//------------------------------// // Chapter 60: Welcome Home // Story: A Search for Something More // by HAKDurbin //------------------------------// "Attention passengers, this is your captain speaking. We are about to land momentarily. Please stay seated until the plane has made a complete stop. We hope you enjoyed your flight and thank you for choosing Cloudsdale Airlines." I sighed in relief after the captain makes the announcement. I've probably flown a hundred times by now, and yet I still haven't gotten used to the thrill of flying. Yet at the same time, I'm glad when I see everyone begin to unbuckle their seatbelts and grab their stuff to let me know that I can do the same after several hours on this plane. It's been ten years since the encounter with Eternal War and graduating from Canterlot High School, and so much has changed in that time. After I graduated from college, I began to write my own original stories and began to try to publish them. It took several tries, and there are many times where I thought it would never work out, but then Twilight just happened to be starting her own publishing company and asked me to be one of her clients. While I’m no means as skilled or popular as the likes of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, or J.K. Rowling, my stories have gotten a fair amount of popularity over the past few years. I am currently heading home after flying over for another tour for one of my latest books. As I leave the plane with a flight attendant kindly telling me to have a nice day and I politely tell her to do the same, I begin to walk down the halls until I see through the large windows the high and mighty Canterlot Mountains that I've missed so much during my trip. I've been gone for about three months, but it feels like it's been years since I've stepped foot in my home again. I smile as I look forward to seeing my house and my family again. "Look, it's Rough Draft!" I turn around to see a little boy stare at me happily in surprise with his mom and dad standing next to him. I smile as they walk over to me, and I bend my knees to be at eye level with the boy. "Well, hello there," I greet. "And who might you be?" "My name is Rough Cut, sir," the boy says enthusiastically. "I'm a huge fan of your Varpathion series!" "Are you now?" I say. "What book is your favorite from the series so far?" Rough Cut stutters nervously. "I guess I haven't chosen a favorite yet," he answers. "I guess if I had to pick one from the top of my head, it would be a close tie between The Battle of the Master Watch and Candronia's Revenge." I smile again at his answer before he continues. "My mom and dad and I are actually in the middle of reading your teenage story, The Tale of Cellos and Phoenix Wings." I chuckle a little at the mention of that title. Four years ago, I decided to write an alternate version of what happened at Canterlot High. It was more of a side project to one day just read to my kids when they got older, but my wife and Twilight encouraged me to publish it when it was done. Many of the names of the people and places were changed to avoid any suspicion that it really happened and that Equestria exists, and I even made contact again with some of my old friends in high school to make sure I got the full story. I started with Vinyl, who has become a famous music artist though she still lives in Canterlot. A lot of my story was written from her perspective since a lot of what happened revolving around Eternal War was because of her. She was reluctant at first, but my wife and I were able to convince her that her story should be told on behalf of everyone from Canterlot High. "Yes, it's a curious read, to say the least," Rough Cut's mother says as she walks next to her son. "Not that it's bad at all, Mr. Draft, but it is a little different from your other books." "I get that a lot," I say honestly. "But it's a story that I've had since around my own time in high school. I didn't plan on actually publishing it, but being the supportive woman that she is, my wife wouldn't hear of leaving that story untouched and not shown to the world. I guess you could say while my other books are my own creation, The Tale of Cellos and Phoenix Wings is a story that my wife and I share with some of our old friends from high school." "Awww," Rough Cut's mom coos while his father chuckles at his wife's reaction. "We're currently in chapter 39," Rough Cut says enthusiastically. "Ah, so you've learned the truth about Philiharmonica," I say with a smirk. "Yea, and now I don't know if I want Rivan to get back together with her or continue dating Nicole," Rough Cut whines. "It's driving me so crazy that I can't wait to continue reading when we get back on the plane!" I chuckle at his eagerness until Rough Cut's dad asks, "Hey, would it be alright if we took a picture of you and Rough Cut?" "Absolutely," I say as Rough Cut excitedly stands next to me, and his dad turns on his phone. He takes multiple pictures just for safety before we stop posing. "Mr. Draft, I wanna be just like you, except make movies instead of books," Rough Cut says enthusiastically. "Do you now?" I say with a smile. "Well, then you better learn as much as you can and do your best. But