Epilogue

Christmas eve in Hawaii, it was Sarah's first time in Hawaii. She hadn't been on a vacation before she met Richie so for her sons it was the first vacation they ever went on. They both loved surfing and Hawaii was a perfect place to surf, while Ava was sunbathing on the beach. Sarah and Richie did the same.

They had both been busy with work, Richie with his fashion line and already back to writing songs while Sarah had started a job at the nearest hospital as a receptionist for one of the wards. She liked her job a lot and had made a few friends out of her colleagues already.

Winter in Hawaii were pretty much the same as summers in Hawaii. So far they had spend their few days on the island on the beach, the weather was beautiful and so was the island itself.

But now, after a wonderful dinner with the family, and a nice Christmas movie afterwards, Sarah sat in bed, her knees pulled up where a photo album was resting through which she was leafing. Richie had asked her if she wanted to join him in the shower but Sarah decided to look through the photo album.

She had brought it along on vacation because she needed to look at the pictures to remember how their relationship started and their summer had been. Before they left she had a feeling she might need some cheering up, lately she needed Richie's support more frequently than she had wished.

The photo album had been a wedding present, as soon as they had opened it they knew what would have been inside. It was Jon's and Dorothea's present, a white photo album with two gold hearts on the cover.

She opened the book and read the text she had read so many times over the last few months,

Congratulations to you, Richie and Sarah, on finding one another.
Anyone can take a single look at the pair of you and see nothing but your love, care, respect, and admiration for each other shinning through not only in your eyes, but your smiles, and in the things you do.

The first time they had read it together, they had smiled at each other, it perfectly described them.

On the first page of the album was a photo of Sarah and Richie, a driver carrying bags behind them, walking down the hall. Sarah remembered the moment as the first time she had gone over to Europe to see Richie, so many things had changed from that moment on.

Looking through the album on the day after their wedding they had realized Jon had taken a lot more photos than they knew about but every single photo he had managed to capture a special moment between them or a step in their relationship.

A few pager further Sarah found another photo of herself and Richie, she was soaking wet, a towel was wrapped around her but it was noticeable Richie wasn't as wet. She remembered that only a few minutes they had told each other their love for one another.

Neither of them looked stunning in that particular photo but Sarah loved it because she knew the story behind it and it always helped to cheer her up again.

The photos at the castle in Scotland where Jon had joined them were some of Sarah's favorites. It had been a bright and sunny day which showed in the photographs too. She particularly loved the one Jon had taken while she and Richie were looking out over the walls and the kiss she had stolen from him a few minutes later.

Her absolute favorite photo was more to the back, on one of the last pages she found it, looking at longer than she had spent at looking at the others.

This photo represented the biggest change in her life. Since that moment on everything had changed, things were very different now.

It was a dark photo but it was at night, yet the figures of her and Richie were still clear, the rose Richie was handing her in the picture, still stood in the same box on her bed side table at home. It hand't moved since she had placed it there, before they left on vacation she had wondered if she should take it along but was scared it would get damaged and left the box safely in it's place.

Instead she had her engagement ring, which also looked like a rose, it wasn't a red one but a white gold one, just like her wedding ring which meant even more to her.

The last page of her photo album didn't bear a photo but another text,

This photo album holds your shared moments captured forever in time for you to see. The beginning has begun to fill, and now the two of you can fill the rest as you spend the rest of your lives together.

Instead of closing the book, Sarah returned to one of the pages that held a few pictures of them by the pool in Spain.

At that moment Richie walked back out of the bathroom.

Sarah looked up at him and smiled, she admired how comfortable he was with himself as he walked over to the bed completely naked. She definitely wasn't that comfortable with herself, she was glad Richie was still fine with that. She preferred a nightgown at night, even if it was hardly anything, the only times she slept naked was when they had more plans than just sleeping at night.

Richie lifted the covers on his side of the bed and got in, sliding closer to Sarah, holding his arms open. Sarah put her book down and moved into his arms, letting him embrace her as she rested her head on his shoulder, he kissed the top of her head.

"What's on your mind?" He asked gently but Sarah only shrugged against him and said, "nothing."
"Then why are you looking in that book?"
"I like looking at it."
"You usually look in it when you're a bit down or thinking about us." Richie explained, still gently.
"How do you know that?" Sarah looked up surprised.
"Because I'm your husband, I know you. So what's on your mind?" He asked asked again.

Sarah sighed.

"I was just thinking how perfect and easy things were a few months ago."
Confused Richie asked, "what do you mean?"
"The last few months have been a little rougher with everything going on and not working out as we had planned it." Sarah explained.

Richie hugged her tighter, he had been thinking the same, but hadn't told Sarah about it. The last few months had been a little harder, she was right about that but he thought they should hope and not give up.

"We just have to keep trying." He tried to encourage her even though he had a few of his own doubts.
"I just didn't think it would take this long."
"We have to keep trying." He repeated.
"I think it'll get even harder." Sarah said sadly, already feeling down about it all.
"Why would it get even harder?"

Sarah shook her head against him, she hadn't told him yet but now she had to.

"I got my period this morning." She confessed.
"Is that what's got you down all day? Sweetie, we just keep trying, we knew it wouldn't work at once." He said, not letting the disappointment he felt show, Sarah needed him now.

He held her for a while while he thought things over. It would take longer for them they successfully get pregnant, they certainly weren't in their 20s anymore but they had been told to just keep trying for a while and if that didn't work, they'd try something else. He couldn't deny he had hoped for it to work from the first time but so far they weren't that fortunate.

"Tomorrow we have a nice Christmas with the kids and we just keep trying for another kid. It'll work eventually, don't worry about it." He tried to encourage her again.

Sarah nodded and slid down the bed, Richie moved with her, not letting her go all night.



Christmas morning didn't immediately turn around Sarah's mood.

Usually the kids weren't up before 11 am when they didn't have school but now she could hear voices from the living room at only 9 am.

She gently shook Richie's shoulder to wake him up.

"Richie, honey, we got nosy kids."
Richie opened his eyes and stretched next to his wife. "What?"
"The kids are trying to figure out their Christmas presents."
"Spoiled brats." He chuckled, not meaning it at all.
"You wanted to spoil them."
"Because we can, so why not?"

They got out of bed, looking for clothes that would cover them up some more before going to the living room, which was on the same floor as their bedroom was.

All three teenagers immediately stood up and turned their backs to the tree and presents, with matching smiles on their faces.

"Very nice tree we have, isn't it?" Richie asked nonchalant.

He walked over to the tree with Sarah and sat down on the couch nears to it and picked up one of the presents and read the name tag.

"To Sexy Girl, from Sexy Stud." He looked up at Sarah. "That must be to you from me!" He said excited.
Sarah laughed and took the present.



An hour later all the presents had been opened and Sarah was regarding her family around her. Richie was helping Caleb with a new guitar while Noah was showing his new phone to Ava. She had a perfectly happy family around her, why did she still feel like something was missing?