium who could help us out a bit. It was a crazy lie that I had to come up with on the spot, but Kathy bought it and was more than happy to let Brody and them know to come over here, and to bring one of their psychic friends.

It didn't take too long for the group to come over to our cabin, and I couldn't help but sigh with relief and look at them all with smiles at just seeing that they were really alive, and they were real people.

"Hey, I'm Brody! You must have watched some of our YouTube videos exploring Dreader's Asylum and that's how you know of us, right?" Brody greeted, smiling at me. I paused and awkwardly cleared my throat, giving him a nervous smile. "Right! Yeah, I did!"

Shit I forgot they had a YouTube channel, but that just makes the lie even more believable.

"Um... We were thinking about going there, but we weren't sure. Wanted to know what your experience was. Also, we... Wanted to know if uh... You could sense anything here. O-One of you is a psychic medium, right?" I replied, shifting nervously.

Lola raised her hand and smiled at me. "I am... I'm Lola, it's nice to meet you," she introduced. I smiled back at her and glanced at Samuel, memories of my experience with him flashing in my head. How I sat in a bathtub full of blood right after the incident; numb and in shock. I cleared my throat and looked back at Lola. "It's nice to meet you, too," I said.

"Well we've got a lot of videos of our time at Dreader's Escape! I think we have a few you might not have seen on our YouTube channel," Brody informed us. "Lola's never been to the asylum though, but I don't think we need her to tell us something is there given the evidence we've caught!"

"Well... I do feel something in this house," Lola spoke, looking around. My eyes widened and I immediately tensed up, feeling sick to my stomach. No, it's not real. The dream isn't real. It couldn't have been real. She shouldn't feel anything, right?

"Wh-What do you feel?" I asked, the others giving me a worried look. Lola hummed and walked around, frowning a bit. "Something... Really bad happened here. But I can feel that Dreader's Escape already has a really bad history to it as it is. I can feel all the terrors that took place in this house, but... There's nothing here but memories. Bad things happened here, yes... But the weight of what happened is all I feel. I don't sense any spirits," she answered. I sighed with relief, feeling myself let out a small chuckle before quickly covering my mouth as the happy tears threatened to escape. "Th-That's good! I was a little scared that... You know, given all the stories surrounding these mountains, I didn't want to stay in a place that would probably have a bunch of... I-I don't know, evil spirits?" I spoke quietly, letting out a nervous laugh. Lola giggled and shook her head, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "Well you don't have to worry about that. There's no spirits in this house; certainly no evil ones. Now in the asylum? I'm not sure, I've never been there."

"Oh there certainly is something crazy in that hospital, that's for sure," Lacy admitted, giggling. They ended up showing us one of the videos and it was exactly like in my dream; even had Simone's voice in it. Everything was to a T, but that just made me worry even more. Emma may not be residing in this house as a spirit, but that doesn't mean there's no evil in the asylum. No monsters.

"Duuude... That's some crazy shit!" Charlie exclaimed, laughing excitedly only to be smacked on the arm by Mollie, who motioned her head towards me. Charlie looked at me, seeing just how tense and terrified I looked at witnessing what Brody and his friends captured, causing her to frown. They knew how scared I was due to the dream I had.

"It was crazy as hell! You guys are wanting to go there, right? We could come with you! We've been wanting to go back," Louis replied with a smile. The others looked at me, concerned looks on their faces. At this point, it was up to me on whether we should go or not. Maybe... Going was the best option. I had to know if the monsters were real... If the spirits were really out to kill us. The things that happened in this house were true, yes, but Emma's spirit wasn't haunting it. That could mean the other spirits that Brody and his group captured aren't necessarily a threat, right?

I cleared my throat and looked at Asher and the others who were waiting for me to give an answer. They didn't want to answer without knowing if I was okay with it or not.

I looked at Brody and his friends, knowing what had to be done. I had to go there. It was stupid of me for wanting to, because if I did this and only ended up making everything happen all over again, then I'm never gonna stop hating myself for it. Maybe... I should be the only one to go, then. If it ends up in me dead with Asher and the others alive, then... I think I'll be fine with that. If worse comes to worse and the monsters show up, I'll sacrifice myself so that Brody and his friends can get out of there alive.

I smiled at them and told them to give me a moment before turning around to my friends and motioning for them to follow me into the kitchen. "What are you thinking, Lonnie?" Mason asked, getting pulled towards Leo who had hopped up on the counter, giving me a concerned look. "I... I think I should be the only one to go," I answered. "What are you talking about?" Taylor demanded, frowning at me. I hugged myself and looked away, biting my bottom lip nervously. "Well... If the monsters and evil spirits end up being real and... We end up contacting them, then... I want to be the only one that goes. I'm not going to witness a repeat of everything that happened in my dream. I'm not going to watch you guys die again," I replied, bringing my attention back to all of them. "So what? If that shit's real, then it's okay for you to die in our place?" Leo snapped, glaring at me.

"Yes!" I exclaimed, glaring back at him. They all frowned at me, making me huff in frustration. "I'd rather it be me than all of you... I'm not going to let it happen again, I'd rather die than watch the rest of you get tortured the way you did. I-I was the only one left out of all of you... I-I don't want to experience that again. I don't want to end up back in that institution, crying everyday because I couldn't save any of you. At least now, I'd be able to, because I have the upper hand here in knowing what the outcome may be."

"No! No, I won't let you!" Patience yelled, rushing over to me and hugging me tight. "She's right, Lonnie. It's not fair to us if we lose you, too. You think we'd let you do that just to protect us?" Mollie added, placing her hand on her hip and giving me a serious glare. Heidi nodded in agreement, shifting nervously. "We protect each other," she said softly. "Besides... You said in your dream, this place was haunted by an evil spirit named Emma, right? The one who killed you in the end? If she's not here, wouldn't that mean the rest of the mountain is safe too?" Mason concluded, crossing his arms.

I looked between each of them as they spoke, frowning and stroking Patience's hair, looking down at her as well. "But... You saw the video Brody and the others took. Simone is real, she's there... Maybe not all of what happened in my dream is real, but that part certainly was. If her spirit is there and they contacted those other spirits, and also heard that scream, then... There's a chance there is evil there. That the monsters are there. That's a chance I'm not willing to take with you guys," I mumbled. We stood there in silence for a moment, everyone frowning and shifting nervously, not knowing what to do. They knew there was no way they were going to convince me to let them come with.

"Then I'll go with you," Asher finally spoke up, all of us turning to him. "Wh-What? No, I can't--"

"I'll go with you. I'm not asking. At least then you'll have one of us there to protect you if needed," Asher interrupted, giving me a serious glare. I tried to speak, but no words came out. I didn't know what to do. Asher was just as determined as I was; wanting to keep me safe, too.

"Hang on," Taylor said, rushing out of the kitchen and back into the living room, all of us immediately following behind, curious as to what he was going to do. "Brody," Taylor called out, the others turning to him with a smile. "Yeah, what's up?"

"Do you have... I don't know, any communication tools? Besides cell phones, since I don't think reception is going to be that good all the way up in the mountains. Something that'll make it to where we could hear you guys the whole way," Taylor questioned. "Oh yeah! We've got walkie talkies and we can fix 'em up to where they're constantly on on our part. That way you'll be able to hear whatever is going on," Samuel replied, smiling. Taylor nodded then looked at me. "If you're not gonna allow us to come with you, then at least let Asher. We'll be listening, got it? If... If anything happens, whether you like it or not, I'm going to head there and get you. The both of you. Alright?" He said to us. I frowned and nodded, jumping a bit in surprise when Taylor pulled me in and hugged me tight, hand pressed to the back of my head. "I know I'm probably worrying for nothing, but... I believe you and the dream you had. If you're that worried over it and that worried over us, you can go... But at least have one of us go with you. At least let Asher, okay?" He expressed, voice softly as he slowly pulled me away and looked down at me.

I'm glad my friends believe me... But even I don't want Asher to be in danger-- Hell, I don't want Brody and his friends to be in danger either. But they're not gonna let me leave, not without one of them. It made me happy that they were so worried.

I nodded once again at Taylor, giving him a sad smile. Taylor sighed and held my face in his hands, patting my cheek. "Okay... Okay, good," he whispered. "Is everything alright?" Alice asked, tilting her head at us with a worried look. We all looked at her and smiled, nodding our heads. "Y-Yeah, it's... It's just gonna be Asher and I going with you. Just to see what it's like; that's why we wanted to be able to communicate back and forth," I answered. Brody and his group all exchanged odd glances but shrugged, not seeing any reason to question it. "Alright, that's cool! I get that going to haunted places can be a bit scary to some, so it's cool if you wanna approach it a bit slowly," Brody replied.

