A/N: This is dedicated to all of those who have uniquely spelled names like Shelagh and I :)
Patrick carefully read the sweet message on the letter he had just written along with him asking her to meet him by the sink in the parish hall before Freddie and Samantha's christening and put the letter into an envelope with her name on it. He just bought her ring yesterday, and had put together the plan for how he would ask. He sealed the envelope and left his flat to drop off the letter at the boarding house she lived in.
He knocked on the door of the boarding house and the landlady opened the door and said "Hello, can I help you?"
"Hello, is Miss Mannion in?" he asked her
"No she is not here at the moment" she answered
"May I drop off this letter in her room?" he said
"Yes you can, her room is up the stairs and the second door on the left" she told him and moved over to let him in.
"Thank you" he replied
He walked up the stairs and opened the door to her room. The bed was neatly made and a small desk sat beside it. Her whole room was neat and tidy, which didn't surprise him. He also wasn't surprised that it was empty besides the suitcase that sat in the corner, a bag that looked like it would have toiletries in it, and some papers that sat on the desk. He walked over to place the letter on the desk when he looked down at one of the papers that said Shelagh Mannion at the top. He looked at the envelope in his hand that read Shelia and a wave a panic hit him. How could he not know how to spell the name of the woman he was about to propose to? He felt so stupid for not knowing sooner but then again in the whirlwind of their relationship he had never actually seen her name written down until now. He put the letter into his jacket pocket so the landlady would not see him with the letter he was supposed to drop off and he left the boarding house at a brisk pace.
He opened the front door of his flat and walked to the dining room table and took the letter out of the old envelope. He grabbed a new one and wrote the correct spelling of Shelagh's name on it. He was so glad he didn't write her name on the letter because he would not have had enough time to rewrite the letter, eat a sandwich and be at the antenatal clinic on time. He stuck the letter inside the new envelope and ate his lunch.
He drove up to the boarding house and it had just occurred to him that he didn't have another excuse to need to go to her room for the landlady if Shelagh was still out. He knew he had to come up with something before he asked for her at the door again, he couldn't risk her not being there and looking like a fool in front of the landlady. He looked at his watch, painfully aware of how little time he had and started to try to think of a plan. He was in deep thought when he looked up to find a blonde, petite woman, wearing glasses and carrying a garment bag in hand walking toward his car.
He got out of his car and Shelagh asked "Patrick? Don't you need to be at the antenatal clinic soon?"
"Yes, I just wanted to give you this letter before I head over there" he told her as he handed it to her. She grabbed it with her free hand and smiled.
"Thank you" she said
"You're welcome" he replied
"I don't want to keep you from being late, I'll see you later." she told him
Wait, when will I get to see you again?" she quicikly added
"It's in the letter" he answered
"See you later" he added as he got back into his car and drove off to the parish hall. He breathed a sigh of relief knowing that she was able to get the letter without knowing that he had misspelled her name.
Patrick was holding Angela as Shelagh went to the front door to get the post. Shelagh came back into the sitting room and a frustrated look formed on her face as she looked at one of the envelopes.
"What is it sweetheart?" he asked her
"They spelled my first name wrong on this piece of mail, although I shouldn't be surprised" she answered
Patrick thought of another time her name was spelled wrong on an envelope which made him laugh.
"What's so funny?" she questioned
They had recently committed to tell each other everything and Patrick wanted to stick to that, so he replied while trying to contain his laughter "I have a confession to make"
"What is it?" said Shelagh
Patrick put Angela in her Moses basket and they sat down on the settee as he asked her "Do you remember the letter I gave you telling you to meet me at the parish hall so I could ask you to marry me?"
"Yes, I still have it along with the others you have given me" she replied
"Well before I saw you outside and gave it to you, I was at the boarding house a hour earlier to drop if off in you room because you went shopping. I saw the papers on your desk and realized that I had spelled your name wrong. I had to rush back here and get a new envelope with your name correctly spelled on it and find a way to give it to you without the landlady finding out. I felt like an idiot for not knowing how to spell the name of the woman I was about to propose to" he admitted
Shelagh said as she laughed "At the time I wondered how you figured out how to spell my name, I just assumed you asked Sister Julienne. This is a much more interesting story"
"I'm glad that we are able to laugh about it now" said Patrick
"Me too" she told him
Once their laughter died down, Shelagh added "I didn't like having a uniquely spelled when I was a child. One of the reasons I picked Bernadette as my religious name is because I knew that most people would recognize it from The Song of Bernadette. Although now I like the way my name is spelled, there is something satisfying about not being like everyone else"
"I love the way your name is spelled, it is one of the many things that makes you special" he said
They embraced in a sweet kiss, happily reminiscing on how far their relationship had come.