remember, not everyone gets it perfect the first time. Believe me, I had my share of badly written stories even when I was twice your age, so just keep going, learn from your mistakes, and never give up. You hear?" "Yes sir, Mr. Rough Draft," Rough Cut says excitedly before he hugs me, and his parents tell him that they need to go. I wave goodbye as he runs over to his parents, and they walk to their plane while I begin walking to baggage claim. I smile as I walk, still thinking about how excited Rough Cut was just now. It's not every day that I bump into fans who like my books that much, but it's still a lot of fun. I wouldn't put it past Rough Cut's parents to eventually publish those photos on MyStable. I make my way to baggage claim just in time to see the conveyor belt begin to move, and people start to collect their luggage. It takes a while before I find my bag and grab it before I hear a familiar voice. "Rough Draft!" Without further warning, two gray arms wrap their arms around me tightly from behind. I'm taken aback before I smile, recognizing the voice. "Hi, Derpy," I say. I turn around to hug Derpy back before she breaks the hug and squeals excitedly. "It's so good to see you!" She says excitedly. "We haven't seen you in ages!" "Derpy, wait up!" I turn my head and smile to see Doc running towards us with a baby in his arms and a five-year-old girl running alongside him. Derpy and Doc got married a couple of years before my wife, and I did. They've been making a living traveling around the world looking for Equestrian magic and other unknown energy around the world after Doc graduated from college. They adopted their first daughter, Amethyst Star, when they thought that they were barren until about two years ago when she suddenly became pregnant with their second daughter, Dinky. "Hey, Doc," I say. "Hello, ol' chap," Doc greets. "I should have known my wife was running because she found an old friend like you." "Yeah, why were you running so fast, mommy?" Amethyst Star asks. "Sorry, sweetie," Derpy says apologetically. "Rough Draft here is a high school friend of mommy and daddy's." "Speaking of which, how is your research for the princesses, Doc?" I ask. "We've only been hearing rumors back in Canterlot." "Oh, it's been going marvelously," Doc says with a grin. "We won't go into details since this is top-secret stuff, but we've been discovering a lot about magic in our world for a while. Nothing has been as drastic as Eternal War, thank God, but every day is an adventure here for the Whooves family." "It sure is," Derpy says in agreement as she grabs Doc's free hand with one hand and places her other hand on Amethyst Star's shoulder. "Speaking of family, we were just in the neighborhood and heard that something big is happening in the Draft house." "Indeed, there is," I say with a smile. "We're several months into baby number three." "Number three?" Amethyst Star asks, confused. "But I thought -" Before she could say anything, Doc clears his throat, and Amethyst Star says, "Oh yeah, now I remember. Baby number three. Yay!" I look at Derpy and Doc's daughter in confusion before Doc clears his throat again. "Well, would you look at the time," he says, taking out his phone. "We better start going through security. We have a new assignment at Yakyakistan, and we mustn't keep their prince waiting." I smile and say, "Sounds fun. Feel free to call the next time you're in town, guys." "We sure will, Rough Draft," Derpy says as she hugs me again. "You take care, okay?" "I will," I say. "See ya!" The Whooves family say bye together before they head to security, and I make my way out of baggage claim and exit to the airport parking lot. I wait for a couple of minutes until a familiar, red truck parks right in front of me. I smile and open the back door to see Applejack in the driver's seat and Caramel at the front seat. "Sorry if we took a while, Rough Draft," Applejack says. "There was a little more traffic than usual between your house and here." "That's alright, AJ," I say as I hop into the backseat with my luggage. "So, did you have fun with those interviews?" Caramel asks. "Yeah, I'd say they went pretty well," I answer. "A couple of journalists tried to make me say some spoilers, but I managed to avoid their questions." "Yeah, we noticed how one of them was trying to do that when we, Granny, Sonata, Connie, Big Mac and Fluttershy saw a video on YouTube while Apple Toffee and Little Mac were asleep," Caramel says. Applejack and Caramel got married a couple of months after my wife, and I did. It wasn't long after that when they had their daughter, Apple Toffee. Big Mac and Fluttershy married around the same time and had their son, Little Mac. Both couples live in Sweet Apple Acres with Granny, Sonata, and her husband. "By the way, I bumped into Rainbow and Soarin when I was in Prance," I say. "Well, ain't that nice," Applejack says with a smirk. "Is Rainbow still as ballistic as Soarin said she is about their kid?" Soarin and Rainbow Dash got married a couple of years ago. Rainbow Dash has become a famous soccer player, and Soarin decided to become her agent before he eventually popped the question. It was a little tricky due to their busy schedule