Twenty Years Later Novels & Stories

As the heavy velvet curtains were pulled open, I froze in absolute shock. "Surprise!" The room was filled with soft candlelight and floating balloons. Standing there, holding a small cake with lit candles, was my mother. Beside her, grinning from ear to ear, was Thea. My breath caught in my throat. In the chaotic aftermath of being fired, I had completely forgotten. Today was my twenty-third birthday. "You didn't think we'd let you forget, did you?" Thea laughed, stepping forward to pull me into a tight hug.

Fiona shoved Ryker in, and I trailed after them. Six years had passed. So much had changed. The sea of roses at the villa entrance had long been torn out. Most of the furnishings inside had been replaced, and everything now belonged to Ryker. There wasn’t a single trace of me left in the entire house. "Fiona, if he never shows up, maybe don’t make things harder on yourself." "No!" Fiona cut him off immediately. "This is what Xavier owes you! Why should he get to hide in there for six years while you ended up crippled?! Xavier will spend the rest of his life making this up to you!"

Turning, I saw a tall, imposing man striding toward me with a confident gait. "I'm sorry, are you...?" A smile lit up the man's amber eyes as he clutched his chest in mock hurt. "It's only been two hundred years. Don't tell me you've forgotten your favorite lab partner." Two hundred years ago. The face that had stayed up with me through countless nights in front of petri dishes while developing the anti-sunlight serum finally surfaced in my memory. The name slipped from my lips. "Lucas?" A corner of his mouth curled as he reached for my temperature-controlled suitcase.

"You told me nothing would—" "I told you exactly this would happen." "Scarlett." "Just admit it. I’m right." "You're—" he stopped. He pressed his lips together and looked at the Honda. "Marcus, how long." "Twenty minutes, Mr. Blackwell," Marcus responded, not looking back. Twenty minutes," Scarlett said pleasantly. "If you say I told you one more time—" "I wasn't going to say it again. I said it twice. I think twice establishes it." She looked out the window at the stationary of cars. "I might say it a third time later. I'm keeping my options open."

Twenty minutes. Enough time.

Jeffery smiled. "It's been fourteen years now." D'mally who was at his front turned back to speak. "If we weren't friends from childhood, I won't have recognised you." He told Jeffery. Jeffery, Chad and D'mally had been friends and had all grew up together, they had separated when Jeffery had to leave the country fourteen years ago. Chad looked at Jeffery all through, like he was admiring him. "You have changed so much." He said honestly, truly he had changed so much, but still, I recognize him, but still have my doubts.

It had been twenty years since he had last set foot in this place, and he couldn't deny the mixed emotions that swirled within him as they drew nearer. As they drove through the familiar streets, Big Shark sat in the backseat of the sleek black sedan as it sped through the darkened streets of Harmony City. The city lights blurred past him, the familiarity of the place hitting him hard after twenty long years. The memories flooded back - the deals, the fights, the victories, and the losses. It was both infuriating and comforting to be back, knowing that so much had changed in his absence.

Two Years Later A lot had happened in within the span of two years; There's destiny reuniting you back with your childhood best friend, then with you slowly accepting the fate of your family. At the end of the day, your mother will always be your mother whether you liked it or not. And your father's still your father too. You learned to embrace what had happened while keeping in mind that no matter what happens, you should just focus on living your life to the fullest. Life goes on after all.

When Wendy Chance's father, Josiah, was rendered speechless, I was the only one he wanted to go to speech therapy with. Every time Wendy and I wanted to go out, Josiah would clutch the corner of my shirt. Once again, Wendy would stuff an unused train ticket in my hand and pat my shoulder apologetically. "Treat my dad well, and I'll make it up to you on another trip. Evan can accompany me on this business trip instead. Don’t overthink this." Evan Striker was the secretary she claimed knew his place. I had collected 27 unused tickets over the past three years. They were from unrealized trips to the mountains, historical towns, and the beach. Every ticket turned into a post on Evan's social

--- **THE END** --- **Epilogue: Twenty Years Later** The letter arrived on a Tuesday, just like all the life-changing ones before it. Keira, now sixty-two, with silver-streaked hair and reading glasses perched on her nose, opened it with trembling fingers. Her hands were still the same, still capable of holding a pen for hours, still marked with the ink stains of a lifetime of writing. Marcus sat across from her, his own hair now completely silver, his eyes still the same sea-glass green that had stopped her heart all those years ago. "It's from Emma," she said, her voice catching.