A/N: This starts off in September 2007. I tried my best with the Marine information, so don't hate me if some things are wrong. I got this idea when talking to a friend who I went to middle school with got engaged after graduation to her boyfriend who's joining the Army. And then I watched the Engaged and Underage marathon on MTV, so needless to say, this was wracked in my mind.
Engaged & Underage
The sounds of Jessica Simpson's "Come on Over" floated through the purple and white bedroom of seventeen year old Cadence Tanner. Checking her long blonde hair in the mirror of the upstairs bathroom one last time, she ran to grab her cell phone, knowing who was calling her by the ring tone. "Hey you."
"Hey babe," her boyfriend's baritone voice drifted through the speaker, causing the smile on her face to brighten. "Almost ready?"
With her closet door opened, she took a peek at the mirror on the door and tilted her head to one side. Her bangs were pulled away from her face in a little up-do and held back with a bobby pin as the rest of her hair laid down pin straight. She sported a simple black dress with a white belt across the midsection paired off with a pair of black ballet flats. "Yeah. Are you just about here?"
"I'm pulling up front now." The two said their goodbyes as Cady tried to clean her room the best she could considering throwing clothes all over the floor while she was getting ready. After tossing everything on her bed and grabbing her small black Chanel purse, she slipped her cell phone inside and started towards the stairs when the doorbell rang.
When she got downstairs, she saw her boyfriend and her father talking in the front hallway. Her father shook his hand and went to turn around to call for Cadence, only to see her standing on the staircase. "You two have fun. Randy, take care of my little girl."
"Yes, sir." Cady grabbed Randy's letterman jacket that he gave her a few months back off of the bench in the front hall and placed a kiss to her father's cheek. "And, sir, thank you." Caleb Tanner, Sr. just nodded and headed back to the den down the hall where Cadence's mother was.
"Thank you for what, Randy?"
Randy just shook his head. "Nothing for you to worry about, babe. And you look fantastic by the way."
Cadence could feel the blush rising in her cheeks as her boyfriend of six years placed a kiss on her lips. "Thanks. I could say the same about you."
Cadence wasn't sure where they were going exactly, but figured it was nice since Randy was dressed in black dress pants and a simple baby blue dress shirt to compliment his eye color, something Cady taught him how to do. "Ready?" She nodded and slipped on his jacket before taking his hand and following him outside.
Cadence couldn't help the smile that crossed her lips when Randy opened the door for her when they arrived at Lorusso's Cucina, one of Cady's favorite restaurants. It was right on the water, so every one of the last few times that Randy had brought her here, she loved to take a walk around with him to watch the moonlight's reflection splash over the water.
Once seated, Randy reached across the table to take Cadence's hand, and couldn't help but admire how glowing she looked in the candlelight. "Happy Anniversary, babe."
"Happy Anniversary, Randy." Neither really believed in anniversary gifts, so to be together on the night of their anniversary was perfect enough. Especially now, any time that they got to be together was fantastic, though it didn't come around enough. After graduation, Randy jumped right into the Marines, and once he was allowed to, he moved back to St. Louis from Camp Pendleton in California. He was now stationed in Waynesville, Missouri, the closest that he could get to his family -- and Cadence -- while working through the Marine Detachment Program.
xXx
After dinner, the two took a walk around the harbor, holding hands and talking about the past six years. Many people, even their parents, believed that they wouldn't make it last, despite the couple themselves disagreeing. They figured that since they started dating when Cadence was in seventh grade, that it would be ridiculous for them to even last until she graduated. The two wanted to prove them wrong by hoping to last quite a while longer than her upcoming June 8th 2008 graduation ceremony.
Cadence raised an eyebrow in Randy's direction when he stopped walking. And if her eyebrow could be raised any higher, it definitely would have been when she watched Randy get down on one knee. "Randy."
Keeping her hand held inside of his, he flashed her a smile. "For six years, Cady, you have made me the happiest person in the world. Whether it was a good luck kiss before a football game or a text message telling me how much you loved me during the day, I have never understood how I got so lucky. With everything that has happened over the last six years, you have always stood by my side, as I have yours, and I want nothing more than to spend the next several years with you. And only you. Cadence Violet Adriana Tanner, will you do me the honor of being my wife?"
Feeling tears slide down her cheeks, she couldn't erase the smile displaying over her lips. Her breath caught in her throat when Randy reached into his pocket, pulling out a simple black box. When he opened it to reveal a single half carat princess cut diamond on a modest platinum band, Cady covered her mouth with her right hand and nodded. "Yes. Absolutely."
As Randy slipped the ring on her finger, she lost it, letting more and more tears stream her face. "Baby, don't cry." Randy stood up and picked Cadence up in his arms to spin her around. When her feet touched the ground, their lips were joined as one, Cady still not believing what had just happened. "I love you."
"I love you, too." Cadence placed her hands on either side of Randy's face and shook her head. "This is what you talked to my father about." When Randy nodded, she closed her eyes, letting a smile envelope her face, especially when the brunette placed a kiss to her forehead. "I'm marrying a Marine. I must be crazy."
"I could have told you that, babe." She opened her eyes and caught a glimpse of the moonlight shining directly on her ring. "But I love you just the way you are."
xXx