Time Goes On
by Chelle

~ EPILOGUE ~

The front porch became a sea of smiling faces and applauding hands. A mix of love, excitement and anxiousness came over me. Ike squeezed my hand and helped me up the steps and into the house as Walker caught the whole thing on video. "Good grief, this family and your video cameras! I swear since I've met you all, my whole life has been documented!" I said sitting down the small gift bag. Laughter filled the room. "That's right, and it's a good thing too. These kids are gonna know right from the start what they're in for!" Taylor said as he brought in my suitcase. Ike pulled my coat off and turned to shut the door as the crisp January air blew in. "Well, now, come on over here and sit down." Diana said to me and Ike as she ushered us to the couch. Taylor pulled his daughter, Amber Victoria into his lap and the family laughed as she said "Ohhh Baby!" and began clapping. Her older brother said "They're tiny." Tori replied" Well, Joshua, you were that tiny once too." (I don't think anyone will ever convince him that he was once a baby!) "They are so cute. I wanna hold them!" Zoe shouted as she bounced up and down giggling. "Uh-uh Zoe, quiet. Don't yell." Tori said as she sat down in the chair and situated a now one month old Savannah Arlene Hanson on her lap. Savannah had been added to the family as Tay and Tori's third child. "Oops. Sorry. Can I hold one? I'll be quiet." Zoe said as the family gathered and peered over at the two new additions that had arrived just a week before. "Ok, ok. Which one?" Ike asked with a smile. "I want to hold Melissa." Zoe smiled looking at her niece. "Zoe, remember, we are going to call her Danielle." Diana said gathering Zoe's hair and letting it fall again. "Oh yeah, well I want to hold Danielle." Ike smiled and said "Alright, go sit over in the chair." He stood up and took his daughter into his arms with a smile of pride spread across his face. "I don't know why we had to name her Melissa." I said. "It's going to get confusing to people who don't know to call her by her middle name." Isaac sighed after placing Danielle in Zoe's arms. "We'll tell them. It's common for people in this family to go by their middle names. Besides," he said walking back over to me. "I like the name Melissa." I smiled as he draped his arm over me. "Well, let me see this one." Diana said reaching over to take her new grandson off of my lap. She smiled as she laid Walker Daniel in her arms. For the next several hours, we chatted and passed the twins around to be held and cuddled. That night was peaceful and serene as Ike and I lay in bed with our daughter and son between us. I guess between all the kids running around and all the things keeping us busy it just seemed like the next two years went by too fast. And now, so much has made our lives begin new again.
As always the family has grown and is in the process of getting bigger. Jessica has been Mrs. Trent Davis for almost six months now and is four moths pregnant with their first child. She is a nurse at the local hospital. Avery has been training as a therapist and has recently become engaged. Mac is working at the studio with Ike and Taylor and about to be a high school graduate. He and his girlfriend Stacey are already talking marriage but none of us think they are in a hurry. Zoe is becoming such a beautiful young lady. She's been dating her boyfriend for about six months and is excelling in most of her subjects as a high school honor student. Tori and Taylor are still busy with their little ones and Diana and Walker are enjoying every minute of being grandparents and watching their family expand. As for Ike and me, well, we're busy with the twins.
I still think of Zac once in a while but the bad memories of him are less remembered now that they were before. I still love him in a way. People still talk and every now and then will talk to me to my face instead of whispering behind my back. There are those few that still blame me and even Ike for what happened. For the most part, everyone has moved on nearly as well as we have. I have only asked one thing of the fans over the years since Zac has been gone. That they love him for the reasons he wanted to be loved... for the joy their talent brought to people all over the world, to remember what they enjoyed most about him: his kindness, his ability to make people laugh and his music... oh that music. That music lives on in the hearts of many as time goes gone.

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