So, this is it again. The final chapter to my story. It's always a weird feeling, knowing you've finished a story. Okay, I lie, it's more than a weird feeling; I'm sitting in the middle of the library at university trying not to bawl my eyes out because I don't want my #Spenzie ship to sail off into the horizon.
BUT ALAS, THEY MUST.
As always, this final chapter is dedicated to you guys, you amazing wonderful gorgeous human beings who have stuck by me, Spencer and Kenzie through this adventure. This story would not have survived if you all hadn't supported it, so I truly mean it when I say words cannot explain how much you all mean to me. Special shout out to @kiaorsteph, who I think might ship #Spenzie more than I do, and @phebemay, who's lovely comments always made me smile :-)
But the biggest, bestest and fattest dedication for this story goes to my best friend @_caitlinjade, without whom this story wouldn't exist. I love you so much chick, I hope you enjoyed the story I wrote for you ;D
Without much further ado, here is the last chapter of Dionysus. I hope you all love it to bits. Like with Hades, let me know if you guys want a particular chapter re-written from another person's POV, or if you want any more little snippets. I'm all open to ideas. xx
Epilogue
*2 years later*
"Mamma! Hurry up!"
I groan, struggling under the heavy weight of the box I'm carrying. "You have very unrealistic expectations of how fast I can carry this box Jas."
She ignores me, tugging on my top. "Come on, come on, come on! Unlock the door already! I wanna see my new room!"
Laughing, I balance the box on my hip and grab the key out of the pocket of my jeans. I hand it to her. "Why don't you do the honours?"
Her eyes widen, and she stares at the key like I've just handed her the holy grail. "Really?"
"Really." I smile at her, and she cheers, racing over to the front door. She jams the key in the lock and dramatically flings open the door, squealing as she sprints inside. I laugh and trail after her, kicking my black ankle boots off and propping the door open with them.
Jasmine skids around the corner with a massive beam on her face. "Mamma, my room is massive! It has butterflies on the walls! And it has a seat under the window!"
Before I have the chance to reply, she dashes out of the kitchen again, off to explore a different part of the house. I blink several times and call after her. "Slow down Jas, you'll wear holes in the carpet before we've even been here for ten seconds!"
I hear a low laugh from behind me. "Can you blame the kid? You were living out of dingy hotel rooms and trailer parks for almost a year and a half."
I plonk the box down on the kitchen counter and turn around to glare mockingly at them. "They weren't that bad!"
"Kenzie. At one hotel you had pet mice for two weeks." Jo gives me a look, dumping her box down next to mine. "It was that bad."
"What do you have against Bongo and Pojo?" I protest. "They were very important parts of our lives!"
"They chewed holes in your clothes!" She wrinkles her nose up in disgust. "What the hell happened when you were overseas that led you to believe mice chewing holes in your clothes made them important parts of your lives?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." I slather a serious expression on my face. "And of course I'd have to kill you if I told you."
Jo grumbles. "Are you ever going to tell me why you and Spencer disappeared for months on end?"
I grin at her and not-so-subtly change the subject. "Thanks for helping us move in Jo."
"You're terrible at changing the subject Kenzie." She scoffs, cackling when I shove her. She throws an arm around my shoulder. "But I love you despite that."
"Mamma!" Jasmine shrieks from the other end of the house. "There's a pool back here!"
"Crap. I was hoping she wouldn't see that until we'd finished unpacking." I groan, and Jo laughs at me. I yell at Jasmine. "You have to help us unpack before you can swim in it Jasmine!"
"She's not going to help." Jo tells me wryly. Seconds later her statement is followed up by the loud splash of someone jumping into the pool. My jaw drops.
"Jasmine!"
"Good work Jas; here's a tip, don't leave the pool until we've finished!" Jo encourages with a wicked grin on her face, pointedly ignoring the foul look I throw her. I shove her out the door, and she snickers. "I'll get started on the boxes in the car."
