Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Third Watch or any of its characters.
"At Last"
Waiting was always the hardest part.
It was eerily quiet, almost as if the night somehow knew what was going on in his mind. The ticking of the clock at his bedside and the slow and steady breathing of the person lying next to him were the only audible sounds. He glanced over at her sleeping form. Her long hair was strewn across the pillow and he could just about make out the slender form of her body underneath the thin blanket. What a long, hard, crazy road it's been he thought to himself. He never thought it would have come to this, never would have even considered himself capable of it. But at last he had his chance. Fate had played its hand once again and had her come back into his life for a reason. And Maurice Boscorelli was as ready for this as he ever imagined he would be.
God knows this wasn't a decision he had arrived at lightly. Something like this never was. He had planned it out carefully, had gone over scenario after scenario in his mind of just how to do it and had dismissed each of them for one reason or another. He would only have one chance to do this and it had to be perfect. He had already bought what he needed weeks before. It still lay in its box where he had hidden it. He had taken it out several times and just looked at it, shiny and new. He had bought it for a reason and that reason was becoming stronger all the time. It was the thing to do. She had driven him to this point, and he knew in his heart she deserved it.
He wondered what they would think of it at work, how they would react when they heard. None of that mattered to him now. He was consumed with only one thing and the sooner he did this the better. He was sure she had no idea. That was good. He wanted it that way.
He glanced over at her again. What better time than right now? He could tell by her breathing that she was in a deep sleep. She wouldn't know a thing.
Slowly so as not to wake her he reached for his jacket and took out the box where he had placed it the night before. He opened it and nervously fingered its contents. Perfect.
She was on her side, facing away from him, her left arm resting on top of the blanket. Also perfect.
He was about to change his life. All of his time with her – the good, the bad, and everything in between – had brought him to this. He sat watching her now, just as he had many times before. He found something peaceful, almost hypnotic, in that and it captivated him as much now as it had the first time he laid eyes on her up in anti-crime.
He was ready. He bent down, silently slipped the ring on her finger, and settled back.
Waiting was always the hardest part.