Belong - an adopted by Hamilton fanfic [Hamilton]

Epilogue

[A/N: Writing that title stung my heart. It even made me a little teary eyed. I hope you've had as much of a blast reading this, as I have had, writing it. It's been a long and bumpy road, but here we are. The Epilogue. It's been a wild 5 years of my life. Thank you for coming along with me. Thank you❤️]

It was the 1st of March, and I stood in the wings. The presenter was talking about something. I wasn't really listening, to be quite honest. By now, I had learned that peeking out before going on stage to look at everyone only made me more nervous.

And I was already nervous.
I wasn't used to this anymore.

So, I stayed in my spot. Checked my cards. Tapped, just a little. I guess that was something I could never really get rid off. It felt safe, reassuring in a sense.

A guy briefly checked my mic, made a thumbs up to me and then walked off.
I looked down at my cards again.
They were carefully written, printed out, highlighted and then glued to more professional looking, thick, black paper.
My parents had been over for dinner last night as I was carefully going over them, and my Dad had pointed out that I didn't need them.
I had insisted that I did.
He had just smiled, because he knew that this was just the way I was.

But, deep down, I knew I wouldn't need them.
Still, I hadn't done this in a long time.
I guess I felt a bit rusty.

I checked them again.
They looked perfectly fine, as I flicked through them in the right order.
Suddenly I heard the presenter moving on to present me.
My name echoed through the large auditorium.
I took a deep breath.
Filled my lungs with air.
And instantly felt calmer.

This was it.

I slowly took my first step, and then I walked out into the spotlight. I stopped on the marked X at the center of the stage. I stood confidently, my back straightened and feet shoulder-width apart.
The clapping slowly quieted down.
I looked out at the audience.
And began talking.
"As you know by now, my name is Rue Miranda", I said slowly, saying every syllable like I meant it. "But it hasn't always been that way"
I paused for a second.
I held my stride, straightened my back again, and tried to feel comfortable in my vulnerable yet empowering position.
"A name holds a lot of feelings", I continued, still keeping a slow pace. "But for me, it also holds my story"
I glanced at my cards, even though I already knew what I was going to say. It made me notice that my hands were shaking from the adrenaline and slight fear of being on stage.

Over the years, I had learned that this type of feeling was a good sign. It reminded me to stay calm, even though I was facing a fear.

I tapped the little remote in my hand. The slide behind me changed to the next one. It was a picture of me and my biological parents on my third birthday. The one that I had kept in a frame all those years. I had covered up their faces with a white square for privacy.

All in all, they were still my biological parents.
My father was dead. But I still had no idea about my mother.
And this was the only picture I had of us all together.

"I was born on the 1st of April 2001 in New York. I was named Ruth April Leighton. Ruth was the name of my Dad's stepmom. April, because, well, I was born in April. When I got older, I used to joke that I was an April fools joke. Only that it wasn't very funny, and for me, it wasn't really a joke", I continued, speaking clearly as I looked out into the audience. By now, I was looking for the people I knew. Usually I spotted them early, but somehow I couldn't seem to find them.
"I don't remember much of my early years. But, I know that my parents didn't have a happy marriage. My father was a workaholic who solved his problems by being an alcoholic. My mother was a drug addict, who would come and go", I explained, looking up at the picture.