Cory's POV
2 Years Later
Senior year.
The one year everybody waits for in high school. That's the year my friends and I are in right now. So much has happened in the past two years. Relationships have grown, friendships have been made, and opportunities have presented themselves. Everyone is still in their same relationships. Olive actually found their significant other about a year ago. As soon as Collin was introduced, he clicked with all of us immediately. He also introduced us to his twin sister Zoe.
I swear that girl is my best friend next to Ivy. Another important thing that happened, Dimitri came out to everyone and we met his boyfriend, Landon, 2 years ago. Landon flys over every year for Dimitri's birthday, Christmas, and New Years. He and his family had a falling out not too long before he met Dimitri, but he knows that he will always have a family here.
Putting all of that aside, in a few days, it is going to be a very important and special day. In a few days, it'll be Cameron and I's third year anniversary of the day I gave her the promise ring, which also means that it's going to be her birthday. We don't usually do anything big to celebrate because she never wants to, but I do have a very special and important thing to do.
Speaking of that thing, I've just gotten off the phone with one of my brothers to talk about the setup and to make sure everything is ready. As soon as he tells me everything is good to go, I go upstairs to get myself dressed. I don't do anything major, just a shower and comfy clothes for now. Once I'm dressed, I make sure everything is packed for the last time before grabbing my bags and leaving my room.
I grab the keys to my truck and walk out the door. I walk to my garage and go through all of the security features. Once I do that, it opens up and I make my way to my car. I put my bags in the trunk, get in, turn on the car, and pull out of the garage.
As I'm driving, Cameron calls me. I answer her call of course and we talk to each other until I tell her I'm outside her house. She hangs up the phone and not two minutes later, she walks out of her house looking beautiful as ever, even in sweatpants and an oversized hoodie. I get out of the car to put her bags in the trunk and get back in the car.
She leans over the middle console and gives me a kiss before sitting back and putting her seatbelt on. I put my hand on her thigh like always and begin driving to our destination. Cameron has told me a few times that she has always wanted to go on a yacht. Ever since the first time she told me, I started planning a little trip for the two of us.
It takes about an hour and a half to get to the dock. When we arrive, I park the car and grab both my bag and Cameron's to give them to a bodyguard. I then help Cameron out of the car and lead her onto the dock. I had her put a blindfold on to not soil the surprise. Once we're in front of the surprise, I take her blindfold off and step aside. She's silent for a minute before turning to me.
"...Are you serious?" She asks, stunned. I nod in return. "You're messing with me." I shake my head. "You're serious!?" I nod again and chuckle at her excitement.
"Happy birthday Sweetheart."
She walks over to me to give me a tight hug. She squeals quietly while jumping up and down and I laugh. I pull away from the hug to lead her inside. We tour around the yacht for a bit before putting our stuff in our room. We change into our swimsuits and have lunch on the deck. Then, we chill in the hot tub for a bit. I sit down in the hot tub and Cameron straddles my lap. I hear her breathing even out as I rub her back and I sigh in content.
____________________
Time Skip
We've been on the yacht for about 3 days before arriving at the island. This island is very, very special to my family. Dad likes to call it our own paradise. After he and Mom adopted me, I was still a little... I guess you could say skeptical about them. Even though they had treated me like family the minute I was introduced to them, I still felt as if it was too good to be true. Dad knew this, of course, and to ease the feeling, he brought me here, just the two of us.
(🎶We can make it if we try🎶)
He had told me that he owns this island, but it's not just another meaningless thing. He said to me that the only people allowed on this island are people who are truly part of our family. Not even the guards are allowed to come to this island. That's when I realized that they really did love me, no matter their mistakes. They let me into their lives, treated me as though I was always part of the family, let me into the place where only people they consider family is allowed. I realized that I had a family who really loved me.
That's why I want to bring Cameron here. Even though we've only been together for 3 years, she still gets insecure at times. I don't want her to feel that way anymore. I haven't even brought my friends here yet.
Anyway, after Cami and I are settled in the villa, I tell her to get ready. I leave her in our shared room and go to another room to get ready myself. I start by taking a shower and washing my hair. When I get out of the shower, I do my hair and makeup and go through my suitcase to pick out my clothes. I already have a clue on what I want to wear, so all I need to do is find everything. Once I do, I get dressed, spray on some perfume, and take a look in the full body mirror in the corner of the room.
