After the End Ch. 07

Necklaces laid on our knees, we took hands with the sky deepening to violet beside us and the valley falling away beneath. I have to say, until tonight, marriage had been a fairly obscure concept to me. A bunch of melodramatic novels and obnoxious songs and real-life stories of failed hopes. But once Julian stared into my eyes and promised himself to me, I understood. When someone you cared for this deeply actually cared the same way for you, to the extent of staking their entire life...it really was impossible to overstate the permanent, profound, world-shaking effect. It was like magic -- some ancient magic that survived in humanity generation after generation, despite all the greed and hatred and destruction that tried to smother it.

I made my promises too, laying myself bare for the man I loved. I'd had to face a lot of fears in this relationship -- fear of needing Julian, fear of losing him, fear of letting him know me, and of course, the everyday fear of not being enough. But the profound joy of fully committing to him, which filled my heart and was reflected in his eyes, made all those struggles more than worth it.

I hung the stone that represented me around his neck, and he placed his stone around mine. And then I pushed him down on the grass and kissed him, a moment so brilliant that it felt like we'd reached some higher plane of existence, and we could just float away to drift eternally among the stars.

When gravity eventually reclaimed me, we sat up and watched the last purple light fade out of the sky.

"Wow," I said, leaning into his shoulder. "I'm pretty sure this is the best day of my life."

He laughed. "I've heard it's supposed to be."

"Is it the best day of your life?" The emotion was making me giddy.

His eyes sparkled through the thick dusk. "Yes, Avery. It is."

I basked in my triumph like a lizard on a sun-soaked rock. "Am I supposed to call you my husband now? Because that seems..." I trailed off, not sure exactly why it sounded wrong.

"I'm really more comfortable with the term 'partner,'" Julian agreed. "Less baggage. Or 'boyfriend' is still fine. I enjoy being your boyfriend." He smiled at me.

"Yeah," I grinned back. "Like we're together because we want to be. Not because we have to be."

"Exactly."

"Now all we need is a drink to celebrate with. I don't suppose you smuggled anything up here?"

"No, but let's go down to the hall and get something."

We hiked back by flashlight, startling a family of racoons along the way. When we made it to the hall, a group of my friends was already sampling the latest batch of fermented cider at the bar.

"Did you plan this too?" I asked as we walked over.

He shook his head fondly. "Just serendipity."

Rowan noticed my necklace first. "This is new," she said, reaching for the pendant to admire it more closely. "I like it."

I glanced over automatically to share the moment with Julian, and he wore such a proud expression that I started beaming again. Rowan followed my gaze.

"Wait a minute. Matching jewelry, and even Delta is smiling." She got more excited as she put the pieces together. "What's going on?"

We told her, and after that, the small gathering turned into a party. They all congratulated us, and Xander broke out the persimmon wine, and Jade tuned up her guitar. There were lots of hugs for me and handshakes for Julian, and someone hunted up Maurice and Iris so they could hear the good news too. Soon we were all drinking and laughing and trading stories. Everyone toasted our happiness and even banged their glasses on the bar until we obliged with our first public kiss, greeted by cheers and whistles.

Lamont and Tara pushed aside the tables and got the dancing started. Food appeared at some point, fresh bread and honey and fruit pie smuggled from the kitchens. Gavin showed up with a rare gift: a bar of chocolate that we passed around and savored until the pieces melted between our fingers. Even Vik ran over from the medical center for a few minutes to offer his well wishes. Windows open to the clean forest air, we celebrated with our friends and neighbors late into the night.

Whenever I caught Julian's eye, everything he'd promised washed over me again: Love. Acceptance. Support. Belonging.

Pure and powerful and unconditional.

Wave after wave after wave.

* * * * *

Julian:

And so it turned out that the end of the world wasn't the end. After humans proved willing to destroy the entire planet in exchange for a few extra years of comfort, and to sacrifice billions of lives in order to extend their own; after the loss of my family and Avery's family and far too many friends and companions; after the war I started and the career I flamed out of; after the end of our innocence, our hope, and everything safe -- we found each other.

It wasn't a replacement, and it wasn't a solution. But there was peace, and joy, and meaning. And together, for however many years we had, we'd do our best to make this broken world our home.