Cosmo was sitting in the kitchen late next morning, about to eat breakfast. He had arrived home very late last night, and had been grilled by his mother about where he'd been. He had been with Wanda, of course; sitting on the hill, watching the stars, and kissing a bit more. He had meant to lie about it, but his mother had gotten the truth out of him easily.

She stormed into the kitchen now, still furious that her son had been out all night with a girl. "I thought you weren't seeing her anymore," Mama Cosma snapped as Cosmo rummaged around in the cupboard for his favourite cereal.

"It was a mistake," he said vaguely, pouncing on the cereal box.

"I'll say it was a mistake," she said. "You shouldn't have gotten mixed up with that girl in the first place."

"Her name's Wanda," said Cosmo calmly, pouring cereal into a bowl. "And I love her."

"You don't love her!" yelled Mama Cosma. Then her voice softened. "Cosmo, my little Cosmo, you don't need that Wanda girl. You'd be better just to stay here with your Mama. I love you, and I'll take care of you."

Cosmo frowned; he had gotten a toy with his cereal. It was a pink plastic ring, with a shiny heart-shaped piece of plastic in the middle. Usually when he got a surprise in his cereal, he flew around the kitchen with excitement. This time, however, it made him think. The pink reminded him of Wanda. He knew he loved Wanda; he was surer about it than he had been about anything in his life. He thought about what his Mama had said. He loved her too, but definitely not in the same way he loved Wanda.

He loved his mother, but didn't want to spend the rest of his life living at home with her. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Wanda. What was it called when two people did that? Started with an 'M'. Monkey?

Yay monkeys! Cosmo daydreamed happily about them for a few minutes before concentrating again. What was it called? M…m…mar…marry! That was it! Cosmo wanted to marry Wanda. What did he need if he was going to ask her to marry him? Cosmo remembered that on all the soaps he'd watched, the men always had a ring. Cosmo looked down at the cereal prize gripped in his hand. Perfect! It would even go with her hair. Now he just needed to find her, and to do that properly, he needed to leave his Mama. He needed a good excuse, one that she would believe and would stop her coming after him. He scanned the tabletop, hoping to find some inspiration. His eyes rested on an empty bottle, and his mind lit up with the perfect excuse.

"Mama, we're out of milk. I'll just go and get some."

"Okay, Cosmo. Don't be gone to long!" she called.

Cosmo flew over and hugged her. "Goodbye Mama. I love you." Then he flew out the door without a backward glance. He was off to find Wanda.

---

As Cosmo set off to propose to her, Wanda was crawling out of bed. She had gotten home late last night, then had to stay up another two hours listening to her father's lecture. She pulled opened the curtain on her window and groaned; the sunlight was so bright. She poofed on her dress and groaned again; she had forgotten she had agreed to meet Juandissimo at the park today. How could she ever be happy around Juandissimo after her wonderful night with Cosmo, thinking of his grin, of his green eyes, of the way it felt when he touched her, of his kiss…

Wanda floated with a dopey grin on her face for a few minutes until Blonda poked her head around the door-frame.

"I thought you were meeting Juandissimo at 11:30," she said.

"I am," Wanda replied, smoothing out her dress.

"Then you're already 5 minutes late."

Wanda glanced at the clock, and saw that her sister was right.

"Gee, thanks a lot, Blonda," she yelled as she rushed down the stairs. Before she could make it to the front door, her father stopped her.

"Where are going, young lady," he asked strictly, blocking her path.

"I'm going to meet Juandissimo, Daddy," she answered.

"Not the one with the green hair…oh what's his name…"

"Cosmo?" Wanda reminded.

"Yeah, Cosmo. You aren't going to be with him, are you?"

Wanda sighed. Her father had voiced a fear she held in her heart; would she ever be with Cosmo?

"No Daddy," she answered. Unless I have anything to do with it.

Big Daddy let her leave. Wanda poofed to the park, next to her and Juandissimo's bench. Juandissimo was already there.

"You are late, Wanda."

"Sorry, I slept in," she explained. He floated over and held her.

