Hey everyone. Here's a little warning... Ollie woke me up early in the morning several months ago asking for a huge favor. He's not sure he has any more interesting stories to share, but he definitely wanted everyone to know that he, Corey and Theo have a wonderful and fulfilling life after the events of "Paradise." He maybe just presents his highlights in a very unexpected way. I hope you'll find it to be a very positive finale for our pup.
Epilogue 1: A New Test
It had been an absolutely perfect final weekend party of the summer. The whole gang had shown up to celebrate, which meant our backyard had been full of laughter, splashing, too much food, and the kind of happy chaos that somehow always made our house feel like our own little perfect piece of paradise.
Riley had Tucker to chase, wrestle, and dramatically supervise. Theo had Olivia - his older sister-cousin, as she very proudly reminded everyone - to keep him busy, entertained, and mostly out of trouble. Thankfully, Olivia still wasn’t quite old enough to realize that Theo-sitting was something she’d soon be getting paid to do.
Most importantly, tomorrow was our son’s first day of kindergarten. It was something we’d been talking about with him for weeks. His backpack was ready. His first-day outfit had been chosen, rejected, chosen again, and finally approved.
Corey and I had already answered every question Theo could think of, along with a few he had clearly invented just to keep the conversation going. But even after all that preparation, I still wasn’t sure our little boy was completely on board with the whole idea of his life changing in the morning.
Kindergarten wasn’t scary because it was school. It was scary because his little life at home was the only one he knew by heart. And I’ll take that little issue on me. I absolutely knew I was the parent he’d inherited that unfortunate concern from.
I had just barely managed to drift off into a sweet dream of the day’s fun when I heard the soft pit-pat of two little bare feet and four paws entering our bedroom. Theo quietly made his way over to my side of the bed, tears streaming down his sweet angelic face. His furry best friend had of course followed along beside him. Riley, forever faithful and always on duty, stood pressed against his best friend’s side, nuzzling our son’s little hand and offering his own brand of wet-nosed support.
Through his tears, Theo finally managed to sob, “Poppa, please. I don’t want to go to kindergarten tomorrow. I just can’t. I want everything to stay like it is right now.”
I reached for him, but he wasn’t finished yet. “I like waking up with Riley. And having breakfast with you. And running. And swimming in my pool. But Grandpa and Granddad and even Olivia all told me I can’t just do that forever. They said it’s time for me to go meet new friends and learn new stuff.”
Then Theo looked up at me, and there they were. Corey’s eyes. But it wasn’t just the color that got me - those impossible sky blues - it was the scared little hope inside them. A desperate need to believe that the world he was being forced to face would somehow be kind if he could be brave enough to step into it. I had to look away for half a second just to keep myself steady.
“What if no one likes me tomorrow?” Theo whispered.
The question broke him all over again. “What if no one even wants to talk to me? What if only you and Riley and Daddy like me? What if nobody else wants to be my friend?
I suddenly had to double down on my efforts to hold back both tears and chuckles. “Theo,” I whispered, reaching up to brush his soft blond locks across his forehead, “I know you, Champ. And you are the most amazing big boy I’ve ever met.”
His eyes searched mine like he was trying to decide if he could borrow some of my confidence until he somehow found his own.
“Listen, little man. I can’t promise you that every single kid in your class will become your best friend tomorrow. That’s not how school works. That’s not even how grown-up life works. But I can promise you this. Anyone who takes the time to get to know you is going to find out just how special you are.”
Theo sniffled, still not convinced, but not quite as lost as he’d been a minute earlier.
“You’re funny. You’re kind. You like sports and swimming and telling stories. You ask some very big questions and you notice all the really little things. You love people with your whole heart. And yes, you are very, very smart.” His expression shifted into just the slightest bit of wonder, though uncertainty still clung to his sleepy little face.
“So listen my sweet boy, tomorrow might feel scary at first. It might even feel strange for a while. But then you’ll learn where your cubby is. You’ll meet your teacher. You’ll hear someone laugh at something funny. Maybe you’ll find just one other boy who likes the same game that you like. Maybe you’ll even find two more. And little by little, the scary new place won’t feel quite so new or scary anymore.”
I gentled my expression and softened my voice even more. “And listen to me, Champ. I understand worrying about new things. I understand about being afraid you’re going to walk into a place and feel like you’re all alone.” I let that truth sit between us, because this was one promise I knew how to make. “But being left alone is the one thing you will never, ever have to worry about. Not with us. Not with your pack.”
