Chapter Text
10 YEARS LATER
Anyone who was attending the wedding could just look around a know without a doubt that Zoe Murphy and Evan Hansen had planned it. Every single detail was so them. Evan worked for the Boston Harbor Islands State Park services and had managed to get a permit from some of his connections to have their wedding in the small forest that was just outside of Boston. Zoe and Evan had explored the forest thoroughly when they had first moved to the Boston area because it had reminded them so much of Ellison, which Evan missed greatly from back home. They weren’t getting married in their hometown, so they couldn’t think of anywhere else that was more fitting for them to hold their wedding. It was perfect.
The natural greens and browns of the forest landscape complimented the dark indigo and gold that Zoe had picked out for the rest of the wedding. And much to the delight of Zoe, Evan had arranged to have all their flowers mimic the very first bouquet he’d ever given her, that first open mic night at Capitol Café. White peonies, purple carnations, baby’s breath, and gold sparkles filled every open space and every table. Zoe even had the carnations and baby’s breath woven into a crown in her hair, something that Evan had suggested.
They had set up hundreds of yards of twinkling fairy lights everywhere, making the whole venue look enchanted, providing a soft glow for the guests to see by. The contrast between the large sturdy trees and the dainty, subtle decorations, enhanced the look of everything. The small venue was ethereal and exactly what Evan and Zoe had wanted.
There had been many times in Evan’s life where he had thought Zoe looked beautiful, but he thinks she’s never looked more incredible than today. Zoe was anything but traditional. Her hair was down, loose and wavy, the tiny baby hairs that Evan loved so much were framing her face, peeking out underneath the flowers in her hair. She had chosen to go with a sparkly gold color palette for her make-up, emphasizing her green eyes, making her glow in the setting sun. Her dress was backless and layered with flowing vintage lace and embroidered with gold, glittering as she walked down the aisle. It was the only thing that Zoe had let her parents pay for because she loved it the first time she’d laid eyes on it, but it was way too far out the budget her and Evan had set. Cynthia had insisted they get it and paid for extra custom gold embroidery. Zoe had never been more thankful for her mom’s pushiness; she couldn’t imagine herself in anything else. Zoe’s even more excited that she let them pay, because the look of Evan’s face as she walked closer to him was priceless. Evan almost passes out when he sees her, still in awe, even after ten years, that Zoe Murphy chose him to love.
The ceremony had been short and sweet, happening as the sun set, surrounding Evan and Zoe in golden warmth as they recited their vows, reinforcing everything they loved about each other, everything they had known since high school. Their bond had only grown stronger since then and would probably only keep growing as they faced the rest of their life together.
They were at the reception now, and they had specifically asked Connor to give a speech in place of a “Best Man” or “Maid of Honor” speech. Evan and Zoe didn’t have a traditional wedding party with sides, only people who meant the world to them, a mix of some college friends and Zoe’s best friend from high school, Connor, and Evan had even talked Jared down from insisting on officiating to just being a member of the party (which took a lot of stress off of Evan, he did not need Jared officiating his wedding). They just wanted people who loved them by their side as they said “I do” legally. It did make doling out jobs a little harder though, because Evan and Zoe didn’t want their hometown friends feeling left out because of the distance. But the one thing they knew was that they wanted Connor, someone who had become so close to them over the years, to speak at their wedding. They didn’t really care what he said, they just wanted him to know how much he meant to both of them.
Connor stands up and grabs the mic from the stand, walking around so that he could talk to the guests and directly to Evan and Zoe who were sitting at a separate smaller table together, with only their family. Connor looks nervous, but that could be from the three glasses of champagne he already had, insisting they’d help him with his speech. He just really didn’t want to mess it up and ruin their seemingly perfect day.
“Hey everyone! If you don’t know me, I’m Zoe’s older brother Connor. And I hope everyone is having a good time tonight. Enjoying how excruciatingly cute Evan and Zoe are. And I have to tell you, they’re literally always like this. They’ve been this way since high school and nothing’s changed,” Connor starts, pausing to look over to Evan and Zoe who were smiling at each other, chairs pushed close enough so Zoe could lay her head on Evan’s shoulder, exemplifying Connor’s point.
