A/n: This is the last chapter. I did fix a few things. Well, enjoy.

Thanks to everyone who has ever reviewed me and has reviewed this chapter. Thank you.

Close My Eyes

Chapter 21: Happily Ever After

"Hey, Ash!" I heard someone call my name. I snapped out of my daze and I looked over. Daphne was waving at me and motioning for me to go over there. I smiled and I walked over to her.

"Hi, Daphne," I said, standing in front of her. She smiled at me.

"Finals are finally over," She said with relief. I nodded.

"Yeah, but graduation is soon. Then we'll be free from this school," I said. And free from this town. It was finally going to happen. I was going to leave. And I was going far away. This town had so many memories for me, good and bad. But that shouldn't hold me down. I refuse to do the same thing forever. I'll be leaving and starting a new adventure.

"We're going to the ice cream shop to celebrate. You want to come?" She said to me. I looked over and raised my eyebrow.

"Whose 'we're'?" I asked, carefully.

"Dan, Ace, and me," She replied. I stared.

"Dan and Ace together?" I asked. "God help us."

Daphne laughed. I smiled and shrugged.

"Hey Daphne, Ash!" I turned around to see Ace and Dan approaching us. Oh, great. Daphne smiled and waved at them. I rolled my eyes. They stopped and started talking to us.

"Hola, chicas," Dan said.

"Hi, Dan and Ace," Daphne said. I sighed and rolled my eyes.

"Are we still going for ice cream?" Ace asked. Daphne nodded. "Good, then let's go."

"Is Ash coming?" Dan asked.

"Of course she is," Ace replied before I could say anything. He put his arm around my neck and pulled me closer to him. I elbowed him in his stomach and he let go of me. "You always do that!" He clutched his stomach. I smiled with victory.

"Let's go," I said. Ace kept his distance to my satisfaction. We may be friends, but the guy needs to learn when to stop hitting on me. The four of us started walking away from the crowded school campus and off to the ice cream place. Dan started a conversation with me.

"You'll be happy when you're out of here, won't you?" Dan asked. I nodded.

"Yeah I will," I said with enthusiasm. "I'll be out of this evil school and off away at a college far away."

"Oh, which college are you going to?" He asked.

"I was accepted into NYU," I said. Yes, college, an interesting subject. I was really escaping. I was never cut out for this town. College was freedom in my eyes.

"NYU? That's a bit far, isn't it?" He asked. I smiled.

"That's the point."

"Yeah, you never did like it here," Dan said. He looked as if he were remembering something. He smiled to himself a bit and sighed. I didn't ask. Instead, I stayed on the subject of colleges.

"Which college are you going to?" I asked him. He looked over at me and grinned.

"Miami," He replied. I smiled.

"Of course you are." It was no surprise for Dan. Well, the Dan everyone else knew, anyway.

"The girls won't know what hit 'em."

"Sure, Dan, sure. Neither will the guys," I said. He shot a glare at me and glanced over at Daphne and Ace who were in a middle of a conversation.

"Shh," He warned.

"So, why are you going there? It's not because of the girls in bikinis. Is you-know-who going there, too?"

"Well, yeah. His father is Dean," Dan replied. You-know-who was Dan's secret lover. Of course, he wouldn't tell me that lover's name, so I named him you-know-who. I almost named him Bob, but there already is a Bob in this tale. That would be my future stepfather, Bob. That's right. Robert Taintor proposed to my mother. Only God knows why. I wish him luck. I'm sorry to say, but I'll probably somehow get the flu on their wedding day. I was an expert at faking sick and forging signatures by the 5th grade.

"So, Ash, have you heard from-" Daphne started. Dan cut her off with a motion of his hand. Daphne covered her mouth and muffled an 'oops.'

"Remember," Ace said to her. "No D-word."

I sighed. The three of them made this rule behind my back. Never use the D-word. It's not like I didn't notice. It was nice of them, but it wasn't necessary.