Sure, we'll go with that.

After all that was said, Samuel got the communication devices and fixed it up to where Taylor and the others would hear us at all times. Everyone was quick to give me a hug and reassure me that things would be okay. That my dream wasn't real and we had nothing we needed to worry about. I just hoped they were right, but still... They gave me hugs as if it might be the last time they'd see me; even Patience was crying. I told her things would be fine and I'd be back before they know it. I just really hope it wasn't a lie.

"Alright then. Let's go," Brody said, giving the others a worried glance, probably wondering why they all looked sad and terrified. I didn't think my dream would shake them up that much, but in a way... I'm kinda glad it did. It just meant they believed me.

We all started making our way up the mountain, Brody and his friends talking and laughing with each other, wondering how exciting their second time here would be. I stayed silent, staring down at my feet as I walked, Asher holding the walkie talkie in his hand. "Something's bothering you," I heard Lola speak up, causing me to jump a bit as I turned towards her, noticing her giving me a small smile. "What do you mean?" I replied. Lola hummed and looked forward, placing her hands behind her back as she walked. "I can tell... Something's eating you. I saw the way your friends were looking at you; almost as if you were walking into a warzone and weren't going to make it back," she concluded.

I sighed and shoved my hands into my jacket pockets. "You kind of hit the nail right on the head. It's just... I had this dream. Almost like a premonition, but I'm not sure if it was. I mean, some of the things that happened in that dream were true... Like the secrets my friends told me," I started to explain. "Ah, I see. It has to do with the mountains, right? The asylum? Something horrible must have happened in your dream, so bad that you didn't want your friends coming along, hm?" Lola questioned. I nodded, frowning and glancing over at Asher who was chatting with Samuel and Louis, laughing along with them. "Yeah... Pretty much. That's why I wanted to know if... You could sense anything at the cabin. Because in my dream, the thing that was there... Killed me."

"I get it. I guess that means you never did watch Brody's YouTube videos, right? You knew about us all along because of your dream? That much was pretty obvious, I mean... I saw the way you looked at us. When our eyes met, I could tell you knew me somehow."

I nodded. "Yeah... Yeah, I did know you guys. It's weird looking at you now, knowing we kind of became friends, yet... You have no idea who I am, because this is actually your first time meeting me."

Lola leaned her head forward, looking at me with a small frown. "I'm sorry... So what exactly happened in your dream? You don't have to go into detail, but... Just give me a brief rundown so I know if there's something I need to watch out for."

"Well," I paused and scratched the back of my head. "In my dream, there were these things called the Betrayed. They were... These mutations created by the doctors at the asylum. A creation from all their twisted experiments. Years of isolation within these mountains turned them into these dark, demented beings. They were terrifying to look at and... They killed a lot of people here. You guys included. There were also evil spirits that were practically commanding them, and these evil spirits were influenced heavily by a dark entity that was created among all the chaos. God... It all sounds pretty crazy, doesn't it?"

"It does," Lola stated blankly, practically making me do a double take as I stared at her, only causing her to giggle. "Sorry! Just being honest. But... As crazy as it does sound, I still believe you. After all, as someone who sees... Sometimes terrifying things on a daily basis, you start to believe that maybe there's more out there than just... Ghosts and demons. We just haven't found them yet. Now whether this place actually has monsters or not, I'm not certain. I don't... Feel anything like that here. I don't feel some sick, terrifying force haunting these mountains. Honestly, the only monsters that were ever here on these mountains are the ones that did all those things to the patients at the hospital. So... I don't think you have to worry, Avalon."

I felt myself start to relax at her words. I mean... In my dream, when we were on our way to the asylum, Lola was already getting a bad feeling, and right now she seems totally fine. It doesn't look like she's terrified of anything at the moment, which just made me really believe that everything would be okay.

"So... You don't sense any evil?" I asked her. Lola smiled softly at me and shook her head. "No, I don't. I sense a lot of negativity and I know a lot of bad things happened here, but... That's about it," she answered with a shrug. I smiled back at her and let out a relieved sigh, laughing a little. "God... You have no idea how amazing it sounds to hear that, especially from you. But... What about the spirits in the hospital? The videos Brody took are real, I saw those in my dream."

"Hmm, well... I won't know until we get there, but if there was any danger, I think I'd be able to sense it by now."

Everything was going to be okay... It felt like it. It felt like everything was finally going to be okay. In my dream, everyone died and there was so much I wanted to do with them that I no longer couldn't. I'll have that chance.

I looked at Asher, who was still smiling at the others. He seemed to notice my staring, because he looked right at me and smiled big which instantly had my heart melting.

Asher. So much I wanted to do with him and... I'll get that chance.

Without even thinking, I immediately reached out and grabbed Asher's hand, holding it tight and causing his eyes to widen a bit. His face reddened slightly and he smiled, interlocking our fingers together before giving me one of those cocky winks of his. Such a dummy.

I fucking love this dummy.

We had made our way up to the asylum and despite what Lola said, I still couldn't help but be nervous. I mean, it was like having PTSD flashes of something that never actually happened, yet it was still traumatizing... Like a false memory. I could see the worried looks on both Asher and Lola's faces, but I was kind of happy to see that Brody and them looked like they were having a pretty good time. It was a nice sight, a better ending for this group who had lost so much. A sibling, a best friend... A lover. I was glad that it seemed like history had rewritten itself. This is the ending they should have had.

This is the ending we all deserved.

As the group was setting up equipment, joking and laughing with each other, I started to look around the hospital, making my way towards the room I first explored within my dream. There was something I had to a see; a face that comforted me.

I was still on edge walking around by myself, but at the same time, I didn't feel that horrible and draining weight on top of me. I felt relaxed and not as terrified, which I think was a pretty good sign.

When I walked into that room, I quickly went towards the files and began to sort through them until I landed on one that looked the most familiar out of all the others. I opened up the file, smiling to myself when I saw Simone's photo. Of course, she looked just as broken in that photo as she did in my dream. It was nice to see that she really did exist.

"Is that someone from your dream?" Lola asked, approaching me. I looked at her then back at the photo of Simone, nodding. "Yeah... This is Simone. She helped me out a lot in my dream," I answered. Lola smiled and looked at the file in my hands, examining the contents on what happened to Simone. I glanced over at her, nervously clearing my throat before looking back down at the file. "Is... Is she here? Are any... Spirits here?" I asked her.

"There are spirits here... I think Simone is here, too, I just don't know where. But... There's nothing evil in this hospital, Avalon. I mean, there's a lot of negative energy and a few angry spirits, but... Evil like in your dream? No. It's safe here. No monsters either."

Holy shit... It really was just a dream. We're all safe. We're able to actually leave this place without worrying about being followed and killed later. I could cry, I'm so happy. Everything's going to be okay. I get to spend the rest of my life with all of my friends; the most important people in my life.

The rest of our time there, we did experience a few paranormal encounters, which at times had me tensing up, but I was able to calm down pretty fast when nothing horrible happened. Everything I was expecting to happen that happened in my dream, never happened. At times I felt myself looking around for Simone, but I didn't see her anywhere. I even walked back into that office room and searched around for her necklace, debating on whether or not I should take it. Asher said in my dream that taking her necklace was a good way to pay my respects, and that it was better than leaving something so beautiful to rot in a place like this. But I wasn't sure if it was right to take it this time.

I had held Simone's necklace in my hands, frowning down at it before taking a quick glance around to see if anyone was around. When I saw that I was alone, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, squeezing the necklace in my hand. "H-Hey Simone... I uh... I know you're here. Y-You don't know me, but I know you. My name is Avalon and, um... I had this crazy dream and you were in it. You helped me and did everything you could to save my life, and I just... I wanted to thank you for that, even if it never really happened. I know about what your parents did to you, and... I can sympathize and relate to it. My parents didn't treat me right, and... In my dream, you desperately wanted to save me because no one was there to save you," I began, opening my eyes and glancing around. "Is... Is it okay if I take this necklace? I don't think it belongs here, not after what this place did to you and pushed you to do. You deserved so much better than what happened to you."

It was silent. She didn't once appear or answer, and... I didn't really expect her to. There's no danger here, so she doesn't feel the need to try and save someone like her, or even talk to someone like her. I didn't want to take this necklace without her permission, so... I placed it back down on top of the desk, feeling a little defeated and sad that I couldn't contact her.

Sad, because she didn't know me. She had no idea who I was or what we went through together.

"Simone, I... I'm sorry you suffered so much. I just hope you're not suffering anymore," I said, glancing over the room one last time before making my way towards the door. Before I could leave, I heard something fall on the ground, which instantly had me turning around to see what it was. There on the floor was Simone's necklace, right on top of her file, which had opened up and revealed the contents I had read previously. I furrowed my brows as I approached it, crouching down and picking up the necklace, which shouldn't have fallen over here due to where I had placed it on the desk a few feet away. The file wasn't previously on the floor either.

