My mother's dead, Scarlett.

Scarlett's first sensation was just complete and utter weariness. Another death. Another funeral. Another home emptied by mourning, but crowded by mourners with hollow words of comfort. At this rate, we will the last ones standing, won't we, Rhett? She closed her eyes. She should not be thinking such thoughts. This woman was Rhett's mother, had been her mother-in-law, had been Bonnie's grandmother…she was one of the few people Rhett had ever openly expressed concern for. She could hardly even remember what she had looked like although she could still recall and feel her gentle presence and understanding…She inexplicably thought of that striped kitten Bonnie had been clinging so fiercely to when she had come home all those years ago, the one that Eleanor Butler had bequeathed to her as a gift. What ever happened to it? Did Bonnie ever give it a name?

And then she thought of Bonnie: so cold and stiff and still in that white robe, and she suddenly felt a powerful bout of nausea overcome her and the blood drain from her face. She raised a trembling, white hand to her suddenly clammy forehead; despite the warmth of Rhett's hands, she could feel her teeth were chattering. She heard Rhett shift and stand up, and she wanted to open her eyes to follow him, but she felt that if she moved even one muscle, she would vomit. Then she heard the sound of a decanter and wine glasses clinking together and she felt him by her side once more. He slowly coaxed her head back and put the glass to her lips; the burn of the brandy made her choke at first and she felt some of it dribble down her chin and onto her neck, but she placed her hands over his and tipped the glass up even further back, needing and savoring the false warmth.

"I'm sorry, Scarlett. I know it hurts. I know you're tired. But waiting until tomorrow to say what we want to say, what we need to say…didn't that do us in more times than we can count?" He put his hand under her chin and lifted it up so that she was looking directly into his eyes. They were no longer blank or inscrutable, but glowing with an openness and sincerity she was sure she had never seen before.

She closed her eyes again, but nodded wordlessly. She didn't know where this conversation would go, but it had to happen now. It could not wait until tomorrow. When Scarlett finally found her voice again, it was shaky at first, but it surely and steadily gained strength.

"I'm sorry, Rhett. I haven't been reading everything in the letters from Pauline and Eulalie. If I had known earlier I would have…," but she stopped herself. She had left him alone again and she had just apologized for doing so, even if she didn't say those exact words.

"She was good to me. I only wish I had gotten to know her more…," Rhett got down on one knee once more, and took hold of her shaking white hands and with her hands in his, she again felt that she could take whatever would come next.

"When?" She finally managed to ask.

"It's been nearly a year."

Nearly a ye-?! Scarlett tried to wrench her hands away and stand up, ignoring how shaky her knees felt, and Rhett tightened his hold on her wrists, but there was no anger or violence in his grasp, only a silent plead for her to sit down. Realizing that, Scarlett didn't try to struggle.

"Rhett, I truly didn't know."

"I know. And it wouldn't have mattered even if you had read every single word in those letters. I instructed Pauline and Eulalie not to tell you."

"Why?" Scarlett blurted out before she could stop herself.

"I didn't want you there."

Scarlett flinched and looked down at her lap.

"At least…I told myself I didn't." Scarlett slowly raised her eyes to look at his face, but his head was bowed so she couldn't see his expression, but he continued to caress her palm.

"Scarlett, you say you left me alone. You did. But didn't I do the same to you? And I am not only talking about all these years I have been gone, but even when we were really married. I was right down the hallway after you fell. Like you, I was also afraid and I chose not to be by your side. I chose to leave you alone while you were suffering and maybe even dying because of what I had said to you on the landing. Even if you had never called for me, even if you had never wanted me there, I should have been there because you were so ill and because I was your husband."

"I fought hard for you, Scarlett. I have never fought so hard for anything or anyone in my life, but I could have and should have brought the fight to you instead of always waiting for you to come to me. In many ways, I had given up on you after you had fallen. I took Bonnie from you too, and it wasn't just during those three months I was away. I loved her dearly; I still do. But one of the reasons why I spoiled her so was because I wanted her for my own, because I believed that you wouldn't have me."

"I told you that I didn't believe in fixing broken things. But, these things didn't have to be broken." He rubbed the lower part of his face with his hand. "And here with you now, I am almost certain of that."

"Knowing you as well as I did, I should have known that trying to wait you out and trying to buy your love wasn't the way to your heart. Your pride and your stubbornness would have kept you from telling me your true feelings. I should have been forthright with you from the very start, from the day I asked you to marry me and perhaps even before that."

