4 Years Earlier
Angela’s View
“Where are you taking me?” I asked.
“It’s a surprise, you’re not peaking are you?” he asked. I shook my head. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. The bandana covering my eyes was succeeding thoroughly. I finally felt the car come to a stop.
“Are we here?”
He laughed, “You have always been so impatient.”
I smiled, “I guess it’s good that you’re so patient. We balance each other out.”
I heard his door open and him step out, “Stay there.” A few moments passed and I could hear his feet crunching towards my door. He opened the door, and gently slid his hand into mine. Taking that as a cue to get out, I did, but carefully. I didn’t know where I was or what my surroundings were like.
He led me away from the car slowly. I felt his body lean behind me to close the door. It was silent outside. There were no sounds of car engines, or of people walking around. We had to be somewhere more secluded. Hell, it felt like I was in the car for hours.
Brian’s hand still grasped mine and his other hand slid around my waist, guiding me where to go. He let go a couple of times to open doors, but just the same, his hand would grab my hand and his other would always find its place back on my waist.
I couldn’t contain my excitement, “Brian, I want to see.”
“Just wait,” he said quietly. He said it so close to my ear that I shivered. I could hear my heels finally clacking on what sounded like hard wood floors. After a few more steps, he stopped me and let go.
“Now?”
“Not yet, just a moment.”
I heard him walk around the room, moving certain objects, and then he finally came up behind me. He grabbed the knot at the back of my head and untied it, but didn’t take the bandana away.
“You ready?” he asked.
I laughed, “Yes!”
He took the bandana away then and my breath caught in my throat.
“Oh, Brian,” I breathed out, my hands instinctively rising to cover my mouth. “It’s beautiful.”
The room was dark except for the dozens of candles of all sizes lit around. There were huge bay windows looking out over the city. In front of me a round table with dinnerware set for two was set. The table was littered with red rose pedals, and a few beautiful candles. Wine was set off to the side with two glasses.
Brian stepped forward and pressed play on the stereo that was off to the side. Soft jazz music suddenly surrounded me.
“Happy Anniversary,” he said gently, afterwards kissing me softly on the lips.
“Happy Anniversary,” I replied. He took my hand and led me to the table. I looked around me in astonishment, “How did you do this?”
As he was pushing my chair back in, he replied, “With the help of a couple of friends. This is a friend from work’s place. He went to Florida for the week and let me use it.”
“But the candles and the food,” I said. He sat down across from me and smiled, “Your friends would be helpful in that aspect. If only I could say I cooked the food myself.”
I laughed, “Maybe it’s best that you didn’t.”
He winked at me and my heart melted. Lord knows how much I love this man.
We began eating what was set in front of us. He must have texted someone at the house to let us know we were here so as to bring out the food, because it was still warm when we began eating.
Steak, mashed potatoes, vegetables. It was delicious.
“So you’re not sick of me yet?” he asked.
“Well, maybe a little bit,” I teased. He grinned, “Maybe I’m a little sick of you too. But you’re like an addiction, I can’t kick you.”
“What sort of addiction? Alcohol, maybe meth?”
“Everything. You’re that damn addictive.”
“I don’t know if I should be touched or disturbed.”
He laughed, “Try your hardest to be touched.” He continued, “You know, did I ever tell you what happened to me that one day before we were dating. The time where I saw you at the coffee shop and walked you to work?”
I shook my head, “What about it?”
“You do realize I walked about a mile and half out of my way to walk you there.”
My mouth dropped open and I laughed, “What?”
He laughed too, “I’m serious.”
“But you said you were headed that way.”
“I lied.”
“I can’t believe you. Why would you do such a thing?”
“I had to walk the complete other direction than you were going. There was no way in hell I was going to pass up an opportunity to talk to you more. We probably wouldn’t even been here today if I didn’t. So you better be grateful for my lie little lady.”
“This is the one time only that I will be forever grateful you lied to me. Relish that.”
“Oh I will. And the fact that I was over nearly 2 hours late and had to stay until 10 that night working better mean something.”
I rolled my eyes, “Nuh uh, you’re the foolish one mister. Besides, I’m worth every minute of that.”
