EPILOGUE

EZRA

He swore that this was probably about the millionth time that he had fixed this sink, and it was way too early for it this time. Smiling to himself, however, he recalled the first time he had fixed it, back when he and Aria had just been dating and Parker was no taller than the hem of his shorts. Those were the kind of memories he would make sure to hold on to. As he worked to unclog the pipes, he smiled as he heard the soft padding of feet make their way into the kitchen.

"I didn't know that pants were optional when fixing a sink," Aria smirked down at him. "Though I do remember you wearing them the last few times you worked on it." He finished tightening the fixture before (carefully) cutting the water line back on and sitting up. Smiling, he held his hand out to his wife.

"Well, you wouldn't understand these plumbing secrets, Sweetheart, because you aren't a man. Isn't that right, Nemo?" He ran his free hand through the elderly dog's fur as he lay on the ground next to where Ezra was working. Though his mane was sprinkled with its fair share of grey hair, the dog was still more energetic than any dog his age had a right to be.

Aria laughed as she picked up the culprit responsible for clogging the kitchen sink drain, a Malibu Barbie sans her head. "Things never change do they?"

Standing, Ezra pulled her to him and planted a soft kiss on her mouth. "I hope not." Suddenly, running into the room was their five year old daughter, Kylie. She giggled as she saw Ezra standing there in just his boxer shorts. He wasted no time in picking her up and hoisting her onto his shoulders.

"Come on, Princess, let's go give Nemo a bath and then take inventory of your dollies. Daddy doesn't want any more surprises this morning." Aria laughed as she watched her husband and daughter make their way upstairs, heading for the fridge to start preparing breakfast.

Making their way to the second floor, Parker greeted Ezra and Kylie as he came out of his bedroom. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and took in Ezra's appearance before rolling his eyes.

"Dad, can you please put on some pants before Emma comes over tonight?" At the age of seventeen, Parker no longer found his parent's quirks amusing. Rather, he acted embarrassed, though, deep down Ezra knew he would waste no time stripping down to his undershorts if Ezra were to ask.

"Ahh… your big date, that's tonight, right?" Ezra replied as he walked backwards towards the bathroom holding on to Nemo's collar.

Parker nodded his head before heading towards the stairs. "Yes, and you're not allowed to make a big deal about this. We all remember what happened at Homecoming."

Laughing, Ezra shook his head as he dropped Kyliee onto the closed toilet seat and turned to fill up the tub with warm water. Nemo made a mad dash for the door but he was able to reach over and slam it closed before the dog could make a break for it. These were definitely moments he would treasure.

ARIA

As the family spent their Saturday doing household chores and catching up on homework, Aria's mind was preoccupied with her son's date that evening. It was the first time that Parker had asked out a girl and seeing as how he had just gotten his driver's license a few months back, she and Ezra were allowing him to take one of their cars for the evening. She couldn't quench the butterflies that filled her stomach as she watched him get ready after dinner. Leaning against the door jam, she crossed her arms over his chest and smiled slightly as he attempted to fix his tie.

"Need some help with that?" Parker turned at the sound of his mom's voice and smiled at her before nodding his head and giving up on the piece of clothing in question.

"You know, I still have to do this for your father. You'd think that at the age of thirty seven he'd have learned by now," Aria said, giggling as she fixed her son's tie for him.

"Hey, I heard that!" Ezra called from The hallway as he made his way downstairs. She laughed even louder at his response.

Sighing, Parker dropped to sit on the edge of his bed, nervously reaching up to fiddle with the hair at the back of his head. This was a trait that he had definitely picked up from Ezra. Noticing his nervousness, Aria sat down next to him, her brows clenched in concern.

"Parks, you alright?"

Nodding he turned to grab the teddy bear resting on his night stand before turning back towards Aria. He played with the worn threading and ran his thumb over the place where there used to be a sewn on nose. This bear had definitely seen better days. "I'm just nervous is all. It's my first date. That's normal, right?"

Smiling, Aria reached over to take the stuffed toy from her son's hands. "It's completely normal. I was so incredibly nervous the night I first went out with your father. And you… you ran downstairs so fast to greet him that I didn't even get a chance to talk myself out of it, which is what your Aunts were betting was going to happen. He gave you this bear that night, do you remember?"

"Yeah, I remember," Parker whispered with a soft smile.

Aria pulled Parker closer to him, softly pulling his head down to rest on her shoulder so that she could put a few kisses into his hair. "I thank God every day that I said yes to him…" she whispered back, reminiscing over those days so long ago.

After a few moments she continued. "You'll be fine, Parker. You look every bit as handsome as your Dad did. Just don't wreck his car. I think he might kill you if you hurt his baby." Parker couldn't help but laugh as he lifted his head and pulled his mom in for a quick hug.

"Thanks, Mom… and for the record, I'm glad you said yes too." Aria's face broke out into a large grin at her son's confession and she hugged him even tighter in response.

After a few silent moments, they both made their way down the stairs to see Ezra and Kylie now reclining on the sofa. Kylie was fast asleep on his chest but when Ezra caught sight of them, he quietly shifted her to the mountain of blankets at the other end of the couch before standing and meeting them at the door. Aria walked towards the kitchen to grab the car keys for Parker, giving Ezra a few moments alone with his son.

"You look sharp, Parks. It makes me really happy that you're wearing one of my ties," Ezra told him with a soft smile.

Parker let out a short laugh before reaching over and ruffling Ezra's hair for a change. "Well, I kinda had to, old man. Most of my ties are too small now." Ezra laughed in response, he would have to take him shopping for some new ones.

Clearing his throat, Ezra pulled Parker into a tight hug. "I love you, Buddy. Please be safe. And call us when you and Emma are on your way over after the movie. And-"

"Don't wreck your baby. I know, Mom warned me," Parker laughed, pulling out of the embrace. "And I love you too, Dad."

Aria made her way back towards the door, handing the car keys to Parker as Ezra pulled her to his side. Opening the front door, Parker gave his parents a short wave before turning and walking towards his Dad's car to go pick up his date. Ezra turned his head to look down at her as the taillights from his car disappeared down the street.

"So you thought I was handsome, huh?" he asked with a smirk.

Aria smiled and rolled her eyes in response before pulling away. "Yeah, I wonder what happened."

Laughing, Ezra followed her into the family room before restarting the black and white film he had put in for them to watch. Aria, snuggling into his side, sighed as he placed a soft kiss to her head and wrapped his arms around her. They settled in to wait for Parker's return and remember the times in which he had awaited theirs. She was extremely grateful that Ezra hadn't given up on her; that he had thought they were worth waiting for. Honestly, she couldn't imagine what her life would be like without him or Kylie.

She had never told Ezra this, but her dad had once given her some advice after she had gotten pregnant with Parker.

'Be brave,' he had said. 'What is meant to happen will happen. You just need to be brave… and wait.'

Again, thank you all so much for reading this story. I tried to write a story that would speak to each of its readers in a different way and I hope that it did just that. I am humbled from reading each of your reviews and look forward to sharing more stories with you guys in the future. Love y'all!