Epilogue, 24 years later

Jimmy Neutron sat on his living room sofa lazily reading a newspaper, it was 9:30 on a beautiful Saturday morning. He sat thinking about all that had happened up until this point in his life...

He and Cindy graduated high school a week after prom and sat down to make a very important decision; college. They had meant what they said; they didn't ever want to be apart again, so they knew going to different colleges would be out of the question. Being the famous Jimmy Neutron he had basically every prestigious college in the United states offering him scholarships and begging him to choose them, even NASA itself had offered him a position. Cindy on the other hand only had one place in mind, she had had her mind set on Princeton since seeing 'A Cinderella Story' for the first time as a little girl. The choice was easy, they would attend Princeton together. Jimmy had no problem with this, Princeton was a fine school and he could easily find what he wanted to do there. However he decided to strike a deal with the administration; he would only attend if they also offered Cindy a scholarship as well, and with her GPA and extra curricular activities they easily agreed to these terms. Once the decision was final they began preparations for their move to New Jersey. They decided sharing an apartment nearby would be their best bet rather than staying on campus in separate dorms with roommates they wouldn't know, they wanted to be able to stay together and it would make seeing each other easier since they were both studying something different. Cindy was going to school for business, she wanted to have a career in management and advertising. Jimmy on the other hand had his pick of virtually anything in the world with his brain and IQ. After some thinking and talking it over with his friends and family he finally decided on teaching, he loved the idea of giving lessons and being able to share his knowledge with younger generations. So Cindy got him a job at the diner as a busboy and by the end of the summer they had enough money saved up for a small studio apartment, and they used the furniture from the lab to furnish it.

After 4 years they each graduated with a bachelor degree in their area of study and moved back to Retroville into a small one bedroom apartment, and once they were settled in they finally got married. They remained engaged during college since they felt they would have enough to worry about with classes without adding a wedding to the mix as well. They remained in their small apartment for two years and once they had enough money saved and well built credit they moved into a modest 4 bedroom house with a basement, two car garage, and shed out back (which is yet again where Jimmy created the entrance to his new lab).

Two years later they felt they were ready to start a family and had their first child; their daughter Hillary Marie (named after Hillary Duff since 'A Cinderella Story' is essentially what brought them together in the first place, and Madam Curie who had been Jimmy's scientific influence since he was a child), she had Cindy's blonde hair and had inherited Jimmy's blue eyes and 'genius' (though her IQ wasn't quite as high as his). Five years after that they welcomed their second (and last) child, their son Isaac Albert (named using Jimmy's middle name and Albert Einstein); he had Jimmy's chestnut hair and Cindy's emerald eyes and athletic ability. Jimmy and Cindy felt their children were actually a perfect mixture of the two, well except for...

As if on cue he was interrupted from his musings by an explosion sound coming from the basement. He sighed, put down the newspaper, then went to the intercom on the wall that he had installed in all the common areas of the house (living room, kitchen, garage, basement, and his lab).

He pressed the call button for the basement, "Hillary Marie Neutron what are you doing down there?"

His now 15 year old daughter answered coughing slightly "nothing *cough* dad, just creating a chemical compound similar to stomach acid and analyzing how different substances react to it"

He sighed again and groaned slightly, is this what his parents had gone through with him? "What have I told you about experimenting with unstable chemicals? The fire department said if they have to put out one more fire here they're suing! Now come upstairs and get cleaned up, your mother and Isaac will be back from his karate tournament soon"

"Aye aye captain" he knew her well enough to know she had rolled her eyes, she may have had his 'genius' and most of his personality but she had the Vortex attitude.

It was at that moment he heard the front door open and Cindy called out, "hello? We're home!"

"In here hon!"

They walked in and Isaac was carrying a trophy.

"Hey champ how'd it go?"

He beamed and held up the trophy, "first place, I totally kicked butt dad!"