"Thanks Jo!" I call grumpily after her, glaring at her back.
She throws a teasing wink over her shoulder. "You know I'm always here to help, even if means being the only one to help move your sorry ass into this big old house."
I throw my sweatshirt at her.
"You know, I take great offense at that. I'm helping too." A voice speaks up from behind me. I jump almost a mile up in the air, whirling around with wide eyes. They grin rakishly at me, their green eyes twinkling mischievously.
I smack their arm. "Spencer!"
"What?" He protests, dropping the chair he's carrying in the middle of the room. "What am I, invisible to her? Give it to me straight dollface; does this haircut make me look invisible?"
I roll my eyes at him, trying to keep a straight face. "You're going to destroy everything before we even move in!"
"I am not!" He objects, leaning on the back of the chair. "Does this chair look broken to you? No. I can't believe you're even questioning my abilities to move furniture. I am so insulted right now."
"Ah, I've impeached on that big ego of yours again, haven't I?" I tease. He walks over to me and narrows his eyes.
"Yes."
I back up until I hit the kitchen counter. "Have you ever thought that maybe if you didn't let your ego get so damn big, you wouldn't be so offended all the time? It's beginning to be quite a problem."
"See, the only problem I can see is you." He tells me seriously.
I raise my eyebrows at him. "Why is it my fault?"
"You're the only one who has the audacity to attack my ego; it did nothing to deserve such torment." Spencer sighs melodramatically. "I thought you loved me."
"Aw, I'm sorry. I do love you." I simper, wrapping my arms around his neck and pecking him on the lips. "But I'd love you even more if you stopped letting your poor little ego be insulted so easily and actually move us into our house."
"You're a terrible person dollface." He pouts woundedly.
I grin. "Is that you or your ego talking?"
"Seriously guys!" Jo's exasperated groan stops us in our tracks. We both turn around with equally guilty expressions, our arms still wrapped around each other. She gives us a hard look, holding the box in her hands up for emphasis. "I am not single-handed going to move you two into this goddamn house! I have better people to do with my time!"
Spencer grins. "Are we cockblocking you Jo?"
"Yes!"
My eyes bulge out. "Spencer! There are young and impressionable minds around!"
"Oh, she won't hear me." He says dismissively. "I told her to go jump in the pool."
I smack him again. "That was you? Spencer!"
"Be honest dollface; did you really want her trying to help us move in?" He wiggles his eyebrows at me. "She would have broken more things than I would have."
"Aha! So you're admitting to breaking things?"
"It's a hypothetical suggestion!" He exclaims in indignation.
I raise my eyebrows at him, unconvinced by his protest. "Spencer, nothing is hypothetical when it comes to you. You literally mess up everything."
"Wow, you really know how to make a guy feel special." Spencer drawls sarcastically.
"No! Stop it!" Jo worms her way between and shoves the box into my arms. "You unpack." She grabs Spencer's arm and marches him outside. "You and your ego can help me unload the furniture. We are unloading this moving van today people!"
Spencer points at her and mouthes "she's crazy!" as she pushes him out the door, earning a small laugh from me. Once they've left, I turn back to the boxes on the counter, ripping the packaging tape off the top and opening up the box. I lean on it, looking around the room with a smile on my face. I can't believe we're actually here, and moving into our first house. It took me almost two years, but I've finally arrived in a place which I can comfortably call home.
Spencer walks in with another chair, shooting me a teasing grin as he walks past. I duck my head so my hair hides my blush, and he snickers, all too aware of the ridiculous affect he still has on me.
If only I hadn't been so stubborn when I refused to acknowledge that my home was wherever Spencer was; I would have saved myself two years of constant torment and suffering as I tried to figure out what my life had become if I hadn't. It took me a really long time to realise my life had become what it was because of Spencer, and that that was actually the best thing that could have ever happened to me. I would never admit it to him, but as soon as that realisation hit me, I didn't waste any time and practically flew back to the familiarity of his embrace, dragging poor Jasmine along with me. Finally seeing him again, without the burden that had previously weighed me down when I left him two years ago, was quite possibly the best moment of my life, and I had decided in that instant that I was never going to leave him again. That was over nine months ago now, and I hadn't left his side since.
