Chapter 7: Cold Pizza

We pulled into Darren's driveway in the middle of the afternoon, and I insisted on bringing all of our stuff in immediately. I could tell he felt something between annoyance and amusement, but neither of us commented on it further as we put everything away.

Darren ordered from his favorite pizza place - mushroom, pepperoni, and tomato on my half, the works on his - since neither of us felt up to cooking anything for dinner.

We settled on the couch in his living room, eating off the coffee table. Silence fell as Darren started on his first piece, but I put mine down without taking a bite.

"Darren? I need to talk to you about...something..."

"Anything...is it important enough that should I stop chewing?" he asked with a grin, but then realized from the look on my face that it was serious.

He swallowed, laid his pizza back in the box, and asked, "What's the matter, Rhi?" Aren't you...enjoying yourself?"

"Maybe too much, Dare."

"I'm confused."

"I am too...I'm just going to talk and see if this makes any more sense out loud than it does in my head."

I could tell he wanted to comfort me but wasn't sure how, so he went for his standby, holding my hands, which did calm me a little bit.

"Darren, Las Vegas was incredible...being with you was the best, of course, although it wouldn't have mattered where that happened. But, the Glee shows, and meeting your friends, and seeing what you do, and the hotel, and Bette Midler...it was all...I'm running out of adjectives."

He nodded for me to go on. He obviously had learned that it sometimes takes me a while to get to a point, especially if I'm not sure what the point is.

"But, now that we're here, in your house, it's starting to feel less like a...vacation, and more like...real life."

"And that's a problem?" Darren asked gently.

"Problem might be too strong of a word. It's been obvious since we met that...something is happening between us, but I'm still not sure what it is."

"And that's a problem," he stated with certainty.

I shrugged, not wanting to make a mountain out of a molehill, but feeling...unsure enough to be uncomfortable.

"Rhi, is it okay if I make a few observations that might clear things up for you?"

"Sure, Dare, go ahead."

He started by smiling reassuringly at me. "Even though it seems like you are more...confident about my feelings toward you, I think you might still be a little worried that I'm just marking time with you until someone better comes along."

I shrugged again, but we both knew he was right.

"Rhi, there is no one better! Something IS happening. Something I never expected or even dreamed of, but something that I can't believe I'm lucky enough to experience. I'm getting you...a smart, opinionated, clever, blunt, funny, occasionally obsessive, sweet, beautiful girl."

I smiled, replying, "And I'm getting you...a talented, moderately messy, handsome, occasionally extravagant, funny, easily-distracted, smart, thoughtful guy."

Darren's smile had been widening while I listed his personal qualities, but then he got serious again.

"And, Rhi, I am so looking forward to us learning more about each other, the good and the not-so-good. But I already know more than enough to know how I feel about you. And I hope it's the same for you."

I nodded, the lump in my throat not letting any words escape.

Suddenly, my easily-distracted Darren jumped up, yelling, "Hold on a sec," and ran into the mudroom, digging through his messenger bag.

I had just opened my mouth to ask him what he was looking for when he hopped over the armrest and sat back down across from me.

"I wanted do this somewhere a little more...dignified than on my couch over take-out pizza, but..."

He pulled a ring box out from behind his back, and I gasped.

Darren looked up at my shocked face, and realizing what I was thinking, blurted, "No, Rhi, we've got a long way to go before a proposal. My girlfriend is a planner, you see."

My eyebrows immediately shot up at his choice of words, and he opened the box to reveal two simple yet breath-taking rings made out of braided strands of silver.

He handed me the box. "They're promise rings, Rhi. These will show the world, and more importantly you, that I love you, and only you."

"You do?" I squeaked out.

"I was pretty sure when you sent that email about long distance relationships. You were trying so hard to give me hope, but were incredibly careful to make it clear that you didn't want to pressure me, and all I wanted to do was jump on a plane back to Wisconsin."

"Oh, Dare! Wait...you said you were pretty sure a couple of weeks ago. What about now?"

"After these last few days together, I'm positive. I love how forthright you are. I love how sentimental you are. I love the depths I see in your eyes. I love your snarky wit. I love your lists. I love how kind you are to Mrs. Donovan. I love how you curl into me even when you're asleep. I love everything about you, Rhiannon Abigail Harris," he finished on a whisper, then held my head between his hands and we kissed until we had to pull apart, breathless.

I gazed at the rings I was still holding, rubbing my thumb over them, when something occurred to me.

"There are two rings..."

"One's for you, Rhiannon..."

"And one's for you, Dare," I gave him a quick kiss and continued, "Then it's a good thing..."

"What's a good thing?"

"It's a good thing I love your hair no matter how long it is or how much gel is in it. It's a good thing I love how you manage to surprise me without upsetting me - too much. It's a good thing I love your adorable smile. It's a good thing I love that you lose track of what you're talking about. It's a good thing I love when you sing to me, whether it's just us or in front of thousands of people. It's a good thing I love that you love holding my hands. I love everything about you, Darren Everett Criss," I whispered back.

I crawled into his lap, and well, you can guess what happened next. I'll give you a hint...the pizza got VERY cold!