Jimmy smiled and tousled his hair,"way to go bud, that's my boy!" then they high-fived.

Cindy cleared her throat, folded her arms across her chest, and raised her eyebrow while tapping her foot.

Jimmy looked at her confused for a moment, then it dawned on him, "our boy?"

She smiled and kissed him, "there you go!"

"Yuck! Do you have to do that in front of me?"

Jimmy turned to look at him with a fake serious expression, "you know, he who insults his parents doesn't get ice cream"

Isaac's expression changed and he smiled wide, "ice cream? Did I say yuck? I meant yay I'm glad you love each other! So do I get ice cream now?"

Cindy chuckled, "go get changed and we'll all go to the Candy Bar"

He didn't need to be told twice, he ran up the stairs to his room as fast as he could go.

She looked around, "hey didn't we have two kids?"

"I think so, the other one looks like you but acts like me right?" he laughed, "I told our 'mini me' to come up about 10 minutes ago but you know how well she listens, about as well as her mother actually" he gave her a joking smile.

She rolled her eyes and playfully smacked him on the arm, "more like her father, how many times do I have to tell you things and you still don't listen?"

"Oh I'm sorry what was that?" he laughed then took a look at her face, "I'm kidding, I meant what I said when we were 17; I do listen and what you say is important"

She folded her arms across her chest and raised an eyebrow again, "oh yeah? Do enlighten me then, what is today?"

He scratched his chin and counted things off with his fingers, "well it's Saturday, NASA just launched another satellite, I was supposed to rake the backyard at some point today, it can't be Isaac's dentist appointment because that's tomorrow, I know it's not your birthday since that's in June and it's October..." her face was growing more irritated with each 'guess' and he couldn't keep a straight face anymore, he started laughing, "oh you are still too easy Vortex" he walked over and stood in font of her, his expression changed from humor to loving and he wrapped his arms around her waist, her face softened and she wrapped her arms around his neck while looking him directly in the eyes, "of course I know what today is, I could never forget. Happy anniversary Cindy, you're still as amazing and beautiful as the day you gave your answer for 'Y'" he then kissed her soundly and she kissed him back; even though 24 years had passed since the day they began dating in the first place they were still just as much in love, it was if no time at all had passed and they were still 17.

Sometimes, however, they were reminded that they were 40 now and no longer teenagers, "Ugh my eyes are literally burning right now! Like seriously, do you have to do that where people can see you?"

Jimmy let go of Cindy then turned around to face their daughter and smirked, "well here's a thought, don't look then"

She rolled her eyes, "hard not to when it's in the middle of the living room dad"

Cindy intervened before it could actually turn into a fight, "alright alright, Jimmy stop tormenting our daughter, and Hillary what your father and I do in our house is up to us young lady. But right now go get ready, we're all going to the Candy Bar to celebrate because your brother won his karate tournament"

Hillary turned a little red, "actually Sean asked if I wanted to see a movie then get food after, can I go?" she bit her bottom lip, the same way Cindy used to when she was nervous or really wanted something.

Sean was Sheen and Libby's son, Sheen had wanted to name him Sheen jr but Libby was having none of it so they compromised and went with Sean. He looked just like Sheen (except with slightly darker skin) but lucky for everyone he acted more like Libby so he was actually more mature than Sheen had been at that age. Since their parents were all best friends he and Hillary had actually grown up together (though he was a year older) and become best friends themselves, and they weren't officially dating but everyone could tell there were deeper feelings there and this was the first time he had actually asked her out for a date like activity so they knew it was only a matter of time.

Jimmy answered, "sure I suppose that's okay, but remember your curfew is 10, any later than that and you're grounded got it?"

She rolled her eyes and gave him a salute, "aye aye captain" she then left to go to her room.

He turned back to Cindy with a mischievous glint in his eye and raised his eyebrows, "now where were we?"

She giggled and blushed slightly then stepped towards him with the same glint, "right about here" then she kissed him.

