Living Room, 2030
"Kids, there are moments in life when you discover you're not as important as you thought. And it hurts. It hurts a lot. But then you discover there's something worse: discovering they're right."
Ted Mosby leans back in his armchair with an expression his children can't quite decipher.
"When I moved back into Lily and Marshall's apartment after my failed move with Robin, I thought they were welcoming me with open arms out of unconditional love. And that was partly true. But there was another reason. A reason with a first and last name: Alyx."
Ted, Lily, and Marshall's Apartment
Ted was on the sofa with a beer in hand, feeling like the hero returning home after a long battle. Lily and Marshall were beside him, curled up against him.
"Guys, you don't know how much this means to me," said Ted, emotional. "Knowing you need me, that I'm important to you..."
"Oh, of course you are," said Lily, with a smile that was a little too quick.
"Definitely," added Marshall in the same tone.
Ted looked at them. "Why did you say that like you were reading a script?"
"We didn't say anything like we were reading a script," said Lily.
"It was totally natural," said Marshall.
They fell silent. Too silent.
"Okay," said Ted. "What's going on?"
Lily and Marshall exchanged glances.
"Nothing," they said in unison.
"Something's going on."
"Nothing's going on."
"You've been together ten years. I know when something's going on."
Marshall sighed. "It's just... well... when you left, we realized that..."
"Need me? I know. You said that."
"Not exactly," said Lily. "We realized that... we didn't know how to do anything."
Ted frowned. "What do you mean you didn't know how to do anything?"
Marshall pointed to the kitchen. "See that kitchen? We don't know how to use it. You did the grocery shopping."
He pointed to the bathroom. "See those towels? They're yours. We don't have towels."
He pointed to the microwave. "See that? It's yours. Ours was the one Alyx left when she moved out."
"Wait," said Ted. "Alyx had a microwave?"
"Yeah. And a coffee maker. And a blanket. And cushions. And..."
"Okay, okay. I get it. I'm useful. But there's something else, isn't there?"
Lily and Marshall exchanged glances again.
"It's just..." Lily began. "When you left, we realized that... Alyx was also very important."
"Alyx?"
"Yeah. She moved out, but she taught us a lot. How to organize space, how to cook things that weren't microwave pizza. How to..."
"How to be functional adults," Marshall finished.
Ted was silent. "Are you telling me I'm not the only tree?"
"No," said Lily. "You're a tree, but Alyx was another tree. And when you both left, we were left without a forest."
"That's... terribly poetic," said Ted.
"I know. We've been rehearsing it."
Lily and Marshall showed him a vivid drawing of a tree—its roots, trunk, etc.
Ted held the drawing Lily had shown him. "This is... incredible. I've never seen it."
"It was in the closet," said Lily. "Alyx left it there when she moved out. As a reminder."
"And why didn't you hang it up?"
Marshall and Lily looked at each other.
"Because..." Lily began. "Hanging it up meant accepting she was gone."
"And we weren't ready," Marshall finished.
Ted nodded, understanding. "And now?"
"Now... now I think we are."
Lily got up and found a hammer and a nail. Marshall pointed to a spot on the wall beside the sofa. Ted held the drawing while Lily hung it.
When they finished, the three sat down to look at it.
"It looks good there," said Ted.
"Yeah," said Lily. "Like it's always been there."
"Because it's always been there," said Marshall. "We just didn't see it."
Lily's phone rang. It was Alyx.
"You okay?" her voice asked from the other end. "I had a weird dream about you guys. I dreamed you hung my drawing."
Lily smiled. "We just did."
"Really?"
"Yeah. And Ted's here."
"Ted? Didn't he move in with Robin?"
"Long story," said Ted, getting closer to the phone. "But to sum it up: no. And I found out I'm not the only important tree in these two turtles' lives."
Alyx laughed. "You never were. Sorry."
"Did you know?"
"Of course. That's why I left the drawing. So when you left, they'd have something else to hold onto."
Ted was silent. "You're smarter than you look."
"I know. That's why you love me."
"Okay, that's true."
Later, in the Apartment
After hanging up with Alyx, Lily, Marshall, and Ted stayed on the sofa, the warmth of the conversation still in the air.
"You know?" said Lily. "When Alyx left, I thought everything was going to change. And it did change. But not like I expected."
"How did it change?" asked Ted.
"We realized how dependent we were. On you. On her. On everyone. And we learned to be a little more independent."
"Not much," said Marshall.
"No, not much. But a little."
Ted smiled. "I learned something today too. That I'm not the center of the universe."
"You just figured that out?" asked Marshall.
"At thirty-two, yeah."
"Pretty late."
"I know."
They laughed.
"Hey," said Ted. "What happened to Alyx's closet? The one she used for her things."
Lily pointed to the bedroom door. "It's still there. Empty. We haven't had the heart to touch it."
"Can I see it?"
Lily nodded. Ted got up and opened the closet door.
It was empty, yes. But on the inside walls, Alyx had drawn something. Small sketches. Moments. Scenes.
Ted moved closer to see them better.
There was one of Lily laughing, hair tousled. One of Marshall cooking (or trying to). One of the three in bed, wrapped in sheets, expressions of absolute peace.
And in the center, one larger: the five of them, the group, sitting at MacLaren's. Ted, Robin, Barney, Lily, Marshall... and Alyx, in her corner with her sketchbook.
"My family," it said below.
Ted felt his throat tighten.
"Lily... Marshall... you have to see this."
They approached. The three stood in silence, looking at the drawings.
"It's a museum," Lily whispered.
"Of us," said Marshall.
"Of Alyx," Ted corrected. "Of how she sees us."
They sat on the bedroom floor in front of the open closet, contemplating the drawings like one would contemplate an altar.
"I miss her," said Lily.
"Me too," said Marshall.
"Me too," said Ted. "And I didn't even live with her that much."
"But you loved her," said Lily.
"Yeah. I loved her. I love her."
They sat in silence a while longer.
"You know what?" said Ted. "I think we need a friends' night. The three of us. Like the old days."
"Before what?" asked Marshall.
"Before everything. The moves, the engagements, the existential crises."
Lily smiled. "So what do we do on a friends' night?"
"I don't know. Watch a movie? Order food? Talk nonsense?"
"We can do all three," said Marshall.
"But no nudity," added Lily. "We've been there."
"Too much information," said Ted.
"You slept with Robin."
"Okay, you're right. Too much information for both of us."
They laughed and went back to the sofa. They put on a movie (Ted picked, as always), ordered food (Marshall paid, as always), and talked nonsense (Lily started, as always).
And at some point in the night, Ted realized that even though he wasn't the only tree, he was still important. And that was enough.
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