So this is the end. Thanks to everyone who has stuck with this story throughout and all of you who have reviewed faithfully. I hope you enjoyed the ride ;)

Epilogue

Six Years Later

"Mom, Dad, I'm here!" Luann yelled as she entered the house and immediately went for the kitchen. When Susan entered just a few short moments later, Luann was already looking through the kitchen cabinets.

Susan sighed, hands on her hips and Luann turned with a caught-in-the-headlights look, a piece of string cheese already in her mouth. "I swear, Luann, you have the manners of a barbarian. We are about to have dinner and here you go spoiling it."

Luann grinned and shrugged, "Pre-dinner snack."

She walked over and hugged her mom, who looked her up and down after she pulled away, "I thought I said 'no uniform at the dinner table'. And I noticed you didn't drive your car, either."

"Oh honey, let it be…the patrol car keeps the neighbors on their toes," Robbie Ray said, entering the kitchen and hugging his daughter.

"No Robbie, it makes them think we're in trouble with the law," Susan said, giving him a reproachful look.

Luann gave her mom a sheepish look, "I'm sorry, mom; I had a call right before shift ended and I didn't want to be late. I'll go shower and change. Are Miley and Lilly home, yet?"

Susan sighed, looking at the clock, "No, Miley's last class ends at five. It normally takes them some time to get home with traffic. Oh, Jackson and Sarah are here already; he's out showing her the barn."

"The new girlfriend? Should I go out there and pretend I'm here to arrest him?" Luann asked, eyes shining at the thought of potential mischief she could cause.

"I think you should go shower and change. Dinner is in an hour," Susan said, ushering her out of the kitchen. If she had thought at some point that growing older and becoming a police officer would cure Luann of her need to mess with people, she'd certainly been wrong. She still marveled at the fact that someone had even let Luann become a cop in the first place, considering how hostile and aggressive she had always been. But Susan knew, Luann was a good kid, a great kid really, considering the multiple times she'd stood up for her family members, had saved her sister's life and thus all of them from broken hearts.

She heard the front door open and turned to see her other two daughters entering the house. As soon as Lilly saw her, she waved her hands as if to stop her from asking, but it was already too late. "Hey girls, how was school?"

Lilly hung her head in defeat, hanging up both their coats. Miley sighed heavily as she entered the kitchen, a depressed look on her face, "My professor is trying to fail me!"

Susan raised an eyebrow at the mere thought of Miley failing anything, when Lilly followed her into the kitchen. The look on her face said she'd already heard the story a thousand times on the drive back. "Yeah, he gave her an 89. That bastard."

Miley glared at Lilly, "I can't afford to let my GPA drop if I want to go to med school, Lils."

"Miley, you've already been accepted! I just don't want you to get so worked up over this," Lilly sighed, wishing her girlfriend were less driven at times. Compared to Miley, other people would surely feel insecure about their own intelligence, but with Lilly, and the rest of the family, that had never been an issue. They had all accepted a long time ago that Miley was the smart one and destined for great things. The rest of them just found their niche – Luann, who had skipped college altogether, as a cop, Lilly, who was attending Tennessee State University, was planning to be a teacher and Jackson, well, they were still waiting for him to find his.

"Alright, Miley, why don't you help me with dinner. Lilly, can you please get Jackson and Sarah from the barn?" Susan said, trying to defuse the situation. It wasn't that she didn't agree with Lilly to some degree, Miley had a tendency to overwork herself, but bringing it up only made the girl more agitated. Perhaps she could get Luann to say something to Miley; the twins always seemed to have a calming effect on each other and were thus much more likely to get through.

Lilly sighed as if she felt put out, but secretly she was glad to get away – there was something she needed to do. She stood and grabbed Miley from behind, planting a kiss on her cheek. Miley melted into her embrace, all the annoyance forgotten for now, and turned to give Lilly a proper kiss on the lips. Lilly left the kitchen and went up the stairs to their room.

The twins had shared a room for several years, until after their High School graduation and Luann's entrance into the Police Academy several months later. When Miley had gotten a full ride to Vanderbilt, she had decided to still live at home, despite the drive into the city. She had waited so long to have a home and a family, she was not going to give it up for anything. Lilly would much rather have lived in the dorms at Tennessee State than drive forty minutes twice a day, but, partially because she hadn't gotten a full scholarship, and mostly because of Miley, she still lived at home, as well.

They'd still lived in separate rooms at home, officially anyway, until last year when they'd convinced their parents to just let them room together. It was a much more convenient, happier arrangement for both of them, though Lilly still occasionally felt weird about living in her parents' house, in a room with her girlfriend, who was also technically, her sister.