This one was also short lived, "ahh they're doing it again! Do you want me to end up in therapy?" they turned to find Isaac looking with disgust.

Jimmy grumbled, "next time we're hiding in my lab"

Cindy laughed, "alright are we ready then?" then she walked to the stairs, "if you hurry up we can give you a ride!"

Hillary came down a few minutes later dressed in a tank top, shorts, and flip flops, "actually Sean is picking me up, he said his dad got him a car for his birthday"

Jimmy took a look at her and shook his head, "not dressed like that you're not, go change!"

"Dad!"

Cindy rolled her eyes, "yes seriously Jimmy she looks fine, you look very cute sweetie"

"ugh!" and she stomped back up the stairs to her room.

Jimmy looked from the stairs to Cindy and back a few times with a confused yet impressed expression on his face, "how did you do that?"

Cindy smirked mischievously, "it's called 'reverse psychology' Neutron, see she can't have her parents approving of her outfit so therefore feels the need to change it"

He smiled, "still smart as ever, I knew there was a reason I married you"

"Gee and here I was thinking it's because I'm so cute"

"Well there's that too"

"Um hello 10 year old waiting not so patiently for ice cream here!"

They both chuckled and Jimmy answered, "alright we'll leave in a minute, we just have to wait for your sister to leave first"

Just then the doorbell rang, Jimmy answered it and let Sean in.

"Hey Mr. N, Mrs. N" he smiled and nodded to both of them in turn.

Jimmy smiled back, "hey Sean, how are your parents doing?"

"Oh they're great, although mom said dad got a really bad sunburn yesterday 'cause he didn't put sunblock on like she told him to repeatedly" he shook his head and laughed and everyone in the room joined in. Libby had become a very successful DJ and sometimes she got really big client parties, when that happened she brought Sheen with her. They were currently out in LA and Sean was staying with Sheen's dad so he wouldn't miss school.

"Sounds just like him, not always good at thinking" then he went to the stairs, "hey Hillary Sean's here!"

"Be down in a minute!"

She came down a minute later in a hooded track sweatshirt from school and leggings, she blushed and smiled when she saw Sean, "hey"

He blushed and smiled back, "hey Hil, ready?"

She nodded and the two walked out to a motorcycle.

Jimmy didn't looked pleased, "wait she's riding on that?"

Cindy rolled her eyes, "Jimmy for once can you not be such a 'dad' and just let our daughter go out and have fun?"

"Just give me another minute alright?"

Cindy just sighed and shook her head.

He walked up them as they were getting ready to leave "hey Sean?"

"Yeah Mr. Neutron?"

Hillary just rolled her eyes and stood off to the side with her arms across her chest.

Jimmy thought for a moment, "so you're parents really let you have a motorcycle huh?"

"Well actually mom doesn't know. Dad took me out on my sweet 16 before they left and brought me to the DMV to take my test, I passed written and driven same day then he asked if I wanted to take my bike test too so I said sure why not? Well I passed that too so he took me to 'Retro Cycle' and let me pick out any bike I wanted. And as far as mom? He's supposed to tell her before they get back, let's hope he does" he chuckled.

Jimmy chuckled back slightly then his expression grew more serious and he placed a hand on Seans shoulder and looked him in the eyes, "just be careful with her, alright?"

"Of course sir"

And with that he nodded and walked back to Cindy, still looking a bit uneasy as he watched them get on and drive off.

She rolled her eyes, "Would you relax? It's not like he's some random guy from school, it's Sean"

He sighed, "no I guess you're right. Sean's a good kid and we've known him all his life, better him than the neanderthals we used to know right?" he smirked.

She rolled her eyes but smirked back and the two of them hopped in Cindy's mini van and set off.

They got there and found a table to sit at then Jimmy went to the counter.

He smiled at the woman behind it, "hey Tina, is Carl around?"