Arms sneak around my waist, and Spencer rests his head on mine. "You're not doing very well at the whole unpacking thing dollface."
I click my tongue, picking up a couple of mugs in a lame attempt to prove him wrong. "Yes I am, see? I unpacked our mugs."
A low chuckle reverberates through his chest. "My statement still stands."
I tilt my head to the side so he can see me pout. "I'm thinking, leave me alone."
He grins. "Penny for your thoughts?"
I shrug, leaning my head back on his shoulder. "Just internally cursing myself for being so stubborn."
"What time?" He teases, and I elbow him. "I don't know why you're beating me up, it's a valid question!"
"The most recent time." I grumble. "The time that I made you wait for over a year because I was stupid and stubborn, and-"
"Hey." He interrupts, his fingers thrumming over my waist. "Don't beat yourself up about it. You needed time to process it all, and I understood that. That's a very human reaction considering everything you went through; I honestly would have been a little concerned if you hadn't needed space." I feel him press a kiss to the top of my head. "I was willing to wait as long as you needed, and I would have waited longer if you'd wanted me to. So stop feeling bad about it all, it was a very cute thing for me to do and you're totally ruining it with all your guilty feelings."
I twist around so I'm facing him, and it shocks me (as it does almost every single day) when I see the tender smile on his face. It's so different to his normal cheeky smirk, but I think I almost prefer it more. "What did I do to deserve you?"
He hums thoughtfully, his eyes twinkling impishly. "The simple answer to that is; you don't deserve me. I'm just way out of your league; you're going to have to try really hard to keep me."
I raise my eyebrows challengingly. "Really?"
"Of course dollface, and you know it." He nods seriously. "I mean, have you seen me? I'm like a Greek god roaming the earth."
I snort. "Spencer, you are a Greek god."
"Why thank you dollface." He smirks at me. "See, didn't I say you knew I was out of your league?"
I roll my eyes, but fail in keeping the smile off my face. "You're impossibly narcissistic."
"And you're impossibly head over heels for my narcissism." He teases. "Admit it; you know you want to."
"Hey guys?" Jo clears her throat from behind us, and I duck my head into his chest so I can hide my guilty laugh. "Not that I'm totally going to kick your asses later for being disgustingly distracted by each other's faces again, because I definitely will, but you kind of have a visitor Kenzie."
"What?" I frown, looking over my shoulder at her. My heart freezes in my chest when I see the person standing demurely next to her.
"Grace?"
She stares at me like she's seeing a ghost. I can imagine my face is exactly the same. "It is you."
I stay frozen to the spot. "I thought you were dead."
My sister shakes her head, clearing her throat several times. "I thought you were too, I just..."
Spencer squeezes my shoulders, drawing my attention back to him. He shoots me a sombre smile. "We'll go check on Jas for a while."
I nod distractedly, looking back over at Grace. He squeezes my hand and leaves through the back door with Jo trailing behind him, glancing back at me worriedly.
"Grace." I say softly, slowly walking over to her. Her name feels weird on my tongue, like it's grown old and gnarly from misuse. She stays awkwardly by the door, staring down at her fingers. "Did you seriously just come here to stand silently in my front door?"
She sighs, finally looking up at me. I almost don't recognise her eyes; they look different, more mature. "I'm sorry Kenzie, I just... I've been psyching myself up for this conversation for so long, and now that it's happening, I don't know what to say."
I fold my arms over my chest. "I thought you died in the fire."
