The Fourth of July.
A big day in America, every year. The Fourth of July celebration you may know is a little bit different than the reason this particular holiday was important to a certain individual- and this year, two.
To Ameline Abigail Jones, a blonde 22-Year-Old with the reputation of being a "Party in a Can", the Fourth of July was an important celebration of Independence Day, and she had the luck of being born on such a day. In reality, to which she would openly admit, Ameline was particularly ecstatic about this particular day every year not just because of her birthday, but because of quite literally her favorite thing in the world; Fireworks. A dazzling display of exploding lights in the starry night sky was, hands down, the most wonderful and beautiful thing Ameline has ever seen, and does see annually every year on her birthday. Truthfully why she looked forward to this day.
To 25-year-old Ji-hu Kim, it was his girlfriend's birthday. Independence Day was the last thing on his mind when it came to the Fourth. Ameline and Ji-hu had been dating for an entire year, he had asked her out on the Fourth of July the previous year, in a certainly memorable way. To be vague, Ameline grew an extreme appreciation for morning glories and Bruno Mars(who she is now convinced she is in legitimately love with his voice). The two of them had a very sweet, simple relationship. Both saying their love for each other was like the universe- unending, Ameline and Ji-hu's romantic relationship was more friendship or support based. Not sexually, at all. Sure, there was the occasional round of playfully shooting pickup lines, and of course kissing and hugging, but there were no lustful or sexual tensions, or anything of the sort. To Ji-hu's adoptive 16-Year-Old mother(a complicated story of desperation), Adeline, that's what made their relationship 'cute'. She would say how their relationship was like no other on the planet, not for that reason, but for many others as well. Many people in Ji-hu's social circle were extremely happy for the both of them and adored them as a couple, along with some of Ameline's friends, but Ameline's family- namely her brothers, weren't entirely huge on it. But to Ji-hu and Ameline, of course, it didn't matter what they thought, or anyone else. Ji-hu worked in Forensics for the FBI, meanwhile Ameline was on the other end of the scale as a freelance self-employed author.
To put it simply; Ji-hu was King of the Lab, and Ameline was his Queen of the Lab, and vice versa.
This Fourth of July, however, was going to be different, and special, for a different reason. Ji-hu stood at a private pier, looking out at a body of water in Los Angeles where fireworks were to go off in three hours, running over in his head whether or not he should propose, and if so, how. As much as he wanted to, there was always that one 'What If'. What if it was too early? There was absolutely no doubt in Ji-hu's mind Ameline loved him, oh, he knew that for sure. The world knew. Or, at least, the United States. Ameline was so head-over-heals the practically could've summersaulted down Mount Everest and landed back in the same said position- metaphorically.
But what if. What if one whole year of the most inseparable, loving, and undying connection, was /still/ too early?
Ji-hu fumbled with the box inside his pocket, containing the engagement ring. She did say silver was her favorite, right? Ameline would always say that gold was too 'show-offy' for her, and that she loved silver much better- a majority of her necklaces were silver. The only gold she was in possession of was an anklet that she always wore that was particularly special to her, as it was a gift from an old friend. So it was an exception.
Right kind of metal? Check.
Ameline has once told him that Opalite was by far her favorite stone because of how the Hydrogen trapped inside of it made the entire stone seem as though it were a rainbow that was crystallized, but smoother. Ji-hu had to look it up and research where they sold rings with that, and they did in fact exist, and he drove an entire hour to get to the nearest place he could find that had a ring with such a stone on it.
Right gem. Check. Now the only obstacle was once again; whether he should do this or not.
The sound of a car door slamming and a sweet 'Later, Dad' snapped Ji-hu down from his thoughts and back into reality. Arms folded and rested on the railing of the pier, Ji-hu turned his head to see Ameline jogging her way over, an absent grin on her face. Little did he know, she had something heavily on her mind as well. She came up behind him and threw her arms loosely around his shoulders and kissed him on the cheek, causing him to blush just a little.
"Hey there, King of the Lab." Ameline sang, giving a small giggle.
King of the Lab. The title Ji-hu was oh-so-proud of that sadly not many people, if any, actually called him. Seriously, anyway. But Ameline was always genuine about it, and whenever she called him that, he couldn't help but grin and feel his confidence shoot up. It was like a whole different kind of music to the ears, for a different reason than just wanting to be called that. It was special.
He turned himself around and hugged her. "Hey there, Queen of the Lab- or should I say, the Birthday Girl?" His grin shrank a little, his burst of normalcy quickly fading as he remembered, once again, his predicament. At least, it was a predicament to him.
Ameline laughed, lightly snuggling him. "Oh please, no one's called me 'the Birthday Girl' since I turned sixteen." She faintly inhaled him and she nuzzled his chest affectionately. Was that- Cologne? He'd worn it a number of times before, but it was different from what he'd usually use. It kind of reminded her of what her grandfather would wear to church. Contrary to how it sounds this was by no means a bad thing.
Ji-hu gave her a small squeeze- and by small, I don't mean two seconds, I mean not too tight but doesn't let go. "Well, now you are. Happy 22nd Birthday." He kissed her forehead.
Ameline grinned up at him. "Thanks, Ji. So, shall we go?"