together, but they found the time to arrange their wedding to take place back here in Canterlot, where both Caramel and I were Soarin's best men. A couple of weeks ago, it was discovered that Rainbow Dash is pregnant, and according to Soarin on MyStable, she didn't take it well at first. "Ah, she's pretty upset that she can't play for a good long while, but she looked like she's starting to become as excited as Soarin is about the baby," I answer. Applejack chuckles at my response. "Yeah, that sounds about right," she says. "Still though, it's crazy how so many of us married folk are having some kids at the same time. Soarin and Rainbow just found out a couple weeks ago, Pinkie Pie and Cheese are trying now that he's done traveling, and Sonny and Connie got pregnant about the same time you got another one in the oven." "I know," I say. "Seems like we're just at that age where everybody's getting married and having babies left and right." "Not everyone," Caramel points out. "We don't have Rarity, Lyra, or Bon Bon getting hitched anytime soon, much less starting any families." Indeed, while Rarity has had many more suitors since our time at Canterlot High, there still has been no one that she considers to be worthy as a first boyfriend much less her 'prince charming' as she likes to put it. What's messed up is that while the Spike in our world is a dog, the pony Rarity in Equestria is married to the dragon Spike according to Princess Twilight, the last time she visited our world. But despite how worried we are about our friend's lack of a love life, especially after Sweetie Belle beat her to it when she married her husband, Button Mash, Rarity has been pretty happy last we've seen her after starting a successful fashion store and is about to open another in Manehattan. Lyra and Bon Bon are even less likely to get married then Rarity is. There have been some guys who were just as unfortunate to catch both of their interests as Caramel was, which led to more chaotic moments with the two of them before their possible suitors end up running away. But while Lyra and Bon Bon are still living in Canterlot focusing on their harp and candy stores respectively, neither of them are willing to give up that they will each find their future husbands. Though most of us have a feeling they only say that because they are aiming to get married before the other does. I guess they will never learn. "True," I reply to Caramel. "But hey, we're all still relatively young even if we are about to have our first high school reunion." "Oh yeah. You got Twilight's MyStable message for that?" Caramel asks. "Sure did," I say. "Woo-wee. I can't believe it has been that long since we graduated from CHS," Applejack says. "Guess time flies when you grow up and start a family." "I can testify to that," Caramel says as he takes one of Applejack's hands and kisses it. She smiles sweetly at her husband, and I smile back as I look forward to giving the same affection to my wife once again. ********************************************************************************************* "Look who's home!" I announce as I enter my home with Caramel and Applejack following behind. "Daddy!" I immediately hear, as my five-year-old daughter, Euphony, and my three-year-old son, Final Draft, run over to hug me. I chuckle and hug them back as I see Vinyl walking over to greet me while Granny Smith is sitting in my rocking chair, and a six-months-pregnant Sonata is sitting on the couch with her husband. "Yo, Draft!" Vinyl greets with her own hug. "Heard some of your interviews online. You're really exciting your fans this time." "And that's just how I want them to feel," I say with a mischievous grin. "But they have no idea what I have in store." "They never do," Vinyl says with her own mischievous grin. I turn to my kids and say, "Did you see me in any of my interviews?" "We sure did, daddy," Euphony says. "Mommy was grinning the entire time." I chuckle at her response since only my wife knows what I've written in my latest book. She's always the first person to read my latest project before Twilight and the other executives at her company. No doubt, my vague answers amused her just the way I hoped they would while all of my readers remain clueless. "Hiya, buddy," Sonata greets as I finally sit down on the couch next to her with Euphony and Final Draft sitting in front of me. "Wassup, Draft?" Sonata's husband says. "Good to be home, Connie, how about you?" I ask. Sonata's husband groans and whines, "Will you please stop calling me Connie? It's annoying!" "We'll both stop calling you that when it stops getting annoying, Connie," Caramel says teasingly. Sonata's husband groans until Sonata places her hand on his lap. "Don't let them get to you, sweetie-kins," she says comfortingly before she turns to me. "So, how's Twilight doing?" "Pretty good," I say. "She and Timber Spruce are pretty excited about their engagement. They also got a few new clients while we were traveling, so business is booming for the company." "That's awesome," Sonata says. I nod in agreement before I look around the living room. "Say, where's that wife of mine?" I ask. "Shouldn't she be home from work by now?" "She had another doctor appointment in