My sleepy face suddenly brightened as the obvious answer suddenly came to me. “Hey,” I whispered. “What if we turn tonight into a special occasion?”
Theo blinked through his tears. “What kind?”
“How about you and Riley climb up here and snuggle in between me and Daddy? Just for tonight. It’ll be our Kindergarten-eve whole-pack sleep-over.”
Theo’s eyes went wide. “Really? Are you sure, Poppa?” Then he glanced toward the window, like he needed to double-check the rules of the universe. “It’s not even storming outside.”
My heart absolutely melted.
“No,” I said softly. “It’s not storming outside.” I brushed my thumb over his damp cheek. “But I think it got just a little stormy right in here.” I tapped gently over his heart. “And when things get stormy in there, your pack still needs to be there for you too.”
Theo stared at me for a second like I had just explained the most important law of bedtime physics to him.
“So yes, Champ. I’m sure. We want you rested and ready to conquer the world tomorrow.” I chuckled to reassure my son, “Or at least to impress your kindergarten classmates. So tonight, I say we all sleep together as a pack to make sure you’re ready for your big first day.”
His suddenly happy little face beamed, “I love you, Poppa,” he whispered.
I could only beam right back with the kind of pride that made my chest feel way too small to hold it all. “Good night, my amazing son.” Then I gently touched my finger against his cute, tired, still-a-little-stressed nose. “Boop.”
Before I could even pull my hand away, Theo unexpectedly lifted his own little finger and gently booped my nose right back. His little smile finally appeared, soft and sleepy and carrying just enough of his Daddy Corey’s mischievousness to be dangerous.
“Good night, my sweet Poppa.”
I stared at him in mock outrage, my uncontrollable grin giving me away. “Hey now. You’re not allowed to boop my nose.”
Theo’s smile grew just a little bolder. “But Daddy does. I’ve seen him do it. And I know you like it.”
I tried my absolute best to keep my fatherly face in place and not immediately start crying. “Well, Theo, you’re right. Daddy does boop my nose sometimes. But that’s because I know he loves me a whole lot. So I let him get away with it.”
My son scrunched up his very sleepy face, clearly considering the legal precedent I had just established. Then he quietly ripped my heart right out of my chest, kissed it, and gently put it right back where it belonged.
“But I love you too,” he said. “Just as much as Daddy does, Poppa.” His eyes grew impossibly earnest. “And I promise. Even more.”
For a second, I couldn’t answer him. Theo wasn’t afraid to love me. He wasn’t afraid I would reject it. He wasn’t afraid his love would be too much. He simply gave it to me; completely certain I would somehow know what how to handle it’s immensity and sincerity.
I finally managed to keep my rapidly melting emotions under control just long enough to whisper, “I love you too, Theo. More than I’ll ever know how to say.” I kissed his forehead and brushed the drying tear tracks from his cheek. “And remember, your pack will always be here for you whenever you need us most. Never forget that. Now get under these covers and get some sleep, my big brave boy.”
Our beautiful, amazing, incredible miracle of a son snuggled down between us while Corey continued his soft, gentle snoring, somehow sleeping through our little emotional crisis like the deeply exhausted Daddy he had apparently become after our long and fun day in the sun.
Riley hopped up on our bed only after receiving my whispered permission, then curled up protectively at Theo’s feet, completing the little fortress of love surrounding our already-sleeping boy.
For a long moment, I just lay there in the dark, watching my son’s chest rise and fall in the slow, certain rhythm of deep sleep. Behind him, Corey’s breathing stayed just as steady. Our boy between us. Our pup at his feet. My wolf exactly where he needed to be, even if he had managed to miss the whole sweet drama.
And me? I was awake enough to understand what Corey had missed. Theo had come to us afraid of being forced out of the life he loved. Afraid that the whole world outside our home might not know what to do with his big heart. And I had somehow known what to say.
Not perfectly. Maybe not even wisely. But lovingly. Honestly. The way I felt a father should. The way I’d always hoped a father would.
I laid one careful arm over Theo and rested my hand lightly against Corey’s side, feeling both of them breathing under my touch. Our pack was complete. All roles were understood.
I was finally again just a moment away from sleep when I suddenly understood that tomorrow was nothing more than just one more test for all of us. Maybe Theo’s first big one. Maybe another one I’d just managed to pass as well.
No matter. Whatever tomorrow was, no one in our pack would have to face it alone.