Someone interrupts Connor as he’s about to continue, clinking their glass, making Zoe and Evan kiss per the wedding tradition. Zoe smiles up at Evan and he leans down to kiss her sweetly. He’d been absolutely right after their first kiss. He’d thought that he’d be able to kiss Zoe Murphy, well now Zoe Murphy-Hansen, forever and it couldn’t be truer. The crowd starts clapping and cheering them on, even Connor. He had a feeling there would be a lot of clinking glasses during the speeches.
“So, I was having some trouble figuring out what to say. I was surprised when Zoe told me they wanted to me to talk, but here goes nothing,” Connor starts again glancing over to Zoe who was doing her best to listen to him, smiling brightly at him. Evan was giving him his full attention, smiling at him encouragingly too.
“The first thing I thought about when thinking about this speech was ‘everyone here should thank me’, so now I’ll wait for your applause before continuing,” Connor smirks, waiting for the guests to laugh at his joke. Evan and Zoe had a feeling of where Connor was going with this and were now glancing a little worriedly between each other. They didn’t usually broadcast that Evan and Connor had been dating before him and Zoe had gotten together. It wasn’t a secret but during college there had been people who Evan thought were his friends but ended up bullying him incessantly once they had found out he had dated siblings, even worse than the kids in high school had. And it honestly wasn’t even that big of deal, so he couldn’t figure out why they just couldn’t let it go. Suffice to say they weren’t at the wedding, but Evan was still really sensitive about the subject, especially around a lot of people. Zoe presses a light kiss to his jaw, knowing Evan was probably getting anxious, a reminder that Connor loved them too. He wouldn’t say anything he knew made Evan upset on purpose. They had faith in Connor, he wouldn’t do anything too terrible at their wedding, even under the influence of champagne.
“I’m the reason these two lovebirds are together, which probably sounds a little weird, but it’s true. Evan and Zoe are both incredibly shy, or at least they were in high school. Evan used to be even more anxious than he is now, and Zoe was too worried no one would see past her status as my little sister, and my reputation was shit. So, these two would have never talked to one another without me bringing Evan around, giving Zoe the excuse she needed,” Connor says, looking directly at Zoe. At that point Zoe knew he wasn’t going to say anything about them dating, and Evan knows it too. She can feel him relax next to her, so she relaxes into him when Evan drapes his arm around her, settling at her hip, carefully pulling her in closer.
“But in all seriousness, high school wasn’t a particularly good time for me, Zoe, or Evan. And part of that had to do with the way I treated both of them and partly because we were all dealing with our own issues. But that’s not something we need to rehash right now, we’re supposed to be celebrating, yeah?” Connor asks the crowd, exciting them just enough for another round of clinking. Evan and Zoe just laugh at their friends and family, appeasing them with several sweet kisses.
“I mostly brought it up to point out that it was Evan who sparked the change for all of us. Evan is someone who I’ll always be thankful for. For bringing my sister back to me. For forgiving me when he probably shouldn’t have. And most importantly for being the best partner for my little sister. It makes me so happy to see Zoe happy with you, with your little family. I mean how cute is Wyatt?”, Connor asks the crowd again. Wyatt starts squirming in her mom’s arms, where she’d been napping the whole reception, at the mention of her name over the microphone. She starts cooing loudly back to her Uncle Connor, causing the guests to fawn over her and prompting her parents to both kiss her little face lovingly, careful to avoid the tiny flowers clipped into her blonde baby hair to match her mom’s.
“Evan, you’re everything I could ever ask for in friend, in a brother. And you’ve always been a part of our family. But now that it’s official, I can tease you all I want and Zoe can’t do anything about it,” Connor jokes, laughing as Zoe rolls her eyes at him, attempting to wrangle Wyatt to a sitting position since Connor had woken her up. Evan finally takes her and sits her directly between them, calming her down as she played with Evan’s hand.