Crystal City to go to right after work," Granny Smith says. "She won't be home until later tonight." I sigh in disappointment, eager to see the love of my life again before I shake it off and smile. "Well, after Euphony and Final Draft, I should have expected her to be that busy with this baby," I say. "Babies, daddy," Final Draft corrects. I turn to my son in confusion as his eyes widen, and he covers his mouth with both hands. "Final Revan Draft, that was supposed to be a surprise!" Granny Smith says disapprovingly. "I'm sorry!" Final Draft says shamefully. "I forgot!" But I continue to stare at my boy in shock. I turn to Euphony, and she smiles and nods cutely. I then turn to Granny, Sonata, and her husband, then to Vinyl, and then finally to Caramel and Applejack, who are all looking away from me. "B-b-babies?!" I manage to spit out. Everyone looks at each other and sighs before Caramel says, "Twins, bro." My eyes widen in shock. "T-t-twins?" I sputter. "I'm having twins?" "You sure are, Draft," Vinyl says with a teasing grin. "Guess you didn't hold back when she asked for another one. Did you, you sly dog?" "Vinyl! Not in front of the kids!" Granny Smith barks. I feel my cheeks turn red before I turn to Sonata, who looks at me excitedly. "Would you like to know the genders?" She asks. "The doctor that did the last ultrasound didn't know that she wanted it to be a surprise and spoiled it for her." I debate about for a few seconds before I sigh and say, "Might as well." Sonata squeals cutely before she shouts, "It's a boy and a girl!" I stare at my friend for a moment before I turn to Euphony and Final Draft. "Okay then," I say in shock. "Looks like you two are getting a new brother and sister, kiddies." My children giggle in response before Euphony says, "Isn't it so exciting, daddy?" "Yeah, it's... it's pretty exciting," I say as I turn to Applejack and Caramel, who are giving me smug looks. "How long did you guys know about this?" Applejack chuckles and says, "We found out the week after you left for your trip." "What?!" I exclaim. "And we would have told you if she didn't want it to be a surprise," Vinyl adds. "As for the genders, she only found out two weeks ago," Caramel explains. "So while I was traveling around the world, everyone but me knew that I'm having not one but two more kids?!" I ask hysterically. "Well, that's about the size of it, now isn't it?" Granny Smith says with a grin. "Well, I think it's exciting," Sonata says enthusiastically. "Just think about it, buddy. Your twins will be born around the same time as my child. Maybe my baby and one of your twins will become childhood sweethearts and get married, and we'll become in-laws!" Despite how much I am still in shock, I can't help but chuckle at Sonata's idea. "Let's not get too ahead of ourselves, Sonny," Sonata's husband says calmly. "I know, sweetie," Sonata says. "I just can't help but think of the possibilities in store for our baby. Besides, wouldn't it be nice that we all became in-laws with the Drafts?" "Hey, what about me?" Vinyl whines playfully. "I wouldn't be related to any of you." "Well then, maybe you should find somebody to marry and have babies with, Auntie Vinny," Euphony says teasingly. "Me? Get married and have little munchkins like you? Never!" Vinyl says childishly. "I'm gonna die a single woman and be proud of it. You guys can live happily ever acting all smoochy-woochy and make as many little rascals as you'd like without me." "Suits me fine," Sonata's husband says. "Long as I keep my wife smiling endlessly, I don't care." He backs up his word with a soft but long kiss on Sonata's cheek. Sonata giggles as he wraps his arm around her, and she lays her head on his shoulder with her eyes closed and the most adorable, serene smile on her face that makes everyone in the entire room smile. Sonata wanted to meet her husband more than any of us wanted to admit. As much as her life has been in pure bliss the moment she officially became Sonata Apple, she eventually began to want to find someone to date and marry as she watched Applejack and Big Mac marry Caramel and Fluttershy respectively and Apple Bloom started to date her future husband, Tender Taps. Even Granny began to want to see her adopted grandchild find someone to make her happy before she dies. It wasn't until about four years ago shortly after my wife became pregnant with Final Draft that she finally met her husband. Though for reasons that are another story for another time, they faced a lot of difficulties in their relationship before they both accepted how much they purely love each other. I'll never forget how happy our dear Sonata was on her wedding day. It was like the night the Apples asked her if she wanted to be adopted, except it lasted the entire day. Her husband has been nothing short of determined to make every second of every day of her mortal life nothing but bliss, and none of us can put into words how much we appreciate him for it. Even our children have grown to admire how heartwarming it is to see her so happy the older they get. Granny sighs contently before she says, "Hey now, enough of that in front of the young ones. Rough Draft has been gone for three months, and I want to hear more about