Page 69 of Sinful Little Lies

The pieces of my life are all beginning to click into place seamlessly. After feeling like a pile of broken shards headed to the dumpster for so long, life proved to me that just because it’s broken, doesn’t mean you can’t fix it.

Just because there’s a couple of dings in the tool, doesn’t deem it useless.

Chipped paint can still be beautiful.

Worn out art is still worthy.

I’ve learned so much about life, and those close to me in such a short amount of time. I’ve learned that sometimes these sinful little lies that cling to our backs need to be taken care of and tackled head on, so we’re able to live out the life we truly deserve, not just life we think we deserve.

EPILOGUE

Three Years Later - VERENA

I blowout a deep breath as I wait behind the double doors of the venue. Greg stands next to me, ready to walk me down the aisle to Grimm, my future husband.

I always thought I’d be doing this with my father by my side, but the truth of the matter is that we don’t have that relationship and we never will. It simply wasn’t in the cards for us and I need to accept that. However, Greg has taken me in like one of his own. He provides the same treatment to me as he does to Gracie, his precious little girl.

When the wedding planning was set in motion, it was one of the first things we decided. He refused to let me walk down the aisle on my own and it touched my heart. I’ve felt so distant from my own father for such a long time, being embraced and welcomed into his family felt like coming home.

In true Verena fashion, I went for the more alternative Disney princess route, than actual Disney princess. Where the bouquets typically have shades of whites and yellows, mine is filled with dark purples, grays, and blacks.

My dress isn’t white, or cream, or even a soft, subtle pink. Layers of midnight black tulle create the bottom of my gown and a vampiric corset accentuates my bust. The detailing on the corset was customized especially for our wedding and resembled the ‘Eternal Lovers’ painting I created for Grimm a few years back.

I finished the look with silver jewelry, black pumps with red bottoms, and siren-eye effect on my lids. I feel fucking amazing and I cannot wait to see the look on Grimm’s face.

The double doors swing open and my eyes lock with his. He swallows hard before his mouth hangs open. I walk down the aisle, never breaking contact with him. When I reach his side, I whisper, “Close your mouth, you’re going to catch flies,” with a giggle.

The next ten minutes go by in blurry, exciting whirlwind. We recite our vows to one another and when I scan the crowd briefly, I noticed that everyone is emotional or teary-eyed.

They see our love. They feel it. And if I wasn’t already sure, that was the best confirmation I could ever have.

We say ‘I do’ and share our first kiss as husband and wife, as Mr. and Mrs. Grimm Griswold. Boy, don’t I love the sound of that.

Here’s to the rest of our fucking lives.

Four years later - GRIMM

The last few years haven’t been easy on Verena and I. After our honeymoon, we lived our life, just us and the dogs. But eventually, we found our home to be missing two little feet. We tried for a year to get pregnant but to no avail. Verena went to some specialists and was diagnosed with Endometriosis, therefore she wasn’t able to get pregnant.

For now, we are the fun aunt and uncle that every kid prays for and every parent is jealous of because their kids love us.

Verena and I are naturals with kids and we’ve discussed looking into adoption, surrogacy, and even IVF. We aren’t sure of the route we’ll take just yet, but we’re thankful for the options.

My little monster kick started her career as an artist with Emmett’s art program, Painted Pathways. He owns one location here in Devil’s Lake that is ran by his mother, and another location in New York that he runs himself. Emmett was looking to offer outreach classes but had trouble coming up with a program. Verena suggested a program where they bring all necessary art tools to the cancer patients in hospitals and provided art therapy. Emmett loved the idea so much, she was bumped up to co-director within two weeks of being employed there.

There’s a few kinks we have to work out, like there always will be, but we couldn’t be happier.

Here’s to the unhinged, the unpredictable, the things that scare us and the ones that bring us comfort. Here’s to healing. Here’s to the future.

THE END