"Thank you," I heard someone say, which had me quickly looking up, only for me to lock eyes with Simone who was crouched down right in front of me. She hesitated for a bit, glancing down at the necklace in my hand, then back up at me. "You... You keep it. Your eyes, it... It matches," she expressed. I smiled at her and nodded, squeezing the necklace tight in my hand. "I'll take good care of it," I told her. Simone smiled and said nothing else as she vanished into thin air. I just hope that I was able to give her a bit of peace. I hope that she knows that as long as I have her necklace, she'll never truly be alone.

I smiled to myself and stood up, hooking the chain of the necklace around my neck and letting it fall into place. I felt so much better about things now, and even though I was a bit sad that me and Simone didn't have the connection we had in my dream, I was still happy that I at least got to see her. I was happy that I was able to keep her necklace, which had given me comfort so many times throughout my dream.

"Hey, everything alright in here?" I heard Asher ask from the doorway. I turned to look at him, smiling and nodding my head. "Yeah! Yeah, everything's fine," I answered. Asher looked a bit worried at first, but he soon relaxed and smiled back at me. "Okay. Let's get out of here, then," he said, motioning for me to follow him.

After everything I experienced now, I felt relief. I really could leave. Everything felt like it was going to be okay.

We were all able to go back safely to our cabins, and I couldn't thank Lola enough for coming down and easing my mind about things. The minute I got back to our cabin, I hugged everyone as tight as I could, actually crying a bit with how happy I was. Despite knowing the place was safe, everyone agreed that we wouldn't do too much paranormal investigating, only because they knew the I was still a bit sensitive and paranoid about the idea after the dream I had. Still, that didn't stop us from having as much fun as we could on this trip.

It soon came to be our last day here at the cabin, and the others did their best to avoid the topic of the horrors from my dream. They wanted to give me time to heal and come to terms that all of this was actually real and I wasn't dreaming again. That dream really fucked me up, and I was terrified I was going to wake up any moment and end up reliving that horrible nightmare where everyone just dies right in front of me. So I was thankful that they didn't bring it up again and instead wanted me to focus on having as much fun as I could on this trip before we head back home.

Currently, it was nighttime and I was in my shared room with Asher, sitting on the bed and watching TV while chowing down on some candy. This was our last night here, and we were going to be heading out first thing tomorrow morning. I had already gotten done with my shower and was now just waiting for Asher to finish up his so we could get ready for bed soon.

After about a few more minutes, Asher came out of the bathroom in just his sweatpants with a towel around his neck as he used one side of it to continue drying his hair. I couldn't help but glance over at his glistening, toned body, the moments of our time together in my dream replaying in my head. I mean... We had sex. I can remember every little detail about it, yet it didn't actually happen. Part of me wasn't sure if I wanted that to happen for real, but... Another part of me really wanted to be with Asher like that again. I was just terrified to bring it up, since I wasn't sure if he felt the same way like he did in my dream. I mean, we've only kissed and haven't really said we were going to experiment with each other, just that we were open to anything.

I quickly turned my gaze back to the TV before Asher could catch me staring at him, as he'd tease me for sure. "So, Lonnie Llama," Asher spoke up, getting my attention so I was looking back up at him again. He was still scrubbing his fluffy, brown hair with the side of his towel as he looked at the TV, but not really watching it. "About your dream... I know you probably don't want to talk about it, so just tell me if you don't wanna answer, but... I'm just curious."

I raised a brow at him, his eyes locking with mine once they left the TV. "Go ahead," I said to him, letting him know it was okay to ask. Thanks to all the fun we've had on this trip, I've slowly started to become less afraid of my dream becoming a reality. Still, I've had a couple nightmares about it and I'm still trying to heal from the realness of it all, but it's becoming a bit easier to talk about now.

Asher sat down on the side of the bed, one leg under him while the other dangled off the edge. "I was just a bit curious about the deaths, I guess. You said we all died, right? And you witnessed all of our deaths?" He asked. I frowned and nodded, putting another piece of candy in my mouth. "Yeah," I answered as I chewed on the piece of candy, turning my attention back to the TV. "Who died first?" Asher questioned.

"Cassidy."

Asher chortled a bit, then covered his mouth when I looked at him, confused on how he found that funny. He just shook his head, waving me off. "Sorry, sorry. It's not funny, it's just... Very typical, huh? It's always the "bitch" that dies first in horror movies, right?" He said, making me roll my eyes but smile a bit. "Sometimes, yeah... But Cassidy isn't a bitch. Just misunderstood," I replied, watching Asher raise his brows, amused. "Didn't think I'd ever hear you stick up for Cassidy... But yeah, you're right. I mean, after you said the secret she told you in your dream, she's become a lot less... Bitchy. She's actually being a lot nicer, in her own way at least. It's a little unsettling, to be honest," he admitted with a small chuckle. I just smiled at him, watching him shift awkwardly for a second before sitting all the way on the bed, criss cross right beside me. "Who died last?" He finally asked after a few short moments of silence.

I frowned and looked down at the candy in my lap. "You did," I muttered, sighing. "Before you, it was Taylor."

"Oh yeah? How did I, uh... How did I die?"

I looked back up at him, noticing that he was frowning as well. "You... You were bleeding out," I looked away, letting out a shaky breath. "I tried to get you into the car with me, but... You were so weak that you couldn't even move, and I wasn't able to drag you to the car without both of us getting attacked. Plus you were bleeding out so much that... Even if you got into the car, you wouldn't have survived long enough to get into town. There was way too much blood and you were already becoming so pale, and breathing weakly. You... You distracted the monsters for me just so I could get away."

Asher smiled softly and scooted closer to me, tilting his head. "Sounds like me," he replied. I furrowed my brows, all of the memories flooding back to me. "I-I," I paused, feeling the tears well up in my eyes. "I wanted so badly... T-To just lay there with you. We all tried so hard to get out of there together just so we could get the mountain shut down, that way no one else would have to die... B-But in the end, I couldn't even do that. They thought I was crazy and... That I killed all of you. I-I was so alone and scared, Asher... I stayed in an isolation room, crying constantly because I hated myself for leaving you. You wanted me to live so badly, but I couldn't bare it... I practically begged to be killed because I didn't want to live knowing I was going to be alone forever until the day I died. Knowing I wouldn't get to wake up and see you again, see all of you. I-I-I should have laid there with you--"

"Hey, hey," Asher quickly cut me off, scooting even closer to me so that we were practically touching, then immediately grabbing my face, turning my head so I was looking at him. "It's okay," he whispered, wiping my tears away. "It was a dream. I'm fine, Patience is fine-- Everyone is fine. We're all alive and you don't have to worry about being alone anymore. As long as I'm here, you'll never be alone."

I placed my hands over his that were cupping my face, just relishing in the feeling of his touch, something I was terrified I'd never get to feel again. I laughed a little and leaned my face into his hands, stroking the top of them with my thumb. "Heh... Do you... Do you remember when you first said you loved me? It was after we had been friends for a few months," I spoke. Asher smiled and pushed my hair out of my face. "Of course. That was the first time I'd ever seen you so worried over a twisted ankle. Every time I'd get hurt, you'd never leave my side; always babied the hell out of me," he replied.

"You're not any better. You're like a sad, clingy puppy every time I'm not feeling well," I joked. Asher pouted, blushing a little sheepishly as he released my face and scratched the back of his neck. "That's 'cause you're my best friend; the best one I've ever had in all nineteen years of my life. I'd go to hell and back for you," he expressed. I smiled and looked down, staring at the candy in my lap. "You know... There's a few other details I left out about my dream," I admitted quietly. Asher grinned and leaned towards me. "Yeah? Anything juicy, like dirty secrets about the others?" He asked, causing me to laugh a little and shake my head, feeling my cheeks get a warm at the details I was thinking about.

"No, actually... It's about us," I mumbled, pursing my lips. Asher went quiet for a second, then smiled. "Yeah? What about?" He questioned curiously. I took a deep breath and grabbed the candy bag out of my lap, setting it down on the bedside table before fully turning towards Asher, remaining in my criss cross position. "Um... So, in my dream... We actually started," I paused, glancing away and practically feeling the dark, warm blush on my face. "We started... Dating," I finally managed to spit out. Asher's face turned a dark red color as well and he immediately looked away, rubbing the back of his head nervously. "Really..? H-How did that... Happen?" He asked. I awkwardly cleared my throat and looked down, playing with the draw strings on my pants. "Well, uh... You said you were confused about your sexuality-- That this guy from PE class who you thought was cute made you start questioning it. And... We just... We kind of wanted to experiment with each other and that experimenting led to... Feelings," I explained.