I straightened my hair and did my makeup pretty simple. I put on black jeans, gold belts, a black lace bra with a mesh, pearl blouse on top, and black heeled boots. Once I'm satisfied, I leave the room and wait in the living room. Just a couple minutes later, Cameron walks into the living room looking fucking sexy as ever. She's in a tight cream dress that is decorated with black butterflies. She paired it with black heels and her hair is in a messy bun with stray pieces of hair framing her flawless face.
Cory's Outfit
Cameron's Outfit
"Close your mouth my love," she says seductively as she uses her soft, gentle, hand to close my mouth. "Or you may catch something you don't want."
"You sure you want to play this game, Sweetheart?" I ask her in a whisper.
"Maybe... why?... You don't think I can handle it?"
"Can you?"
"Only way to find out is to find out. Isn't that right, love?"
__________________
Before Cameron and I could get carried away, I forced myself to pull her out the door. As much as I would love to indulge in those kinds of activities, there are things we have to do tonight. Where we are going isn't far, so we don't need a car to get there. When we arrive, I hear the stunning girl next to me gasp surprise.
(It's not on a rooftop)
I lead her to the table and pull her chair out for her before sitting down myself. Throughout our dinner, we talk about everything. How our vacation has been going so far, how much she likes the yacht, what else we want to do while on the island, and our graduation that's coming up.
When we finish eating I stand up from my seat and walk over to my girlfriend. I hold my hand out to her and she takes it without hesitation. I pull her up and lead her away from the table a little bit. I gently pull her close to me and we begin to dance to the music playing in the background.
"What's wrong Love?" I raise an eyebrow at her. "You can't fool me Cory, no matter how hard you try. Now, tell me what's wrong." she demands softly.
"Nothing's wrong Sweetheart, I promise." I tell her, but she doesn't look convinced. I chuckle. "It's just... I know that being with me can be a lot to deal with considering my family's profession and all. You're constantly in danger, I'm busy a lot, the situation that happened with Madi all those years ago, me worrying you a lot when I have to help my family with the mafia... but you've stuck by me through everything. You love me, not for my fame, who my family is, or my money. You love me, truly love me, for being me. You've never tried to take advantage of me, you've never tried to control me, you've never done anything to betray my trust. Cameron, you are the kindest, most forgiving, and understanding person I've ever met. You are everything I could ever want in a person and I really don't think I could live without you... So I want to make it official. Being your girlfriend is amazing... but I want to be something more if you'll allow me to be." I say and pull out a black velvet box. I pop the lid open and hear her gasp for the second time tonight. "What do you say, Sweetheart? Think you can handle being my wife?"
"Yes."
She whispers her answer so low that I have to ask her to repeat herself. But judging by the smile on her face, I know what her answer is.
"Yeah?"
"Yes Cory! A thousand times yes!" She says excitedly. I take the ring out of the box and slip it onto her left ring finger.
She stares at the ring with a smile before jumping into my arms. I pick her up in a hug and twirl us around a couple times. She kisses me deeply and I put her down as we pull away.
"Are you sure Sweetheart?"
"I've never been more sure about anything in life. It's just as you said Cory. I love you."
__________________
Cameron and I stayed on the island for another week before going home. We would have stayed longer, but since graduation is soon, we had to leave. We're lucky that we finished all of our school work early, so we had about two weeks off. We could've graduated a week earlier, but we wanted to feel that once in a lifetime feeling you get when you graduate high school.
Speaking of graduation, it's actually today. Cami and I had gotten back home 3 days ago. We told everyone about us getting married and celebrated. She wanted to stay at my house to get ready, but I want her outfit to be a surprise for me.
Speaking of outfits, I just finished getting ready. I just curled my hair and all I did for makeup is a matte lipstick and instead of eyeshadow to match my dress, I decided to be a little extra with the eyeliner. As for my outfit, I put on a short flowy light green dress and matched it with green heels. Cameron and I were also able to get our nails done on the yacht. My nails are a light green color and two of them have daisies on them.
Cory's Outfit
Since I find myself satisfied with my choice of clothing, I grab a white handbag and put my phone, car keys, AirPods, and a couple of weapons inside. Finally, I spray some perfume on, grab my cap and gown, and leave my room. When I get downstairs, I see the rest of my family in the living room. Mama starts crying when she sees me in my graduation dress. I'm showered with hugs and kisses and many pictures are taken before they finally let me go.
