Max looked between Alex and Elizabeth for a few seconds as his mind slowly caught on to what just happened.
Lizzie was still holding her hands over her face and sending a pleading look towards her brother. 'I'm so sorry' she mouthed and Alex sighed but gave her an understanding look. She looked like she was about to cry but he knew that the cat was out of the bag now.
All of Max's friends were silent and waiting, watching them both with slight confusion and excitement.
"Alex?" Max turned to him with a very confused look, frowning at him, "what does she mean?"
Alex took in a deep breath, he didn't want to do this with all of these people watching him, but realized that he had no choice, it was now or never.
He turned to face his boyfriend, who was still looking at him with slight confusion but Alex could see the little hopeful sparkle in his eyes, and he smiled.
"Max, I didn't want to do this in front of everyone but..." he started, already feeling his nerves going haywire inside his body, "you remember that day in the coffee shop, when you first spoke to me."
Max smiled and nodded but remained silent.
"I tried as hard as i could to stop you from talking to me, to turn your back on me like i wanted at the time, but you didn't. Your optimism and care, for someone you hadn't meet before, saved my life. It really did. You saved me. Things haven't been easy, getting to know you, learning how to be a friend...a real friend, it took a lot."
Kurt, Blaine, Sebastian and Justin were all watching and had moved a little closer to listen to Alex's speech. None of them could help the small smiles that spread across their lips.
"You pushed me, and took care of me, and became the best friend i had ever had before, your enthusiasm and love made me realize the good things about myself that i wanted to get back, things i had forgotten about. You did that Max, you."
Max seemed to realize what direction that Alex was going with this speech, and his eyes lit up with love and hope, his smile became even wider. Some of his friends were smiling too, excited for what was happening.
"I mean, as hard as my life had been before you showed up, it was nothing compared to trying to hide my feelings from you. because i fell in love with you from the very first moment you yelled at me about my family, and pushed me to make amends. I love you Max, more than anything, and ii would never forgive myself if i let you go, without doing this."
He got up from his chair, and knelt on one knee in front of him, Max's hand flew up to cover his mouth, in shock and awe of what was happening. A squeal went around the girls in the group, and Alex grinned at him.
"I could live without you being with me, but i don't want to," Alex said with his voice cracking a little, and he could feel the burning behind his eyes, "i want to be with you forever, you are not my first but i want you to be my last everything."
"Alex..." Max whispered behind his hand, his own eyes shining with tears.
Alex brought the small box out of his pocket. He had spent a lot of time looking through every jewellers to find the perfect ring, something that showed Max just how much he meant to him. He had found it after 5 hours browsing through different selections of everything, it was simple white gold ring, but it had a small heart shaped dark blue coloured diamond in the middle.
He had it engraved too, and he would never tell anyone how much that cost. He had wanted something that was private, just for them, and it said 'Family isn't about blood', something Max had said to him that had resonated within him.
"I love you, and i want to spend the rest of my life with you, building a future and chasing our dreams together. And i know we're only young but," Alex finished and with a grin he opened the box, managing to keep the ring out of sight of others, so that it was just for Max first, "will you marry me?"
Max stared down at the ring, blinking his eyes, causing the tears that had built there to splash against his hand, while Alex waited patiently. Everyone else stared between them for a long moment, all holding their breath, but as Max took his hand away and laughed, everyone smiled.
"Yes," Max said gently, "yes, of course i will."
They both grinned so widely that it hurt their faces, but Alex didn't care, he pulled the ring free of the small cushion in the box and held it out for Max's hand, sliding it on carefully. Max stared down at it for a moment before throwing his arms around Alex's shoulders.
Max smashed his mouth against Alex's as the entire group of people surrounding them started applauding and whooping loudly. Alex pushed his tongue against Max's lips, needing a deeper and more real kiss after that nerve wracking situation, and Max opened his lips happily.
A few hollers and wolf whistles made them pull apart, and then Sebastian and Justin were engulfing Max in their arms, while Alex was surrounded by his own family.
He felt the sobs choke him as he leaned into his parents, but Blaine held him steady while Kurt shushed him.
"You did good kid." His dad whispered in his ear, and he laughed wetly.