"It does not matter. You are here now." He leant forward and kissed her. Wanda felt absolutely nothing. With the memory of Cosmo's touch and Cosmo's kiss still fresh in her mind, Juandissimo came a poor second. She pulled away, and Juandissimo was surprised. No girl had refused him before, especially not Wanda. Perhaps she was worried about something. He tried to take her mind off whatever was distracting her.

"Where did you go last night after the dance, Wanda? I was looking for you."

"Really? Or are you confusing me for another girl?" Wanda said it lightly, but the accusatory tone was clear.

"I mean you of course, Wanda. I love you." He stroked her cheek. "So where did you go?"

"Last night, after the dance, I was with Cosmo," said Wanda bluntly. She felt that now was the time to be upfront with Juandissimo. "You and me, Juandissimo, we were never meant to be."

He drew his hand away. "Wanda, what are you saying?"

"I'm saying that we're over. You're a nice guy and everything, and very sexy, don't get me wrong…" Juandissimo grinned and ripped his shirt off at this point, "… but it's time we went our separate ways."

"But Wanda, how can you say that? We are meant for each other."

"Do I have to keep on talking til I can't go on?" said Wanda, starting to get frustrated. "Try to see it my way. Only time will tell if I am right or I am wrong. But I have a feeling I am right."

"So…so you're breaking up with me?" he said in disbelief. Wanda sighed with relief; now he was getting it.

"I'm sorry Juandissimo, but this is the way it's got to be. I just don't love you. We aren't meant for each other."

"But you and Cosmo are, no?" he said sadly.

"Yes. And I love him so much. Oh, cheer up Juandissimo," Wanda said to her now ex-boyfriend. "There are heaps of pretty girls out there. You'll get over me soon enough. It's not like you'll be pining for me in ten thousand years or anything."

Juandissimo sighed. "I suppose you are right," he said sadly, but Wanda had already gone. She was off to find Cosmo.

---

While Wanda was breaking up with Juandissimo, Cosmo was with his friends at the Shed.

"Guys, do you know where Wanda is?" he asked when he arrived.

"We thought you'd know, you two seemed pretty close last night," said Giorge, grinning.

"Yeah," said Pall. "What did you guys get up to? You disappeared pretty fast once the dance ended."

Cosmo blushed and mumbled something he hoped would make them leave him alone.

"Ooh, he's blushing," Jon teased.

"No I'm not," mumbled Cosmo, blushing even more.

"All right, we'll leave you alone," said Giorge, even though the three of them continued to grin. "Why do you want to find her so much anyway?"

Cosmo looked at them. Could he tell them? Would they laugh? He decided to let them know, because they were his best friends, and they might give him some advice.

"Well, I, uhm, I want to ask her to marry me."

Whatever Jon, Pall and Giorge were expecting to hear, it wasn't that. Their grins had turned into looks of shock and astonishment.

"Whoa, mate, are you, like, serious?" said Pall, not quite able to believe it.

Cosmo nodded. "I really love her, and I want to spend the rest of my life with her."

"Oh right, well then, uhm, we don't know where she is," said Jon. He was surprised by Cosmo's display of seriousness and determination. "By the way, mate, do you have a ring?"

"Oh yeah!" said Cosmo, fishing in his pocket and pulling out the plastic toy. "See! Do you think she'll like it?"

Reassured that Cosmo would always be Cosmo, even when proposing, they assured him that Wanda would love it.

"Well, if you do see her, don't tell her, okay?"

"We promise," said Pall. "And Wanda might be at her house; you could look for her there."

"Oh yeah, great idea!" said Cosmo, raising his wand to poof there immediately.

"Cosmo, wait," Giorge said, stopping Cosmo from leaving. "Isn't she still going out with Juandissimo? You can't ask her to marry you if she is. It's just…wrong."

Cosmo frowned; Giorge had a point.

"Alright then," said Cosmo after thinking for a few minutes. "You guys look for Juandissimo, and try to convince him to break up with Wanda."

"And where will you be?" asked Jon.

"Looking for Wanda. Duh!" said Cosmo. "Then when Juandissimo breaks up with her, I'll be right there to ask her to marry me."