She returned his smile, "yeah he's in the back I'll go get him" she went to the back and returned a few minutes later with Carl in tow, then she went talk to Cindy and Isaac while Carl stayed behind to talk to Jimmy.

Carl smiled at his friend, "hey Jim"

"Hey Carl, how's business?" Carl was now the proud owner of the Candy Bar. Sam had retired after they all finished college and since Carl was his best customer and he never had any children of his own he left it to him.

"It's a little slow with school just starting and all but we'll be alright, how is your class this year?" after being her teaching assistant for a year Jimmy had taken over Ms. Fowls class once she retired and he now taught the 5th grade, oddly enough she ended up marrying Sam and the two moved to sunny Florida.

"It's not too bad so far, though oddly enough there's a boy and girl this year fighting for top spot and it's eerie how similar they are to me and Cindy; she's a blonde and he has brown hair, they debate about everything, try to outdo each other on assignments, and look at each other all the time then look away blushing" he chuckled, but then got a more serious look, "were Cindy and I really that bad?"

Carl nodded, "absolutely, I feel safe telling you this now, but um there were several bets on when you two would finally get together. I'm really glad you two finally figured it out, not because of the bet but because you're my friends and even back then the feelings between you two were obvious to everyone except you two"

Jimmy looked over at his wife and son currently laughing and enjoying their ice cream and smiled, "me too Carl, me too"

After an afternoon of family fun and ice cream they headed over to Jimmy's parents house.

They went inside and Jimmy called out, "hello? Anyone home?"

His father poked his head out of the kitchen and answered with a smile, "hey Jimbo!"

Jimmy smiled back, "hey dad"

"Grandpa!" Isaac ran up and gave Hugh a hug.

"Oh boy I swear you get bigger every time I see you! Now I remember when Jimbo was your age, he wasn't much taller than you are now but don't worry you'll keep growing and growing until suddenly bam you're six feet tall! It's like this special I was watching last night about certain breeds of ducks..." and he proceeded to talk Isaac's ear off but Isaac didn't mind, Hugh was the only grandfather he ever saw. Cindy's father was still a workaholic and had moved to a bigger law firm in New York City once she moved out and left for college, and her mother had never approved of Jimmy so they hadn't spoken in years but she was completely fine with that.

Finally Jimmy intervened, "hey buddy how about you go see what grandma's doing? I think I smell cookies" he smirked at the last part and Isaac needed no more encouragement than that, he was off to the kitchen and Cindy followed him.

Jimmy took the opportunity to talk to his dad alone, "hey dad thanks for taking the kids tonight, I really want to do something special for Cindy for our anniversary"

"It's no problem at all, why I remember back one year before we had you..."

"Um yeah dad? Older now but still don't want to hear stories about what you and mom did in your younger days"

Hugh nodded and Jimmy continued, "now remember Hillary's curfew is 10:00 sharp and she knows that if she misses it she'll be grounded, we already told her they're staying here tonight so hopefully she remembers, typically Isaac's bedtime is 9:00 but tonight we're extending it to 10:00 since that's when his sister will be back" he hesitated, "and we'll have our phones on us the whole night if you need us, but uh please try not to need us?"

"Don't worry everything is under control, and if not your mother is here"

He thought to himself 'yeah that's reassuring' but he nodded.

"Oh and Jimbo one last piece of advice about tonight, when a man and a woman-"

Jimmy rolled his eyes and interrupted before he could continue, "um dad? In case you're forgetting, I'm 40 now and you're watching my two children so I think I know how everything works at this point"

"Oh right" he laughed sheepishly and they both headed to the kitchen. When they got there Isaac was telling Judy about his karate tournament.

"And at the last second I totally nailed this really cool flip move mom helped me with and that's what helped me win!"

"It sounds very exciting, oh hello sweetie" she smiled at Jimmy.

He smiled back, "Hey mom. So you're sure you and dad can handle both kids tonight?"

