Make sure to read Chapter 9 first before the Epilogue

Warning: This epilogue contains violence and subjects that may be sensitive to some readers.

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Epilogue - December
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"You look fine, Riley!"

"But this one looks too-"

"Ok, then try THIS one! Everyone is probably already there!"

"Okay, okay," I said, taking the dress from Maya. We were at the store trying on different dresses for the post-Christmas party at Topanga's. I had tried on a million different dresses but couldn't find a great one yet. Maya already found hers.

She was wearing a black, sparkly bodycon dress with black heels. When Shawn saw her, he freaked out, but my mom (who did her makeup by the way) convinced him to let her wear it since she would only be at Topanga's for the night. Shawn was almost like Maya's dad with the way they acted with each other.

Maya's hair looked so pretty in waves and her smoky eyes looked great. I wanted to look as great as she did.

With a sigh, I went back into the dressing room and slipped on the dress Maya gave me. It was a sleeveless dark-red skater dress with lace straps and a thick black belt. I looked in the mirror and smiled. This looked perfect!

Coming out of the dressing room, I saw Maya's face light up. "Sweetie," she said, nodding her head. "I think this is the one."

"Aw, thanks Peaches," I replied, twirling around. "Wait," I said, and looked back in the mirror. Maya groaned, but I ignored that and said, "won't it get cold?"

Maya quickly shoved a few things into my arms. "One step ahead of you," she said. I looked at what she gave me and saw a light brown cardigan and thigh high socks, along with a pair of black boots. "Now let's go!"

After I got dressed and ready, we headed over to the party. It was dark out, but holiday lights were put up around the building to lighten things up. It looked really pretty. Almost everyone was outside, and there was music playing. I smiled brightly and went over to the crowd with Maya.

"I have a feeling that this is going to be a good night," I said to Maya, holding her hand. Everything looked so beautiful and perfect. My mom did an awesome job with the whole thing!

Maya looked to me and replied, "You and me."

I smiled at her. "You and me."

Even though she said this, I knew it was only a matter of time before she realized that Josh was here and went running to him. Her eyes lit up as she looked somewhere, and I turned to see who she was looking at. Inside of Topanga's, I saw my uncle Josh helping my parents set the tables up and putting food out. "Uncle Boing," she said in a happy voice, and started to run over before I caught her by the hand.

"Maya, don't get your hopes up," I said, looking at her happy face. "He's probably dating a college girl. You know, one that's his age?"

She smirked while wagging a finger at me and said, "Three years, Riley. It's only three years."

I shook my head and waved as she hurried to the door to talk to Josh. I wasn't sure if Maya would ever get over her crush on Josh...

"Hey, Riley!"

Turning around, I saw Lucas a few feet away from me. He had a drink in one hand and a box in another. The box had red and gold wrapping paper with a small silver bow on top. I went over to him and gave him a hug. "Hi, Lucas," I said, and he put the present in my hands. I looked at it and asked, "You got me a present? I thought we agreed-"

"I know you didn't want any presents for the party," he replied, "but I couldn't help it. I wanted to do something nice for you, Riley."

I had let my friends know that I didn't need any presents this year since all I wanted was to have this party on the weekend after Christmas. I should have known that Lucas was going to get me one anyway. "What is it?" I asked with a smile.

"Open it," He replied, gesturing to the box.

It wasn't too big, and it fit perfectly in the palm of my hand. Taking the top off of the box, I looked inside and then started to push the small tissue paper out of the way to see what was inside. I saw something gold gleaming from inside of the tissue, so I pulled it out and looked to see what it was. It was a bracelet, and it was very simple and pretty. In the middle of it, the bracelet twisted into an infinity symbol. "I had it inscribed," Lucas said, and I looked at the bracelet again to find words on the outside of it.

"There are some moments you know you're going to remember forever...," I read aloud, and then looked on the inside of the bracelet. "This is one of them."

I looked up at him and smiled. "That wasn't too cheesy, was it?" he asked.

Standing on my toes I gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "It wasn't cheesy when you first said it," I replied, "and it's not cheesy now."

He nodded, and then stared at me for a while. I turned my head slightly with a confused look. With a small laugh, I asked, "Why are you staring at me?"

Lucas blinked hard and scratched the back of his head. "You look pretty tonight, Riley."

"Oh, thanks," I replied with my face blushing, then grabbed his hand. "Wanna dance?"

"Yeah, sure," he said, first putting the bracelet on my wrist and then heading over to the crowd.

They played at least twenty songs while we danced. The music was so loud I could feel the bass move through my body, and it was awesome. Everyone around me seemed to be having a good time, including me and Lucas.

"Hey," someone said, and I turned around to find Maya dancing next to me.

"Maya," I greeted, dancing with her now. "How did it go with Josh?"

"I don't think you want to know," she replied with a laugh.