Asher looked at me and sucked in a nervous breath, clearing his throat. "I mean... I did say I was open to it, you know? That I'm curious and... If your dream was right about secrets and stuff, then maybe it's right about other things; like us dating. I just... Do you think it'll ruin things? I love our friendship and how close we are, but will dating make it weird?"

I smiled and bit my bottom lip, shaking my head. "I-I mean... It didn't make things weird in my dream, but I'm not sure how it'll be in reality. I'm willing to try, though... I-I liked everything we did together in the dream. That dream makes me see you in a different light, but... I guess I'm a little scared that that's all it was; just a dream. That it won't feel the same," I explained. Asher hesitantly reached out and touched my knee, causing me to look up at him. "Should we kiss then? If it feels like it did in your dream, then maybe it wasn't just a dream to you, but reality. Like... Your conscious telling you something," he suggested. I frowned and glanced away. "What about you? I mean, you don't have romantic feelings for me; at least not like you did in my dream. So would this be something you're okay with maybe pursuing?"

Asher nodded, reaching out and pushing a few locks of my hair behind my ear. "Yeah. If it's you, then yeah. As long as it doesn't change anything and is... Just like adding a few new perks to our already great relationship, then... Yeah. Kissing you at the gas station and then that one time here felt really nice and... I think I could get used to doing that a lot more. I'm willing to give this a shot. I've always found you cute anyway-- I told you that when I first said I loved you."

I laughed lightly and reached out, placing my hand against the side of Asher's neck. He smiled at me and leaned in, slowly closing the space between us and pressing his lips to mine. I smiled against his lips and pulled him closer, that same excitement and emotion from my dream flooding right back to me.

I missed this. It felt like my dream, but better. Because this was real and I get to experience falling for Asher all over again.

Asher slowly pulled away, blushing deeply and letting out a nervous chuckle. "Wow, that... That had a lot more spark to it than the first time," he admitted.

Damn fucking right it did.

. . .

Going back home and seeing my dad as if I hadn't seen him in years was amazing. Knowing that I was able to bring Patience back with me and didn't have to see him cry about losing his children just made my heart swell. Hell, I even enjoyed going back to school after Christmas break-- Which, by the way, I spent Christmas with all my friends as well as their families, seeing as all our parents are close to one another. It was like all of us were one big family.

After about a week or so, me and Asher got even closer, relationship wise. Our friends knew we were experimenting, but I wasn't going to be the one that asked Asher out and asked for us to put an official label on our relationship. I knew how I really felt about Asher, especially after that dream I had, but I needed to be sure that Asher felt the same way. I wanted him to be the one to come to me, saying he wanted to be more. Even with us just experimenting, Asher still didn't go off and get with other people, despite us not being boyfriends or anything. He said he really wanted to focus on what we had going on and that it just didn't feel right to fool around with others even if we weren't official.

That actually made me happy.

Our experimentation with one another was kind of on the down-low, no one at school knew about it. It was more or less something we did when people weren't looking, like sneaking a kiss every now and then in the hallway or gym class. When we hung out together with the others, or just with each other, that's when we were more affectionate in a romantic manner. Still, I kinda knew how Mason and Leo felt about keeping their relationship a secret at school. Even though Asher and I weren't dating, I still wanted to be able to do all these things with him during school, and let everyone know that we were somewhat together, just... Not officially.

But then something happened at school one day. I noticed Asher becoming a little distant and he was secretly discussing things with the others, looking a bit nervous. It made me worried that maybe he was realizing this whole thing wasn't for him, and it was just too weird since we've always been best friends who were affectionate, but not like this. That maybe he thought this was too much.

Honestly, noticing him distancing himself from me during school kind of put me in a really sad mood. I know I should have prepared myself and maybe expected that Asher would want to call things off, but I was just too hooked up on how nice it all felt and how it was like I was reliving the wonderful parts of my dream all over again. Still... If Asher wasn't comfortable with this anymore, then I had to push my feelings for him aside, because his happiness was more important. I didn't want to hold onto him when he didn't want to be held on to. It wasn't fair of me to do that.

I'm sure the others noticed my change of mood during school, especially when we got to lunch and Asher didn't show up for a little bit. It also looked like the others were hiding something from me, which seemed to make it hard for them to try to cheer me up in fear of giving something away when it wasn't for them to say.

I was picking at the food on my tray when I heard Asher make his entrance, rushing over towards our table where we all usually sat. The others were grinning at him for some odd reason, and I felt kinda bummed that I wasn't apart of whatever they had been discussing without me. Still, there had to be a reasonable explanation for all this , right? They've never done this before, so why now?

All my questions seemed to be answered the minute Asher climbed up onto our lunch table, causing the others to pull away their trays so he wouldn't step in their food. I looked at him, confused and noticed that he looked really nervous for some odd reason. Him standing up on the table seemed to gather the attention of everyone in the cafeteria, even the teachers on lunch duty were staring at him, ready to make their way over and tell him to get off the table. Mason was one of the teachers here in the cafeteria and he was able to call them off, giving some wild excuse for why Asher was standing on top of the table in the first place, which seemed to hold them off for a bit.

Asher loudly cleared his throat, this time making everyone go completely silent as all eyes fell on him. For a guy who was normally overly confident about literally anything, he seemed extremely nervous as he pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and unfolded it. I got ready to ask what he was doing, but Charlie slapped me on my arm before I could speak, making me give her a confused look as well.

"Attention everyone! I... I want to say something, and I want everyone to listen to me. I don't care if some of you think of me differently after I say this; get grossed out if you want. But I feel something like this is something that needs to be known by everyone, because why the hell not? Anyway," he paused and looked down at the piece of paper in his hand, clearing his throat again while shifting awkwardly. "The... The day I met you, everything in my life changed. I never knew I could feel such comfort around a single person, yet there you were; a dorky, but very reserved guy that made me smile like no other person could do. Our personalities were a lot different from one another, but despite that, we shared a lot in common and seemed to have one hell of a connection. We were able to balance the other out and act completely ridiculous around each other without any care in what others would think. You were everything to me-- Are everything to me. When I first met you, I saw a broken boy, terrified of the world and the people in it. But slowly, you let that wall of yours down that you spent so long building up, and I felt so lucky that I was the one able to bring out your happy self; something you thought you could never be again. I felt lucky that everyday, I got to witness you smile when it was something you rarely showed anybody else, aside from your family and Leo."

Oh god... He's talking about me. I could already start to feel the tears well up in my eyes, and my heart was pounding loudly in my chest.

"Eventually, you let that entire wall down once you were surrounded by a group of people who adored you. And dammit, they had every right to adore you. You're sweet, funny, sometimes childish... And just overall amazing. Your laugh never failed to make my heart swell and everyday I look at you, I think I'm the luckiest guy ever to be able to call you my best friend. I want nothing more in this world than to continue listening to that laugh and to continue witnessing that smile of yours until the day I die. You're someone I want to have in my life forever; someone I want to spend the rest of my life with. At first, I always thought you'd be the best man at my wedding and I'd be the best man at yours, but now I think that's going to take a wild turn and we'll end up being the ones at the altar together. I know this is probably the cheesiest I've ever sounded, but when it comes to you, I'll embarrass the shit out of myself just to get my point across on about how much I love you. Like always, I'll make sure you hear those words everyday, because... I do love you. I love you so much, it hurts," Asher paused and looked down at me, noticing the tears falling down my face which caused him to smile softly. He immediately folded the paper back up and stuffed it in his pocket, crouching down in front of me and reaching a hand out to wipe away one of my tears.

"Avalon Pearson, you are everything and more to me and I want you to never forget that. If you even slightly forget and think you're not important to me, I'm going to remind you every second until it sticks. I'm going to do everything in my power to keep you safe and make you feel loved... I love you, my little Lonnie Llama and I think you'd make me the happiest man alive, more so than you already make me, if... If you become my boyfriend and one day, hopefully, my husband. I'm sorry if everything I'm saying is too much and makes you uncomfortable, but--"

"You idiot," I interrupted, practically feeling everyone tense up around me, hearing some people let out a small gasp as if I was about to totally ruin Asher's whole career. Asher even tensed up a bit, but relaxed when I smiled and stood up, making him stand up as well and hold his hand out for me as I climbed up on top of the table. I stumbled a bit, feeling slightly wobbly from the slight change in height, but Asher held me by my arms and helped me stand up straight in front of him. "Everything you say is too much... But that's just one of the things I love about you; always speaking your mind even if it comes out cringey as hell," I said to him, causing him to laugh a bit, blushing deeply. I reached out and started playing a bit with his hair, happy tears still falling down my face. "I can be a lot more sappy and cringey, just say the word," he joked, grinning at me.