“And Zoe,” Connor starts again, grabbing Zoe’s attention back from the baby, “Stepping up and being the brother you needed me to be has been one of my proudest accomplishments. You deserve the whole world and then some. I love you so much.”
Zoe’s really glad she’s wearing waterproof make-up because it’s the second time she’s crying that night. She knew having Connor give the speech was a good idea. She doesn’t know who to look at, her brother who was making an incredible speech at her wedding, her new husband who she knew was feeling just as emotional, or her daughter, who had no idea what was going on, but perfectly happy sitting between her parents, sucking on her dad’s hand. Everywhere she looked she was surrounded by love.
“I know this speech sounds a lot like it’s about me, but it’s about Evan and Zoe’s love story. And everything they’ve overcome to get to this point. Their love knows no bounds. They are two of the best people I know and I’m so glad they have each other,” Connor tells them, watching as Evan starts to tear up as well. If you’d asked him ten years ago where he would be, he never would have guessed that he’d be surrounded by the people he loved most, married to the love of his life, or taking care to make sure his daughter’s dress wasn’t wrinkling for photos. He’s really happy that he could say his life is nothing like he’d imagined it to be. It was so much better.
“I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to pass the mic to Heidi now, but let’s give it up one more time for Zoe and Evan!” Connor finishes his speech, handing the mic to Heidi so he could start clapping himself. Every single guest is clapping, hollering, and clinking their glasses at Evan and Zoe. They comply with the demands of the crowd, kissing more, and kissing Wyatt again when she grabbed for them. Zoe is starting to wonder if having an open bar was really such a good idea after all, but everyone was having a good time, so she just lets herself enjoy it. It’s not like kissing Evan more was a hassle, they’d probably be doing it without the prompting anyways.
Zoe picks the baby up and places her directly on Evan’s lap, making sure she couldn’t fall, so she could stand up to go hug her brother. She holds on to Connor tightly, and Connor is no longer searching awkwardly trying to hug her back like he used to, he holds on to her just as tight. Zoe’s eyes are shining as they break apart, and Connor kisses her cheek before letting her go back to Evan and Wyatt. Connor watches as she joins them again, smiling at the little family, heading back to his own seat with his own date.
“Hi everyone! I’m Heidi, Evan’s mom. I’m not much for giving speeches, me and Evan are alike that way,” Heidi says looking over to Evan, smiling at her little boy, who was so grown up now. He was someone’s life partner, he was a dad to a beautiful little girl, and he had grown so much past the confused seventeen-year-old who couldn’t decide whether or not holding hands could be considered romantic.
“So the very first time I met Zoe, she came over for dinner, for one of our Hansen family ‘Taco Tuesday’ nights, and I immediately fell in love with her. Not only because she’s wonderful, the best daughter I could ask for, but because I saw the way she made Evan feel. He was absolutely smitten. I saw it every time she texted him and he would grin at his phone, lost in his own dreamworld, consumed by the very thought of Zoe,” Heidi tells the guests, laughing a little at the memories of how lovesick Evan was (how he still is). Evan’s blushing because he remembers that day vividly. It was the day he’d broken up with Connor and him and Zoe had become official. It seems like a lifetime ago to Evan.
“Connor was very correct when he said these two have always been like this. I used to watch the way they gravitated towards each other and I was never really sure if they knew they were doing it. And I remember the day Evan came to me and told me that he loved Zoe. He was so worried that I would write him off, call him overdramatic and tell him he was too young to know what love is. But I didn’t. I knew he meant it and he’s meant it everyday since,” Heidi chokes up a little at the way Evan’s looking at her, the way that Zoe has the same exact look on her face. Heidi had always been their number one supporter, another thing that hadn’t changed.