"I didn't. Can you remember what you told me when you came home late that morning, the day of the fire?" She asks, and I shake my head. "I know you only said it in the heat of the argument, but you told me to leave. And... I don't know, after you and Jasmine left, I really thought about what you said. I used to get so angry at you, because I thought you spent all that time out of the household because you were being selfish and wanted Dad to take all his anger out on me. I was so immature then Kenzie, I didn't even realise I was the one being selfish. The only reason you left was to protect Jasmine from Dad's anger; I didn't know that the rest of the time you were distracting Dad from hurting me, that you were copping the hits for me. I was so goddamn selfish Kenzie. " She swallows. "After you left, I decided to take your advice, and I went for a walk. I didn't even mean to be gone for long, I just wanted to clear my head but... when I came back, the house was on fire, and nobody knew where you were. You and Jasmine had disappeared, and the fire was so bad that they only found the charred remains of Dad's body. They thought you two had perished in the fire, and for a second, a selfish part of me was happy."
I shoot her a bitter smile. "I know what you mean."
Grace shakes her head. "I've spent so long feeling bad about that Kenzie. For a while, I even convinced myself that it was my fault you guys all died in the fire, that I wished it would happen and it actually did. Dad messed us up so bad Kenzie; he messed us up so bad, that for a second we were happy the other died? That's not right!"
"We were trained to think that way Grace." I reply quietly. "But what counts is that after we thought that, our own real thoughts hit us and made us realise how screwed up that was. I've been feeling guilty about that ever since."
"Me too." She admits, rubbing her bare arms. "I'm sorry I was such a bitch Kenzie. I was just trying to survive in that hellhole."
"I know. I forgive you. We all had our different ways of coping with the stress of it all. I'm surprised you didn't turn out worse, to be honest." I offer her a small smile, and she laughs a little. "So where have you been staying ever since then?"
"Since the cops thought I was an orphan, they put me through the foster system." She tells me. "It was only for a couple of years until I hit the legal age; I was planning on leaving this place as soon as I turned old enough and becoming a nun or something in the furthest, most desolate part of the world. My screwed up logic figured that, that way, nobody could hurt me like Dad did."
"But you didn't?"
She shakes her head again. "The family that fostered me... they were the nicest, kindest and most welcoming people I've ever met. I was so suspicious of them at first, I thought that as soon as the limelight turned off me, they would revert to be as cruel as Dad was. I didn't even think that people could love me for who I was."
I can't help but smile a little at that; it sounds exactly the same as what I thought about with Spencer. "So you're staying with them?"
"Yeah." A warm smile lights up her features, and I would be lying if I said that shocked me. I don't think I've seen her smile like that since Mum died. "Until the fall anyway. Then me and my boyfriend Luke are moving to attend the university over here."
"That's nice Grace." I laugh a little, glancing down at the boxes on the floor. "You'll probably see me around once Spencer and I have moved in here. I'm one of the guidance counselors on the university campus."
"Of course you are." Her expression falters a little. "Kenzie?"
"Yeah?"
"Where did you go when Dad died?" She bites her lip. "I mean... you and Jasmine disappeared completely off the map. Everyone thought you were dead."
I sigh. What the hell do I tell her? "It's... complicated Grace. A lot of things happened in a short period of time, some things I didn't even believe could happen at all, and I had a hard time dealing with it all. I figured it was just easier to stay hidden while I dealt through it all." I smile to myself. "I'm just lucky I met Spencer when I did; I wouldn't have been able to deal with any of it if he hadn't forced his way into my life."
That's the understatement of the century.
"I'm glad he found you." She tells me quietly. "I haven't seen you this happy since-"
"Mum died?" I finish, and she nods. We both laugh. "Yeah. Who figured we'd find people who actually made us happy?"
"Mum did?" She offers, and I chuckle. "I miss her."
"I miss her too." I pull her into a warm hug, wrapping my arms tightly around her. "I miss Dad too; well, what he was like before she died."
"Yeah." She mumbles into my shoulder. She pulls back, looking at me with shining eyes. "I'm sorry Kenzie. For everything."