I laughed softly, shaking my head. "I think I'm good for now, but... I wouldn't mind more later," I replied, flashing him a grin as well. Asher laughed and stepped closer to me. "So... Will you?"

I raised a teasing brow at him. "Mister Asher Chambers... Are you asking me to be your boyfriend?"

Asher reached out and pushed my hair out of my face. "Why yes, Mister Avalon Pearson... Would you so do me the honor?" He joked in a very dramatic accent. "Ah, fucking dorks!" Charlie yelled, smirking at us. "Gayyy!" Leo yelled as well, laughing. I rolled my eyes and wrapped my arms loosely around Asher's neck, tilting my head at him. "You don't even need to ask, you know? I'm obviously going to say yes," I told him. Asher smiled and leaned down towards me. "Mmm... Good," he whispered before capturing my lips with his own as we then shared a passionate kiss. "Yeah! Woo-hoo!!" Leo and Mollie cheered, standing up and clapping loudly. The rest of our group at our table jumped up as well, whistling and clapping along. A bunch of other people in the cafeteria surprisingly did the same, cheering for us loudly and going on about how sweet this whole thing was, while some others looked a bit uncomfortable or disgusted. I honestly didn't care who all was giving us dirty looks, I mean... I'd have cared before, but right now I was too focused on Asher and how absolutely smitten I was with him.

Mason walked over to us, laughing and motioning for us to get off the table. "Alright, show's over," he said to us, Asher and I pulling away from each other, smiling before getting off the table. Mason patted Asher on the back and leaned in close to us. "Congrats, gays," he whispered to us, flashing us a teasing grin before walking off. "That was probably the cutest thing I've ever seen, omg," Leo squealed, clapping his hands excitedly. Asher laughed nervously, both of us taking a seat at the table. "You have no idea how nervous I was, I think I almost pissed myself," he admitted, rubbing his face with his hands. "Oh yeah, dude... He was freaking out all day, I've never seen him that anxious before," Taylor joked, popping a fry into his mouth while grinning. I smiled and looked at Asher who was blushing with a pout on his face. "Give me a break, I've never confessed to a person that I've genuinely liked a whole lot before," he grumbled.

"Yeah, he kept running to us, rambling like crazy-- He even threw up a few times, he was that nervous," Mollie said with a smirk. Asher groaned and dropped his head onto the table, embarrassed. "Now it's your turn, Tay," Charlie teased, glancing at Heidi right beside him. Heidi tilted her head innocently, oblivious to what she was talking about, but it was evident to all of us what Charlie was referring to, given that Taylor was blushing like crazy. "I know, shut up," he mumbled.

"I always knew you'd two get together... I could just feel it," Heidi beamed, smiling happily at us after she got over her confusion as to what Charlie was talking about. Asher raised his head up off the table and smiled, sighing a bit with relief. "Thanks for helping out, guys. I don't think I could have gone through with it if you all didn't give me a boost," he said to them.

Oh, so that's what it was.

"Was that why you were avoiding me? And talking secretly with the others?" I asked, looking at him. "He had to avoid you because every time he looked at you or got close to you, he started chickening out," Leo teased, smirking at Asher who glared at him. "Thanks, Leo," he grumbled. "He was literally panicking over nothing. He was thinking of every worst outcome and he couldn't even look at you without freaking out, thinking you'd reject him or hate him," Charlie added, causing Asher to glare at her next. "Let's just call me out, huh?" He scoffed.

"Gotta say, it was very cute to see that even our macho Asher could act like that," Heidi added timidly, giggling lightly. Asher groaned again, his head meeting with it's good friend, the table, for a second time. I smiled, really happy that Asher got that worried even if it was for nothing. It was adorable.

I leaned over and kissed Asher's head, causing him to turn it so that the side of his face was pressed against the table instead. He flashed me a sweet smile, cheeks still red as he looked up at me. I reached out and stroked his hair, pushing it out of his face as I just stared at him. "Goddd, get a room," Charlie groaned, grinning. Suddenly, and very surprisingly, Cassidy came over to us from her table that she shared with her fake friends. Despite Cassidy being a lot nicer to us and actually opening up to us a lot more, she still had trouble getting over her popular "status" that she had in school. Slowly though, she was coming out of that shell of hers and lowering the perfect wall she had built up for years, and was starting to act like her true self. We knew it was going to take her a of bit time, so none of us blamed her for remaining a bit of a bitch and self centered when at school. She was doing better, and that's all that mattered.

"Uh... Congrats, you guys. I thought all of that was actually... Really sweet," Cassidy admitted, giving us a small, nervous smile. We all looked up at her, a bit surprised but not so much given with how much progress she's made. Asher perked up and smiled at her. "Thanks, Cass," he replied. Cassidy just nodded and cleared her throat before walking away and making her way back over to her fake friends. Suddenly, a whole group of girls were running up to us, squealing and giggling. "That was so cute!"

"I thought you were very brave, it takes a lot of guts to confess like that!"

"Yeah! Don't you dare let anyone get you down for what you feel! You two dating is perfectly normal and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise!"

"God, I wish my boyfriend was that sweet! I'm so jealous!"

Asher and I felt completely cornered as we gave all the girls a smile, a little surprised and slightly intimidated that there were so many congratulating us all at once. Girls do seem to be a sucker for anything romantic. Still though, it was really nice and sweet of them to come up and congratulate us; some of them also letting us know that if anyone gave us trouble, just tell them and they'll kick their asses.

"Alright ladies, give the celebrities some space," Leo and Mollie ordered, much to the girls dismay. They all said their goodbyes and wished us the best of luck in our relationship before heading off back to their tables. Leo and Mollie then looked at us with a smirk, which had both me and Asher tensing up a bit. We just knew they were going to say something weird.

Asher slowly picked up his cup and started drinking from it, eyes glancing back and forth between Leo and Mollie, waiting for them to go ahead and say whatever crazy thing it was that they were thinking. "Now... The big question is... Have you guys fucked yet?" Mollie asked, very bluntly. My eyes widened in shock and my cheeks felt like they were on fire. Of course they were going to ask something like this. Meanwhile, Asher had done spit out his drink, practically spraying it everywhere; right onto his tray and the table as he then began choking and coughing, causing everyone to laugh. "G-Guys, that's very nosey!" Heidi defended, blushing as well from the sudden question. "It's a good question! I want all the details!" Leo added, smiling big at us.

"I think I'll pass on all the details," Taylor muttered, chuckling a bit. Asher awkwardly cleared his throat, patting his chest a bit as if to keep himself from coughing again. "Uh, no... N-No we haven't, I... I don't want to rush things," he said quietly, scratching at his head. Charlie leaned in with a grin. "That or... You're just nervous 'cause you've never fucked a guy before," she teased. "Whoa, hey! Who's to say my man Lonnie won't be the one doing the fucking?" Leo suggested, winking at me.

Asher and I just kept looking at each other and then at the others, blushing deeply. Taylor snorted and shook his head. "Like Asher would take it up the ass--"

"I-I would! Uh... Maybe," Asher hesitantly said, sinking down a bit. "I mean... If Lonnie really wasn't okay with receiving, I think I could try and... Let him do it. Anything that would make him comfortable."

"No! I'm... I'm fine with bottoming. I mean, I did in my dream and I liked it. Plus, I don't think I could top you. I could try, but I feel like it'd be weird. I don't usually care about the whole top and bottom thing, it just... Depends on who I'm with and what I'd prefer with them," I answered, laughing nervously. "In your dream!? Duuuude, a wet dream mixed in with a nightmare!? I don't think I've ever had one of those," Charlie exclaimed, laughing loudly. I rolled my eyes, blushing as I crossed my arms with a pout. "You better take care of our little virgin Lonnie, Asher! You be gentle until he tells you he wants it rough!" Leo ordered, causing Asher to pretty much start lagging as he let out a number of incoherent, stuttered words. "Oh shut up," I grumbled, throwing a fry at Leo but not being able to hold back the smile on my face.

God... I don't think I'll ever be able to get over that all these idiot friends of mine are really, and truly alive. Even if I... Really did get killed by Emma and this is actually just the afterlife for me; a little piece of my own personal Heaven-- I don't think I'd mind that. All of that is way more acceptable than being dead and never seeing the people I love again. This still feels too real to be the afterlife, but I can accept if it is. Better than that nightmare.

. . .

7 years later...

"Hey, hey! We're here and we're queer!" Leo announced as he walked in, arms in the air. "Nope, still just you," Taylor said behind him, walking in next with a small grin. Leo rolled his eyes and gasped happily when his eyes landed on me, immediately rushing over and throwing his arms around my neck. "Lonnie Llama!! I've missed you so much!!" He beamed, causing me to laugh. "Leo, I just saw you last week," I replied, patting him on the back and laughing a bit. Leo pulled away and pouted at me. "So??"

