New Beginnings

Epilogue 2

I looked at Kimi and forced a smile. "Bad dream, Miss Thing."

Thank god. "Dad said lunch will be ready soon."

I smiled. "I'm going to clean up. Tell Dad I'll be there in a few minutes."

After she headed toward the dining room, I stood from the couch and made my way upstairs to the room I shared with my husband. Making my way to the walk-in closet, I stand in front of the mirror and lift my shirt, eyeing the tattoo on my ribcage that covers the initials that were burnt into my skin years ago.

I went the basic route and got a flock of birds flying from a cage, but it symbolized how free I had felt when I knew Tenya could never lay his hands on me again. I felt free for the first time since I met him. Even when I left and was working as the nanny, I didn't feel it right away. When he died, I started to feel it, but he still held onto my mind for a few years. Even now, I still have those dreams occasionally.

I think they're glimpses of what my life would have been like if I stayed with him. None of them are the same, but they all give me the same feeling.

When my husband appeared in the mirror behind me, I flashed him a sad smile.

"Are you okay?" He walked closer and slid his arms around my waist. He has been patient and understanding through everything and has never gotten mad or raised his hand at me. We've had our disagreements like all couples, but I've never felt unsafe or unloved with him.

"Yeah."

His fingers traced my tattoo lightly. "Do you want to talk about it? Kimi said you were pretty freaked out when you woke up."

I shook my head. "I promise that I'm fine. It just took a second to snap back to reality."

Katsuki kissed my cheek lightly. "You're sure?"

When I nodded, he helped me fix my shirt, and we made our way downstairs to tell the kids the exciting news. Since Hanako and Kenzo went to school closer to my parents than here and Masao's boyfriend lives closer to them than us, we've decided it was time to say goodbye to this home. Honestly, we wanted to do it when we pulled Masao from public schools because he was being bullied too badly. People didn't like his pink and purple hair or his more feminine clothing choices.

But we held on because Hanako was going to college, and Kenzo had his first girlfriend, who turned out to be the first love of his life. They broke up recently, and it killed him. Watching your child hurt and not being able to do anything about it makes you hurt in a way you never thought possible.

We walked into the dining room, hand in hand. I smiled at him before he let my hand go. "Katsuki, this looks delicious," I said as I sat at the table. Katsuki has become a fantastic cook over the years. Today, he made homemade chill and cornbread. I couldn't wait to dig in, but I would have to.

Masao and Kenzo are having a friendly debate over which one of Masao's new polish colors goes best with his hair and why. Kimi tells Hanako about her school project and the cute boy in her project group.

"Hey, everyone, we have some exciting news," Katsuki said loud enough to be heard over the kids. I smiled as they all turned to look at him, waiting to listen to him. "I'm selling the house. We will be moving closer to Grandma Inko and Grandpa Toshi."

A mix of emotions filled their faces. Hanako looked a little sad, but her eyes held understanding. Kenzo looked stunned but happy. Masao was excited to be leaving the narrow-minded people of this small town behind and being closer to his boyfriend. Kimi was upset about leaving her friends but happy to be closer to Hanako and Kenzo's schools and my parents. Once the shock wore off, the kids went back to their usual friendly banter and conversations.

As I watched the scene that played out in front of me, I forgot about my food as my other tattoo was brought to mind. I slid my hand into the sleeve of my T-shirt and raised it. I admired the art piece that covered the long scar on my bicep. It was puzzle pieces; each piece had one of the kids' silhouettes and their names. Watching them, I felt like every piece had fallen into place. The decision to sell the house and move was the final piece of us moving on.

Even though I would be leaving my first real friends behind as well, I felt complete and smiled, thankful that this dream was what my life ended up being, not that nightmare. As the kids talked about the new home and being closer together again, Katsuki slid one arm around my waist and pulled me close to him. "To better and New Beginnings."

~*END*~

A/N: Hey, everyone thank you for all the love we received in the writing of this story. As always no matter you place or time in this crazy world I hope you find love and the joy of creating something as special to you as writing is for me. 

❤️ALL THE LOVE❤️

💥PROMO💥

Coming Soon,

A Knightstar and NaLu collaboration

Thin Ice Rivalry

(Date:TBD)

Midoriya

The first time I ever met him, I knew he was going to be a problem. A double minor penalty should have been my first clue, but it wasn't. It was after the game, when we shook hands. His red eyes looked me up and down before he said, "Nice face," after having cut me with his stick in the third period. When I squeezed his hand and said, "I wish I could say the same about yours," something shifted. The entire arena must have felt it because the next day, our newfound rivalry was posted across many sports journals. 

Bakugo

Five years after we met, we're still at each other's throats. We don't talk much or mention each other when we don't play together, but there's a lot of trash-talking around the time that we play. As long as we don't take it too far, we usually don't get in trouble since our rivalry fills seats. It's rare we don't have a sold-out game, and it's even more rare that half the jseys don't say one of our names. When one of us gets interviewed, they always ask about the other person. I've gotten used to people associating our names together. What I haven't gotten used to is how much I still want him after that one drunken night. 

⚠️Smut

⚠️Drug/Alcohol use

⚠️Mention of Child Abuse/Molestation (no in-depth detail)

⚠️Minor blood/Injuries