Epilogue - The Road Led Back to Us

One Year Later

The morning sunlight streamed through the windows, bathing the room in golden warmth. The smell of fresh paint lingered in the air, mixing with the faint scent of coffee.

Violet sat by the window, brush in hand, carefully adding the last strokes to her latest piece. Colors blended seamlessly under her touch, each stroke capturing a moment... a feeling. A quiet rustle came from beside her. She turned slightly, finding Ethan sitting nearby, sketchbook balanced on his knee, pencil moving effortlessly over the page.

She caught him staring.

"What?" she asked, smirking.

He didn't answer right away. Just smiled, slow and warm, tilting his head as if committing every detail of her to memory.

"Nothing," he murmured. "I just love looking at my masterpiece."

"Ethan," Violet rolled her eyes, but her cheeks warmed. 

He only grinned, setting his sketchbook aside before pulling her into his lap. She let out a soft laugh, leaning into his warmth as his arms wrapped around her.

"I mean it," he murmured against her temple. "You were always my greatest design, Violet. My greatest work of art."

Her heart swelled.

And as she looked around their home... the space they had built together, the life they had rebuilt together... she realized something.

The road back to him had been long. Messy. Painful.

But it had led them here.

And this was exactly where she was meant to be.

THE END.