I rolled my eyes and looked over at Taylor who smiled at me. "Hey, little-bit," he greeted, stepping over to me and grabbed the back of my head, pulling me in for one of those tight "bro" hugs, which had me smiling big. "Hey Taylor," I greeted, both of us pulling away. Taylor sniffed and looked around the room, chuckling. "Dude, your house smells like weed," he pointed out, causing me to sigh and rub my forehead, a bit stressed. "Yeah, uh... That's Charlie. She's been crashing here for a few days, 'cause Cassidy is on that trip with--"

"With mom, yeah I know. She's coming back today though, and I told her to just head on over when she does. You know she's a sucker for Mollie's cooking," Taylor finished for me, grinning. I sighed with relief, laughing. "Thank god. Charlie's been depressed as hell-- I never knew she could be so clingy," I joked.

"Ahh! Sorry I'm a little late to greet you guys! Asher was helping me fold some clothes," Mollie called out, rushing into the room with Asher right behind her. "Ayyye! What's good?" Asher yelled, holding his arms out as he gave both Taylor and Leo a hug, laughing with them both. "Hey Ash! Treating our little Lonnie Llama goood?" Leo asked, grinning when Asher pulled away. "Always," Asher replied with a wink, causing me to blush and moving out the way so that both Leo and Taylor could hug Mollie next. "Ahhh, my beauty! Give me a kisss!" Leo beamed, pulling Mollie in and receiving a kiss on the cheek. "I missseddd you!" She squealed, pulling away from him and ruffling his long, fluffy brown hair, both of them laughing. Mollie turned to Taylor next and smiled big. "Heyy," she greeted, holding her arms out to him. "Heyy, Molls," he greeted back. "Lemme watch the baby bump."

Mollie giggled and hugged Taylor tightly, both of them rocking side to side, laughing. "You look beautiful as always, Molls," Taylor expressed, kissing Mollie on the cheek. "Thank you, my love. Where's Mason and Heidi?" She asked.

"Mason's probably still chasing down Evie; she had a lot of energy before coming here and she immediately saw your dog and took off after him," Leo answered, chortling a bit. "God that sounds like her," I replied, shaking my head. "Heidi is changing Scottie's clothes. He got a little sick on the way here, and she just told me to come on in. And of course Valeria is too nervous to come in, even though she's been here before. She's got Heidi's shyness, that's for sure. I tried to get her to come in with me, but Heidi is better at pep talking her out of her shyness than I am. It's always daddy's girl at home but mommy's girl in public," Taylor told us, laughing as he pushed his hair back.

Sometimes I still find it hard to believe Heidi has had two kids. Years ago, I couldn't even see her ever having sex, she was so awkward and a worry wort. But now she's here, 25 years old with two kids; happily married to Taylor. We've all grown so much.

"Dadddyyy! We need a doggie!" We heard Evie scream, Mason walking in with Evie right on his back, practically on top of his head. He looked so worn out as me and Asher's dog, Piggy, came running into the house, energetic as always. She really loved kids, so she was able to keep up with their consistent playtime, which I always thought was cute. Still, she was a crazy ass dog, really dumb too. But Asher loves her to death, so I can't complain.

"Can you get this monkey off of me?" Mason grumbled, pouting at Leo who grinned, walking up to him. "Come here my little monkey," he said, reaching his arms out. Evie gasped excitedly, climbing all on top of Mason's head and shoulders, which had him groaning like the old man he was; at the ripe age of 32. Evie practically propelled herself off of Mason's head, landing right in Leo's arms, hugging him tightly. "Dada, can we get a doggie?" She asked with a pout. Leo pouted as well and looked up at Mason. "Yeah daddy, why can't we get a doggie?" He teased, smirking at him. Mason sighed, straightening his hair after Evie's assault on his head. "When you two learn to be responsible, ahem... Leo, then we can get a doggie," he replied, giving Leo a fake grin.

Mason and Leo got married about four years ago; Mason was 28 and Leo was 22. They adopted their cute little daughter Evie a few months after, but it took about a year until they officially got her. Evie was very quiet and reserved when they first met her, only because her biological parents were dickheads and treated her really badly. The minute she met Mason and Leo though, she practically fell in love, but it still took a bit for her to come out of her shell and now you can totally tell she's Leo's kid; we see a lot of Leo in her crazy personality. She's only six years old, but you'd think they'd found her running around out in the wild with how crazy she is. She's definitely earned the nickname "Monkey" which is what pretty much all of us call her. She's very adventurous and will climb just about anything; and she's got the reflexes of a cat, jumping from counter to counter. She's a sweetheart though, and Mason and Leo adore her, but sometimes it's like Mason is raising two kids when Leo and Evie band together to cause chaos. They're such a cute little family.

Mason actually did end up quitting his job as a high school teacher, but he only did so once we all graduated. He actually went on to become a college professor, which I didn't think was any better than teaching high schoolers, but he did say that he preferred it a lot more, since high schoolers drove him mad.

"Hey guys! Sorry about the hold up, little Scottie needed to be cleaned up; he wasn't feeling well at all. He's just getting over a cold," Heidi announced as she came in, closing the front door behind her, holding little Scottie in her arms while Valeria stood right behind her, clinging to the back of her shirt and peeking out from over her leg. Scottie coughed and rubbed his face, whimpering a bit as he snuggled into Heidi and sniffled. "Aw, it's okay. Vallll, how's my little warrior," Asher called out, crouching down and smiling at Valeria. She immediately perked up when she saw Asher, giggling a bit before rushing over to him and holding her arms out so that he could pick her up. Asher always was good at helping Valeria come out of her shell; she really took to the nickname "warrior" and it seemed to give her a bit of confidence whenever she heard Asher call her that.

Asher laughed and picked her up, smacking a big kiss on her cheek only making her laugh even more as she shyly covered her face. Valeria definitely resembled Heidi a lot, having her long black hair but Taylor's curls. Her skin was a beautiful tan color like Heidi's, only just a slightly bit lighter and pretty much right in between both Heidi's skin color and Taylor's. Meanwhile, Scottie resembled Taylor extremely; he was like Taylor's own little mini me, but he definitely had Heidi's eyes. Scottie was their youngest, only two years old while Valeria was four. He was a tough little guy though and if someone made Valeria cry, you'd see him turn from a two year old to a mean, middle school kid. He was really protective over Valeria, so much that he'd throw a little tantrum and start swinging if needed. If you made Valeria cry, he'd cry out in a screaming fit of rage. Of course, he got that temper from Taylor.

After we got the greetings out of the way, we all sat around in the living room, watching the kids play with Piggy, who was going to town on all the love and affection she was receiving. "So how far long are you?" Heidi asked, reaching out and touching Mollie's baby bump, causing her to smile. "Ahh, eight months. She's a kicker, that's for sure," Mollie replied, rubbing her belly. "What about you and, uh... Dickface?" Taylor questioned, causing Heidi to gasp and slap his arm. "Language," she mumbled, causing him to grin and mutter an apology. Mollie sighed and shook her head. "Brad's not so bad, Tay... I mean, he's helping out with all this baby stuff, but... I don't know, I just don't think he's ready for this whole father thing. Even once she's born, I think he's only going to be seeing her a few times and paying for stuff for her if needed," she answered.

"If he didn't want to be a father, he shouldn't have gotten you pregnant," Leo grumbled, cuddling into Mason's side with an angry glare. Mollie just tsked and waved him off. "Ah, it's cool. I don't need to be in a relationship just to take care of my baby," she stated with a smirk. "That's our girl," Asher praised, winking at her. "Mollie knows too that if she needs any financial support, Asher and I are happy to help her out," I added, Asher nodding in agreement. "Yeah, it's not just her kid anymore," he then gestured to all three of us. "It's our kid," he joked, causing Mollie to laugh. "You guys do enough for me as it is. I mean, you're letting me live here, and that's enough for me. I can support myself," she said.

Mollie was dating this guy named Brad for a while, but when he found out she was pregnant, he wasn't really ready. I mean, they tried to keep the relationship going the best they could, but it just wasn't working out. I'm glad Mollie was a lot stronger now, given what had happened with Todd in high school. Even then she wanted to keep the baby, but she sadly miscarried. She was going through a lot around that time, but this time was way different; she was in such a better place mentally, and knew we all had her back and would support her no matter what. She was so overjoyed when she found out she was pregnant and even though Brad wasn't as thrilled, she practically said "fuck you" and went about doing all she could to make sure this baby would have an amazing life once it was born. Of course, we were just as thrilled; each of us treat each other's kids like they're our own. We're one big family.