"Don't worry sweetie they'll be fine, you two just go out and enjoy yourselves"

He nodded and turned to Isaac, "alright you be good for grandma and grandpa tonight, and don't harass your sister too much"

"Don't worry dad I'll be good, you just go have fun on your date with mom"

He smiled at his son, "thanks pal"

And with that they said their goodbyes and left.

Instead of heading to their car in the driveway he led them outback to his old clubhouse, she was confused, "um Jimmy, why are we going to your old lab?"

"We aren't, we're simply retrieving something from it" she continued staring at him questioningly but didn't push. He led them behind it to something that was covered by a tarp. He took it off, it was the hovercar.

He got in and she just continued to stare, he smirked and cocked an eyebrow, "are you getting in? Or is this now the anniversary of me getting together with myself?"

She stuck her tongue out but then got in and he lifted off.

After a while she finally spoke, "so are you going to tell me where we're going or is it going to be like every other time?"

He rasied an eyebrow, "take a wild guess"

She stuck her tongue out again, "meanie"

He laughed, "wow I didn't know this was middle school already!" they continued exchanging playful witty banter and small talk for the next few hours.

When they arrived at their destination Cindy looked around in amazement, she hadn't been there since they were 17.

Jimmy grabbed her hand and laced their fingers together, then squeezed and placed a light kiss on her cheek, "happy anniversary beautiful, welcome home" he then helped her out of the hovercar and led her to their spot at the waterfall.

Once they got closer Jimmy dropped her hand and covered both her eyes with his hands and continued to lead her there. When they got there he dropped his hands, "surprise"

She was too shocked and amazed for words, right near their waterfall was a small cabin. He took her hand again and led her inside. Inside was beautiful and cozy; hardwood floors, a kitchen with modern appliances, a bathroom, a small sitting area complete with 3 love seats surrounding a fireplace and a bookshelf in the corner, and upstairs was a loft/bedroom area containing a very comfortable looking king size bed with a side table and lamp on either side and two wardrobes.

He came up beside her and wrapped an arm around her waist while dropping a kiss on her forehead, "much better than some stuffy hotel room in a crowded vacation spot right? This whole island is our private oasis and there will be absolutely no noise or other people to bug us, we finally get alone time just the two of us and we get to do whatever we want"

She had tears in her eyes, she turned and wrapped her arms around his neck while he wrapped both of his around her waist and pulled her close, "thank you Jimmy, this is incredible and sweet. We haven't a night just us since we were 25, we needed this so much" then she kissed him soundly and passionately, he gladly returned it and soon tongues were dancing.

After a few minutes breathing became necessary and they rested foreheads against each other, "damn 24 years together and you still leave me breathless, how the hell do you manage to do that?"

She smirked at him, "I'm just that charming, now come on I don't know about you but I'm in the mood for a swim"

He smiled, "sounds great, I actually have some swim stuff for us here"

She smiled at him mischievously, "oh I won't be needing that" and with that she ran out the door.

Confused, he ran after her. When he got outside he saw her clothes lying on the bank, she was in the pool wearing nothing but her undergarments. He looked out and his breath caught in his throat and suddenly he was 17 again; even though they were a lot older now she had somehow managed to keep her toned body and therefore had very much the same effect on him, he just stared with wide eyes and was blushing.

She couldn't help but laugh; fully grown adult now but she still had the same effect on him, he was still shy and awkward even at 40 and she found it completely adorable.

After a few minutes he still wasn't moving, "what's the matter Neutron, don't want to swim with me? 24 years together plus two kids and you're still as awkward as you were at 17!" she gave a flirty laugh.

This time he needed no invitation, he quickly rid himself of everything except his boxers and wade in after her. He went up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, then whispered in her ear, "just for the record yes I do still find you very attractive even so many years later, and in case you forgot that ring on your finger indicates you are now a Neutron as well Vortex"

His voice managed to send shivers down her spine and she turned to kiss him again, very heatedly. They were preoccupied for the next couple hours.