And somehow, that made kindergarten feel exactly like what it was supposed to be. Nothing scary. Not even a goodbye to preschooler innocence. Just another wonderfully exciting first day of the rest of our lives.
Epilogue 2: Ever After
The hospice room was filled with the living proof of Ollie’s long and astonishing life.
His son, Theo, stood beside his bed with one hand wrapped gently around his Pop’s. His other arm held his beautiful wife close against his chest, as if keeping her steady could somehow keep him steady too. Their son and daughter stood nearby with their spouses, while Ollie’s five great-grandchildren huddled close together, old enough to understand what was happening and young enough to wish with all their hearts that understanding it could somehow make it stop.
None of them were doing a very good job of keeping their tears in check.
On the other side of the bed, Olivia - Ollie’s daughter in every way that had ever mattered, and in one miraculous biological way too - clung tightly to her husband’s arm. Her shoulders trembled as she fought to steady herself, while her three own grown children stayed close, doing their best to comfort the mother who had spent her whole life comforting them.
The love in the room was almost too much for Ollie’s tired heart to hold.
He could feel it rising around him, warming him, lifting him, making him feel as though he simply might just float away before his body could figure out how to just let go. Through the soft haze that was slowly overtaking his vision, Ollie barely heard Theo’s one final broken whisper.
“I love you, Pop…”
A gentle golden mist began to fill the air around him, softening the edges of the world he was leaving behind. Ollie’s eyes fluttered, and suddenly his fading consciousness was filled with a lifetime of priceless memories - each one patiently waiting its turn to step forward for its final curtain call.
****
…
“Poppa! I met my best friend at recess today! His name is Pat. He’s so cool! He’s smart and nice and almost as good at football as I am! I really like him. Can I ask him to be my boyfriend?”
“Hey, Champ! That’s great. But second grade is a little too early to start having boyfriends orgirlfriends.”
“A girlfriend?! Eew!” …
…
“Hey, my furry boy… it’s okay. Your pain is almost over. Just listen to my voice my sweet pup. Let me see your beautiful black muzzle one last time. Shhh. It’s okay Riley Boy. It’s finally time for you to go to sleep now. Don’t you worry my brave wolf, our pack is safe and will always be right here with you - making sure you’re always safe too. Forever.”
“Daddy… I don’t want Riley to leave us…”
“I know, Theo… I know. But this isn’t something we get to choose. All we can do is be here with him now, and make sure he knows that we’ll always love him.” …
…
“Dad! Pop! Come here - fast! Pat told me about something his older cousin can do, and I just did it and it’s awesome! It’s the best thing I’ve ever felt in my whole life! Is it okay if I do it? Like a lot? And, um… can Pat come over and do it with me?”
“That’s great son! Congratulations on discovering what every boy’s favorite toy can do!”
“Yes, Theo, you can always… do that… as much as you want.”
“Your Pop and I, um, well, we’ll call Pat’s parents and see what they think about letting him join you in your new favorite activity. But hey, no matter what, you should probably start shutting your door when you do it.”
“Yeah, that’s right my wolf… Shut your door, Corey. Er I mean, Theo” …
…
“Dad, Pop… I need to tell you both something important. It’s been eating at me for a while now. And if I don’t tell y’all about it soon, it’s going to start feeling like I’m hiding a big part of myself from you - almost like I’m starting to lie to you.
“Listen, I love you both, and I’m so proud to have the two best fathers on the planet helping me make it through my life. So please don’t be disappointed with me, okay? Dads, I think - no… I know. I’m straight.”
“Oh, My Ollie! Where did we go wrong? Wait! Pop, seriously, this is all your fault! I knew you shouldn’t have encouraged him to play such a straight-guy sport like football. I should have urged him to try a more gay-friendly one. Like rugby! Now, instead of him bringing home big burly hairy sweaty rugby boys, our son is going start bringing home delicate pretty little girls wearing perfume. Perfume, Pop! Eww!”
“Pop, can you make Dad maybe just behave. I’m being serious.”
“It’s okay Champ. I’m your Dad. I’ll always love you… No matter what deviant lifestyle you choose.”
“Pop! Please help!”
“Hold on - have you come out to Pat? Lurd, don’t tell me our sweet honorary son is straight too.”
“That’s enough out of you, Corey Allen Rainer!” …
…
“Pop, Dad! I just got my letter! I’m going to be a tight end for the Texas Longhorns! Here it is! My full ride scholarship to UT!”