his trip." "Now that sounds like a great idea," Applejack says encouragingly. "Do you have any pictures for us, daddy?" Final Draft asks eagerly. "Oh, yes, can we see them?" Euphony asks excitedly. "Now kids, you know I can't show anyone the pictures I've taken without Momma," I say. "Awwww," my kids whine. "But would you like to hear the time I got stuck in an elevator after one of my interviews?" I ask playfully. "Wait. What?" Vinyl asks, surprised. "How in the world did that happen?" Sonata's husband asks curiously. "Tell us!" My kids say excitedly. I chuckle again and say, "Okay, so there I was on the elevator to my hotel right after a talk with this one studio..." *************************************************************************************** After a couple of hours of sharing stories with everyone, I saw on the living room clock that it is Euphony and Final Draft's bedtime. Both of them claim they weren't sleepy, but they did as they were told while the others decided it was time to go home. I thanked Granny and Sonata for looking after my kids while my wife is out, and Granny told me to think nothing of it while Sonata hugs me as tight as she can manage with her pregnant belly. After everyone leaves, I sigh and start making my way to my bedroom with my suitcase. As I walk up the stairs and down the hall to me and my wife's bedroom, I take a look at the family photos hanging on the walls. Many of them are pictures from when Euphony and Final Draft were younger or photographs of my wife and me either from when we got back together or when we were first married. I stop walking when I come across a picture of our wedding. Photo Finish, who was the photographer for our wedding, wanted to have a group picture where it is the two of us and all of our friends. While my wife and I are standing at the center, Soarin, Caramel, Doc, and Big Mac are standing next to me as my groomsmen. Standing next to my wife are her bridesmaids, Sonata, Vinyl, who was also our DJ for the reception, Fluttershy, and Rarity, who also made my wife's wedding dress. Applejack stood behind Caramel holding 1-year-old Apple Toffee while Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich, who were the wedding planners, kneel in front of us. Lyra and Bon Bon stand right next to the bridesmaids. Lyra played the harp during the ceremony, and Bon Bon was the caterer. Derpy stood next to Doc holding their recently adopted Amethyst Star. Everyone was there to celebrate with us. Everyone except her. Despite making sure she was invited to the wedding and all of our friends wanting to see her there, she politely declined. As much as she wanted to be a part of our happiness, she thought it best that she and her husband didn't attend. We respected her wishes, but we still feel it would have been great for the entire group to come together for the occasion. Still, I'll never forget standing at the altar and seeing my bride walking down the aisle. Caramel and Soarin had to snap me out of it as I was staring a little too long. All I remember from the ceremony was the moment the priest turned to me, and I said my, "I do," and the moment he pronounced us man and wife, my wife grabbed me by my suit and pulled me into such a passionate kiss before the priest could start to say, "You may now kiss the bride." And now here we are six years later with already two beautiful children who we love with all our hearts and two more on the way. I turn my gaze away from the picture and finally enter our room. I turn on the lights, drop my luggage, and plummet to our bed with a long sigh. I let out a long groan, happy to be in my own bed again for the first time in three long months and almost fall fast asleep before I hear the garage door opening from downstairs. My heart leaps as I hear a car entering before the garage door closes, and someone entering the house. I get myself off of my bed as I hear footsteps make their way up the stairs and head straight to the bedroom. I walk over and open the door just in time to see her. Standing in front of me with her eyes tired from having a long day, her large stomach carrying our upcoming twins, and a warm smile on her face is my beloved wife. Our eyes instantly connect as I walk over and press my lips against hers passionately. She moans softly as she kisses me back, and we let out how much we've missed each other over the past three months with every kiss. When we part, we hold each other as close as we can despite her pregnant belly. "How was the flight?" she whispers, making sure we don't wake up the kids. "Long, boring, and made me more eager to hold you again," I whisper back. She breaks the hug and smirks at me skeptically. "You always say that," she whispers in a matter-of-factly tone. "And as long as I am unable to hug you to sleep every night that I'm gone, it's always true," I whisper. She chuckles and pulls me in for another kiss as we quietly enter our bedroom, and I close the door. We continue kissing until we reach our bed and lie down, holding each other. "I missed you too," she whispers sweetly as she caresses my cheek tenderly. "I hate how your tours seem to get longer with every book you publish." "Well, it just comes to show how I'm getting more