"Ladies," Farkle said, coming toward us. "Would any of you like to dance?"

I smiled and almost took up on the offer until I felt Lucas gently grab my hand. "She's taken for the night," he said, "but I'm sure there's another beauty who'd be happy to dance with you."

Lucas gestured to Maya, and she responded with a glare. "You're lucky you're dating my best friend, hop-along," she said, then turned to Farkle with a smile. "And since she's taken, I'll dance with you."

Farkle gladly took her hand and led her to the middle of the dance floor, while Lucas and I stayed right where we were. Right after they left, a slow song started to play. I heard a guitar start to play through the area. Lucas and I looked up at each other simultaneously and gave each other knowing looks. I put my hands on his shoulders while he put his on my waist, and we began to slow dance

I want you

And I need you

And nothing comes close

"This is the best night I've had in a long time, Lucas," I said, looking him in the eyes.

He looked at me too and said, "I'm not sure if it could get any better."

To the way that I need you

I wish I can feel your skin

A breeze blew through the area, and I started to shiver. Lucas pulled me closer and we slowly swayed to the music that was playing. "Are you cold?" he asked, concerned. I simply shook my head and held him closer. I didn't want to do anything other than be with him in this moment. I rested my head on his chest and closed my eyes while we were still swaying to the music.

And I want you

From somewhere within

I felt something on my nose, and opened my eyes to see what it was. Then I felt it again, but on my arm. It was rain. I looked up and then a few more drops came down. Soon, it was pouring. A few people started to walk inside, but Lucas and I stayed where we were.

He looked down at my lips then back up into my eyes. I nodded my head and started to lean in while he did the same.

Before we could reach each other, someone stepped between us. "Lucas," my dad said, "you know what's a great idea? Inside. Now."

"Dad!" I quietly exclaimed, disappointed. I watched my dad lead an embarrassed Lucas inside while I reluctantly followed behind them. He was more protective of me now than ever before! It was embarrassing but I understood where he was coming from, so there were no hard feelings there.

For some reason, I decided to look down at my wrist and then saw that my bracelet was missing. "I'll be right there," I said to my dad, and then turned around to look for it. God, that bracelet must have been expensive! I had to find it fast before Lucas noticed that it was gone. Why was I such a klutz? I sighed heavily and began scanning the ground for my bracelet. What if I had lost it when we first started dancing? That was so long ago! It could have gotten kicked around, or someone might have picked it up and taken it with them.

Trying to calm myself, I slowly continued to look all over the floor for my present. It had to be here somewhere.

There were still I few people outside, so I tried to walk past them as they were heading towards Topanga's. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something gold shimmer. I quickly looked in that direction and saw my bracelet on the floor. I tried to rush over to it since people were walking around it. I was almost to the bracelet when someone nearly stepped on it. Before they did, someone picked the bracelet up off the ground and held it out towards me.

"Thank you so much!" I exclaimed happily, and took it from them. I slid it onto my wrist and looked at it. No scrapes or dirt. I guess I was pretty lucky.

"No problem."

I jumped at the familiar voice and looked up. No, no, no, no…

It couldn't be! How? My heart dropped as I looked into his green, piercing eyes. He chuckled and raised an eyebrow at me. "What? I did you a favor, didn't I," he asked, stepping closer to me. "I really shouldn't have, considering the fact that you got me on house arrest for two months."

Everyone had already gone inside, and I was all the way by the stairs so that no one could see me. Just great. I let out a shaky breath and said in a quiet voice, "You're not supposed to be within 300 yards of me."

He shrugged. "I'm also not supposed to be out of my house until next week, but look where I am," he said, looking around. "The place looks nice, by the way."

"What are you doing here?" I asked, looking back. Lucas was in there. If I could just get over there and let him know-

"I'm here to check up on you," he replied with a smirk. "I wanted to see how my little brunette adjusting to life after the 'traumatic event'. If only they knew the real story. I could tell you liked what we did."

I shook my head and furrowed my eyebrows. "I did not," I replied, backing up one step. "You know I didn't. You need to leave."

The rain was still pouring, and the wind picked up. I started to shiver again, and he smiled at me. "You cold?" he asked, harshly grabbing my wrists. "Maybe I can warm you up."

I tried to tell him no, but in a second he was all over me. He pushed me against the brick wall and pressed his body against mine so that I could hardly move. When I tried to pull my face further away from his, he used a hand to grab my chin and face it towards him. "You owe this to me," he said in a low voice, attempting to force his lips on mine.

"Get… off!" I said out of breath, trying to get out of his grasp. His other hand started to travel under my dress and up my thigh. I used one of my hands to stop it from going any further.

"Stop being a tease," he said in a low and harsh voice. "I know you want it."