"On the rebound? But Cosmo, wouldn't it be better to wait a bit and…" Giorge trailed off, because Cosmo had already gone.

---

Cosmo poofed up outside Wanda's house. He nervously straightened his hair again, because if Big Daddy answered the door, he didn't want to look scruffy. He knocked on the door, and it was opened a minute later by a gorgeous, glamorous fairy. Cosmo gasped, and suddenly found himself unable to speak. He had completely forgotten what he'd wanted to say, or even why he was there in the first place. The fairy in front of him looked exactly like Wanda, except she had blonde hair, and a glamour that Wanda just didn't.

"Yes, what do you want?" said Blonda, sounding bored.

Cosmo choked slightly, trying to remember what he wanted, as well as how to speak. The initial thought he had was that he wanted the fairy in front of him. But then he frowned; that wasn't right. He wanted someone like this fairy, but different some how. He wanted…

"Wanda," he gasped. "Is she here?"

"No," said Blonda, examining her nails. "She's out with Juandissimo. You know…her boyfriend," she added pointedly.

"Oh, right…" said Cosmo, his heart sinking. Blonda rolled her eyes and closed the door, and Cosmo poofed away, more determined than ever to find Wanda.

---

An hour later, Pall was floating through the park, looking half-heartedly for Juandissimo. He and the guys had decided to split up so they could cover more ground. Pall, Jon and Giorge secretly thought that they'd never be able to convince Juandissimo to give Wanda up, especially to someone like Cosmo. But they had agreed to do it to keep their friend happy, even if they didn't hold much hope of finding Juandissimo in the first place. Which was why Pall was surprised to find him so easily, sitting on a park bench, apparently crying.

"Juandissimo, what's wrong?" Pall asked, sitting down next to him.

"Who are you?" asked Juandissimo, looking at his unexpected company. He narrowed his eyes. "You were one of the fairies talking to Wanda last night, weren't you? Are you friends with Cosmo?"

"I'm Pall, yes, and yes." answered Pall.

"Ooh, Cosmo, that little, no good, girlfriend stealing…." Juandissimo muttered.

"Is that what you're upset about? Wanda?" asked Pall, sitting up a little straighter.

"Yes and yes," answered Juandissimo with a sigh.

"Do you want to talk about it?" asked Pall, in his best you-can-trust-me-so-tell-me-everything voice. Juandissimo looked at him, ready to refuse, but instead he sighed again.

"She broke up with me."

"Really?" said Pall, sounding sorry, but inwardly relieved that he wouldn't have any hard work to do.

"She said that being with me was bringing her down," explained Juandissimo.

"Yeah?" said Pall, sympathetic.

"That she would never be free when I was around."

"Boy, that was harsh," said Pall.

"But she's my girlfriend," exclaimed Juandissimo angrily. "She ought to think twice, she ought to do right by me."

"But she's not your girlfriend anymore," said Pall matter-of-factly. "Maybe you should let her be happy. Maybe you should let her go."

"You would say that! You're Cosmo's friend!" Juandissimo snapped. Then his tone saddened. "And letting her go is hard. I've never been dumped by a girl before."

"Well," said Pall, trying to sound consoling, "when I find myself in times of trouble, my mother comes to me, speaking words of wisdom; let it be."

"Let it be…" repeated Juandissimo reflectively. "Those are wise words."

"So then you'll move on?" said Pall hopefully.

"Oh no!" assured Juandissimo. "Her dumping me has made her seem all that more alluring. I can always try to get her back later. In the meantime, I will try to find happiness with other lovely girls."

"Good for you, Juandissimo," said Pall, trying to hide a smile.

"Thankyou…what was your name again?"

"Pall," said Pall.

"Thankyou Pall," said Juandissimo, grasping his hand and shaking it firmly. "I will not forget what you have done for me this day. Now if you'll excuse me…" he trailed off, eyeing some girls near a water fountain.

"See you around, Juandissimo," said Pall, grinning as the handsome fairy floated off, flexing his muscles and flirting already. "Now I've got to go tell Cosmo the good news…"

But Pall didn't find Cosmo. Cosmo couldn't find Wanda. And Wanda didn't see Cosmo anywhere she went.

