Time Traveler: E222. The End

“Ann? Please tell me, what is it?” Robin asked once again, as tears inevitably escaped from Ann’s eyes.
“Whatever it is, I’ll be able to handle it on my own”, she answered, containing a sob. “The last thing I want to do is stir up your pity, so just forget it.”
“My pity? What do you mean? Come on, Ann, speak already.”

“Robin, stop it, okay?” she exclaimed, facing him. “I’ve heard and said enough, if you want a divorce, you got it, but it will be on my terms”.
“And what would those terms be?”, Robin asked sheepishly.

“The girls stay with me, and I’ll keep custody, if you don’t agree we’ll settle it in court.”
“No, I – I agree that they stay with you, I’d only ask that you let me see them every once in a while. Now about custody, I think we should both…”
“We’ll talk about that some other time, now is definitely not the right moment”.

“And don’t even think that seeing the girls ‘every once in a while’ will suffice. As their father, you still have an obligation to provide for them.”
“Of course, and I’ll make sure that you and they have everything you need.”
“Take care of them only, I don’t want anything from you,” Ann shut him off.

“Now please get out of this house,” she ended.
“W-what?”
“You heard me well. I said Out”.

“But Ann, it’s late, I have nowhere to go. Plus, you can’t throw me out, this is my house, I bought it, I’m the one who pays for the bills!” Robin defended himself.
“Are you suggesting that the girls and I are the ones who should leave then?” Ann argued.

“I would never suggest such a thing, and the house is yours if you want it, I just thought I could stay at least until we…”
“I don’t care about your stupid house; I’ll get my daughters out of here as soon as I can. I’ll and take them with me back to Sunset Valley.”
“Really? And… when will this happen?
“I don’t know, whenever I deem it appropriate.”

“Is that what you do now, take my daughters away from me?” Robin asked, flustered.
“You wanted your freedom, didn’t you? Well, you got it. Now, don’t wait, start packing your crap already.”
“Can I at least say goodbye to the girls?” Robin asked.

“All right, but please make it quick”, Ann exclaimed.
“Okay, just one more thing”, Robin said. “I didn’t lie when I said I loved you, and believe it or not, I will always…”
“Robin, please don’t”, Ann cut him short, her voice beginning to crack again.

“Say goodbye to the children and leave, I don’t wanna see you here in the morning”, she added, and rushed out of the bedroom before tears rolled from her eyes again. Robin stood there, stunned and with a lump in his throat. That was it, the end of their marriage, and of Ann’s dream now shattered by him.

The thought that he was abandoning Ann and their daughters, like he had done with Kaleigh and Collin before, struck him and turned into another burden to carry upon his shoulders. He was being selfish, all his life he had been, but only now he could actually feel the guilt, the regret and the numbing pain it brought. He had broken not only Ann’s heart, but his own.

Truth be told, he had mixed feelings, on the one hand he was relieved to know that he was now free to run to Juliette’s arms; but on the other hand, it still troubled him to think about what Ann had not gotten to tell him. What could it be? Well, whatever it was, he’d find out later, now he’d better start thinking where he was going to spend the night.

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“I never meant to start a war,
I just wanted you to let me in,
I guess I should’ve let you in.
Don’t you ever say I just walked away,
I will always want you.”

(Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus)

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Credits and thanks to Bee (@poses-by-bee on Tumblr) for her pose packs Convo/Emotion Set 2, Emotion/Body Language and Adult Argument. Thank you so much! 🤗💗

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