The sun had set but the stars and moon were shining bright above, enough to illuminate their way as they walked hand and hand along the beach.

Cindy let out a content sigh, "this has been so perfect, exactly what I needed after the stress at work. Thank you Jimmy"

He smiled down at her, "well don't thank me yet, it's not quite over"

She shook her head and smiled knowingly, "of course it's not, I should know by now"

They continued walking until they had reached their log facing the ocean, she sat down but he remained standing.

She looked at him quizzically, "aren't you going to sit?"

He simply smirked mischievously at her then walked to a nearby boulder, he reached behind it and pulled out a small portable speaker. He then plugged in an aux cord and plugged the other end into his cellphone. He brought them both over and hit play then set them down nearby.

Soft music began and she smiled as she felt a tear in her eye and her heart flutter, it was their song.

He stopped in front of her and bowed then offered her his hand, "may I have this dance, my Cindy-rella?"

She smiled at him, "you may, my charming genius"

They began dancing a waltz.

The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful

Stop me and steal my breath

Emeralds from mountains thrust towards the sky

Never revealing their depth

After a few moments though they simply danced close, arms around each other tight and her head resting on his shoulder. Neither said anything during the dance, both were content just finally being able to be with each other alone without interruptions for the first time in 15 years.

After an evening of dancing and a lovely dinner they were sitting outside on their log, arms around each other just admiring the stars and the peaceful night.

Finally Cindy voiced something she had been curious about, "so how did you build that cabin by the way?"

"Easy, I used whatever I could from our first shelters all those years ago and bought whatever else I had to, then I hired someone to build it"

"And the furniture?"

"It's amazing what and where Ikea will deliver"

"Electricity?"

"Solar panels during the day and one of my powerful Neutronic generators for nighttime"

"When did you manage to do all of this?"

"Remember when you were working all those late nights last week? Well I may have used those as an opportunity to do this, and I also may have bribed Hillary to babysit and keep quiet about this"

She looked at him and raised an eyebrow, "you bribed our 15 year old?"

"Hey what can I say, she takes after her mother" he rolled his eyes and smiled.

She playfully swatted him on the arm but smiled back.

"And just for the record I didn't actually tell her what I was doing, I just told her I was doing something for our anniversary and paid her to keep quiet. You and I are still the only ones who know about our island"

"Um actually Jimmy, I told Libby back when you first bought it. I mean you bought me a fricken island, so of course I was going to tell my best friend!"

He smiled and shook his head then chuckled, "figures, okay fine us and Libby are the only ones who know about our island"

She joined in and soon they were both laughing.

Eventually it got late and they were both tired, so they walked back to the cabin and got ready for bed.

They settled in the bed and he was on his back with an arm around her while she had her head on his chest with one arm draped across it.

"Hey Jimmy?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you, not just for this but for everything. You're still the best friend, husband, and all around everything I could ever ask for. I still feel blessed to have you"

"I feel blessed to have you too; you still mean absolutely everything to me and I count my lucky stars every day that I have you, I love you Cindy and I always will"

"I love you too Jimmy, so much"

He turned to lay on his side and wrapped both arms around her while she snuggled into chest.

"Better?"

"Much"

As he held his beautiful wife in his arms he still couldn't believe how lucky he was; even after 24 years together, 24 years of ups and downs, 24 years of stolen moments, and 24 years memories they still loved each other as if they were still those two 17 year olds from so long ago. He smiled at the thought and fell into a peaceful sleep.

And to think, it all started with 'A Cinderella Story'.

The End.

Well that's it we've finally reached the end, I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Right now I'd like to take a moment to make an important announcement: this story is dedicated to my father Albert who sadly passed away from health problems on June 20, 2019. "A Cinderella Story" was a movie he introduced me to as a child and was one we both enjoyed watching, it seems only right to dedicate this story to him and name Jimmy's son after him to honor his memory.