As Ashley must have so often done over the years, Scarlett had also combed through every interaction she and Rhett ever had together; every little detail, seemingly so inconsequential at the time, was magnified in the aftermath of his departure. And Scarlett remembered: even if he hadn't said the words directly, he had tried to tell her that day, hadn't he?

Ah! it is love which makes me so bold!

Did you ever come across the old situation of the disinterested wife falling in love with her own husband?

Scarlett swallowed painfully; she knew that even if she could go back in time and repeat that moment a thousand times, she would not have been able to see.

"Tell me, Scarlett," he asked, looking up at her suddenly. "What would you have done if I had been honest with you that day, and told you that I loved you?" Scarlett wanted so desperately to say that she would have returned his words and feelings, but she knew it wouldn't have been the truth.

"I wouldn't have believed you."

"And if you did?"

"Oh, Rhett. I think I would have laughed at you," she whispered. He looked at her thoughtfully.

"Probably. Or maybe not. And even if you did, you may not have laughed forever."

At first, Scarlett was doubtful, but she suddenly remembered how, for so long, she would have relished being able to hold his love above his head but also how it had irked her, believing that Rhett had married her only because he had wanted her, how she had missed him during those three months he was away, and…how on the morning after Ashley's birthday party, how giddy she had felt at the prospect of Rhett actually caring about her, loving her, and the crushing disappointment and hurt when it was apparently untrue.

"I never apologized to you for anything and never bothered asking you for an explanation of what happened that day at the lumber yard because I didn't see the use. It's true. Saying 'I'm sorry' cannot alter the past. Nothing can undo what has been done and what either of us said or didn't say. But, for some time now, I have begun to realize how those two words would have changed the future we could have had together and how, if I had only listened to you that day, it may have changed everything, even if I hadn't believed you at first. We can't start anew like nothing happened, but I think we can move forward despite everything that has happened. We are both alive and we are both here, right here, right now, and I think those are enough reasons for me to believe that we still have a chance, that we still have a future."

The future? The future!? "For all your talk of the past and broken things, Rhett, you made it quite clear to me that you also didn't want a future with me either," Scarlett said, remembering how she had begged him to have another child with her, and how casually he had declined her offer…as if it were an unsavory morsel of food.

She once again felt the frustration rise up inside her chest, the frustration that had been writhing inside of her along with so many other feelings that she couldn't even name. He had been so unclear even when she had thought he had been so clear for once!

Like a broken reel, memories flashed in her mind: Melly's last words about Rhett that she had clung to so fiercely for so long, even after all hope was gone, that faint gleam of admiration in his eyes, his promise to come back to keep the gossip down, but also his indifference to her realization about her feelings for Ashley and her declarations of love…but he had listened to her for once during their marriage even if he didn't care! Didn't that count for something?!, and most of all, that weariness in his voice when he told her he no longer gave a damn.

If he had cut her off completely, had refused to listen to her about Ashley, and had dissolved that legal tie between them, it would have hurt. It would have completely ripped her heart out, and she still would not have been able to let him go, but it wouldn't have left her in this purgatory that had so often felt like hell.

Why hadn't he just upped and left without a word? She had never been able to stop him from leaving. But Scarlett stopped that thought in its tracks. If anything, even if he had not cared anymore, he had wanted her to understand, and he had probably wanted to make sure that she would not chase after him.

"Scarlett, has it ever occurred to you, that if I had truly wanted you out of my life for good, how easily I could have divorced you? I could have done that long before I left. After all, you don't need a spouse's permission to do so and there have never been a shortage of lawyers in Atlanta, or anywhere in this world, for that matter."

Was he trying to joke right now, of all times?! "I know," she replied curtly. "I am not as ignorant as I once was. I am not as ignorant as you once believed me to be. Wade is aiming to be a lawyer, and I also have spoken with Henry Hamilton about that. Even Wade was starting to wonder what was taking you so long. Honestly Rhett, at a certain point, I just thought that you didn't even care enough to divorce me."

"I had been planning on leaving for weeks. Everything I did and didn't do leading up to that moment…I had a reason behind it all. I knew exactly what I was going to say, and on that night and so long after that, I meant everything I had said. But, I think I knew, even in the deepest depths of my despair, that even if we never lived as man and wife again, I wouldn't be able to live the rest of my life without seeing you."

"I told you I had no regrets. And in many ways, that is still true. Even after everything, I could never bring myself to regret marrying you, and it wasn't just because of Bonnie. I could also never bring myself to regret meeting you at the library that day at Twelve Oaks, when you were only a green girl hell-bent on snagging as many beaux as possible."