I wasn't going to get away from him like this. He was way too strong for me to get away. With my heart beating like a hammer, I tried to quickly think of a way out of this. "LUCAS!" I exclaimed, before Jason slapped me across the face with a lot of force. I cried out in pain, and heard a slight ringing in my ear. It had to have been the hardest he had ever slapped me. Tears spilled out of my eyes and I held my face. God, it hurt so bad!

He pushed my head back against the wall and whispered in my ear. "If you had just done what I said like the first time, this would have gone a whole lot smoother," he said to me, and ran across my face and down my neck. I shivered in disgust. All I wanted was for him to stop. "I want you, and don't doubt that I eventually get what I want."

I turned back to face him and felt my blood boil. I was undeniably angry at him. With a glare, a snapped back and said, "Go to Hell, Jason."

He laughed at that and replied with, "That's cute. I wish we had more time to talk, but you're attracting too much attention. Surprise, surprise."

Finally, he backed off and started to walk away. "See you around, Riley."

I shook my head. He would be stupid to come back around me. My family and friends were always near me now, so there was no chance he would catch me completely alone. Not anymore. Once he was gone, I heard the door to the building open.

"Riley?" I heard someone ask. I turned and saw Lucas a few feet away from me. "You've been out here this whole time? Everyone's almost done with their food, and we're about to leave."

He walked closer to me, and then furrowed his eyebrows in concern. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked, grabbing my hand.

I inhaled sharply and said, "Can you take me home, please?"

"Why?" he asked, then started to look around. "What happened? And why is your…"

He put a hand on the side of my face where I had been slapped and I cringed in pain. "Please," I said, turning my face away in hopes that he didn't see my reaction to his hand. "I'm just tired. Maya and my parents will understand."

"Okay…" he said seemingly reluctant, and linked his arm with mine. "Let's hurry. You're soaked. The last thing we need is for you to freeze to death out here."

I nodded and we both briskly walked to my house, which wasn't far from here. He was right. My clothes were completely soaked by the rain water, which kind of sucked since I had just bought this only about a few hours ago. My outfit was the last thing on my mind, though. I just wanted to go back home with Lucas, where it was safe.

Once we got there, we both walked to my bedroom door. "Can you wait outside for a minute?" I asked him.

"Sure," he said, giving me a slight nod.

I went into my room and closed the door behind me. Quickly, I took off my wet clothes and looked in my dresser for new ones. I picked out a thick grey sweatshirt with black and white plaid pajama shorts.

Once I slipped those on and put my wet clothes away, I called out for Lucas. "You can come in now."

The door opened and he walked in, shutting the door behind him. "So, why did you want to come home?" he asked, walking over to me. Before I could come up with an answer, he looked at the side of my face again. "Riley, why is the side of your face red?"

I stayed silent and looked down. I did want to tell him, but I didn't want him to freak out. And I knew he would freak out if he knew. Lucas reached his hand out and gently grabbed my chin, turning my head to the side. "Is this…" he trailed off, looking at my face. When I looked up at him, I saw anger build up in his face. "Riley," he started, "Who did this?"

My mouth opened to talk, but nothing came out. I tried again. "He won't come back," I reassured him.

"Him? It was him?" he questioned me, his hand falling from my face. I could tell he was about to get really angry. He started pacing in front of me, running a hand through his hair. "When? When did you see him? This is unbelievable! Riley, tell me what he did-"

"Lucas," I interrupted, taking a hold of one of his hands. "He's not coming back."

He looked at me for a second before saying, "You don't know that. He shouldn't have even been near you, let alone slapping you across-, I can't even think about it, Riley. You need to tell me. Did he hurt you again?"

I shook my head. "He tried. He was grabbing me, but I pushed him away and called out for you. That's what made him do that to me," I replied quickly.

"Then he walked away. He knew he wouldn't be able to do anything because you were there. And you're always going to be there. He won't come back, Lucas."

I could tell he calmed down a little bit, but he was still concerned for me. "Why are you brushing this off so easily?" he asked me. He wanted so desperately to be mad, but I could tell I was slowly calming him down. I couldn't let him get too angry, and I didn't like him that way.

Shrugging, I said, "I'm just tired, Lucas. Maybe we'll sort it out in the morning, but I want to sleep. I don't think he'll ever come around me again. You need to trust me on this one."

I sat down on my bed and he got on my bed too, leaning back against the headboard. He looked tired too, and heavily sighed while he relaxed back onto my bed

I snuggled up close to him and put my head on his chest. He let out a small laugh. "Riley Matthews, I don't know how, but you've got me wrapped around your finger. We'll talk in the morning, but you need your sleep."

"Stay with me," I said, closing my eyes and holding him tighter. "I feel safe with you here."

"Your dad would kill me if he saw us like this," he said. I could tell that he was probably smiling to himself. He ran a hand through my somewhat wet hair, and then put his arm around me.

"I won't let him."