“So, in a way that only moms can know, Zo I’m sure you already feel that,” Heidi starts up again, smiling sweetly at Zoe, who was nodding, snuggling into Evan’s chest while snuggling Wyatt into her own chest, “I knew that we’d be right where we are now one day, so I started taking pictures of these two. At times when they thought no one watching. Capturing little glimpses of their love. It brings me great joy to share them with everyone today.”
Heidi’s gesturing to a screen that had somehow appeared without Evan or Zoe knowing, a surprise orchestrated by Heidi. Nothing had even come up yet, but Evan and Zoe had a feeling they weren’t going to stop crying anytime soon.
“To be fair, I also asked around and got some more from other people, and many of the pictures were supplemented by Connor, Zoe’s parents, and the kids’ Instagram’s. So please enjoy,” Heidi returns the mic to the stand and returns to her seat, as a very familiar song starts playing. A song that Evan knew every word to. A song he sang to his daughter to calm her down. A song written by his daughter’s mother when she was seventeen and falling in love. The very first song Zoe had ever sung to Evan. Evan looks to Zoe and they’re both awestruck, they have no idea how Heidi managed to get a copy of Zoe singing “Only Us”, let alone incorporate it into a slideshow. Heidi worked in mysterious ways and they weren’t going to question it. The pictures begin flooding in and true to Heidi’s word, neither Evan nor Zoe look aware that they’re being photographed.
Evan and Zoe at seventeen, cuddled up together on the Hansen’s couch, Harry Potter on an endless loop
Zoe feeding Evan a piece of raw cookie dough as they roll and cut out tree shaped cookies for Arbor Day, which Evan had insisted that they celebrate
Zoe red-faced and flustered, arguing over a game piece at Jared’s house (she’d been convinced that Jared had been cheating, and to be fair he had been) and Evan looking at her like she hung the moon
Zoe pinning a boutonniere on Evan’s jacket as they get ready for Evan’s senior prom; Evan kissing her right in front of their parents; Zoe blushing pink enough to match her dress; Evan and Zoe in the classic “prom pose”; Connor, Jared, Zoe, and Evan at dinner, all of them laughing; Zoe and Evan dancing closely at prom, foreheads pressed together, like the rest of the world had faded away
Zoe stealing Evan’s graduation cap while he gave her a piggy-back ride; Connor, Evan, and Zoe at Evan and Connor’s joint graduation party; Zoe and Evan passed out on bean-bag chairs in the band room during the school’s SoberGrad night
Evan can’t really believe his mom had put all this together. Seeing these photos brings him back to that exact point in his life, and he watches himself fall more and more in love with the person sitting beside him. He wants to look at Zoe, but he can’t pull himself from the slideshow, not wanting to miss a single snapshot, so he does the next best thing, lacing Zoe’s hand that wasn’t holding Wyatt together with his own, squeezing softly. He knows Zoe knows what he means when she squeezes his back softly, eyes also unable to look away from their own love story.
Evan watching Zoe sing at Capitol Café; Evan being the only one in the whole dining room giving her a standing ovation; Zoe looking directly at Evan while she sang
Evan smiling at Zoe as she blew out birthday candles for her eighteenth birthday
A video of Zoe opening her acceptance letter from Boston Conservatory and Evan picking her up and spinning her around in excitement
Evan and Zoe huddled over a tiny piece of paper; Evan holding his Boston University transfer acceptance up proudly; Zoe trying to pick up Evan the way he had when she got her acceptance letter and failing; Evan and Zoe laughing in a pile on the ground
Evan helping Zoe light the Menorah the first time she celebrated Hanukkah with him and his mom
Zoe holding a very wobbly Evan while they tried to ice skate; Zoe flipping Connor off as he skates past them expertly laughing; The three of them sipping steaming hot chocolate while sitting in the snow, snowflakes covering their hats and setting delicately on their eyelashes
Evan watching Zoe descend the Murphy’s staircase for her senior prom, completely captivated by her; Evan fanning out the train to Zoe’s long gold dress (oddly similar to her wedding dress); Evan kissing her wrist as he ties on her corsage; Evan helping Zoe take the pins out of her hair after the dance
Connor and Evan smushing Zoe between them at her graduation; Connor and Evan putting Zoe on their shoulders smiling up at her as she raised her diploma
Zoe and Evan with matching Mickey Mouse ears at Disneyland in front of Cinderella’s castle; Evan kissing Zoe by Ollivander’s wand shoppe in the Harry Potter park; Evan watching as Zoe got picked for the wand demonstration
The summer before they moved to Boston had been unbelievable. Evan had taken the summer off from working, knowing that it might be one of his only chances to just be with Zoe. No school. No work. No worries. Just them. Adventuring with her every day. Going on road trips. Staying in. Lake days with Connor and Jared. Sleepovers. Everything in between. And he’d never once regretted it, no matter how much money had been tight those first few months in Boston. And Heidi only had pictures of them during Zoe’s senior trip to represent that time, but Evan remembered everything.
