A/N: Uhhh hi apparently Tartie feels don't go away. I haven't written these two in years. I haven't even watched Glee in years. I only know what happens because of Tumblr. That last Tartie scene has ruined my life tho lol.
Tina's 30th birthday was a four days away, and as I looked at my train ticket to Rode Island, I wondered what it would feel like to see her in person again. After graduation, I moved to New York City to study at Brooklyn Film Academy. I lingered on the East Coast since then working with small production companies to build my resume and save up for projects of my own. I last saw Tina three years ago when an independent film I was working on was filming onsite in Warwick, Rode Island. She drove out to me from Providence. We got drinks drinks, and I somehow kept my remaining feelings for her under the rug. Not that I haven't been around. Since high school, I had two serious girlfriends and a handful of flings. However, none ever quite compared to my first love. We kept in contact, and I think made out once at a party, but nothing more.
She was holding a small get together with her college friends to celebrate; I got this information from her roommate. My visit would be a surprise, but I also had something else up my sleeve. Eleven years ago, we made a pact that if we were both still single at thirty, we would get married. It was never mentioned again, but two years ago, I realized that she was what I had been looking for. After my mom's mother passed, I acquired her wedding ring. I kept it in a safety deposit box until the morning I left for Rode Island.
I toyed with the delicate piece in the palm of my hand on the Northeast Regional. What would she do? What if she was keeping a relationship from me? What if she said no? What was I thinking? Would she remember our pact? Would it even mean anything? I started to get cold feet and googled hotels in the Providence area to retreat to once I arrived. Preferably one with a bar. I looked down at the ring. No one else was ever special enough for it. I wasted over ten years waiting for someone else to come along, and I missed too many opportunities over that period with Tina.
My train arrived on time, and after grabbing a small bite to eat, I caught a cab to the south-east side of Providence. I planned it so I would arrive later than her planned guests. She lived in a brick multi-story building with New England charm. I paid my fare and wheeled down the side of the establishment where I was promised an elevator. Tina lived on the third floor in a two bedroom apartment with another Brown University alumni. It was old machinery with a slow rickety door, but it got me to the top.
I paused at her door before knocking three times. Laugher and clinking glasses whispered from behind the the off-white slab.
"Coming!"
It was Tina's voice. I took slow, deep breath as the locks clicked. Tina opened the door and looked out at her eye level before glancing down.
"Artie?" she gasped, taking a step back. "Artie…oh my God. Artie what are you doing here?" She bent over and wrapped her arms around the back of my shoulders.
"Happy birthday," I replied.
"Oh, Artie, I'm so happy," Tina muffled into my neck before distancing herself. "Come in, warm up."
She held the door open, and I rolled inside. A group of six or seven others were already settled in the kitchen and living room. Tina took my coat and disappeared into a closet. Her apartment was spacious, but very cozy with hardwood floors and warm lighting. It probably cost just as much as my tiny one bedroom in Brooklyn. Her roommate offered me a drink, and I gladly accepted.
"This is Artie, he came all the way from New York to surprise me," she said, coming up behind me and squeezing my shoulders. I smiled shyly before taking a sip of my cocktail.
The festivities continued. One of Tina's friends made german chocolate cake and it was topped with two large number candles that spelled out thirty. She looked at the candles with sad eyes, but her appreciative smile remained. She blew out the tiny flames without much thought. Most of her gifts were thoughtful with a couple over the hill jokes thrown in. I must have looked like a jerk for having nothing to give her then, but I had a box burning a hole in my khakis.
I mostly kept to myself when not being directly addressed. I told my story and how I knew Tina, but most of the conversations revolved around Tina and her friends. She would catch my eye with a soft smile from across the living room every once in a while to keep me included. I wanted her to myself.
Tina's friends left in small groups until I was the only one left. I assumed there would be a bigger celebration on the weekend. It was the beginning of an age where work came before play. After gathering glasses and plates, Tina's roommate called it a night.
"Do you need help with anything?" I asked, following Tina into the kitchen.
"You're my guest," Tina said, shaking her head as she came back from downing a remaining glass of wine.
"It's your birthday," I argued.
She playfully rolled her eyes before turning to join her glass with others in the sink. "Where are you staying?"
"Where's good?"
"You knew I'd tell you to stay here, didn't you," she said crossing her arms and leaning against the kitchen counter.
"I had a hunch."
Tina chuckled and shook her head, "If you must feel useful, gather the empty bottles and place them in the recycling bin."
"Yes ma'am."
"Don't call me ma'am…you're making me feel my age."
I did as I was told before rejoining Tina in the living room. She sat in the middle of the three sectioned couch against the wall. Her bare elbows were against her stocking covered knees, and she rested her chin in her hands. She appeared to have changed her mind about completely cleaning up, for she had a fresh glass of wine in front of her.
"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked squeezing between the coffee table and armchair to meet her.
"I'm…thirty," she said with a face.
"What's wrong with thirty? I'm thirty."
"It's just not what I imagined, that's all," she said, sitting up. "I thought I'd feel put together and successful with an important job or a stable relationship…maybe I'll get a dog tomorrow."
"Don't be down on yourself," I said, placing my hand on her closest knee. "And don't get a dog."
"You're right, I'd be a much better cat lady."
"No cats either." I said. "New pets don't move well."
"Where am I going?" she laughed.
I removed my hand from her knee and reached into my pocket. "Happy 30th birthday," I said holding the little box out to her.
"Oh no…you didn't have to get me anything."
"Open it."
She took the box. "This already looks too nice…Artie,no."
"Open it."
She pouted, but then slowly pulled apart the box.
"Eleven years ago, I made a promise that you wouldn't spend your life alone…and I've lost you too many times to not keep a promise that big."
"Y-you're proposing…why would you propose to me? Is this pity? Is this a joke? You don't even like me like that. Did my mother put you up to this, I-"
"Stop," I said, placing the box on the coffee table. "I love you"
"This isn't a joke?:
"I'd get down on one knee if I could."
Tina cracked a smile. She paused before reaching for the box. Cradling the the velveteen rectangle in her lap, she opened it back up, and stared at the content inside. I watched her carefully, holding back my desire to tuck the barrier her hair created behind her ear. My heart was ready to beat out of my chest. I heard the box close, and Tina returned it to the coffee table. She gathered her hair behind her opposite shoulder and turned her head to look at me. I blinked, and she kissed me. It was slow and lingering. She pulled back, but kept her face close. Our eyes met in the middle.
"This is all so much," she softly spoke. I could see tears welling in her eyes.
I kissed her forehead before stretching over her lap for the ring. I unboxed it and took her left hand in mine.
"Tina, will you marry me?"
She blinked and tears streamed down her face, but with a heavy sniff, she nodded furiously. I gleamed and carefully slid the ring onto the appropriate finger. It was a little big, but nothing a jeweler couldn't fix. Tina was close to sobbing, and I wiped the waterworks from her cheeks with my thumbs.
"Now you're not just saying yes because you're old now, right?"
"I love you," she smiled though her tears. "I promise."
"I've waited so long to hear you say that."
"I've waited so long to say it, Artie."