She felt the hope coursing through her veins like liquid fire and her heart felt as light as air. But, she thought she would have been more ecstatic, she should have been completely ecstatic, finally hearing these words come out of his mouth after so, so long. But why did it hurt so much? And then she thought of Ashley, the desperate way he had clung to her and how wide and child-like his eyes had looked as Melly was taking her final breaths, and the shadows once again began to encircle her heart.

"If you have come home to me for comfort," she began wearily. "Then I am afraid that I am no good for you, Rhett. It's as you said. I can't comfort anyone. I've never been able to comfort you. I've never been able to comfort Bonnie. I've never been able to comfort Wade and Ella. I can't even comfort myself."

He continued on as if she hadn't said anything, and Scarlett started to interrupt, but he waved a hand and she reluctantly fell silent.

"Scarlett, I loved my mother, I loved my sister. There was a time in my life when I loved my father and brother as well. But, the love my mother and sister had for me and the love I had for them were never enough. The house I spent my childhood in, beautiful though it was, was never truly my home. And when I left it at the age of twenty, I left it without looking back. I wandered around this world for years, looking for what I thought I wanted: adventure, money, glory, and women. Even Belle…she understood me and she loved me in her own way, but for all the comfort and understanding she gave me, I could never return her love in the way she wanted. And on the night I saw her last, that night I left Atlanta, I also left her without looking back."

"I was afraid of you and tried so hard to get away so many times because in you, I found the first person who could anchor me down to one place, and I didn't know what that would entail. This house on Peachtree Street, although I still think that it is still a monstrosity, was more of home to me than that house in Charleston ever was…because you were here and Bonnie was too."

"And when I lost Bonnie that day, I believed I had lost you as well, in all ways that mattered. I was worn out, Scarlett. I didn't have it in me to feel for or care about anything or anyone: not Melly, not myself, and not even you. Even if you had said everything you told me just now that night, I'm not sure any of it would have reached me even if I did know you meant every word."

"And when I returned to Charleston after so many years…I did find what I told you I had wanted to find: I found the respectability and I found the dignity, both of which life in Atlanta still lacks, but for all of Charleston's refinements and grace, it still wasn't any more of a home to me than it was when I had left it the first time."

Scarlett could only listen in wonder. Aside from very, very brief mentions of his life outside of Atlanta so very long ago, Scarlett had never heard Rhett talk about his past. Throughout their marriage and even on the night he left, he had never bared himself to her this way. She had never really inquired about his past, had never really been curious. To her, Rhett had always been Rhett. She had never imagined how he was as a youth, let alone how he was as a child. But she wondered now, if things could have been different if only she had tried to get to know the man who was now on one knee in front of her, her own husband, her lover, her life-long friend.

With all her heart, she wanted to embrace him, to put an end to her suffering, to reach out and grab onto the hand he was offering to her. But, the doubt that had been one of her constant companions nudged her. She did not want to say these words, but she didn't think that even her heart could bear a repeat performance.

"On the day you asked me to marry you until that very last night, I didn't think your proposal to be so different from what I had offered you at that horse jail and what you had offered me at Aunt Pitty's all those years ago. I saw it as a deal, and you presented it as such: My body and…fondness for your money. I told you I didn't love you, and you had known how I felt about Ashley for years. I was direct with you then, even if it was only that one time, and I will be direct with you now and I hope you will listen this time. You want to come home? I am warning you now; you may not like what you find, who you find. That night, you left behind a weeping child, and now, if you choose to come home, you are coming home to a damaged woman."

He tensed suddenly, crushing her hands in his and she winced. He immediately noticed, and rubbed her hands apologetically. "But not broken, never broken."

Scarlett huffed slightly, looking away. "You came close, Rhett. Too damned close." If it weren't for Tara and her two remaining children, who knows where she would be now?

"Nothing will ever be the same because we aren't the same, but I think that is why we still have a chance."

He ran his thumb over her wrist and she could feel her pulse quicken and knew from the way he smiled that he could see her pupils dilate. "At least that hasn't changed," he murmured.

"I came back. I'm late, to say the least. I wouldn't hold it against Wade if he felt that he had to land a few on me before he could speak to me again. But I came back home, intending to forgive you for anything you had done…but also for any wrong you think you had committed against me. But I had to be sure. Old habits, I suppose. I had to be sure," he added, so quietly now that Scarlett had to lean in to hear him, "that you would do the same."