I walk to my garage and go through all of the security features as always. I decide to take my white lambo. I walk over to the car and get inside. I start the engine and pull away from the house.
I text Cameron to come outside when I pull up to her house. When she walks out, the biggest smile graces my face. She's wearing a short, light pink dress that is decorated with flowers, light pink heels that match, her hair is curled and has a halo twist going around the back of her head, and her makeup is fairly simple with her pink glossy lips and pink glittery eyes.
Cameron's Outfit
She gets into the car and sets both mine and her cap and gown on her lap. I give her a light peck on the lips, trying not to mess up her beautiful work, even though we can always fix that. Just looking at her beautiful face brings a smile to mine. But what really makes me smile is seeing the engagement ring on her delicate, manicured hand.
I snap out of my trance and pull away from her house. When we arrive at the school, we leave our bags in the car and carry our cap, gown, and our phones. Graduations can be boring at times. We walk through the halls to the gym where all the other graduates are. The ceremony is going to be outside because it's a beautiful day today, but the principal wants us to stay in here to finish getting ready if we need to and to stay out of the heat.
We find our friends chatting in a corner and walk over to them. We immediately compliment each other on our outfit choices. After a few minutes, everyone's attention is caught by the principal who announces that it'll be time to take our seats in just a few minutes. Ivy then helps me put my gown on while Zoe puts my cap on for me and Courtney and Evelyn do the same for Cameron. We then silence our phones so that they won't go off during the ceremony. Not too long after that, the principal pops back into the gym and signals us to start walking out.
We walk out onto the courtyard and take our seats. None of us are next to each other considering we're sitting in alphabetical order by our last names. And since Cameron's last name starts with an A, she's going to be one of the first people to go up. However, before that happens, the class valedictorian has to go up and give their speech. They picked this person by holding a contest. Only people who wanted to participate could submit a speech. They read everyone's speech and whoever they picked would be announced during the ceremony. That person's speech would already be on the podium, so all the valedictorian has to do is go up to the stage and read.
"Now that we have done the introductions and the thank you's, it is now time for one of our very talented students to give a speech. The valedictorian for the class of 2022 is...
Cameron Antonov!"
As soon as the principal says that, everyone claps and cheers, but the loudest people are me and my friends. I see her walk onto the stage and up to the podium. I notice that she's a little nervous as she looks at the crowd. Her eyes meet mine, so I give her a smile and an encouraging nod. She smiles back and begins her speech.
___________________
After the ceremony
The ceremony just ended and all of the graduates are being congratulated by families and friends. The first person I go to find is Cameron. As I'm trying to look for her, I feel someone wrap their arms around me. I turn my head to see my girlfriend – sorry, fiancée hugging me. I turn around in her arms to hug her back.
"You did amazing with your speech Sweetheart." I say and kiss her head. She stays silent, but snuggles into me more. We stay like that for a minute before I pull away from her. "We should go find our parents. I know your dad and brother are eager to see you." I tell her. She nods and we go our separate ways to find our families. When I find mine, I'm immediately pulled off the ground and into a hug. I laugh and kiss Ivan's cheek before he lets me go so I can hug everyone else.
Because I'm going to be with my family later tonight, the group and I decide to go to the diner together. We get a large booth that has 3 benches, one against the wall, and other two on either side of the table. Surprisingly, it fits all of us.
As we're all seated in the diner waiting for our food, I look around myself. The laughter, the talking, the smiles, the best friends, the couples, the siblings. All of us have a special place in this group, old and new additions. All of us have an unbreakable bond. As I look at my fiancée with my arm around her shoulder and her head on mine, I realize there's nowhere else I'd rather be. It may have taken a while, but all I had to do, was
Forgive and Forget.
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THAT'S THE FINAL CHAPTER!!!!
I know it took a long time, but here's the final chapter. However, this will not be the last chapter. All of the chapters after this will be bonus chapters and because of that, this book is now my last priority, meaning I probably won't be updating very often as I want to focus on my other books. I do have a couple of bonus chapters in mind, so I'll be writing those in my free time and uploading them when they are finished, but this book is overall done.
I have also taken down this entire book and edited the entire thing. I also ended up changing the prologue a little bit if you noticed.Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this book and I hope you all have an amazing 2023. 🤩