He awaited her answer patiently, the wind fraying strands of his golden hair as the afternoon sun glimmered in the sky. The hill they sat on rose high, with a massive oak tree resting at the top. The ancient thing stretched its limbs in all directions, casting a comforting shadow on them, shielding them from the scorch of day.

The grass was dry, but soft. He tangled his fingers in the blanket he'd brought for their picnic, the food laid along the surface in bumpy array.

To the west lay a city, where the two of them had met that fateful day, 15 years ago. In the distance, as he turned his head, he could see the city's sloping rooftops, the clock tower in the distance. He could hear its tolling, even with the breeze filtering into his ear and whispering gently. It rang out only once. He could see birds take flight from their perch on its edge, and they soared into the open, endless expanse of the sky. He could see the wearing color of stone walls, could see dirt paths and moss on varied, copper-colored tile.

To the east, he saw continuous green. He saw hills, few trees, and an abundance of farming, with tilled soil and brown fences.

Before him, he saw light. Light and purity. Love.

"Take all your time," he told her, pressing his lips to her knuckles. "Take a thousand years. Take my life. I will wait; I do not need the answer right now if you are not ready to give it."

She was shaking.

Stricken, he looked up at her.

Pretty lips parted, the air seemed to still, as though waiting in anxious disarray for her answer, for the first words from her lips. He could feel her breath along his palm, which she had clasped between her strong, yet slender, beautiful fingers. The wind exploded around them and the world was in her eyes when she smiled.

"Surely I would not make you wait a thousand years. Nor would I give you all of my time. It is already yours, thus I have nothing to give." she intertwined their fingers, twisting around and leaning to lay her head in his lap.

She watched the gaps in their skin dance in the flecked, broken light the sun casted through the tree above them.

Leaning forward, he looked into her eyes, face void of any emotion, be it happiness, gloom, curiosity or anxiety. He waited.

Running his fingers through her hair, the strands fanning in ebony waves across his lap and onto the blanket, he watched. He waited. She closed her eyes as he brushed strands from her face, and when they opened, they shone the most startling green against the honey of her skin.

She touched her free hand to his cheek and pulled him in for a kiss.

The stars glimmered on his wet lips, and all possibility, all of space and time and any delusions of forever; they all hung in his eyes.

Oh, she was too smitten with him to make him wait that long. He and his beautiful golden locks, his eyes, so full of passion that they burned red like an angry fire. His skin so pale he looked of moonlight and silver. Him and his beautiful words. Him and his magic laugh. Everything.

"Yes," she breathed in her daze, releasing his hand to clasp his head, pressing her lips to his forehead.

"Hm?" he breathed, eyes closed as the sun slid its way across the sky.

"I won't make you wait all your life. I won't make you wait all mine, or a thousand years. My answer is yes,"

She could see the shock, then an overwhelming smile that spread across his face like wildfire. "Yes?" he breathed, looking so elated, lifting her head from his lap to stand. "Yes?" he asked again in a louder, more excited voice.

She nodded happily, giggling at his expression.

He turned away from her, towards the city and screamed, "She said yes!" into the air before jumping around the blanket she had propped herself up on. "Jade Harley said yes!" he did three cartwheels before falling over and almost rolling down the hill.

She stood over him after a moment, jovial over his performance. "Jade... Strider." she corrected, pulling her fiancé to his feet.

His smile grew and an arm hooked securely around her waist, pulling her flush against his chest. "Oh, do I like the sound of that." he chuckled before kissing her hard, smiles never leaving their faces.

"I love you."

In three months, they had pictures of their small, intimate wedding all around the house. They had memories of a passionate, love-filled honeymoon, and in another two years, twin boys in their new cottage on the outskirts of town, just beneath a hill that had an oak tree at the top.

And they were happy.


Oh man did I really like this one. It's romantic and stuff. I just wanted something short and sweet. Probably wrote it in ten minutes!

I hope you liked it UuU I wouldn't mind requests either but I can't lie, I probably won't ever finish.

Questions, comments, concerns?