“I knew it, Theodore! We’re gonna go pro! This is everything I’ve ever hoped for - I finally get to experience all my college dreams coming true through my amazing son! Come on Champ, let’s go practice some plays.”
“Calm down, Ollie. Let’s allow our Theo to enjoy his next four years before you plan out his entire NFL career.” …
…
“Is Ollie okay Corey?”
“Well… I finally got him to at least lie down, but I know he’s not asleep - and I know he’s listening… And, well, shouldn’t I be asking you that question? Ollie may have lost his dad, but you lost your soulmate.”
“I’m mostly still just numb. Teddy had such a big loving heart. I never imagined it would ever suddenly just… stop. Corey, our house is just as suddenly so ridiculously big and empty now. Damn, I feel so alone.”
“Dad, Ollie and I have been talking. Listen, Theo’s been all moved out for a few years now and we’ve really been feeling like empty nesters ourselves lately. Believe me, we get that same lonely feeling too. Why don’t you put your house on the market and move in with us?” …
…
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride. And, well, the bride may kiss her groom.”
“Ollie… So, you realize that our son, Theo - er Ted… Just married his fiancé, Christine - who goes by ‘Chris.’ I don’t think anyone ever saw that one coming.”
“My wolf, you know they’re laughing their butts off at all the new dad jokes they’ve just been given - right? And we also know that they’re the two proudest souls looking down from our stars right now as they’re watching over all this. I swear, I can almost feel their hugs.” …
…
“There he is! Look at my big beautiful new Rainer boy who’s gonna carry on our family’s name into a big beautiful future.”
“Corey! A big beautiful girl would have been just as perfect! Lurd, you’re so much like Dad 2 right now it gets me flustered AND all teary-eyed.”
“Pup, you’ve already got your progeny. Olivia’s two sons look so much like you that it almost hurts. And I’m grateful to know that the future will be filled with lots of copies of my big, beautiful Ollie’s genes.”
“Okay my sweet wolf, I understand, but let’s not put too much pressure on our little Aaron Michael just yet. I mean, come on, we both remember how often Theo finally kept shutting his door. I’m sure we’ll have many more grandchildren to come” …
…
“My wolf is gone... He always said he’d never lose me. So now how am I supposed to keep going on with a hole this big in my heart?”
“Hey Pop, just always remember that we’ve got you, I swear to you. Me, Chris, Olivia, her kids - and all your grandkids. We love you and we’re not going anywhere.”
“I love too you my sweet Theodore. Have I ever told you how much you look like your Dad?”
“Only every day, Pop. And I’ll never get tired of hearing it. Hey, Pup. You know our pack always stays together when things get tough - in here - we always take care of our own. Right? Believe me. You’re never going to be alone. We promise.”
“Maybe your dad hasn’t completely lost me yet” …
****
As the memories faded from his consciousness, Ollie realized he’d never felt more profoundly loved or so deeply tired in all of his long, astonishing life. His awareness gently drifted outward from his still body, joining the peaceful rest that had come to gather him in its welcoming arms.
Just as he felt himself slipping away into the now comforting void, his vision snapped into a clarity he hadn’t known in decades. The room brightened, sharpened - every edge was crisp, every color was vivid. A warm surge of energy coursed through his body. So sudden and vibrant that he couldn’t stop a fit of giggles from escaping.
Ollie hadn’t felt this giddy or alive since… Well, since that one unimaginable morning so long ago when he first met his Norse God - after being so alone and terrified for three agonizing months, barely surviving, isolated in his Bronco…
He looked down, startled and overwhelmed - amazed to see that his body was young again. Strong again. His chest - with its little island of blond fur - was once again rising and falling with easy, powerful breaths. His skin golden and unblemished; his muscles flexed, ready and willing to perform any request he might ask of them. It was as if time itself suddenly admitted that it had only been joking through all the long decades and had finally decided to reverse its decision. Gently claiming - no harm, no foul.
Lying there on his no longer needed hospice bed, with a goofy grin on his baby-bearded face, Ollie marveled at having a body that could once again give him pleasure instead of pain. He finally looked up to see a familiar silhouette patiently waiting in the doorway to his room. A form that just happened to be the exact shape and size of the hole his heart had been carrying around for far too many years.
“Corey!” Ollie whispered - unable to believe this could really be happening. “I’ve missed you so much!”
“Hey pup! It’s about time you decided to wake up!” Corey laughed, stepping over to the bed - radiating his big, grounding warmth that Ollie had missed for so long.
