Disclaimer: I don't even want to make a claim to Desperate Housewives. I'm writing this because the show isn't giving me what I want.

Story Summary: With Lynette, things never went as planned. Pre-series.

A/n: Fluff, anyone? I certainly need it. And for that reason, I'm going to have a fluff fic-a-thon. If you have a request for a lighthearted, sweet or sexy Tom and Lynette story, please let me know. Because, honestly, wouldn't it be nice to have a little break from the drama?

Any reviews are most welcome! Thank you for reading!

-Ryeloza

Best Laid Plans

A story by Ryeloza

Tom was sure that prior to this moment, he had misused the word "stunned" at various points in his life. At his sixth birthday party when a magician made his mother disappear; when Meghan Lewis kissed him out of the blue after their philosophy class one day; witnessing his brother's sudden and severe case of cold feet the night before his wedding: in the past, they all would have been times that he would have claimed to be stunned. And it was clear to him now, that the best those moments could aspire to was mild surprise. This, right now, was stunned. Numb, stupefied, unable to speak or think or react, just downright flabbergasted as he followed Lynette down the street.

There was an odd chill in the air that he could barely feel. He'd taken off his suit jacket and given it to Lynette about an hour ago; she still wore it now, the garment stopping somewhere just above her knees, sleeves reaching past her fingers. At some point since she'd turned and walked away from him, she'd taken off her shoes, and now she clutched them to her chest like a treasure she had to protect. Given the way she was acting, there was a good chance she was as dumbfounded as he, but he couldn't quite understand why.

She wasn't the one who had just proposed. She wasn't the one who had been fumbling for the ring only to have her lover turn and walk away. She wasn't the one apparently unable to see that it was a huge rejection because she sure as hell wasn't the one blindly following her significant other down the street.

Down the street into the dark, kind of creepy park at ten o'clock at night.

Yeah, only someone in complete shock would be going along with this.

Lynette veered off of the path, the only vaguely lit part of the entire park, and began to stumble over the uneven grassy terrain. Even at only about fifteen feet ahead of him, she was almost immediately engulfed in the night, there and gone before he could blink. For the first time in twenty minutes, he felt some jolt of life; whatever else had happened, he certainly didn't want his girlfriend to get mugged in the park because he was in some kind of stupor.

"Honey?" He continued forward, squinting to catch sight of her again. "Lynette?"

He found her before she responded, almost bumping right into her. She stood on the edge of the small, man-made pond; from the look of it, she was debating walking right into the water and disappearing for good. "Hey," he said, gazing at the water and wondering if she was right drowning might be the best bet, "I'm not sure being in the park at this time of night is the best idea."

Of course, "Man Drowns in Pond"wasn't exactly the most dignified headline to go out on.

"You proposed."

"Uh…Well…Yeah. Or, you know, I was trying. Didn't…"

"No," she interrupted. "You actually said 'Will you marry me?' Those words came out of your mouth. You asked me to marry you."

"…Didn't quite get to the ring," he finished lamely. His hand was still wrapped tightly around the little box he'd been pulling out when she'd turned and stalked away. He turned it over in his hand now, nervously wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. How was he so sweaty and freezing cold at the same time?

"You have a ring?" Finally, she looked up at him, but he kept his eyes steadfastly fixed on the edge of the water. He felt shaky, like he might be ill at any moment, and he was positive that if he saw the refusal in her eyes, he'd suffer a complete breakdown.

"Yeah," he mumbled, taking her hand and passing her the small jewelry box. "I kind of planned this. Well not this…"

"You have a ring."

"Yep."

"You have a ring."

He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to relieve some of the tension in his muscles. "Why are you so surprised?" he asked tiredly.

"I'm not."

"Really?" He glanced down at her, glad that he was able to keep his bearings even facing her directly. The expression of repulsion he'd expected to see on her face was nonexistent; mostly, she looked bewildered. "Because this isn't exactly a normal reaction."

"Have you done this before?"

"No."

"Then how do you know what's normal?"

"Gee," he guffawed, "I don't know. Maybe based on every romantic comedy I've ever seen, every personal anecdote I've ever heard. Or maybe it's just common sense. Usually a yes or no question requires a definitive answer."

Lynette blinked; she looked slightly ridiculous, still holding her shoes, the jewelry box clasped tightly in her hand, his coat ridiculously long and baggy on her thin frame. "You asked me to marry you," she said again. He suddenly got the strange impression that she couldn't hear a word he was saying.

"Yeah," he sighed. "I did."

"Like, buy a white dress, vow to love each other no matter what, spend the rest of our lives together…that kind of marry you."

"That was the idea."

A smile blossomed on her face, blooming slow and hesitantly, but absolutely the most beautiful sight he had seen all night. The glory of it was strangely merciful, and he cupped her cheek, reaching down and kissing her forehead. "Call me crazy," he murmured, "but I kind of want to spend the rest of my life following you into kind of creepy parks."

She laughed, crooking one arm around his neck and tugging him down until their foreheads rested against one another. "I just…I never thought…"

"Any guy would be lucky to have you," he whispered, pushing away her insecurity before it could overwhelm them both. She shut her eyes, almost imperceptibly leaning closer to him. "And I'm just hoping that you'll pick me. Because I can't imagine my life without you anymore. I can't imagine waking up in the morning without you in my arms, or not being able to kiss you goodnight, or not seeing you when you drink too much and bust out those goofy dance moves." He smiled as she let out a breathless chuckle, one strained just slightly by the tears now sliding down her cheeks. "And I know it's a lot to ask," he said, unable to keep his voice steady; in this moment, it was impossible, "but I want you, all of you, forever. So, yes, I am asking you to please marry me."

She pulled back slightly, the light in her eyes brilliant despite how they shimmered with tears. "Can we elope?"

"Is that a yes?"

She nodded, biting her lip slightly in that nervous way she had. "Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes."

He grinned, bending down and kissing her hard, a kiss that had to give in to their smiles, so impossible it was to quell them for even a moment. He felt lighter than air, filled so fully with joy that it actually seemed to radiate from his body, making everything a little brighter. It didn't even matter that the heel of her shoe was digging into his chest, or that she was the one holding the ring, or that they were standing by the slightly scummy pond in the middle of the dark, deserted park.

With Lynette, things never went as planned.

But maybe that was what he loved most of all.