Ji-hu nodded. "Yeah, I set our chairs up."
"Great!" Ameline piped up. "Then what're we waiting for?" She grabbed Ji-hu's hand and started dragging him behind her(while he eventually managed to catch up).
In just the small moment of first seeing her for the day and greeting her, the proposal was pushed to the back of his head. Now that they were headed out to walk around the city for three hours and see what else was going on and stop for dinner, it switched right back to being in front.
Three hours came and went, and it was starting to finally get dark. Stars were slowly appearing in the sky, the very few that were there. They'd walked, and Ameline had done the talking while Ji-hu was quiet for the main part, thinking. Searching for the answer of what to do. To be honest, when he first heard that strangely more glorious than usual 'King of the Lab', he decided yes. Waiting another year would kill him. Just walking back to the chairs Ji-hu set up. Oddly enough(and by that I mean no surprise), neither of them sat in the chairs. Ameline sat on the ground, Ji doing the same, of course, on one knee. His position was just more casual than 'oh god he's kneeling'. He was resting an arm on his knee, once again staring out across the pier, lost in thought. 'You, me, married?' He ran it through his brain a few more times. 'Yeah, that'll work, yeah-'. Ji-hu had been so immersed, he really /had/ been quiet for the whole three hours. Ameline had noticed, and the only reason she hadn't /stopped/ talking was because she was nervous. Just as Ji-hu was about to open his mouth to say something, slipping his hand in his pocket, Ameline spoke up after a minute of being quiet herself, her tone- not as cheerful as it should've been.
"Hey, Ji-hu, I need to tell you something."
This made him freeze up, anxious. Oh dear. He didn't know what was going on, but he didn't like where it was going. He cleared his throat and shook it off. "Yeah, what is it?"
Ameline hugged her knees, taking a deep breath. She really didn't want to say it, but she couldn't not. "I'm, uh, I'm leaving the States... For a while." Ameline glanced at him, and the fallen and confused look on his face made her want to puke from regret. "W-wait, just let me explain- I have an Uncle who lives in England, and he's really not doing so well. My aunt died a few years ago, and he needs someone to take care of him for a while until he's healthy, or at least in a condition where he can take care of himself." She stared down at the ground, examining each blade of grass.
Ji-hu cleared his throat. "When, uh, when do you leave?"
"I procrastinated a lot, because I was scared to tell you. Tomorrow evening." She paused, her heart sinking. "He hasn't got anyone, y'know? Dad would never leave here, and... As much as some of my family and I have been having issues, I still feel like I should take care of them. You know what I mean?" She looked back up at him, with a look more to say what was screaming in her head- 'Please forgive me'.
Ji-hu rested a hand on her shoulder and managed to give a slight smile. "Yeah, I know what you mean. You've got a big heart, Ammy. I really love that about you. If you really feel you should take care of him, I won't stop you." Really, Ji-hu was throwing a temper tantrum inside. He didn't want her to leave, not at all, not one bit. But he couldn't stop her. When Ameline was sure about something, she didn't let things get in her way. Proposing wouldn't stop her, not if she was leaving tomorrow. His smile withdrew a little bit. He was excited for her, sure, but more than anything, he was a little depressed she was going to be so far away, when they'd done everything they could to stay so close.
Ameline teared up a little, mumbling a quick 'God dammit', then throwing her arms around his neck, accidentally knocking him over, so they were both on the ground. Before his back hit the grass, his arms immediately- almost alarmingly fast, wrapped right around her waist the moment she went to hug his neck. So, there they laid, and it didn't even matter to them or seem weird that Ameline was on top of him- due to the situation, neither of them paid attention. Ameline kissed him on the cheek, where he gently turned her head just enough to lock lips with her. Once she got herself to pull away, she wiped a tear from her eye.
"I'm coming back, I promise. I don't know how long it'll be, but I promise the moment he can stand on his own I'll catch a flight to come straight home. I-I'll write, I'll try and call if that's possible, I-"
Hearing all the panic in her voice, Ji-hu held her tightly and planted another kiss on her lips. She wasn't going to be gone for ever, she would keep in touch, and that's all that mattered, right? He grinned hopefully, gently pushing back some of the hair in her eyes, and wiping away a tear that Ameline didn't even notice was there.
"It's okay, Ammy. And I'll be right here, waiting patiently for the moment you get back." They both jumped, the fireworks beginning to go off. Ji-hu knew more than anyone this was Ammy's favorite part, he wasn't going to let this moment on her birthday be... Sad. Ameline's stomach fluttered, and she shook her head.
"I love you, Ji." She sighed, leaning in.
"I love you too, Ammy." Ji-hu quickly and softly got out before they kissed again, fireworks still going off, as they would be for another half hour or so. The two of them eventually sat back up, Ameline's arms still wrapped around him, as he still had one wrapped around her. He watched a familiar look of joy shine through as her face lit up, watching the fireworks. She didn't look nervous anymore, if anything, confident. And he was glad. Ameline this happy was something he lived to see.
His other hand slid back in his pocket, lightly feeling for the box with the ring in it. It was still there, where it would wait for the next two years. And it was something he could deal with. Somehow.