Remember the old Frog Prince story? A prince is bewitched and takes a form of a frog. He lives as a frog in a well pond until one day a gold ball splashes down into the water. The owner of the ball is a Princess and the Frog formerly known as Prince offers to retrieve the ball for a price: in return, the Princess must befriend the Frog. Reluctantly, the Princess does keep her promise, and then, depending on which version of the story you choose to believe, she kisses the Frog or throws him against the wall, and Frog becomes Prince again and marries the Princess.
Whatever happened in the "ever after" we do not know, we might as well assume they lived happily, just like we did at the happy age of five. Or maybe the Princess was not so happy being married to a man she had to befriend because her father made her keep her promise? Maybe the Prince's habits have changed ever slightly during the hundred years he has spent in the well and he is now not suited to live in the palace? Maybe, though the Princess was dashing and loved him dearly, he missed the pond and being a free Frog?
As I grow older similar questions come to my mind more often when I read books with my kids and watch movies. What happened in the "ever after"? I really want to believe that the Frog ended up being happy. But really, it is all in your head, the proverbial glass being either half-empty or half-full… Maybe it is a story of magical salvation, or, on the contrary, the Prince was happy for a hundred years being a Frog after all, he just did not know it till he turned Prince again? It is all in YOUR head :)
So, here are two frogs, one happy and the other clearly not so much. This is the "ever after", and to turn it around a bit, now it is up to you to decide what happened.
As for me, I am still hoping for a happy end.