"No, I haven't," I said. They all looked at me with solemn expressions. I could see the sympathy rising within them. They all felt bad for me.

"What a jerk," Ace muttered to himself.

"No, it's okay," I insisted. "Forget it. No big deal."

There was a short, awkward silence. Dan quickly started a new conversation. The others hastily joined in. I smiled and nodded. Then I just tuned out.

Of course, the D-word stood for Dallas. I wasn't that dense. He was gone from here. I kind of envied him. It's probably nice to be out of here. Well, he was gone. It wasn't supposed to be forever, but I guess it's turning into that. He hasn't written. He hasn't called. He hasn't made an effort to contact me. He said he would write, so I waited. I waited and waited. And then one day, I stopped. He never wrote. I tried to justify for him. Maybe he was too busy or something. But then came that thought. Maybe he had forgotten about me. Guess I didn't mean that much after all. Maybe it was all lies. I would never know, would I?

At first, I was disappointed. Then it was gone. No emotions of any sort. Everything went back to almost normal. I never really felt anger or sadness towards him, unlike Ace. Even if he had forgotten about me, I could never hate him. It's weird, but I wasn't angry. Although he's gone, I haven't forgotten him. He taught me so many things. So many precious things. I will be forever grateful to him.

"Okay, we're there," Ace said. I snapped back into reality and left my world of Dallas behind.

I woke up to the ringing of a phone. Must have dozed off while watching the Fox News Channel. The phone continued to ring and I sighed. Stupid phone. Wait, the phone was ringing. I should answer it. Of course, a certain thought dawned on me. What if it was him? No, of course not. I wish I would stop thinking that. I brushed that thought away and proceeded to answer the phone.

"Hello?" I asked into the receiver.

"Hey, Ashlyn. It's Bob."

It was Robert Taintor. Unfortunately, we kind of became friends. And unfortunately, I kind of like him. Oh, darn. Well, he's better company than my mother.

"Oh, hey Bob," I said. "What's up?"

"I have some bad news," He said, right to the point.

"Oh, what is it?"

"Your mother has a very important business trip and can't make your graduation."

I smiled. Of course she would. That's nothing new.

"Yeah, and what's the bad news?" I asked. Bob laughed.

"Your mom said if it was okay with you, I could go into her place."

"Sure, no problem. Whatever you want."

"Okay," He said. "I'll see you later."

"Alright, take it easy," I said. "Bye."

I hung up the phone. This graduation might actually be cool. And boring, but at least I won't have my insane mother there. Graduation is one step closer to freedom. And then I can start new. And then I can be happy without him.

It was sixth period. Last class of that long and dreadful day. It seemed to go on forever. And it was so damn hot in this stupid room. The teacher was going on about life after high school. Blah, blah, blah. Tomorrow was the big day. We, the seniors, would be graduating. Finally. Couldn't it have come sooner? Well, it's here now.

The bell rung to my relief. Everyone piled out of the class. Everything around me seemed to be laid-back, yet exciting at the same time. It was kind of assuring. It was the best feeling I've ever had in this stupid school.

My locker was cleaned out and my books were all returned. I headed outside to meet with Ace, Daphne, and Dan, as I usually did. They were out back, near the football field. Ace noticed me and waved at me. I smiled and walked over. The three of them leaned against the fence. I stood in front of them.

"Graduation is tomorrow," Daphne said, smiling. "I'm so excited." She did, indeed, look excited.

"Oh, shut up," Ace said, with a hint of jealousy. He wasn't graduating this year with us. He always looked kind of left out when that subject came up. I tried to avoid it as much as possible with I was around him. But, hey, it was tomorrow.

"Don't worry, man," Dan advised. "We'll all come next year to see you graduate."

"Sure, you will," Ace muttered, sarcastically.

"No, we will," Daphne insisted. "Even Ash!"

"Really?" Ace asked, looking over at me. If it meant returning to this town, I'd normally say 'no'. But the way Ace was looking at me... it was too hard to say no.