She noticed the shower running and suddenly she felt nervous. Lilly dug in the back of her dresser drawer beneath some old shorts for a pair of rolled up socks. She pulled out a box and stuffed it in her pocket, before making her way over to the twins' old room. It had mostly been converted into an office/study area for them, but it had a pull out sofa that Luann normally slept on when she stayed over. Lilly sat on the sofa, bouncing slightly as she became more and more nervous. Finally the water turned off and she froze. The bathroom door opened and Luann stepped into the room, wrapped in only a towel. She glared when she saw Lilly.

"Is there a reason you're in here? Trying to steal a peek? I know we're technically identical, but I can assure you, Miley won't see it that way," Luann said, picking up her clean clothes from the desk chair.

"I need your help with something." Lilly's voice was shaky and her eyes flitted across the room. When they scanned across Luann's bare arms, nausea rose in her. She had seen the burn scars marring the brunette's forearms multiple times before and it was not their sight in itself that caused her reaction. Every time she saw the scars Luann carried from that night, Lilly was reminded how close she had come to losing Miley. Luann's scars signified her sacrifice to save her sister and she'd never tried to hide them away. Lilly didn't think she should.

Luann took a deep breath, "Can't it wait?"

Lilly shook her head, biting her lip. She was too nervous to speak, feeling like she might vomit if she opened her mouth. Luann groaned, "Can you at least turn around or something? I don't want you getting any ideas."

It took Luann waving her hand in Lilly's face for her to avert her eyes. She wasn't really interested in seeing Luann, anyway, not when she had her beautiful Miley. The thought of her girlfriend brought a small smile to her lips and the knot of tension in her chest lifted somewhat. After a few minutes, Lilly noticed Luann was dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt and looked up just as the girl was pulling a Police Softball League sweatshirt over her head. She grimaced.

"Mom is so not going to like your choice of clothing for dinner."

"So? It's my adoption day, I can do what I like," Luann said matter-of-factly, towel-drying her hair, before sitting in the desk chair across from Lilly.

Lilly shrugged; she didn't really care about that. Their parents had always made it a habit to celebrate not only their children's birthdays, but also the days of their adoption – as a sort of symbol of a second birth and, in Miley's case, a second chance at life. The celebrations used to be much bigger affairs, but now that they were older it had evolved mostly into a dinner with the family and perhaps some board games. She figured, if it wasn't for Miley's enthusiasm for the adoption day celebrations, everyone else would have gotten a lot more lax about them.

"So, what did you want, Blondie?"

The knot in her stomach tightened again and Lilly swallowed hard, before reaching into her pocket. She drew out the little black box with shaking hands. Luann raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

"I…uh." Lilly licked her suddenly dry lips and opened the box, showing off a sparkling solitaire diamond ring.

"You know you're proposing to the wrong sister, right?" Luann said, though her voice held no hint of humor. Her eyes were dark.

Lilly shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts and force the panic away, "I'm not…look, I just…I wanted you to try it on…to see if it fits Miley."

Luann stared at the ring for several moments, before looking up to meet Lilly's eyes. Her expression was unreadable. "You're going to propose to my sister?"

Lilly nodded weakly, worried. Luann meant everything to her sister and if she wasn't okay with this…Lilly didn't even want to think about the possibilities. "I'm not asking for your permission, Luann. But your opinion is important to Miley and I wanted to let you know beforehand."

The expression on Luann's face didn't change. "You're afraid I'll ruin this…that I'll react so badly Miley won't know what to do."

Lilly didn't answer and for a while they just sat there in silence. Luann's eyes were focused on the ring and after several minutes she reached for it. "Alright, let me see it."

Some of the tension left Lilly's body and she carefully handed the ring to the brunette. Luann studied it closely, before slipping it onto her left ring finger. Almost immediately she took it off and handed it back. Lilly stowed it in its box and back in her pocket. "It should fit her just fine. It's a nice ring."

"Thanks, Luann. Are you okay with this?" Lilly asked tentatively.

Luann shrugged, "We both love Miley, a whole damn lot. And she loves both of us. I swore that day she almost died I would never compromise her happiness again, as long as she lived. It's going to take some getting used to, but yeah…I'm okay with it."

Lilly smiled and moved forward to hug the other girl. They broke apart quickly; they'd never been horribly affectionate with one another. Lilly stood, ready to get out of there and Luann followed suit. She stopped short of opening the door and turned, "When are you going to do it?"

"I…I was planning on graduation," Lilly said, thinking of Miley's graduation from Vanderbilt less than two months away. Her graduation from Tennessee State was the week before, but she was less enthusiastic about it. She was glad to graduate, but Miley was the one who had worked incredibly hard for the past four years to get her degree so she could go on to medical school.

Luann nodded and said nothing else. She went to go down the stairs and Lilly followed, once she'd stowed the ring back in its hiding place. They entered the kitchen and saw everyone already sitting around the table in the dining room. Susan was setting the last dish on the table and looked up as they came in.

"Lilly, did you get lost?" she asked her oldest daughter, who gave her a confused look. "You were supposed to get Jackson and Sarah?"

