"Maybelle," Corny said taking her by the hand, "This is your time." He said leading her front and center. He stepped back behind his podium, letting pride wash over his body, as the love of his life was leading the way to change.
She finished her verse and went back to the podium with Corny, turning the stage over to the kids. Corny could do nothing but sing and dance next to her. He felt as if everything in his life was going right.
The show ended and the gang was heading back to Maybelle's for a party.
Corny was watching Maybelle talk to Penny, and was amayzed. She was truely beautiful and gracious and everything he ever wanted.
"Hey May," Corny ask walking up to her. He placed a hand on her back startling her, " can I talk to you for a minute?" Maybelle just nodded and held up a finger to Penny as a way of saying 'i'll be right back'.
She walked with Corny wondering what he wanted to talk about. As they arrived in his office, Maybelle was feeling nervous all of a sudden. He never took her to his office unless something was wrong. Maybelle shut the door behind her and sat on the edge of his desk.
"What's on your mind baby?" Maybelle ask Corny as he paced the floor. He hadn't been this nervous in a long time. He was going to ask her to marry him. They had been together long enough and he wanted to make her his wife.
"Will you be my co-host?" Corny ask, he panicd and chickend out. It's okay he thought, calming himself.
"Of course Corny." Maybelle agreed, with a slight nod.
"Good." Corny said before pulling her off of his desk into and embrace and kiss.
"Come on the kids are waiting." he said letting her go. He took her hand and they walked out of the studio and to her car.
"I'll meet you all at the shop with Tracy and Link. You good to get Penny, Seaweed, and Inez?" Corny asked closing the door to her car after she had got in. Maybelle nodded turing on the car. She watched him walk away and get in his car before driving off.
They all arrived at the shop, laughing and singing, ready to eat and party some more. They all talked and danced while Maybelle got the food together with the help of Corny.
"Ok everything is ready. Go get the kids." Maybell said wipeing her hands with a towel.
"Acutually I want to talk to you first." Corny said stepping behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist.
"About what?" Maybelle ask as she turned to face him, still in his warm embrace.
"About this." Corny said lifting her chin, bringing her lips up to his. As they stood in the kitchen, lips locked with one another's it felt like time was at a stand still and it was just them.
"Eh em!" Seaweed cleared his throat. They quickly pulled away from each other laughing.
"Food's done." Maybelle said wiping the remnince of her lipstick off. They set the table while Maybelle went upstairs to change.
"Hey kids, can I speak to all of you for a minute?" Corny ask while Maybelle was away. They all focused their attintion to Corny, listining to what he had to say.
"I want to ask Maybelle to marry me on the show friday." Corny admitted to the children nervously. He got no response verbally but the looks on their faces said it all. Inez was so excited that Corny thought she would burst, Seaweed had this questioning look on his face, Tracy looked almost at excited as Inez, while Link and Penny had a understanding and quite content look.
"I think you should go ahead and do it." Link said as Maybelle walked down the steps.
"Do what?" Maybelle asked as she stepped behind Corny.
"Nothing!" They all said in unison, suspisiously. Maybelle just shruged it off as her and Corny sat down with everybody else. They all sat and talked while eating and danced some more. It was nearing midnight and the kids still had school the next day.
"Alright kids its time for you two to get home." Maybelle said motioning to Link and Tracy.
"Yall need a ride?" Maybelle ask getting her keys.
"No ma'am. We can walk the 2 minutes to Tracy's and i'm staying there tonight so I think we're okay." Link told Maybelle. Maybelle gave them both hugs and told them to be safe, sending them on their way.
"Penny go with Inez to get some clothes to sleep in and I'll find you something to wear to school tommorrow. Seaweed go make your bed so Penny won't feel like she's sleeping in a pig's stye." Maybelle said dismissing them. Once they were gone it was just her and Corny.
"Okay baby time for you to go home." Maybelle said giving him a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. Corny didn't want to leave. He wanted to stay here with her wrapped tightly in his arms.
"I don't want to leave you and the kids here by yourselfs. People that are angry might try to come after one of you all and I don't want that." Corny explained to her, holding her tighter.
"No Corny. You need to go home and get some rest." Maybelle said unwrapping herself from his arms.
"I would rest better with you in my arms. If I was to go home I would be up all night worried about you." Corny replied rewrapping himself around her. He bent down and gave Maybelle kisses along the right side of her neck, making her melt into his arms.
"Okay Okay you can stay." Maybelle said pushing him off of her, earning a smile from him.
"Seaweed come and get Rory some sweatpants please?!" Maybelle yelled to her son. Corny loved it when Maybelle called him by his real name. It seemed so graceful coming from her lips, and it made his heart skip several beats.
Maybelle was already in bed, laying on her side, staring at nothing in particular, when Corny walks in and makes Maybelle's breath hitch in her throat. He had on Seaweed's black sweatpants on and no shirt. His torso was everything that always haunted her dreams. He had an eight-pack and a chest for the gods. He was perfect.
"Baby you're drooling." Corny said climbing into her bed. Maybelle embarissingly wiped her mouth, mentally beating herself up. She looked at him once more before turing over feeling suddenly insecure. She allowed Corny to wrap his arms around her and pull her to his chest, but she still felt a certain way about it.
"Baby," Maybelle asked, turning over to face him, "why me?"
"What do mean Belle?" Corny ask. He was sort of confused by the question.
"Why me? Why do you choose to be in a relationship with me? Why did you choose me to be your co-host?" Maybelle ask, avoiding eye contact with him.
"Because you're perfect." Corny said taking one arm from around her only to lift her head up to allow her eyes to meet his.
"No i'm not." Maybelle said. Corny was very confused about where this was coming from. She was never this insecure. At least not around him.
"Baby are you okay?" Corny ask. He needed to know what was making her feel this way. Maybelle shook her head and scooted away from him.
"Hey what's wrong?" Corny ask as he saw a tear slip from her gorgeous brown eyes and rolled down her freshly washed cheek.
"I don't deserve you." Maybelle said inching futher away from him. Corny didn't know how to respond back to her. He didn't know how to tell her that the situation was the exact opposite.
"Baby come here," Corny said inviting her back to him, "that is not true because it's me that doesn't deserve you. You are so strong, talented, confident and so beautiful. You are an amazing girlfriend, mother and all around mentor for all of the kids. You are perfect." Maybelle was speechless. She didn't know what to say. She looked up into his eyes and saw nothing but sincerety and love. As they lay there in stillness and silence, they both considered how much they ment to each other.
"I love you." Corny said, pulling her as close to him as physically possible.
"I love you too." Maybelle said before wraping her arms around his neck and pulling him into a kiss. As their kiss deepened, hands explored places that they hadn't been, things became more heated between them and boundaries were being tested.
Corny removed his lips from hers only to immedietly latch them to her neck. Maybelle moaned in response loving the feeling of his lips on her neck. Eventually the two pulled apart and drifted to sleep.