"Yeah," I replied with a smile. Ace grinned. At least I made someone's day. We went into a huge conversation about graduation, colleges, and this evil high school. I was really the only one out of everybody going to a school so far away. It figures. We talked about how school ended tomorrow for the seniors. Then the three of them started reminiscing about the past. They talked about funny memories, the couples, the splits, the people, and all of that stuff. My only happy times here were with Dallas. The D-word was forbidden. I didn't include myself in the conversation.

Finally, the journey through memory lane had ended. I quickly spoke to prevent any more walks down that lane.

"So, you guys wanna go for ice cream?" I asked, quickly.

"Sure, that-" Ace started to say. He stopped mid-sentence. His face turned into an expression of complete confusion. The same thing happened to Dan and Daphne. What was going on?

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked, confused.

Suddenly, I felt two arms slip themselves around my neck for a very familiar feeling. And then I heard it, just inches away from my ear.

"Because you're beautiful."

My heart had been racing before, but now it completely stopped. I wasn't even breathing. Everything froze. My eyes had widened. This was impossible. Just impossible. It couldn't be happening. No way this was happening.

"Dallas," I said, feeling like I could cry and jump for joy at the same time.

"I'm back."

Everything from then on was like a dream. I felt like I had drifted out of my body and I was watching all this happen. Dallas greeted everyone else. They all muttered a word or so. They were in complete shock. Then Dallas grabbed my hand and started dragging me away. I muttered a goodbye to my friends and went off with Dallas. We walked a familiar route.

He started asking me all these questions. How are you? How's school? Was the senior prank good? To all of his questions, I could only manage a one-word answer. I was too in shock. Was this actually happening or was I dreaming? This was impossible. I didn't what I was feeling. I didn't feel happy, sad, or mad. Just surprised.

This was too weird for me. Dallas had a huge smile on his face. He obviously was pleased by my reaction. He gave up on talking since I wouldn't say more than a word. He dragged me along. I knew where we were going. To the park. It seemed so familiar, yet so new. There would be a lot to say and explain. Maybe he knows I'll probably be comfortable talking to him there. We have so many memories there. After he left, I went to the park to think. Then it was only once in a while. Finally, I stopped.

But here I was, going back to it.

We reached it and Dallas dragged me to our spot. But we didn't sit on the bench. Dallas released my hand and sat down on the grass. I stared at him for a moment, and then did the same. We were silent for a moment. He was thing and I was just plain confused.

"So..." I said, wanting to get rid of this confusion.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I should have called before coming."

I looked into his eyes. He looked troubled, yet happy. Dallas looked the same, kind of. The feeling around him was the same, anyway. He had darkened his hair a bit. His wardrobe was way different. His left ear was pierced. He seemed more comfortable now.

"Don't worry about it," I said.

"I bet you wanna know why I didn't write," He said, going right into it. "It's kind of a stupid reason. I was afraid. I was afraid you had forgotten about me or you wouldn't write back. I've written so many unsent letters. Sorry."

"It's okay, Dallas," I said. He stared.

"You're not as angry as you used to be," He said to me, smiling. "You've changed."

"Well, tomorrow is graduation."

"Yeah..." He said. There was a lot to talk about. We didn't know where to start.

"How's life without Ash?" I asked him. He looked at me and grinned.

"Boring," He said.

"You look different."

"Yeah, I was bored," He replied with a grin.

"Make any new friends?"

"Yeah, but none compare to you," He said. I smiled. "You've become good friends with Dan, Daphne, and Ace, huh?"

"Yep."

So, we went on talking. It was all casual things for a while. Dallas had moved to New York City. He said it was too crowded. His new friends included a girl named Julie and her boyfriend, Kris. His school was also 'too crowded' and he graduated two days ago. And, yes, he still loved the 80's and that type of music.

"How are things with your mother?" He asked me.

"I'm not sure. But Bob is pretty nice," I said. "He's coming to graduation tomorrow. The question is, are you?"

