Page 114 of Skin Deep

Epilogue

Seven Years Later

Gigi

The field was in full bloom. Sunflowers carpeted the earth as far as the eye could see, their faces turned up to the sun. It was breezy, and when it flowed over them, it seemed like they were waving.

I always thought of Nonno when they did. It felt as if he was sending me a message:

All is okay.

All will be okay.

You are forgiven.

You are enough.

You are happy.

You are with people who love you unconditionally.

I always responded with:

I no longer hurt.

My heart is overflowing with love.

I am worthy of love.

I am worthy of all these wonderful things in my life.

I have love.

I feel it.

I am filled.

I am…enough.

He’d told me once that things that sat in our soul were made up of two things. Water and bloodied stones. Things made of water made us grow. They made up the good in us. The stains came from the bloodied stones. They were things we’d rather forget. Things that weighed us down. They drew things like bugs and other irritants that feasted on our light and happiness. He said that either one, though, was absorbed into who we were—who we were meant to be.

I felt that deep in my soul. I was finally able to absorb his words as the sunflowers did water.

Even though I could never erase the things that never found peace in my soul, they only became a part of my life. A part that I might never forget, but I had found the courage to live with.

Most people would think that a happy ending meant forgetting the wrong choices I’d made in my life. But to me, the happy ending was learning how to live with those things and having the strength to keep breathing despite them.

I still had my dark days, but with the four suns in my life, there was always enough brightness to keep seeing me through.

My husband.

Augustus.

Ciccio.

Noemi.

I laughed when Ciccio missed the ball and Augustus went to catch it. Harrison grinned when his son started chasing Augustus for it.

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