Lilly smiled sheepishly and shrugged. She introduced herself to Jackson's new girlfriend and Luann followed suit. Luann then went to greet her twin and it seemed to Lilly their hug lasted a few seconds longer than normal. Maybe she was just reading too much into it, but she knew Luann had always been afraid of losing Miley to her. She just hoped the girl knew that was never going to happen.

They started dinner quietly, but soon enough multiple conversations were going. Sarah, the only one not a Stewart at the table, seemed somewhat shy at first, but with everyone engaging her, she was soon asking questions herself. She'd heard plenty about the three girls from Jackson and though he always seemed to complain about his sisters, it was clear he loved them dearly.

"So, Miley, Jackson tells me you're going to medical school in the fall. Do you know which one, yet?"

"Vanderbilt. I can still live at home and well, I guess I'm partial to the place that saved my life…twice," she said, smiling.

"Please, she's being modest. I think some of her professors practically begged her to continue at Vandy and I think the nice scholarship helps," Luann said with a shake of her head. Though she had to admit, she too was partial to the place that saved her sister's life more than once. In a way, she still attributed the first time to Miley's strength of will and her own charm keeping her sister alive. The second time, however, they had fixed Miley's heart and finally allowed her to live without constant pain, worry and restrictions.

With the Stewarts as her parents, there had been no delay in getting Miley the surgery she desperately needed. They had waited until summer break, much to Miley's relief, and the skilled cardiac surgeons at Vanderbilt had replaced the damaged heart valve with a mechanical one. Miley still had to take a blood thinner to prevent clots and would need the artificial valve replaced every twenty years or so, but she was no longer constantly sick and struggling to breathe. The change in her quality of life had been amazing.

"I think we've really got a good set-up here," Robbie Ray said, looking across the table at his children, "A cop, a teacher and a soon-to-be doctor…we've got it almost all covered. Jackson, we just need you to become a lawyer and we're all set."

Everyone decided to ignore him and Susan turned to Luann, "Honey, I thought you said Oliver was coming?"

"Oh, he switched shifts, so he had to work. He promised to be here next time, though."

Luann was amazed herself she had stuck it out so long with the same guy, but Oliver was pretty spectacular. He was the one who had first gotten her interested in joining the force and, through some connections from his mother no doubt, had gotten them both Academy spots. They'd been living together in the city for nearly four years, though she had made it very clear to him he better not think of proposing any time soon. She didn't exactly think of herself as damaged, but Luann knew she was not the wife and mother type. She liked living with Oliver and she saw no reason to change what they had. Miley was the one who would want that white picket fence and the 2.3 kids and the dog and with a shock Luann realized her sister was on her way to getting it. She thought about how happy Miley would be when Lilly proposed and smiled.

Miley noticed the smile on her sister's face, wondering if she was thinking about Oliver. She grabbed Lilly's hand under the table, just wanting to feel her girlfriend. Six years later and she still often had to remind herself this was real. A real family, a loving girlfriend, more schoolwork than she knew what to do with sometimes – all her dreams realized. She knew in a way, ironically, they owed it all to their mother, the woman who had given birth to them and after that hadn't shown an act of love for sixteen years – until the one that gave them away. Miley had, despite Lilly's urging and without Luann's knowledge, gone to see the woman a few years ago. She didn't know what she had expected, but she had been shocked to see Brenda so run down and miserable. The woman had been high and drunk and hardly coherent, but she'd recognized Miley and some conscious part of her had seemed content Miley seemed to be doing so well. She had told no one about the visit and didn't think she ever would. She had all she needed right here. There was no reason to bring up the past anymore.

"Hey, where's our Adoption Day cake?" Luann asked, after everyone sat heavily in their chairs, fully stuffed.

"Oh good, you can get it from the fridge. Thanks for volunteering, hun," Susan said sweetly and Luann got up with a groan to get the cake. There was no keeping Luann from her cake, birthday or adoption day.

Lilly watched her girlfriend in reverence as Luann returned with the cake and, as she did every year, gave the first piece of cake to her sister. Luann would do anything for her sister, Lilly knew, and it had and would always be that way. Only now, Miley had two people to whom she meant the world. Lilly couldn't wait to show her the ring, to see the look on her girlfriend's face. She could already imagine her mother's face when they told her and the massive wedding plans it would set into motion. Lilly realized with a smile that even when they finally moved out, they'd probably end up in a house just down the road, and it was fine by her. Miley loved this family beyond anything and no one would begrudge her that.

And Lilly knew without this family, none of them would be half of what they were today. As individuals their love and devotion, their accomplishments and sacrifices, meant little compared to the whole. As a family they'd pulled Miley from the brink of death. They'd fought until their family was whole. And as she looked around the dinner table, the smiling faces of her parents, her siblings and her girlfriend, Lilly knew that they were – whole.