"Yeah," He said. "I was suppose to graduate here, so I wouldn't miss it for anything."

Dallas had a bought a used car and drove it here.

"What college are you going to?" I asked.

"NYU," He replied. "You?"

I laughed. I just kept laughing. Dallas gave me a puzzled look. This was unbelievable. We were going to the same college. We were bound to meet again.

"Great minds think alike," I said. He stared.

"No way," He said, surprised. "No way! This is so awesome!"

He was still optimistic Dallas. He was still my Dallas.

We laid back and started to glance up at the clouds. We must have spent an hour arguing over what the clods looked like. It was just like old times. Everything was so incredible. And we laughed together. I remembered. I remembered it all. I remembered my feelings. I wondered about his, but all that mattered right now was that I was back with him.

We stared up at the beautiful sky, in silence, now. He started humming. Same old Dallas. The scary part was that I knew what he was humming. The words came to me.

And I will love you, baby. Always.

And I'll be there, forever and a day. Always.

And then I said them aloud as he hummed the tune.

"I'll be there 'till the stars don't shine. 'Til the heavens burst and the words don't rhyme. And I know when I die, you'll be on my mind. And I'll love you, always..."

Dallas paused his humming and stared. "No way."

"Okay, I have a confession to make. I know a bit more than I let on about your music," I said. "I know some Bon Jovi, three Guns N Roses' songs, one Van Halen song. I might know the Who, but I won't tell you that. The Ramones, possibly. I definitely know Aerosmith. I mean, who doesn't?"

Dallas stared. "You deceived me. And Queen?"

"I know all the words to Bohemian Rhapsody, but you don't know that."

"Since when?!"

"Fine, fine," I said. "After you left, I went out and bought a couple of CDs..."

"Aw, you missed me, so you turned to my music," He said, jokingly. I sighed.

"Shut up," I said, bitterly. He stopped his laughing and stared. So, now he knows the truth. He rested his head again and stared back at the clouds. We were silent once more. The silence didn't last, though.

"Close your eyes," He said to me. He sat up, leaning back on his hands. I remained laying down.

"No," I said.

"What?" He asked.

"No, I won't close my eyes," I said, once again.

"Why not?"

"I don't want to miss out on a second of this. I think I'm happy like this. I want to stay like this. I don't really want to close my eyes."

"Even if you do close your eyes, I'll still be here."

"I don't know that."

"I'll always be here," He said. "You don't have to be afraid."

I sat up and looked at him. "Imagine all that time I'll be wasting."

"It's not a waste," He said. "I promise you have nothing to worry about. You won't miss anything. I won't do anything until your eyes are open again. You can trust me."

I stared. I just wanted to stay like this forever. Although it was stupid, I didn't want to close my eyes. But I could trust him. Sitting up, I did it and closed my eyes. Just seconds later, Dallas addressed me again.

"Open your eyes," He said. I opened them, and then my heart stopped. My eyes widened in surprise. This wasn't happening. Just inches in front of me was a little box with it's top open. Inside it was the most beautiful diamond ring I have ever seen.

"Ashlyn, will you marry me?" He asked, barely above a whisper. I smiled and closed my eyes.

I stared at the blank spaces that remained on the page. Glaring, I threw the notebook down on the bed.

"Dallas!" I yelled out, angrily. He looked over at me and removed of his earpieces of his headphones from his ear.

"Yeah, Ash?" He asked, chewing away on his bubblegum.

"You left it at a cliffhanger, you fiend!" I exclaimed. He grinned. He turned of his CD player and put it aside. "Don't grin at me. What does she say?"

"What do you think she says?" Dallas asked. My eyes fell upon my left hand and the diamond ring that resided on it.

"Yes," I replied. "I think she says, 'Yes'."

"Bingo," Dallas said, smiling. "And they live happily ever after at NYU and the lovely princess is finally free from that evil curse in her hometown."

I smiled. "Happily ever after, huh? That it is."