So finally...here is the Epilogue for my latest
Flack/Stella fic,
Kiss Me, I'm Irish. I can't believe it's done. I'm kinda sad that I've finally finished this one.
Anyway, here it is...
Disclaimer: For the nth time, I don’t own the characters. I’m just taking them out for a ride.
Author’s Note: First off, a happy Easter to everyone! Secondly, thank you for all the wonderful reviews. I really appreciate them. I would like to apologize in advance to those who were expecting a bedroom scene for this last chapter. I’m so sorry to disappoint you. I had the whole chapter all planned out and it doesn’t include a bedroom scene. You may think I was such a tease as to how the last chapter ended. Again, sorry, really, really sorry. Finally, here’s the Epilogue you all were waiting for. So go, read…
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Chapter Five - Epilogue
Roughly Six Months Later
The late afternoon sun was shining brightly on a cool day in early fall. New York City was experiencing some fine weather, perfect weather actually, neither too hot nor too cold…Perfect and ideal in fact for a garden wedding reception.
Don Flack couldn’t believe that he had finally arrived at this important milestone in his life. Here he was at his own wedding reception in the middle of Bryant Park. Sitting at the head table with a view of everything that was going on, he took in the beautiful sights before him. The Great Lawn now resembled a lovely paradise in the middle of the urban jungle that was Manhattan. The large white tent was tastefully decorated in elegant fall colors. The beautiful floral arrangements and numerous candles added to the romantic feel of the occasion. However, if it wasn’t for the imposing façade of the New York Public Library looking down upon them, he would have thought they were somewhere outside the four corners of Manhattan.
He could see their friends and family having a wonderful time, laughing, eating, and drinking. Some were even on the dance floor dancing to the music the band was playing. But the most beautiful sight of all was beside him. He turned his gaze to Stella sitting beside him. She was looking so radiant and content.
His thoughts strayed to what happened earlier in the day, to that particular moment in church when Stella walked down the aisle alone. She had decided to march down the aisle alone since according to her,
‘it’ll be the last time I’ll ever be on my own.’ The vision that met him when he looked up to see his bride was stunning. She looked so beautifully amazing in her wedding finery. She looked every inch the Greek goddess in her ivory-colored, Empire-cut, halter top, flowing Grecian-style gown…And her curls…so sexy in an elegant up ‘do. He was indeed lucky.
People had told him before the wedding that waiting for his bride to make her grand entrance at the church and then embarking on that journey to his side was one of the most nerve-wracking experiences he’ll ever have to go through in a lifetime. He took their advice with a grain of salt. He thought he’d be nervous as hell waiting for Stella, he actually was but when she finally arrived and her eyes met his, a sudden calm descended upon him, like everything was going to be all right, that everything had finally fallen into their rightful place.
Not even three months into the relationship, he had proposed to Stella. He knew that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. She had answered him with a confident
‘yes’ but she still asked him why now, why so soon. He could still vividly recall his reply.
“Well, life’s too short. I’ve been waiting for you for a really long time and I’m done waiting. I want to wake up every morning to your beautiful face greeting me. So…Carpe diem,” he had exclaimed with feeling and with that he had slipped the diamond engagement ring onto her finger.
Some must have thought their romance was a bit whirlwind. But when they finally saw them together, they knew that they were just meant to be. He’d like to think so too. To him, it wasn’t whirlwind at all. He and Stella had known each other for years now. Both knew what made the other tick. His parents were supportive of his decision. They had welcomed Stella wholeheartedly into the Flack family fold and were dropping not-so-subtle hints of expecting grandchildren from them very soon. His sisters loved Stella as well, saying that finally he had brought home someone not just beautiful but intelligent as well.
“Hey handsome,” Stella said, startling him out of his deepest thoughts.
“Yes, Mrs. Flack,” he asked with relish, raising an eyebrow seductively.
“You looked so lost there for a moment,” she teased.
“Yeah…Well, I was just thinking,” he replied.
“Oh really…What about,” she asked with a smile on her face.
“Just how lucky I am that you are finally
my wife and I’m
your husband,” he said with a broad grin on his face.
“Awww…Aren’t you just the sweetest,” Stella answered in a playful voice, planting a soft kiss on his lips.
Suddenly, Flack heard the opening strains of a very familiar song.
“
Why is that sad look in your eyes? Why are you crying? Tell me now, tell me now. Tell me, why you're feelin' this way. I hate to see you so down, oh baby! Is it your heart? Oh, breakin' all in pieces. Makin' you cry. Makin' you feel blue. Is there anything that I can do?”
“Stel, why are they playing
that song,” he said to her, trying to so hard not to whine.
“
Why don't you tell me where it hurts now, baby? And I'll do my best to make it better...Yes, I'll do my best to make the tears all go away. Just tell me where it hurts...Now, tell me.And I’ll love you with a love so tender. And if you let me stay...I'll take all of the hurt away."
“Awww…poor baby! Was it really
that traumatic for you,” she asked playfully.