popular the more I write," I say with a smile. "And I'm very proud of you for that, but that doesn't mean I enjoy asking for favors from everyone at least a few times during your trip to help me look after the kids because my husband isn't here," she says. "Fair enough," I say. "At least I shouldn't have to start writing for a good long while with the babies coming." My wife frowns at my choice of words. "Someone spilled the beans before I could surprise you," she says bluntly. "Yeah. Final Draft did by accident," I say. "Of course, he did," she says her rolling her eyes in a motherly way. "I should have known he would fail to keep it a secret before the time was right." "Well, that's our three-year-old boy for you," I say as I look down and rub her belly. "Still, though, we're having twins." Her smile returns as she looks down at her big belly. "Yeah, we are," she says softly. "Sometimes, I wished I just told you so that I could call you to express how nervous I am whenever I wanted." "You'll be fine," I say. "At the very least, you'll have me here the rest of the way." "You better be, Mr. Draft," My wife warns. "You have a lot of reading to catch up on with handling twin pregnancy. I expect you to start reading as soon as you wake up first thing in the morning. Plus, I want to start coming up with names for them; ideally, not writing-related like with Euphony and Final Draft." "Understood, Mrs. Draft," I say calmly. My wife smiles, satisfied with my (wise) response before she starts yawning. "Long day, huh?" I ask. "Ugh, these munchkins drain my energy like crazy, and they're not even born yet," she complains as we slowly get up. "I better start getting ready for bed before I konk out right here." "Good idea," I say as she leaves the room to go change and brush her teeth in our bathroom. I sigh, missing her in my arms already as I undress to my underwear and get under the covers of our bed. I sigh again heavenly as I finally lay down on my spot on the bed for the first time in months. My wife had this be my spot for life so that she can cuddle on her favorite shoulder that has always been her spot. It seems like even when we were still broken up during college, all she could think about was cuddling and resting her head on that side of me the moment we got back together. After a couple of minutes, my wife reenters our room in her nightgown. I smile at the sight as she gets under the covers, grabs my arm, and snuggles next to me with a satisfied sigh. "Oh, I missed this so much," she says dreamily. I smile as I wrap my free arm around her and kiss her forehead. "Me too," I say. We hold each other close for another minute before I speak again. "Before I forget, did you see that the reunion is coming up?" I ask. "I did," she says with a big smile. "I can't believe it's about to be ten whole years." "Neither can I," I say, smiling. "Still feels like it's only been only a few years at most." "Time with college, getting married, and having kids will do that to you," she says while she hugs my arm firmly with her eyes closed. "Not to mention writing a lot of books," I add. "Mmmm. That too," she agrees before she opens her eyes and lifts her head to face me. "To be honest, though, I barely remember being in college anymore." "I know what you mean," I say. "I remember what I learned there and some of the people I met, but it feels like there is nothing about college to remember apart from us getting back together." My wife smiles, sweetly at the mention of when we got back together. "Guess that shows what our priorities were back then," she says. "You can say that again," I say with a flirtatious smirk that makes her giggle. "In all seriousness, though, it feels like neither of us were living until we got back together." My wife smiles in agreement before she frowns nervously and gives me a serious look. "Do you still think about her?" she asks. I frown, knowing that she's referring to the woman who was also my girlfriend during our senior year in high school, the same as my wife. It was because I couldn't choose between the two of them when both girls wanted me back that I decided that I shouldn't choose anyone yet after everything we went through with Eternal War. Both my wife and my ex meant so much to me back then that it wasn't fair to keep holding on to both relationships the way I foolishly did back then. It wasn't until around my third year in college that I made my decision. I was in my dorm room, and my roommate was already gone for the weekend to visit his family. I already did my homework, so I just sat in my bed and played some games on my laptop. But I had trouble playing because my heart felt heavy with every passing moment. This usually happened whenever I was alone or just dearly missed both of my exes. My mind grew less and less interested in the game until I finally closed my laptop and just laid in bed, missing them. But as I was thinking about them that day, I came to a realization. For reasons that are between my wife and me, I finally realized who it was that I want to spend the rest of my life more than anyone else. The more I thought about it, the clearer it was who I truly love the most. Eventually, I wasted no time in grabbing my phone and