Evan and Zoe facing away from the camera, leaning into each other, sitting atop cardboard boxes in a very small, very barren apartment
Zoe focusing on painting Evan’s nails while he studied for his midterms
Zoe and Evan in the same, albeit slightly less empty apartment, hanging a handful of ornaments on a very sad looking Christmas tree, topped with a Star of David, their idea of combining holiday traditions
Them holding hands hiking through the very same forest they were getting married in that day
A short video of Zoe’s first performance in Boston in a dive bar surrounded by college students; Evan giving her flowers after, kissing her cheek; Zoe’s first solo in the official university concert
Zoe wearing her new glasses, crinkling her nose up as Evan kisses her cheek
Evan suffering at Pottery Barn restocking sheets; Evan hanging out at Starbucks while Zoe worked
Zoe can’t keep the tears from streaming down her face, but she doesn’t really care because they were happy tears. She laughs as Wyatt puts her hands directly on Zoe’s cheeks, a very concerned look on her little face. Zoe kisses the baby’s hand and brings her husband’s hand up to kiss too. She loved Evan and Wyatt more than anything in the world, but right now she thinks she might love Heidi even more for putting this together for her and Evan. Watching their younger selves grow up and figure out life together was the best gift anybody could give them.
“Only Us” starts to fade out, only to be replaced by another one of Zoe’s songs to Evan, “Lover”, this time it wasn’t Zoe singing, but it didn’t take away from the significance of the song for them. Seriously how had Heidi managed to do this?
Evan proudly holding his college degree, framed and official; Zoe kissing Evan after he’d told her he’d gotten a job in the state park; Evan wearing an official park polo for his first day at his new job
Evan and Zoe moving into a nicer and bigger apartment; Evan walking through the front door with many plants in his arms; Evan and Zoe planting a tiny herb garden for their kitchen window
Zoe in her cap and gown surrounded by her family; Zoe playing at the commencement ceremony; Evan kissing her sweetly; Evan looking so incredibly proud as Zoe crosses the stage
Zoe surrounded by a circle of kids teaching them how to read music; Zoe playing on the mini piano Evan had gotten her for their apartment; Zoe playing her ukulele one on one with kids who were in the hospital, using her minor in music therapy to help volunteer
Evan finally manages to look away from the slideshow to look down at Zoe and Wyatt, who had fallen asleep once more in Zoe’s arms (she kind of had a lot of sugary cereal puffs today with the number of adults who had been watching over her), and Evan can’t help but lean in and kiss Zoe’s temple. He was so thankful for the life he had. College hadn’t been the easiest time for Evan. The distance from his hometown, the bullying after he thought he’d made friends, both him and Zoe working almost full time while taking classes hadn’t exactly made things easier on Evan’s mental health, or Zoe’s when she had figured out he was struggling. But they had made their way through it, and it had only been a stop on the journey that was their lives. And Evan knew what was coming next, the best part yet.