“I’ve missed you too my big sweet, beautiful Ollie. Is it safe to get close to your bed now without having to dodge any punches or elbows? Because… there are a couple other very important people who’ve missed you just as much.”
A beaming Chris and Ted made their way through the doorway, immediately taking their places on either side of their first son.
Ted’s eyes glistened at once again being allowed to lovingly gaze down on his perfect boy. Ollie innocently presented his curly blond pit tufts to the room as he stretched his sleepy stiffness away - covered only by the bed’s thin linen. All while reveling in his newly restored - and fully operational - body. Ollie watched his dad’s face explode with a look of sweet fatherly mischief that he’d never once forgotten through all the long years of being apart.
“Hey, Sport,” Ted boomed, accompanied by a delighted chuckle, “I see some things never change. You still make the most impressive blanket forts. Well… and I guess I’m still the low-dick on the family totem pole.”
Ollie chuckled at Ted’s cheerful lament and felt absolutely no shame from his own situation. No embarrassment. Just an old, familiar love that was somehow brand new once again in this bright, impossible place. With a smile stretching from ear to ear, Ollie chuckled, “Hey Dad! I’d forgotten what making a blanket fort even felt like!” Then with a more reverent smile, he added, “I’ve missed you all so much.”
His bright face darkening only for a moment as he softly murmured. “I don’t think I could’ve kept going without Theo, Olivia, and all their beautiful kids.”
Chris leaned over the bed, his hand brushing Ollie’s curls with a well-practiced love and devotion. “Pup, please believe us,” he said gently. “We never left you - not even for a moment. We’ve been with you the whole time. And we’re all so proud of everything you accomplished and of the legacy you’ve created. I’m sorry you had to stick around so long after Corey joined us. But Ollie, we all knew you were more than strong enough to stay behind and guide your family - the family that needed you to be there for them.”
Corey slipped his fingers through Ollie’s and gave a soft squeeze. “Hey, I know a little fluffy guy who was also always right there by your side. And he’s been a very good boy - patiently waiting for you to finally join us…”
A frenzied clacking of claws on linoleum resonated through the room as Riley burst in through the doorway. Tail wagging a mile a minute as he launched himself onto the bed with a jubilant furry abandon. A very surprised Ollie could barely get a breath in as Riley tried to frantically make up for all the kisses they’d missed over their impossibly long decades apart.
When Riley finally settled down into a happy furry mound, once again faithfully warming his Ollie’s side, Corey was able to catch his lover’s gaze as he finally leaned in over Ollie’s bed. His sky-blue eyes twinkling in a way Ollie had longed to see during every one of his lonely nights on earth. Never losing those eyes, Ollie quickly leaned up from the pillows and was finally allowed to share a new first kiss with his husband.
Rising back up, Corey casually asked, “Hey? You ready, pup?” He flashed the smirk Ollie had longed to see for so many years. “Ted’s been smoking a brisket all morning, the pool’s perfect, and Officer Kevin and Anna are bringing the potato salad and jalapeño baked beans. Bonus! With their help, Dad has finally perfected his deviled egg recipe. So why don’t you hop out of that bed and put your speedos on? It’s time to go play under our big Texas sky again.”
Ollie laughed - warm and bright, marveling at somehow being allowed to live his best life once again. “Sure, my wolf… um, but could the dads maybe turn around for a sec? I’m kinda naked here.”
Everyone laughed but no one turned around.
Instead, Corey leaned in and pulled Ollie up off the bed and into his big arms. The sheet simply fell away; there were no more barriers or secrets between any of them. Ted and Chris instinctively wrapped themselves around both of their married sons once again, while Riley rooted his way into the middle of his reunited pack’s embrace.
Tears of an unimagined joy streamed down Ollie’s face as he snuggled into the comfort of the ones who had chosen to forever love him most. He eagerly lost himself in the embrace of the pack he had been waiting to rejoin for so very long.
Ollie simply closed his eyes and smiled. A feeling of paradise washed over him. For the first time in far too long, he was finally back exactly where he belonged - home. Never to leave it again.
I hope that wasn't too much. And it doesn't mean there won't be any more Ollie stories. It just means that if there aren't - we all know Ollie and everyone had a very happy ever after.
I've asked multiple people for their opinion on "Ever After." And I've made a decision. I'll keep and cherish the second epilogue as a gift from Ollie - privately. It will most likely not be included when "Paradise" is made into a book.
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