called her, praying I was not too late to try to start things up again. I heard the phone ringing several times, and I was afraid it was gonna go to voicemail before my fears melted away at the sound of her voice. The way I heard her voice as she greeted me felt so warm and welcoming that I couldn't remember the last time I smiled the way I did. We must have talked for hours before we decided to meet again. We agreed for her to meet me at Fillydelphia University the weekend after that. I gave her directions to my dorm room and made sure that my roommate wasn't around for the occasion. I was pacing back and forth in my dorm room, feeling so excited and nervous at the same time. Finally, there was a knock on the door, and my heart leaped, knowing who was on the other side. I rushed over and flung the door open to find her waiting for me with such a heartwarming smile. I didn't even get a chance to say hi as she practically pounced on me and kissed me with all her might. We wrapped our arms around each other tightly as we passionately kissed for what felt like forever before we finally started cuddling on my bed and talked about everything that was happening since we last saw each other. Ever since that day, our lives have felt more and more whole. We texted and called each other as often as we could until we both graduated from our respective colleges and moved back to Canterlot. We had our ugly moments as every loving couple has, but we managed to work past them in the end. Not long after Twilight and I published my first book, I finally asked her to marry me, and she was ecstatic. We married about a month after that, and she became pregnant with Euphony soon after, much to both of our excitement. But even with everything that's happened since the day we were reunited, it still saddens me that she will worry that I still feel the way I used to about the woman who was her rival for my heart. It's not that she has no reason to given everything the three of us went through before and during the battle with Eternal War, but it still hurts that she sometimes doubts my sincerity. "No," I say. "No, I don't. Not like that anyway. I've put the past behind me with her, and we both know she has too. You saw how happy she looked when we bumped into her and her husband a few months ago. He really is everything she wanted. I only gave her part of what she wanted, but that's okay. I accepted a long time ago that it was always you who truly has my heart, and I always desired yours more than anything. You of all people should know how much I wished I realized it sooner so that we would have gotten back together quicker." "I know," She says with a frown. "I just can't help but worry that you still think about her in that way. I believe every word you said to me the moment we got back together, and I believe it now, but I still worry that you may have some doubt now and then." I smirk and rub her belly. "Tell that to our third and fourth child," I say, making my wife giggle. "And tell that to your necklace while you're at it." My wife smiles as she looks down and sees her necklace I gave her while we were in high school still hanging around her neck. I also gave one to my ex that same school year, but as far as I know, she's kept it away ever since the two of us had a talk to agree that it was over between us. But there has never been a day that I have seen my wife without her necklace. Even at our wedding, I saw through her veil that she was wearing it for our big day. She also told me how she always wore it when we were separated during our first three years apart in college. It's as if the necklace itself is a part of her just as much as we are a part of each other. "Point taken, my precious husband," she says with a smile. "Good to hear, my beloved wife," I say before I lean in for a tender kiss. We start kissing again for about a minute before we start gazing into each other's eyes again. "I love you," I say with all my heart. "I will always love you. You complete me more than she ever did. We've only been married for six years, but the Lord knows that even when it's been sixty years or beyond, I will never stop loving you and giving it everything I have to make you always happy to be by my side." My wife smiles back and caresses my cheek tenderly again. "And I love you," she says firmly. "I know she and I had our similarities with how determined we were to be with you forever, but that never stopped me from hoping that you would choose me in the end. My heart is yours, and yours is mine, and I thank the Lord every day for it. I love you so much, and I can't wait to raise our twins with you." My smile grows as we tenderly kiss one last time before I turn off the light, and we fall asleep in each other's arms. There are many stories that I have told over the years, and I will write many more stories in the days to come, but none of them will ever compare to the story of me, my wife, and the girl who was once the love of my life. A story about a search for something more than I ever had during the first 17 years of my life that led me to find my two first loves; one that will be remembered fondly and another that will happily live on for the rest of our lives and beyond. The end.