He smiled, “That you are.”
I took another bite of my food and I could feel his eyes on me. I looked up at him and smiled, “What?”
“Just thinking.”
“About what?”
“About how lucky I am.”
“Shut up Brian, don’t get like that.”
“I’m serious Angela. I never thought that I could find someone like you. You’re everything to me, you know that?” He reached out his hand across the table. I put my hand in his and he squeezed.
“You’re everything to me too,” I replied.
He had put on his serious face and it was making me a little uneasy.
“And we’ve been through a lot this past year haven’t we?”
I nodded.
“I couldn’t have gotten through it without you Angela. I really couldn’t have. When Dad died, you were there for me in ways that no one else was. In fact, you’re always there in ways that no one else is. You’re my best friend Angie.”
I squeezed his hand tightly and lightly smiled at him. He then got up out of his chair and walked around to my side, never letting go of my hand. He leaned down, resting on one knee. With my free hand, I covered my mouth in shock. My heart was pounding inside my chest.
“Brian,” I began, watching him reach into his sport jacket coat and pulling out a black velvet case. He looked up at me then, his eyes big, sincere, and serious. They looked bluer than they ever had before.
“Now bare with me, just for a couple minutes, okay?”
I nodded and said quietly, “Okay.”
He took a deep breath and then began to talk, “I love you, more than anything in this world. You could run me over with a car or call me a useless bastard, and I would still love you.”
I laughed and he smiled.
“The point is, I’m so madly and deeply in love with you that it hurts, and I never want this sort of hurt to go away. When you’re not with me, I feel lost. At night, I find myself reaching for you even when I know you’re not there. I’m always wondering what you’re doing and if you’re okay.”
My eyes started to tear up a bit.
“I can’t get enough of you. Your smile makes me grow weak, your laugh makes me laugh, your happiness makes me happy. When I hold you, I have the urge to never let go. When I kiss you, I never want to stop. Everything about you Angela amazes me. You’re the most beautiful, sincere, compassionate woman I have ever met.”
Tears started escaping from my eyes, falling freely down my cheeks. He reached up and with his thumb and gently wiped a tear away.
“I want to wake up to your face every morning. I want to come home to you everyday after work. I want to have children with you. I want to grow old with you. I want you, forever. You’re my entire world Angela.”
He then reached down and opened the velvet box. A stunning diamond ring flashed before my eyes. I tried to keep my composure but it was growing harder and harder to do so.
He looked back up to me and slipped his hand back into mine.
“Angela, will you marry me?”
I had to look like a blubbering idiot, because I sure felt like one, but at the same time, I had never felt such happiness before in my life. I nodded through my tears, and softly said, “Yes.”
His face brightened and he quickly slid the ring onto my finger. He kissed my fingers.
“Of course I will,” I cried, sliding out of my chair and into his arms. I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck, not wanting to have this moment pass. He pulled back and kissed me long and deep. As we parted, he kissed my cheek, then my neck, once again embracing me.
“I love you,” I told him.
“I love you,” he replied. As he leaned back, I saw the tears falling from his eyes and let out a light laugh. I began wiping them away from his cheeks, “Now now, I can’t have my husband crying like a baby.”
He laughed and began wiping his own tears away, “Let a man emote woman.”
I laughed with him. We sat there for a minute, looking at one another in silence. We didn’t have to talk. Everything we felt was in our eyes.
I leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips, “Dance with me.”
He smiled, “As you wish.”
He stood up, helping me to my feet. He led me away from the table and slid his hand around my waist, taking my other hand with his other. He pulled me to him close and began to sway. I rested my head against his chest and closed my eyes.
Though the music was rather quiet in the background, and though it wasn’t music that could be sang to, he began singing the lyrics to the first song we had ever danced to – Bryan Adams’ ‘When You Love Someone’
“When you love someone, you’ll do anything. You’ll do all the crazy things that you can’t explain. You’ll shoot the moon, put out the sun, when you love someone…”
The sound of his deep gentle voice and the sound of his beating heart made my whole world calm.
It was during this night that I realized that with him, I was home.