Scarlett looked up at the ceiling. She thought all her tears had finally run dry, but she felt them again prick the corners of her eyes.

Was she dreaming? Was this all a dream? She couldn't remember the last time she had dreamt. There was a time when she would have even welcomed the nightmares if it had meant that she could see them all again. Scarlett squeezed Rhett's hand, once again feeling that warm anchor that had guided her and protected her against an uncertain world for so long. And when Scarlett answered, this time, it was not an outside force that compelled her to speak, but only her own will. "Yes, I do," she murmured softly but clearly, lifting up his hand and placing it against her cheek; she leaned into his open palm while gazing directly into his eyes "I do." Their faces were so close now that all she could see were his eyes, and she could see that while there was no burning flame, there was the tiniest spark in those dark depths.

It would mean a lot to me if you read my final thoughts!

So, I don't know much about 19th century Georgian divorce laws, but I just personally believe that if Rhett had truly wanted to divorce her, he would have done so before he left her. (Disclaimer: Everything here is an opinion!)

In terms of how much time has passed since the end of GWTW, I think the sweet spot is 5-7 years; I just think it would take more than a year or two for Scarlett to come to these realizations, but a decade or more would make this not viable.

I also believe that if he were to come back, it would be because he wanted to, and not because she went after him. I also think they need to air out all their dirty laundry if they were to reunite; otherwise, whatever relationship they will have will be stunted or will fail again.

I also totally get it if people don't find this ending viable; the fandom will probably be split forever. Fun Fact: I used to believe (for years) that they would never see each other again. Unfortunately, I feel like chances for a reunion are slimmer in the movie; I feel that it cut out key dialogue and made Scarlett look less sympathetic. I just thought Rhett was much more of a savage in the book. The movie is still amazing (I don't think anything like it can or will ever be made again), but it changed many details that I think had implications for the ending. I could list everything out, but I'm sure everyone knows and this would go on forever. I read a youtube comment that said that people were cheering that Rhett leaves Scarlett and that just makes me so sad now...although I did completely side with him in the beginning.

I believe that MM put in every line with a purpose behind it, and that the ending is open-ended (although I didn't think so for the longest time). Melanie telling Scarlett that Rhett loved her on her deathbed, Rhett saying he would come back to keep the gossip down, and that little gleam in his eyes at the end…I don't think this outweighs his famous final words and all the pain, but all I could say is that if those three things, (among other possible pieces of evidence that point towards reconciliation), weren't included, then the ending would be completely pointed towards one direction. I just believe that although he was indeed worn out, his love was not. If his love was indeed worn out, then I think they are truly done for because you cannot make someone love you as he so unsuccessfully tried with her for twelve years.

The funny thing is: I did not intend for them to reunite as a couple while writing this, but the ending wrote itself and as I think more about the ending I wrote, I came up with another potential reason for him to come back: as unbearable as Scarlett can be, she is probably the only person left in the world who truly cares about him at the end and she is also his last living connection to Bonnie. This isn't a romantic reason, and I am not even sure if this is a compelling reason, but it is still a reason with textual evidence behind it.

Someone reviewed this story and stated that it bothered her that Rhett didn't have anywhere to go...I didn't think about that at first, but it's true. At the end of GWTW, the main characters don't have much left. Scarlett has Tara, her two children (only in the books), and that tenuous goal of getting Rhett back. Ashley has just lost the love of his life and has only his sister and son, and Rhett has...Charleston, a load of painful memories, and freedom from Scarlett? I just don't think any ending for these characters can be 100% happy, but if they choose to, Rhett and Scarlett can, at the very least, have each other. I understand how this might sound like a nightmare to many; she did make him crazy (although I think, in many ways, he had built his own hell; he loved her and married her for who she was, but also ultimately left her because of that), and I think he, at times, brought out the worst in her, but if they can admit their mistakes, forgive each other, and be completely open with each other for once, then they might have a chance at happiness. I think Vivian Leigh stated that they would never reunite as a couple, but that Scarlett would become a better person...and that is precisely why I think they have a chance: because she is capable of becoming a better person.

Of course, maybe this is all too naive. Sometimes things are never resolved; sometimes things are never forgiven. Sometimes there is just too much emotional damage. Perhaps they do never see each other again, and I have heard those who say that this is the most realistic ending. But reality doesn't always have to be so harsh. Endings do not need to be depressing in order for them to be compelling. Life is short, and yet life is also so long and full of unexpected turns. The world is cruel, but also very beautiful.