"Where are all those tears coming from? Why are they falling? Did somebody, somebody, somebody leave your heart in the cold? You just need somebody to hold so, baby. (Give me a chance)…To put back all the pieces…Take hold of your heart…Make it just like new…There's so many things that I can do.”
“Pretty much,” he said, laughing now.
“Remember, if it wasn’t for
that song we wouldn’t be here today,” she replied happily as the song finally ended.
“
I know, Stel! I know! If it wasn’t for Danny and his cheesy love song…Speak of the devil.
I knew he had something to do with this,” he stopped when he saw Danny approaching the microphone where the band was set up.
“I think it’s time for the Best Man’s speech,” Stella said as she patted Don’s hand reassuringly.
“Uhhh-hmmm,” Danny said into the microphone, clearing his throat to get the guests’ attention. “Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please. Please take your seats and get comfortable,” he said in a crisp voice, silencing everyone in the tent.
“Okay…here we go,” Flack muttered under his breath.
“Sweetie, be nice,” Stella said to him.
“For those people here who don’t know Don and Stella’s love story, listen up! This is really funny, I guarantee ya,” Danny said with a chuckle. “For those of you who already know this…just listen, ya know that it’s really quite the anecdote,” he continued as the guests laughed along. “Anyway…you all know how Flack and Stella here have been co-workers for a long time now and how that relationship has turned into a really great friendship. That friendship finally blossomed into love last St. Patrick’s Day,” he paused, dramatically.
“Stella had invited everyone out for drinks and karaoke for St. Paddy’s. We all learned that day that Don here had an amazing singing voice. He was such a hit with the ladies. Who knew he had such talent? Anyway, I had noticed that night that Flack had too much to drink…And as his best friend, I didn’t want to leave him like that. He got so comfortable with the microphone that he was soon hogging it. When all that remained at the VIP room that Stella had reserved for us was just me, Don and Stella, Flack was still going at it,” he paused, taking a sip from the wine goblet he was holding.
“Who would have thought that I, Daniel Messer, would play
Yente to our two lovebirds here,” he said, making Flack, Stella and the rest of the guests laugh. “Remember that last song that the band played…That depressing song? That cheesy song? It’s called
Tell Me Where It Hurts, if ya really want to know. Well, I had picked that out for Flack to sing, just for fun. Seeing how cheesy it was,” he continued. “I don’t really know what happened but somehow the song resonated in Flack. He identified with the lyrics and suddenly he was looking at Stella rather intently and Stella here was gazing at him jus as intently,” Danny went on, scrunching his face.
“I mean…they were so absorbed with each other, I could have been on the moon for crying out loud. It was as if I wasn’t in the room at all…At that particular moment they were in their own little bubble,” Danny said passionately, again making everyone chuckle. “When the song finally ended, Don here, bolstered by Dutch courage, finally screamed at the top of his lungs,
“I love you, Stella Bonasera! Kiss me, I’m Irish!” And then he promptly fainted, falling to the floor in a heap! Det. Donald Alexander Flack, Jr. fell hard for Stella Katherine Bonasera,
literally and figuratively,” Danny exclaimed, eliciting deafening mirth and laughter from the wedding guests.
Flack was turning a bit red by now but was laughing along good-naturedly. Stella was looking at him with a glint of laughter in her eyes as well.
“For one moment, I thought I was in a forest. All that was needed was for some lumberjack to scream at me,
‘Timberrr,’ Danny continued energetically. “I mean the sound that Flack made as he fell to the floor was so loud, maybe as loud as a giant redwood falling down on the forest floor. It was
that loud! I mean, Flack
is such a pretty boy but seeing him lying on the floor drunk and unconscious
wasn’t a pretty sight! Right Stel,” he said, amusement tingeing his speech, drawing even louder cheers and hoots, the sound of laughter all around the tent.
“Hey Flack, don’t beat me up to a pulp, okay,” Danny said, ribbing Flack. “Anyway, to my best friend Don and my good friend Stella, may you guys have a great ride in the adventure called marriage…And may you both be blessed with lots of little Flack spawn,” he went on, eliciting chuckles from the crowd. “To Don and Stella,” Danny said, raising his goblet in a toast.
“To Don and Stella,” everyone echoed, sipping from their glasses, looking to the couple at the center of the head table.
“See handsome? It wasn’t so bad,” Stella said, turning to Flack.
“Yeah…
Yente there really had a ton of fun telling our love story,” Don replied with a smile and just a hint of snark to his voice.
They were interrupted by a high-pitched clanging sound of a spoon hitting a wine glass repeatedly. Soon all the guests were doing the same thing, expecting the newlyweds to kiss.
“What do you say Stel? Let’s give them quite the show,” Flack said cheekily.
“You’re on, handsome,” she replied with a wide smile. And with that, Flack leaned into her, putting his hands behind her head and drawing her lips into his for a passionate, torrid kiss.
Fin.
A/N 2: Thank you for getting this far! I love how y’all have embraced my little fic. Anyway, thank you for your patience.