"Speaking of kids, you and Asher thinking about having any, Lonnie? I mean, you've already got your own house; big enough for a family," Mason spoke up, smiling at me as I sat on Asher's lap in the recliner. I blushed and looked at Asher, who smiled up at me. "Uh... I guess we're just waiting for the right moment when to really go through with adoption," I replied, looking back at the others. "You all know I want to adopt, especially if it's saving a kid who came from a really bad home like I did. God, I'd probably adopt every kid I could if I was able to. Not to mention, Asher would be a great dad."

Asher chuckled and hugged me tightly around my waist, kissing my shoulder. "You would be too, babe," he declared softly. "You both would be great parents... Asher just needs to put a ring on that finger of yours, and you'll be all set," Leo said, grinning and winking at Asher who blushed, immediately hiding his face in my shoulder.

I never could get over how shy Asher would get when it came to really romantic and intimate things. Ever since we graduated, we both knew we wanted to move in with one another; even got an apartment together when we entered college. We both have pretty good jobs now and were able to buy our own house, so it was just a matter of time before we got married and started adopting. I mean, we kind of already have a kid, if you count Piggy. She acts like one, that's for sure.

"Hey, Uncle Asher! Wh-When are we going to open presents!?" Evie asked excitedly, pointing to the Christmas presents under the tree. That's the whole reason everyone was gathered at our house today; it was a few days before Christmas and we were celebrating a bit early with each other since a lot of us had to go out of town soon to see our parents and other family members. We do this every year during Christmas; set up a date where we all get together and have a delicious ass dinner, then we move on to exchanging gifts while just basking in the glory of each other's company. Even after seven years, the relationship between all of us has stayed strong and hasn't once faltered, just like it hadn't in the few years we had known each other before. This was the kind of friendship we'd have for the rest of our lives.

"We still gotta wait for the others to get here, so just wait a little bit longer," Asher answered, smiling down at Evie. Asher tended to go a bit overboard for the kids during Christmas time, but he goes pretty overboard with me too, so I can't complain. Giving gifts is just one of his many love languages, that's how he's always been.

"Where's Charlie at? I know she's staying with you guys, I can smell her weed," Leo asked, laughing a bit. "She's napping. She got really high earlier today and passed out. Wanted time to go by quicker so that she could see you all, but I guess she's so knocked out, she didn't hear you all come in," I replied. "I keep telling her not to smoke so much since Mollie's pregnant but--"

"You worry too much, Asher. It's not like I'm going in the guest bedroom and inhaling the crap out of it. I make sure she's got the window open when she smokes in her room, and the smell of it throughout the house is pretty faint. She's only been here for a few days anyway, it's not going to cause a lot of harm," Mollie interrupted, smiling softly at Asher who pouted. "Yeah, my dad was a pothead when my mom was pregnant with me, and I turned out fine," Leo beamed, causing Taylor to snort and try to hide his amused smile. "Mhm, yeah," he mumbled, earning a glare from the other man. "Well, I'm sure the minute Charlie hears Cassidy come in, she's going to come running to the door like a dog greeting it's master," Mason joked.

He wasn't wrong. Charlie and Cassidy were dating, surprisingly. Cassidy has changed a lot over the years and has really come out of that "perfect" shell of hers to where she's now constantly her true self instead of an overly edited version of it. Of course, she's also come to terms with her sexuality as well. Cassidy wouldn't be Cassidy though if she didn't have some sort of attitude. She wasn't necessarily a bitch per say, but she had her moments. Her bitchiness turned into more of a sarcastic attitude, followed by a lot of playful teasing. She was also the type to pretend like she didn't enjoy Charlie's affection, when in reality she enjoyed it a lot but had more fun in teasing Charlie about it than anything. Still, I could really see the love in her eyes every time she saw Charlie.

"What about Patience? Is she coming down?" Heidi asked, smiling at me. I smiled back and nodded. "Yeah! She texted me a little before you guys came saying that she was getting ready to head out, so she should be here pretty soon," I answered. Leo sat up, grinning. "Ooo, is she bringing that hunk of a boyfriend with her?" He questioned, earning a glare from Mason. I rolled my eyes, chuckling. "Yes, Rex is coming with her."

It was still sometimes hard to believe that my darling little sister was now twenty-one years old and had a boyfriend. It feels like just yesterday she was an innocent little kid, who dad and I had to protect from boys, because that's just what you do when it's your little girl at stake. But Rex was a nice guy, he treated her right. Actually, Patience glew up majorly. She was still her sweet, animal loving self, but her cutesy clothes were now that of the "cutesy alternative" style. She went through a pretty big gothic, emo phase when she hit high school, and even turned into a bit of a "rebel" I guess you could say. It was so weird to see my cute little sister smoking cigarettes and dressing in platforms, fishnets, and edgy ripped skirts with band t-shirts to match. Her black hair was a bit longer, now a little past her shoulders with green tips mixed in; but even if she did look extremely edgy and was an adult, she still was my baby sister, and she still did have that excitable, sweet attitude about her. Sometimes I still got onto her as if she was a kid, saying curse words when she wasn't allowed to, but she always just laughed at me for it. We were still extremely close like we always were; I was just happy I got to see her grow up from that little, terrified girl in my dream.

God... That dream.

"Her and Rex are so cute together, I can never get over it," Mollie squealed, giggling a bit. They really were cute together; honestly perfect for one another. Rex wasn't any different, style wise. He was that edgy, dark and mysterious guy fathers would warn their daughters about. But they were high school sweethearts and just like Patience, despite his edgy look, he was a total dork and actually a huge gentleman. People always look at these gothic like kids and think they're a bad influence just because of how they dress, but that's far from the case. Rex was a sweetheart, and a bit of a softy at times too. He cried at romance movies, or Disney moves and you'd think someone wearing those type of clothes wouldn't be that sensitive. But Rex and Patience definitely broke that stereotype. Clothes were just that; clothes. A style they liked to wear.

Rex was perfect for Patience and he treated her so well. Sometimes he was a bit intimidated by me and Asher, and he of course had good reason to be. He knew that if he ever hurt Patience, we'd snap him like a twig. But he was a good guy; couldn't even kill a bug, he was that sweet.

Suddenly, the front door opened up and in walked Patience, wearing her platforms and alternative looking clothes, her arms thrown up in the air. "I've arrived!" She announced, stepping further in with Rex right behind her. Immediately, Rex was stomping his shoes on the mat, before taking them off and placing them by the door, even though we've told him a hundred times he didn't have to do that.

I smiled big and practically leapt out of Asher's lap, making him groan a bit when I pushed down on him. "Lonnie!" Patience squealed, running right towards me and attacking me with a huge hug, giggling. "Hey, sis," I greeted, looking at her face once she pulled away and noticing a new piercing. "Ah sweet. Is that a... Labret? That's what it's called right?" I asked, smiling. Patience nodded excitedly and pushed on the metal disk on the inside of her lip with her tongue, extending the rod of the piercing out. "Mhmm! Matches my septum, right?"

It actually really did.

"Oh by the way! Cassidy is right behind us, she's fixing her hair in her car," Patience said, stepping away from me and linking her arm around Rex's, who smiled at me and waved. "Hey Avalon," he greeted.

Mollie was next to get up, Patience squealing happily and rushing over to her as well, hugging her tight but watching out for her baby bump. "I've missed you so much, girly!" Mollie expressed, causing Patience to laugh as they both rocked back and forth together, giggling. The two were still closer than ever, just like they've always been; practically sisters. They frequently saw each other, and even went on little lunch outings together once about every two weeks. Patience definitely felt like she fit in more with the group now that she was older and had more knowledge in the things we talked about. We didn't really have to censor things for her anymore, even though some of us did at times just because it was something we were always used to doing when she was younger. But it was nice now that she was older and could really click with the group more than she did before.

Cassidy came inside soon after and closed the door behind her, huffing and pulling her coat and scarf off. "Jesus Christ, it's cold out there," she grumbled. That was when we heard a loud thud from the guest bedroom, letting us know that Charlie was now awake and had most likely fallen out of her bed in the struggles of jumping out of it. "And three... Two... One," Taylor counted down, the sound of the guest bedroom door upstairs opening up and getting slammed back shut, followed along by the sound of Charlie's loud footsteps stomping quickly down the hall and making a beeline for the stairs. Cassidy sighed, preparing herself for impact as Charlie called out her name and made it to the stairs, practically jumping down them before rushing over to Cassidy and tackling her, nearly knocking her down to the floor. "You're back!" She exclaimed, all of us laughing.

