It Ends With Us (Alternative Ending)

5 years later

I hear a shuffle of footsteps in the corner of my bedroom, our bedroom. With that, comes a blunt force of weight on my stomach. I open my eyes and see Emerson's smiling face.
"Mommy, wake up!"
Her beautiful blue eyes gaze at me with curiosity and her lips widen into a playful smile. She has grown up to be everything I had hoped she would be; a curious, smart, beautiful, and wildly hilarious young girl. It's crazy to think I brought her into this world and my life, our lives, a little over five years ago. I will never forget the joy I felt that day. Since then, I have opened two more flower shops, one more near the edge of the Massachusetts border, and another in Maine. I never thought that I would ever put any form of roots down in the state in which I spent the entirety of my confusing childhood in. I thought about it long and hard and eventually decided to spread beauty into Maine, despite the rough start it gave me into adulthood. Lucy, yes that Lucy, manages the flower shop in Maine. Her singing somehow attracts customers. I travel back and forth between all three locations, but spend most of my time in my original store. It is easier for me to take Emmy, especially since we live right across the street. She just started preschool, but every single day, she asks, no, she begs for me to take her to "mommy's garden" so she can spend hours smelling all the flowers and asking me about the colors. She is particularly fond of the color purple. This morning, she's wearing a purple dress and her long brown hair is tied in a beautiful purple bow. She has her dad's hair and eyes. I hear a knock on the door as I sit up and smooth my wild hair down. Ryle comes in carrying a tray, smiling. His brown hair is ruffled, almost as if he just woke up. He must have gotten out of bed before me. He walks up to my side of the bed and places the tray into my lap. A slice of golden brown toast slathered in butter, a steaming pile of eggs, and bacon sit on the plate in front of me.
"Happy six year anniversary, Lily."
I smile and his eyes lock with mine. His blue eyes somehow get more blue and clear as the light from the morning haze reflects off of them. He gazes at me hungrily and tucks a stray red curl behind my ear. He cups my cheek, leans in, and kisses me on the nose. "I love you so much," he says. I hold his hand to my cheek and lean into it.
"I love you too, Ryle."
I hear the front door open from across the long hall in our apartment.
"Yoohoo! Is anyone home?"
Alyssa.
"IN HERE."
The door swings open and in bursts a wild Alyssa, her eyes lit up with happiness, her baby bump showing. It was two months ago that she had sat Ryle and I down and presented us with shirts. They read "I have the best aunt and uncle!" I was ecstatic. A boy! Rylee was going to be an older sister.
"So, today marks six years!"
I run my hand through my hair, my fingers catching on some tangles. Ryle chuckles, "Yes, who would have thought." Alyssa narrows her eyes and glares at him.
"Anyways, Marshall and I have decided to take Emmy and Rylee to the fair for today. Lily, your mom and stepdad are coming too."
She flashes a smile at me.
"You know what that means, a day to yourselves!"
My heart does a leap. A day to ourselves? Ever since I decided to expand my business I have been so busy, and with Ryle being recently promoted to Chief of Neurosurgery at Mass Gen, he's had a lot of late nights too. Ryle walks towards Alyssa and scoops her up. She starts laughing and yells, "Careful!" He sets her down gently and puts his hands on her shoulders. "Issa, you're the best sister. You know where to find us, I doubt we'll be leaving this room today." He winks at me and my cheeks go red. "Besides", I say, "You do only live one block away." Ever since the day I had Emmy and decided to give Ryle one last chance, we decided it would be best and sell the apartment he had bought just a few months prior. Too many bad memories that reminded us too much of the past and halted out future. Alyssa groans and beckons at Emmy with her hand out.
"Ryle, I have my eyes on you."
She puts two fingers to her eyes and points at him before she closes our bedroom door and leaves. I sigh and smile at the same time. Ryle spins around and locks eyes with me once more. In a split second, he's gone from standing across our bedroom to laying on top of me, pinning my wrists to my pillow, just above my head. Five years ago, I would not have let him do that. I would not have even tolerated being in the same room as him. But, something looked different in his eyes the day Emmy was born. It wasn't remorse, it was more like hope, a light, a flame,  that seemed to have been rekindled, the second Emmy came into this world. And since that day, Ryle has kept his promise. It took me a little while to tell him about Atlas, and how I stayed with him for a few days after the attack. I have to say, I've never felt that scared before. I had no idea what he would do, head-but me or push me down the stairs. But to my surprise, as I unloaded all of the unresolved feelings I had for Atlas, Ryle did not react, at least not in a physically harmful way. I remember seeing his jaw clench and hearing him take a very deep breath. But as I finished my speech; my confession, he walked over to me, not to hit me or push me, but to hug me. He had never held me so tight before. That's when I knew, he was not a bad person. He was a good person, who did bad things. It has now been five years since the attack, and he has not placed a single finger on me, at least not in that way. He goes to therapy once a week and we barely fight. When we do, we solve things like normal, healthy, and loving, married adults. It makes my stomach do somersaults every time I think about how far we've come.
"Hello? Lily? Anyone in there?"
I jerk from my trance and smile up at him, his hands still on my wrists, above my head, gripping lightly. He smiles back and presses his lips against mine. Cupping my cheek, he traces it with his thumb as he releases my wrists with his other hand. He gives me a slow kiss on my mouth, my cheek, my neck, but skips over my tattoo. He respects and understands my past, but it is still hard for him to acknowledge it. At least with his tongue. He continues leaving a trail of wet kisses down my chest, while unbuttoning my pajama shirt. He runs his tongue over my breast and trails down to my stomach. He stops right above my panties and pulls himself up so that his face is almost pressing against mine.
"Want to hear a naked truth?"
I grab his face and pull him in so his lips are against mine.
"Always."
He kisses me with tongue, and I kiss him back. I run my hands through his hair. Our sighs mesh together.
"I love you, Lily Bloom Kincaid."
"I love you, Ryle."
He wraps his hand around my waist. With the other, he slowly pulls down my panties. He enters me and his thrusts are so passionate, I'm gasping in his ear. Our bodies become one.

As for Atlas, I read in the newspaper that he opened another Bib's. He got married and now has three beautiful children. His family was featured in an article, and him and his wife talked about how they incorporate their family life into the beauty of cooking. About a year ago, as I was walking down the street, one hand in Ryle's and another in Emmy's, we passed Atlas and his wife. Our eyes met. Everything that had happened in our pasts came flashing back. I gave him a nod and a smile and he did the same. Ryle saw, and glanced at me. The old Ryle I knew would have killed Atlas and probably me. However, the man I love, the man I always have loved, instead, smiled at me and kissed my hand as we continued to walk down the street. In the moment I smiled at Atlas, I knew, we were there to help one another when each of us had no one. Thats the thing about love. It rears its ugly, but beautiful head in moments where we need it the most, and sticks around for the moments that matter the most.