Evan getting down on one knee, proposing to Zoe; Zoe tearing up and nodding her head ‘yes’; Zoe grabbing a ring she had gotten for him from her bag, showing it to Evan; Evan tearing up too, now nodding his head ‘yes’ again to her question
Zoe and Evan holding hands, telling their families that Zoe was pregnant; Evan kissing Zoe’s mostly flat belly over her dress
Zoe holding her bump while Evan holds her; Zoe sitting cross-legged in a field, hands placed happily on her belly; Zoe and Evan kissing, her belly the only thing between them
Evan looking very confused trying to build a crib as Zoe laughed in the background; Zoe and Evan holding up two tiny onesies, one with a tree and one with music notes and stars, a gift they’d gotten at their baby shower; Zoe’s eyes lighting up at the cookies Evan had brought her from the bakery downtown
The attending nurse placing a newborn Wyatt on Zoe’s chest, Zoe looking exhausted but happy, Evan holding her hand and looking down at the tiny baby; Evan and Zoe sharing the hospital bed, Evan holding a swaddled Wyatt, both of them looking at her like she was the greatest thing in the world (she was); Evan carrying Wyatt in her carseat, holding hands with Zoe as they left the hospital
Zoe as a baby laying on Larry’s chest as they slept; Zoe laying on Evan’s chest as teenagers, completely passed out; Wyatt napping on Evan’s chest as he stared at her, gently petting her hair, with the writing underneath saying “Like Mother, Like Daughter”
Zoe laughs at that one, everyone said Wyatt looked exactly like her besides having Evan’s blonde hair, but she’d never really realized how similar they were until now. They both loved Evan, that was for sure. And apparently they slept the same too. Zoe shifts the baby in her arms, letting herself move closer to Evan, close enough to place a sweet kiss to his neck.
Zoe and Evan trying to feed Wyatt avocados; Wyatt smashing the avocados onto Evan’s face and giggling happily; Wyatt smashing them into her hair; Zoe hosing the baby down in the tub
Evan and Zoe making the centerpieces for the tables; Zoe watching Evan hang up the fairy lights, beaming at him; Evan seeing Zoe walk down the aisle today; Evan and Zoe kissing for the first time married; Evan unable to look away from Zoe as they walk back down the aisle; Evan and Zoe watching Connor give his speech, eyes shining
How in the hell Heidi managed to get photos in there from the last ten minutes, Evan and Zoe will probably never know, but they’re grateful for everything she’d done. She’d made the perfect culmination of their relationship through the years. Memorialized it for them, for Wyatt in the future. Evan wipes the tears away from his eyes, then thumbs away Zoe’s tears for her, as her hands were full of Wyatt. Zoe leans up to kiss him one more time, whispering “I love you so much Evan.”
“I love you more than you could possibly know,” Evan whispers back, kissing her again, then leaning down to kiss Wyatt on her head again, which wakes her up once more, causing her to reach up for Evan. Evan grabs her from Zoe’s lap telling her, “Mommy and I love you too, little bug, more than anything.”
The guests had stopped clapping a while back, content to watch Evan and Zoe zone out from everyone else, focused in on only them. Heidi starting to talk again is finally what breaks the sweet moment, and everyone turns to look back her.
“Those were just some of the representations of Evan and Zoe through the years they’ve been together, and I know there will be many, many more to come in the future. Zoe, you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to Evan, and I’ll always know he’ll be okay because he has you. And Evan, I loved you since the day I found out I was pregnant, and I love the person you’ve grown up to be. You’re an incredible son, father, and I know you’ll be the most incredible husband to Zoe. Everyone here loves you guys. With that, I think it’s time to dance! Per tradition, the first dance is for Evan and Zoe,” Heidi finishes, looking lovingly towards Evan’s family and seeing them look back to her with admiration.
Heidi walks over to them and scoops Wyatt up out of Evan’s arms, letting Evan and Zoe head to the dance floor hand in hand. A first dance was the only “dance” tradition they had wanted at their wedding. A chance to just be together and reconnect to each other amidst everything else that was happening at the ceremony and the reception.