Cassidy groaned and patted Charlie's back, tilting her head away. "God, you stink... When was the last time you showered, you pig?" She grumbled as Charlie nuzzled her. "Three days ago," she answered blankly as she squeezed Cassidy tight before pulling away and grinning down at her. Cassidy scanned her over and raised a brow. "Are you high?" She asked. Charlie blinked a few times and tilted her head, still smiling. "No," she answered, causing Cassidy to furrow her brows into a small glare, but not making Charlie's smile falter once. "Maybe," she answered again. Cassidy sighed and rolled her eyes. "What am I going to do with you?" She mumbled.

"Kiss! That's what!" Leo yelled.

Charlie beamed and nodded her head excitedly, grinning and leaning in towards Cassidy. "Yes, please! I haven't had your kisses for dayyys, I'm dying over here!" She exclaimed dramatically. Cassidy couldn't help the small smile spread across her face as she looked at Charlie's excitement, all because she got to see her again, even though she hasn't even been gone that long. Cassidy gave in and leaned forward, pressing a small kiss to the corner of Charlie's mouth. "That's all you get for now," she said, turning away as she blushed with embarrassment. Charlie sighed happily and buried her face in Cassidy's chest. "I'll take what I can get," she murmured.

We all exchanged greetings with each other, hugs going all around before we all settled back down in our seats within the living room. It was so nice to have the whole gang together again, even though we've hung out like this before about a few weeks ago. Still, we can never seem to get enough of each other.

We all just sat around, talking with each other. I was sitting in the recliner with Asher right between my legs on the floor, playing with the kids and showing them some of the tricks he had taught Piggy. I was just playing with Asher's hair, which occasionally had him shivering and tossing me a quick, seductive glance that had my whole body heating up. Let's just say that over the years Asher and I have been together, we've had one hell of a sex life. The first time we had sex was a little after we had started dating. It was just as slow and intimate as it was in my dream, but ten thousand times better. Asher always treated me with such care every time we did it, and he would baby me completely afterwards, spoiling the hell out of me with kisses and massages. He was way too perfect for his own good.

Of course, Leo thought we could use a little spiciness every now and then, and introduced us to a few of his "kinks" and toys, which I thought were a little intimidating. Asher would pick up some of Leo's toys and play with them like the fucking man child he was; easily amused by the stupidest of things. I didn't really think of myself as a "kinky" person, but some of the stuff Leo introduced me to, I actually took an odd liking to them. Asher and I experimented with a few things and a few kinks, but even if some of the sex was a bit rough, Asher would never fail to baby and spoil me in the end. He was perfect when it came to aftercare, and he would always kiss and lick every bruise or bitemark he left on me. I'm a fighter though, so you can imagine that Asher had some bruises and bitemarks as well, along with a shit ton of scratch marks. I was really fond of pet names during sex-- And I didn't think I'd be into it, or that even Asher would be into it, but we both really liked it when I took control.

I honestly didn't think I had a dominant bone in my body when it came to Asher, but I was pretty good at pushing him around in bed and taking control, making him beg for me. He had a bit of a submissive side, but it wasn't the submission you'd think, with me doing him instead of him doing me. I was just in charge and had to make him work for it. He always said I was incredibly sexy every time I'd shove him down onto the bed and attack him like a feral animal. Leo has turned me into a monster, I'll admit.

"Alright, who's ready for presents?" Asher asked, clapping his hands and causing all the kids to immediately stand up and start jumping up and down with excitement. God, Asher really would be a good dad.

The others had to go out to their cars to bring in their presents, and we all spent a good few minutes exchanging gifts. I was just really happy at seeing the kids so happy, playing with their new toys and showing them off to everyone else. It was so easy for us to get gifts for each other, since we all knew each other perfectly. We of course, all pretty much spoiled Mollie with new baby stuff and baby clothes, which had her squealing like a little school girl and talking about how cute each item was. I just knew she was going to be a great mom; she was so happy that she was pregnant and couldn't wait for the day when she'd give birth. I just know we're all going to be out in the waiting room, pacing around nervously until we hear the good news that everything went smoothly. We're also going to end up spoiling the shit out of Mollie and practically treating her like a goddess, because we knew that was something she was going to need for a good while. Motherhood can be a bit tough, but we all have her back and are going to help her through each step for as long as she'll need us.

"Okay! Okay, there's uh... There's one last present, and it's one I've had prepared for a while," Asher announced. Suddenly everyone was smirking and I was once again not in loop of what the hell was happening and what the hell Asher was thinking and planning.

Asher cleared his throat and stood up, dragging me along with him and making me raise a brow at him, curious. "So... Avalon, we've been together for a long while now," he began, which immediately had me smiling. I think I had an idea of where this was going, but I'm not going to jump to conclusions just yet.

"Yesss, we have," I drawled out. Asher laughed a little and held my hands. "Well... I know I tell you this at least a hundred times a day, but you are my absolute world. I would take a bullet for you; I'd do anything for you. You make me the happiest man in the world and I'm so glad I get to wake up everyday, knowing that you're mine. We started out as best friends, and at first I was just the idiot who asked if gum was a food, but then I slowly became your idiot and I honestly wouldn't have it any other way. There's no one else in this life that could possibly make me happier than you do everyday. You are my one true love, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want us to have a family together and I want to be able to wake up to your gorgeous face every single day for the rest of my life."

Oh god, here it comes. I smiled at Asher, already feeling the tears well up in my eyes as I stared at him, my grip on his hands growing even tighter.

"Avalon Pearson, I love you. I'll never stop loving you, I'll always want you to be mine. So," Asher paused and took a deep breath before getting down on one knee and pulling a small little black box out of his pocket. The girls and Leo practically gasped, everyone already getting giddy and excited at the sight. I placed my hand over my mouth and let out a small laugh, watching Asher open up the little box before grabbing my free hand, holding it tightly while he showed me the ring.

That was a huge fucking rock, and that definitely explains why he's put so much hours into working for the past month.

"Avalon Pearson, will you marry me?" Asher asked, a dark red blush on his face as his own eyes welled up with unshed tears. I feel like my heart stopped for a moment as I just stared down at him. I let out a small, breathless laugh and nodded my head, removing my hand from my face and smiling big at him. "Idiot, you don't even have to ask, you obviously know what I'm going to say. You could have put the ring on my finger while I was asleep," I joked, causing him to laugh as well and look down for a second. "Yeah, well... I know me being all sappy turns you on, so marrying you and getting some in the end is killing two birds with one stone, if I do say so myself," he joked back, looking up at me with a grin.

I couldn't help but laugh again, mentally cursing at him for saying something like that in front of the kids, but they didn't seem too focused on those words, so I guess it was okay. They were just glancing back and forth between us with big smiles on their faces, not really having a clue in the world with what was currently going on, but they knew it was something good.

"Well then... Yes. Yes, I will marry you Asher," I finally answered, listening as everyone clapped and cheered for us, Taylor putting his fingers in between his lips and doing one of those loud whistles that I could never figure out how the hell to do. Asher just laughed and slid the ring onto my finger before standing up and reaching his hand out, wiping away some of my tears. "You're crying too, you sap," I whispered, reaching up as well to wipe his tears away. Asher leaned in close, his forehead pressing against mine. "I can't help it, I'm just so in love with you," he replied softly. I chuckled and placed my hand on the back of his head, slowly pulling him down and connecting our lips, making everyone cheer even louder.

"YEAH! That's what I'm talking about!" Leo exclaimed, jumping up and clapping his hands. I smiled against Asher's lips, pulling him even closer as I deepened the kiss, our lips moving passionately with one another, like they were meant to stay that way forever.

"You know what that means... Party time!" Charlie cheered, causing Cassidy to huff and roll her eyes with a smile.

God... I don't think my life could get any better than this. What once started as a trip to the mountains and a terrifying dream that... Felt so real, I had nightmares about it for years, has now ended with all of us grown up, getting married and adding on to this already huge family. I wouldn't trade this life for the world; I thank whatever's out there everyday that what I had witnessed years ago was just a dream and always was a dream. That this wasn't some life after death, but the real thing. I guess even if it was some life after death, at least I get to live in these happy moments with the people I love so much, forever.

Hell ended in Dreader's Escape, and Heaven soon followed into this wonderful thing I call my life. My life with Asher and everyone else. I'd relive these moments over and over again if given the chance. This is real.

He's real. They're real.

End

Run, run, run away

Buy yourself another day

A cold wind's whispering secrets in your ear

So low only you can... Hear

Run, run, run and hide

Somewhere no one else can find

Tall trees bend and lean pointing where to go

Where you will still be all alone

Run fast as you can

No one has to understand

Fly high across the sky from here to Kingdom.. Come

Fall back down to where you're from

Don't you fret, my dear

It'll all be over soon

I'll be waiting here for you

For you, for you...