In fact, through a series of unlucky coincidences and bad timing, Cosmo and Wanda just missed seeing each other the entire day. As Wanda was leaving the Octopuses Garden, Cosmo would just be arriving. When Wanda had gathered the courage to check at his house after lunch, Cosmo had just left. When Cosmo checked Wanda's house again, he was told she was still out, probably with Juandissimo. When Wanda (after being delayed by Mama Cosma for 30 minutes) had gone to 'Sky and Diamonds', Lucy said Cosmo had left half an hour ago. When Cosmo checked the Shed, it was empty. When Wanda checked, the guys were jamming )they had given up their Cosmo hunt) and said they hadn't seen him since that morning. They did insist on congratulating Wanda on breaking up with Juandissimo though. This delayed her for another half-hour, as they demanded a moment-by-moment replay of the whole thing.

It was getting toward evening when Cosmo finally gave up his search for Wanda. He didn't want to go home, so he sat on top of the hill, playing with the ring. It didn't help that she had been with Juandissimo all day either. He was watching the sun setting, though he had learnt a long time ago that staring directly into it was a bad idea.

Wanda had poofed up silently behind him, but facing the opposite direction. She thought that watching the sun set would remind her too much of how her heart was doing the same. She had decided to come somewhere that reminded her of Cosmo and where she could be alone to think.

They both sighed and leaned back, accidentally leaning against each-other. They both leapt up, stammering apologies, until they realised who they were talking to.

"Cosmo!" cried Wanda, throwing her arms around him.

"Wanda!" yelled Cosmo, equally as happy, but tucking the ring into his pocket before he hugged her in return.

"I was looking for you all day!" she said.

"I was looking for you all day!" gasped Cosmo. Wanda was holding him very tightly. "Where were you?"

"I was breaking up with Juandissimo," she said happily, still holding him tightly. It was their first hug where Wanda knew he was all hers.

"Really?" asked Cosmo happily, until he started to look worried. "Will he hurt me?"

"No sweetie," assured Wanda with a smile. "I just explained to him that I don't love him and we're not meant to be together."

"And he accepted that?" asked Cosmo unbelievably.

"Who cares!" laughed Wanda. All that matters is that now I'm free to be your girlfriend."

Cosmo could see she was in a great mood, and decided to make it even better. "Wanda, I was looking for you today mostly because I wanted to talk to you," he started. "I was thinking maybe you'd want to be more than my boyfriend. I love you so much, and I want to be with you forever." He slid his hand into his pocket to find the ring.

"Wanda, will you…" he trailed off, fishing for the ring. "Will you…" Where was it! "Will you…"He had just put it in here a minute ago! "Uhm, will you…" he finally found it and pulled the ring out with a flourish. "Will you marry me?"

Wanda floated in a state of shock. She stared open-mouthed from the ring to Cosmo's grin. A grin which was beginning to fade to be replaced with concern.

"Are you serious?" she managed to ask.

Cosmo nodded his head. "I'm sick of things coming between us. I want to make sure we're together forever."

Wanda looked from the ring to Cosmo one last time, and began to grin. "Oh Cosmo!" she said with a laugh. "Of course I won't marry you!"

"Yay! You said… wait, you didn't say yes!"

"Cosmo, of course I didn't say yes," said Wanda. "We're way to young to get married. We haven't even really dated yet!"

"Oh," said Cosmo sadly. He slowly put the ring back in his pocket. "I see."

Wanda smiled and took his hand. "I said I wouldn't marry you. I never said I wouldn't be your girlfriend."

Cosmos head lifted quickly and his eyes met hers. She was smiling gently, and Cosmo began to grin. He pulled the ring out of his pocket once more and held it up in front of her. "Wanda, will you be my girlfriend?"

"Yes Cosmo, I would love to be your girlfriend."

Cosmo smiled and slid the ring on her finger and Wanda admired it.

"There," he said proudly, admiring the way ti looked. "I thought you'd like it because it's pink…and you're eyes are pink…"

"I love it," said Wanda happily.