A very soft pretty piano melody starts playing as Zoe and Evan walk on to the dance floor. Zoe puts her arms around Evan’s neck and Evan pulls Zoe as close as he can, hands at her waist, their foreheads touching. They start swaying slowly to the song they’d both picked out.
You say, what if I go crazy?
I say, that ain't gonna happen
You say, what if I get lost?
I say, you'll just find your way back
And you say, what if someone breaks my heart?
I'll put it back together like I do
Evan had been so nervous about their first dance, that he’d somehow mess it up or step on Zoe or something. They danced together so many times before, but there was just something about their first dance that had been getting to Evan. But being up there with Zoe in the moment, he knows he shouldn’t have worried. It was absolutely perfect, just him and her. Nothing else mattered.
You say, what if I don't catch the dreams
That I've been out there chasing?
What if when my fears show up
I'm too afraid to face them?
Well, I can't fight your battles
But I sure can hold your hand and promise you
Zoe lets her head fall to Evan’s shoulder, enjoying the feeling of being close to him. The day had been both stressful and unbelievably wonderful. She shivers at the feeling of Evan making tiny circles with his thumbs on her low back, still excited by his touch after all these years. She may have known that Evan would absolutely love the fact that her dress was backless, one of the reasons she loved it so much. She smiles up at him after feeling him kiss her hairline, kissing him back properly.
That the sky will still be up there
And the sun will always shine
The stars will keep on falling
For the ones who wish at night
The mountains won't start moving
And the rivers won't run dry
The world will always be there
And so will I
Connor watches his sister and his (technically) new brother-in-law dance together and he couldn’t be happier for them. It hadn’t always been easy after him and Zoe had made up in high school. There were times that he’d be so angry that she’d flee to Evan’s, or times when their parents had been arguing over them so much that they just had to leave (at least those times they were together), but he knew that he could apologize to her, that they were both allowed to mess up. The only thing that mattered to either of them was that they were trying.
Evan and Zoe moving out of the area ended up being a really good thing for all three of them. They worked well with the bit of distance. It made the times where they did see each other even more special. And Connor came to visit them often when he needed to get away from their parents or just to hang out. Zoe made the effort to call Connor often, and FaceTime, especially since Wyatt was born. Connor loved that little girl more than anything and he always wanted to be a part of her life. Watching Zoe and Evan dance together, so happy, and so clearly in love, even after so long, it makes whatever he thought he’d felt for Evan at the time seem so small, incomparable to what Zoe and Evan had. And he was so happy that they’d found each other, that they were all able to be happy together, that he’d made the right decision to be there for them.
You say, what if things start changing?
I say, we'll be changing with them
We'll just sing a different melody
And dance at different rhythm
You say, what if I give up?
I say, that it's one thing that I'll never let you do
Evan and Zoe had listened to this song more than enough times to know it was almost over, and time for Heidi to bring Wyatt up to them. They had specifically wanted a portion of their dance to just be them, because while they were parents now, they were still themselves first, and they always made sure to make time and space for their relationship in the beautiful chaos that was raising a child. It helped them center themselves, which ultimately made them better parents. But Wyatt was also a part of their love story and they wanted her up there with them. Heidi hands a still sleepy Wyatt to Evan and Zoe immediately wraps her arms around both of them, holding the baby between them, swaying softly to the music.
Even if the sky is falling
And the sun don't want to shine
If the stars we used to wish on
Disappear into the night
Well, I can move a mountain
But only by your side
Just say you'll always be there
I know you'll always be there
And so will I
Evan and Zoe had thought long and hard about what song they wanted for this moment. Music was a huge part of Zoe’s life, which meant it was also a huge part of Evan’s. When Zoe had heard this song, she just knew it was the one. As the song starts to fade, Zoe looks up to Evan, eyes sparkling, full of love and sings softly to him, “I can move a mountain, but only by your side. Just say you’ll always be there…”
Evan pulls her impossibly closer, careful not to disturb Wyatt, and finishes the song to her, singing quietly in her ear, “I know you’ll always be there and so will I.” And he’s never been more sure of anything in his life.