To Honor a Promise
"…and as Bradly Withfords once stated, 'every story you've ever connected with, every leader you've ever admired, every puny little thing that you've ever accomplished is the result of taking action. You have a choice. You can either be a passive victim of circumstance or you can be the active hero of your own life.' Thank you, and congratulations to the graduating class of 2021." Cheers and clapping erupted in the packed Standoff stadium as Lydia Martin concluded her valedictorian speech, a determined and confident grin ever present on her face. She could hear the howling down below from Scott and Stiles who hollered the loudest.
"Thank you, Ms. Martin for that inspiring speech." She heard the dean say as she went to take her seat just feet away from where she spoke.
"Now, I know it states in your itineraries that Ms. Martin was our last speaker here today," The dean continued as Stiles took the stage. His heart raced not with nerves but with the utter anticipation—he couldn't wait any longer. And Lydia didn't realize he was up there until he was. "but actually we have here today, someone who has something very important to say."
She shot him a confused, dumbfounded look as if saying "I love you, but what the hell are you doing up here?" But coral lips and rosy cheeks she stood beside him in confusion.
"Hi everyone. I promise I won't keep you long, I know you're all eager to finally graduate and get to your parties and dinners. Uh, my name is Stiles Stilinski. I'm not a student here at Stanford University but uh, the woman who you just had the pleasure of listening to is actually my girlfriend of six years, Lydia Martin. Can we get another round of applause for her?!" And just like that it all started once more. Thunderous clapping and monumental cheers.
"I know, I know. Isn't she something?" He smiles glancing at her once more before facing the audiences. "Anyway, she's why I'm standing up here today. He takes a deep breath and drags her by the hand next to him. "What are you doing?" She whispered but he just continued.
"I fell in love with Lydia Martin in the third grade. I was eight years old and knew she was completely out of my league. But still," He eyes her and she has a glint of whats happening. "I fell in love like any eight year old would with the prettiest girl in his class. Now, my love for her would unfortunately go unrequited for many years to come until my sophomore year of high school where a lot of strange—almost supernatural things, so to speak, began to happen because she started noticing me." He could hear Scott and the rest of the pack laugh in the distance. "all of a sudden she was in my life all the time, being a part of this close circle of friends who somehow banned through everything together. But it wasn't until our senior year—our graduation in fact, that she revealed to me she had feelings for me. Now, how funny is that?" He flashed a grin her way.
"And I'm proud to say we've been together since then. Our third year together Lydia made me promise her something." He turns now to speak to her alone. "You said you wanted to start our lives after you were to graduate because you didn't want to get distracted. Now, Lydia I talked to your Dean a few months ago about doing this." He can't stop grinning and her eyes are watering from all the emotions threatening to break inside her.
He swallows but continues. "And do you know what I asked him?"
She shakes her head even though she has a clear idea what of. "I went to him and I said 'you probably know Lydia Martin. She's dead drop gorgeous, she's probably the most intelligent student to ever attend Stanford, she's gonna graduate summa cum lade with a PhD come May and she's gonna change with world'. And when she graduates I want to honor a promise I made her years ago when she told me she wanted to start out lives only after she graduated college. And he laughed and asked, what's the rush kid?"
"And I looked at him dead in the eye and said ''you probably know Lydia Martin. She's dead drop gorgeous, she's probably the most intelligent student to ever attend Stanford, she's gonna graduate summa cum lade with a PhD come May and she's gonna change with world'." He receives echoes of laugher and chuckles across the stadium. "And I don't want to spend one minute more than I promised, and not call her my wife. So will you let me honor that promise?" He swallowed, and overwhelming feeling filling him from the core.
"Needless to say he instantly understood, and here I am today."
He takes the small black box from inside his jacket pocket and and gets down on one knee in front of the podium. Nearly fifty thousand pairs of eyes on him. "Now, I know you haven't technically graduated yet, and I've always been a bit of a rule breaker." He adds and reveals that devilish smirk she knows so well. "But Lydia Martin, will you do me a favor and honor that promise?" He opens the box to reveal the ring and she can't stop looking at the gleam in his eyes for she can't remember a time she loved him more than right here, right now.
And she nods and once she does she can't stop. Tears threatening to escape her eyes in pure euphoria.
"Yes, yes."
Stiles smiles up at her as he stands and steadily places the ring on her finger and the dean approaches the stand once more. "And with that, ladies and gentlemen I'm proud to present to you the Stanford graduating class of 2021. Congratulations!"
Caps took air around them and confetti erupted behind as Stiles grabbed Lydia and drove her into a well deserved kiss. The sound of thousands of people all caved around them in one giant circle that exploded into a symphony of clapping and cheering.
He dipped her in his arms, still kissing her as Lydia tore the cap from her head and gave it one big wave.
And as they broke away and she gazed his way, Lydia thought about the journey it took to get her there. And although she didn't doubt herself once, Lydia Martin came to the shocking realization that this was it. She had made it.