A little note from me :)

A lot of people have been really upset with me regarding the ending of The Unthinkable. I totally understand that and I wanted to share a little of my history behind the characters and romance of Bill and Julie.

Unlike all of the other couples, with the exception of Elizabeth and Evan, we have seen the first meeting and the love blossom between the characters. We followed Jack and Stephanie as they met and fell in love. We watched Brittany and Tommy fight through immense obstacles to discover their beautiful love story. We watched Mike get his heart torn out and Jade come along and show him his worth, and in doing so, found her own.

For me, Bill and Julie have always been together. I don’t remember a time in my creation of the story and the characters that they weren’t in love. I can’t say that for any of the other characters. Bill and Julie both have histories that are both sad and heartbreaking, but for every flashback to Bill’s life or memory of Julie with Jack and Tommy, it has always been with the idea that now, they have found their forever love.

Bill and Julie are the most ‘real’ of all of the characters. They are incredibly tough, but they have a vulnerability that is deep and beautiful. Bill never saw what Julie did growing up. He never witnessed love between his parents and he knew pain more than anything else. He learned what to never do as a man and a father, but he never believed he deserved that unconditional love. How could he, when his parents never showed him he was loveable?

With Julie, she witnessed a forever love with her parents. They were sweet and romantic and funny and more in love as each day passed. Julie and Tommy both saw that and it was the cocoon they lived in, and rightfully so. They never wondered if they were loved or wanted and their lives were good and happy and normal.

Until the accident.

Julie lived through something that could have shaken her faith in anything good ever happening. She developed a thick skin and faced the world with a chip on her shoulder that was necessary for her survival. It was easier to hold things in and push forward, then to think about what was lost and perhaps, lose herself. She was strong and self-sufficient and she couldn’t allow that to change.

Until she met Bill. When she looked at him, she saw her parents. She saw the life she had always wanted and she saw the man she would love forever.

Their story hasn’t been easy. Bill’s career in the Army has been incredibly trying and difficult for both of them. Julie’s fear of being left behind and Bill’s intense need to be a provider and to be the man she deserves is a constant source of his internal struggle. The injuries he has suffered would level the strongest of men and the firmest foundation of any couple.

Bill and Julie’s love story is based on real people and real love. Sometimes, no matter how much we try, life shows us that we don’t have all the power. What happened to Julie is horrific and it will change the face of this family from every angle. I use the phrase “Julie is the glue” because, simply put, she is the reason this family exists. She is the reason they have always remained close and she is the reason both Tommy and Jack have been able to find such love. She gave them a purpose. She helped them survive.

She has shown them all what it means to be strong. Now they will show her.

Her children are beautiful and giving and they will show the family what is important.

I love and adore Julie and this was incredibly hard to write. I truly hope you’ll stick with me and the family as they move forward.

There is much more to come.

-Robin