Epilogue: A New Beginning

One year later (February 14, 2000)

********

It was a beautiful night. Fresh snow littered the ground, making everything feel
fresh and new. The sky was clear, and the only light belonged to the stars.

Lucky and Elizabeth walked hand in hand to where both of their lives had been forever
changed.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Elizabeth asked.
“I have to” Lucky replied. “I think we both do”.

They moved slowly towards the bench, and Elizabeth sat on it wearily. Lucky sat
beside her, holding her hand. They were holding each other. Both of them had helped
the other survive what one man had done. Not one was stronger than the other. They
were equals. They were only half of a whole, incomplete without the other.

********

Things hadn’t always been like this.

After Luke and Lucky’s confrontation here in this park, things got better. Lucky was
finally able to admit and talk about what had happened to him. At first, he would
only talk to Luke, then Laura and finally Elizabeth. He told them what Tom had said
and done to him, and they had all helped him, and each other, heal their wounds.

Lucky was finally able to understand that he wasn’t at fault for either Elizabeth’s
rape or his own kidnapping. He slowly regained that cocky Spencer attitude that he
was so well known for. He still suffered from nightmares and bouts of depression, but
with the help of his parents, brother, and girlfriend, he was healing.

The trial, though, was another story. Tom’s lawyer practically dragged Lucky through
the mud. He was called everything form a liar to an addict. Everything he’d ever done
was questioned. The lawyer went so far as to say that Lucky had brought the
kidnapping on himself.

This had been devastating to him at first, and all of the progress he’d made was
erased. When he got his chance to testify, though, it all changed. He went up to the
stand, calmly, and told his story. He was well aware that he wasn’t just doing it for
himself. He was also testifying for Emily and all of the other girls Tom had black
mailed. More importantly, he was testifying for Elizabeth and all of the girls like
her who would never get the chance to speak.

Tom was convicted, unanimously, of attempted murder. The fact that Lucky was a minor
guaranteed a worse sentence.
Tom was sent to prison for the rest of his life with no possibility of parole.

The trial was hard on everyone. Lucky and Elizabeth came out of it stronger than
ever.

Luke and Laura, while trying to help their son, had managed to also help each other.
They realized how foolish they had both been and agreed to work things out. They
talked, and screamed, it out, and realized that they belonged with each other. They
decided to stay together and raise their daughter and look after their son together.

Luke, in mending fences with his wife, had done the same with her son. Luke hated
Stefan with all of his heart, but it stopped there. For his wife and children’s
sakes, he made peace with Nikolas. He accepted him as Laura’s son and welcomed him
into his house. They weren’t the best of friends, but they were getting there.

Nikolas was happy with this, but Stefan wasn’t. However, Nikolas didn’t care. He
loved his father, but he also loved his mother and his siblings. He could put up with
Stefan’s disapproval for them. Luke’s civility was weird for Nikolas. Especially when
Luke and Lucky took him to a place called a stadium to watch some sort of game.
Nikolas didn’t quite understand the concept, but Lucky was enjoying himself and,
believe it or not, Nikolas was too. Luke and Lucky had a wild time explaining to him
the rules of baseball, and trying to get him to understand the purpose. He didn’t
quite get all of it, but Lucky assured him that in time, he would understand, and
that there would be many more opportunities to explain.

********
Lucky stood up from the bench and stared at Elizabeth.
“What?” she asked.
He seemed to gather his courage before finally speaking.
“Elizabeth, this day has horrible memories for both of us. Today, I want to change
that”. He lowered himself until he was on one knee. He took both of her hands and
looked into her eyes.
“I love you, Elizabeth. I love you with all of my heart and my soul. I can’t imagine
living my life without you in it. You helped me through the worst time in my life. I
wouldn’t be here without you. You are the best thing to ever happen to me. I don’t
ever want to lose that. I want you with me for the rest of my life”.
He dug in his pocket until he found what he was looking for. He took the small black
box, opened it, and showed it to her.
“Will you do me the honor of being my wife?”

Elizabeth was speechless. Her eyes were glued to the ring. It was the most beautiful
thing she’d ever seen. The starlight reflected off the diamond, making it sparkle.
“Lucky....” she stopped to gather her thoughts. “You’re everything to me. When you
almost died, I though I would die too. You’re my better half, my partner now and
forever. I love you with everything that I am, and I can’t see my life without you”.
She reached up and brushed away the tear that had fallen on his left cheek.
“I will be honored to be your wife”.
He smiled and put the ring on her finger. After doing that, he brought her close to
him and kissed her. A strong passionate kiss.
In that kiss, he promised her to love and cherish her for all time, and to always be
at her side. She in turn, promised him to always love and honor him, until the day
their lives ended.
They broke off from the kiss, and looked into each other’s eyes, knowing that they
had made the right choice.
They both stood up, turned their backs on the bench, the park, and all of the
memories there, and walked away.

They never looked back.


THE END

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