Izzie lent forward and began adjusting the radio station in the car. They'd been driving for five minutes now and she had no idea where they were going. It was too dark for her to make out road signs, all she knew is they were heading in the wrong direction for Seattle. She sighed and turned the radio off. There wasn't anything decent on and asked Alex again.

"Where are we going?" But Alex just shrugged.

"You'll see when we get there." He told her again. They drove along in silence for a while. Izzie thought that if she waited long enough Alex would tell her where they were going but Alex had no intention of telling her where they were going.

After driving for fifteen minutes Alex slowed the car down and shut off the engine.

"We're here." He said. Izzie looked around. It was so dark she couldn't make out a thing. "Wait here. I'll be back in a moment." Alex climbed out the car and began walking away. Izzie went to call out after him but he was already out of sight. Outside Izzie could hear the sounds of the night. She felt herself beginning to get scared. She told herself to stay calm that Alex would be back soon. He seemed to be gone forever and then the entire area around her lit up. The car was parked in front of a cabin in the middle of the woods and Alex was standing in the doorway. "Wow" she thought to herself as Alex began walking toward her. He opened her car door and held out his hand.

"Alex, what's going on?" She asked him as they began walking toward the door.

"You'll see." He said smiling at her and he walked her inside.

"Wow" Izzie said to herself again when Alex opened the door. Inside the cabin was tiny it was only one room but it was beautiful. On one wall there was an open fire which was burning strongly. In front of the fire there was a small dining table set up for two with a single candle burning in the centre of it. On another wall there was a bed and in the corner a tiny kitchen.

He walked her over to the table and pulled out a chair for her. He indicated for her to sit down and then spread a napkin across her lap.

"Alex…" She went to say. His name was the only word she could form.

"Shhh…" He whispered and then he walked over to the kitchen and pulled two plates of food out from somewhere. He carried them over to the table and placed one in front of Izzie and the other in his seat. Then he pulled two wine glasses out and poured grape juice into both of them. When everything was ready he sat down.

"Alex, this is beautiful." Izzie said taking in everything that was now around her. "But why?"

"We're celebrating." Alex smiled at her and took a sip of her drink. Izzie looked back at him confused. She wasn't sure what they were celebrating.

"What are we celebrating?"

"Everything. Life." He offered. "You did such an amazing job up there today. We need to celebrate."

She looked back at him speculative. "You didn't just plan this today."

"No." he conceded. "But I knew you'd be amazing." He picked up his cutlery and began eating.

Izzie slowly began eating also but she had a feeling this wasn't the end of the surprises.

They'd eaten half the meal before Alex started talking again. "I made some phone calls this afternoon." He began. "There are three more schools in Seattle who'd like you to come talk to their students. If you want to."

Izzie's mouth dropped. "What?" She asked. Alex took a sip of his drink and kept talking.

"Last week after we made the practice video. I sent a copy of it to some schools. They thought you were really good." Izzie didn't say anything. She wasn't sure if she should be angry with him or grateful. "You don't have to do it if you don't want to but I thought it was a great opportunity for you."

Izzie picked up her drink and took a very long sip of it. She was trying to get her head around what Alex had just told her. She was excited, she was ecstatic, but she didn't like that he'd done this without telling her.

"I didn't tell you about it just in case they said no." Alex continued, reading her mind. "I didn't want to get your hopes up." Alex paused for a moment, Izzie still hadn't said anything. "Iz, say something."

She swallowed her drink and took a deep breath. She couldn't be mad at him for this. "Thank you." She said and a smiled spread across her face from ear to ear.

"No problem."Alex smiled and neither one of them said another word until the plates were clean.

Izzie was thinking about what Alex had done for her. She'd found her purpose and she couldn't be happier. Alex was happy to see to Izzie happy. And he was hoping she'd react just as well to his next surprise. When they'd finished eating he cleared the plates and brought over the desert. One very large piece of chocolate cake.

Just when he was almost at the table though he tripped. The cake landed squarely on the table but Alex fell to his knees. Izzie started laughing but she stopped a minute later when she realized Alex wasn't getting up. He was kneeling in front of her, he had one hand on her knee and the other in his pocket.

"Alex do you need help?" she asked. But he shook his head and pulled out of his pocket a small box.

Izzie's mouth dropped, she felt her heart begin to race. Was Alex doing what she thought he was doing?

Alex knelt before Izzie. In his chest he felt his heart racing. He'd thought long and hard about what he was about to do. He'd been plotting and planning this for the last few weeks. When the thought had first crossed his mind he wasn't sure he was read for it, but he was ready for it now. There was no doubt in his mind that he was ready, he just hoped Izzie was ready too.

"Izzie," he began. "You probably don't remember this but today has been one year since we started being together." He paused to check that she was listening. "It's been a rough year. I'd say it's been the best and worst year of my life. We've both gone through a lot. A lot of things have happened, a lot of things have changed. But through all of that I have learnt one thing. I love you. I don't know what I would do without you. I think this last year has shown me that more than anything else could. I don't want to scare you. You don't have to answer straight away. But I want to ask you. Will you marry me?"

Alex opened the box to reveal a tiny ring. Izzie stared at it. It took her a moment to realize it was her mother's engagement ring. She felt her heart being to race. She was overwhelmed. Alex was doing exactly what she thought he was doing.

"Iz?" He was looking up at her beckoning for a response. But she didn't know what to say. She couldn't form words. Instead she slipped off the chair and knelt before him. She reached down and took the box from his hands. She closed it and placed it on the table.

"Iz?" Alex asked again. He couldn't read her behavior. He wasn't sure if the things she was doing were a good or a bad thing.

"Alex," Izzie began and she reached down and wrapped her hands in his. She looked him in the eyes and said what she knew to be true. "I can't imagine my life with out you." And she lent forward and kissed him. They wrapped their arms around each other and fell to the floor. It only took a moment for them to completely forget about the cake.

Yeah I'm a suck for the happy ending. But after everything I put them through I thought they deserved it. I hope you enjoyed the story.