I tuck a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear and smile kindly at her. "It's not all your fault Grace. I never blamed you. I'm just glad you didn't die."
"Me too." She clears her throat awkwardly, glancing down at her watch. "I-I better go. Luke's waiting for me in the car, and I don't want to get in your way. I just... wanted to see if you were really okay."
She cuts herself off, but I can hear the rest of her unspoken sentence. I wanted to get closure. It hits me right then; I hadn't realised it, but up until this moment, it was something I'd been desperately holding out for too. I swallow back tears, and hug her again. "Don't be a stranger, okay? There's always a bed for you here, and I know Jas misses you heaps." I nudge her with a teasing wink. "Plus, I wanna meet this Luke guy, give him my scary big sister speech and all that."
Grace laughs, sniffling slightly. Apparently she's as emotional about this all as I am. "I'll try see you in a few days after you and Spencer have moved in, how does that sound?"
"It sounds perfect." I smile. "Although, knowing us, we probably won't be moved in for another month or two."
She cracks a grin at that. "Well then... I guess I'll see you later Kenzie."
I walk her out the door and lean on the frame. "Bye Grace."
She waves at me, and turns around, walking to a dark blue car waiting idly in front of our driveway. I swallow and wave back as they drive away, mixed emotions churning inside me as I try to figure out the conversation that just happened.
Someone silently pads up behind me, tearing me out of my thoughts. I turn around to see Spencer watching me, concern evident in his bright green eyes. "You okay?"
"I think so." I offer him a quick smile. "I didn't think it would take that long, I'm sorry."
"Are you kidding?" He laughs, pulling me in for a tight hug. Instantly, I melt into his embrace, relishing it's warmth. "I had to endure almost a year and a half without seeing you dollface; I'm pretty sure I can survive an extra ten minutes while you catch up with the sister you thought was dead."
I roll my eyes. "You still saw me during those fifteen months, I know you did."
"Yes, but I didn't see you." He emphasizes. "It's completely different."
"No it's not!" I protest, giggling. "You're just being overdramatic!"
Spencer sighs. "I was trying to be deep and philosophical dollface, and you ruined it."
"Oh, I'm sorry." I plaster an innocent look on my face. "It's completely different Spence, I see that now. Oh, how your deep and philosophical ways move me so."
He pouts down at me. "Now you're just making fun of me."
"No I'm not. I'm trying to boost your deep and philosophical ego." I nod seriously.
"That's it." He narrows his eyes at me, and without warning throws me over his shoulder.
I screech in surprise. "Spencer!"
"What?" He asks nonchalantly as he strolls down the hall. I have a dreadful feeling that I know exactly where he's heading. "I'm just being overdramatic dollface, remember?"
I pummel his back with my fists. "Put me down!"
"No." He pushes open the door to the pool area. "Hey Jasmine! I have a very important task for you."
"Spencer! Put. Me. Down!"
I hear Jasmine yell and jump out of the pool. "What Spencer?"
"On three, I want you to push Mamma in the pool." He says seriously, and I freeze.
"Jasmine don't you dare."
She ignores me and cheers. "Yay!"
"One-"
"Jasmine if you do this you are totally not going to get any presents from me for your 7th birthday!" I threaten.
She grins at me. "I don't care!"
"Two-"
"Spencer, I swear, if you throw me in the pool you're sleeping on the couch for the rest of your life!" I warn. He bursts out laughing and plops me down on my feet.
"Three!"
I scream loudly as they both push me as hard as they can, and I hit the water with a loud splash. Seconds later Jasmine plummets into the pool next to me, and with a whoop Spencer joins us with a humongous splash.
I pop up out of the water and glare furiously at them. "I hate you both."
They glance at each other and grin mischievously, chanting simultaneously, "We love you!"
And it strikes me right then and there, as I'm standing completely soaked in the middle of the pool of our new house, glaring at the two people who put me in this predicament.
This is all I needed to finally be able to call this place home and us a family.
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