Chapter 35: HE – One Knee
A bead of sweat falls from his forehead. His pulse throbs in erratic beats.
Nine years. It was nine years to this day that he grew some balls and confessed to Bella that he loved her. Nine years ago, love blossomed between him and a girl that he thought was a dream.
"You have nothing to fear!" Kate assured him when he told his friends about today's plans. "There's no way she'll say more to you."
"It's Bella. She wouldn't deny marrying one of the best men in the world," Tanya told him. Since his impulsive kiss, he and Tanya drifted apart. They are still friends, but they aren't as close as they were in high school. The tension between them never faded. A few weeks after the kiss, they agreed to keep their distance to salvage their friendship. Thankfully, Kate and the others respected his wishes. While he still hangs out with the girls, most of his time is spent with Bella, Rose, and Emmett.
"If she said no, I'll play Baby to her every day for the rest of her life," Rose joked. If there was one song Bella disliked from Justin Bieber, it's Baby. She would rather drink toilet water than listen to that song.
He opens the little black box on his left palm. The ring nestled inside gleams in the sunlight.
It's almost sunset. Bella should be here soon. She's under the impression that he has planned a romantic beachside picnic to commemorate their nine-year anniversary. But today isn't just another anniversary. Today will mark the day he's asking the biggest question in his 26-year existence.
If Emmett can do it, so can you.
The Brit's marriage to Bella's best friend is in a week. If he's feeling this nervous now, he can't imagine how much more nervous he'll be on his own wedding day.
In the distance, he sees Bella walking through the beach's boardwalk. He closes the box and shoves it into the back pocket of his pants. It's showtime.
"Damn, Nutty E. You really outdid yourself." His eyes glazes over the casual red dress she's wearing. It's the same dress she wore the day when they had sex for the first time. How ironic.
On a green blanket is a scattering of white rose petals. Two bottles of champagne are out, as well as the same basket he used on their first date with the food he brought for dinner.
"It's all for you, DF."
"Awww… I'm surprised the petals didn't blow away."
"They're taped down." He had Kate and Tanya help him stick the rose petals on the blanket.
She chuckles. "Genius. If only people were smart enough to do that if they wanted to do the whole rose petal thing outside than inside."
"Right?" He grabs her hands. "It's your intelligence that was one of the reasons why I fell in love with you."
"I could say the same for you, Mr. Almost Doctor."
"Uh-huh." He gazes into her brown eyes, the pair of orbs that enamored him since the first time he saw her as a fifteen-year-old. "Isabella Swan, from the moment I saw you, you fascinated me. You were a girl that I noticed upon a sea of other students. For the rest of high school, I thought you were an impossible dream. I thought I messed up every chance I had to be with you. The months after we graduated, I couldn't get you out of my head. I regretted not telling you how I felt and I believed I would never fall in love with another girl the way I loved you. When I saw you that day in the bus, I had hope that destiny didn't fail me. And when you gave me a chance to be with you, I knew you would always be the one for me."
Keeping her hands clasped in his, he kneels down. She gasps. She doesn't speak, though he has an idea she knows what will come next.
"No amount of words will be enough to tell you how much you mean to me. I could say 'I love you' all the time until the day I die and it would be still be insufficient. You've always stood by my side. You gave me the strength to keep chasing my dreams. We've been there for each other for every goal we achieved. You have the best smile and the best laugh and the best heart I want to be in for the rest of my life."
He lets go of her hands and fishes for the box in his pocket. He opens the box, revealing the ring to her.
"Will you marry me? Will you be my DF forever?"
She chokes back a cry, her eyes glistening with tears.
She nods. "Yes, Nutty E. I'll always be yours."
With a huge smile on his face, he stands up and slips the ring on her ring finger. He grabs her face in his hands, kissing her with all the love he held for her all these years.
Mrs. Nutty E.
His eternal destiny and fate.