Chapter 11- A Proposal Of Sorts

Rory sat in the employee break room staring at the jewelry box, slowly turning it in his hands. He still couldn't believe he had purchased an engagement ring for Amy. After the incident with the Doctor a few months ago, Amy hadn't been quite the same. In fact Rory thought they were on the verge of breaking up. While he was here, Rory could tell that Amy felt something for the Doctor. Then when he simply left, she had shut down. He was just another person who had abandoned her, and she wouldn't let Rory help her.

Amy was acting as if nothing had happened and refused to talk about any of it. It didn't help that Rory was convinced she was going to run away with the Doctor. She had only been talking about it her whole life after all. Rory was jealous, which made it difficult for him to bring up the topic himself. They continued dating, but things felt different. It always felt as if Amy was somewhere else when they were together. Rory thought it was because she was in love with the Doctor, and that she was simply settling for Rory.

Over time, Rory was able to push away his insecurities as Amy slowly began to return to normal. He wasn't sure what happened, but the change was obvious. They were slowly becoming the couple they were before the Doctor arrived. She was even spending more and more time at his place. In the span of a few months it felt as if they were living together, and Rory couldn't be happier. He never brought up the Doctor though, for fear it might ruin what they had together. That is what led him to this moment.

Jeremy, one of his coworkers, broke his concentration, "I'm telling you not to do it mate. I don't think it's the right time." It was the end of both of their shifts and Rory had shown him the ring. He needed a second opinion on whether he was crazy or if it was the best idea he ever had.

"Look, I know you love her, that much is obvious. And I am sure that she likes you quite a bit. She would have to, to put up with your mug for all these years." Jeremy said chuckling.

Rory tossed his empty coffee cup at him, "Oi, watch it."

"Fine, fine," Jeremy said as he stopped laughing. He looked at Rory seriously, "You need to ask yourself, does she love you? She's never even told you."

He had a point. Amy had still never told Rory that she loved him. Even though she had never said it, Rory was still convinced he could feel it from her. He was afraid that it was all in his head though. If he asked her to marry him, he would know for sure. It would be hard, but he was sure he could live with just being her friend. He just needed to know one way or the other.

"I'm sorry Rory," Jeremy said sitting next to him, "You know her better than anyone. All I am saying is maybe you should wait. You're a great guy, I don't want to see you get hurt."

"Thanks Jeremy," Rory told him truthfully. He closed his fist around the jewelry box, placing it back in his jacket pocket. "You're right. We are still pretty young. It's probably just too soon."

"That's all I'm saying mate," Jeremy said getting up to leave. "Look, Brad and I are going out this Friday. Why don't you and Amy come out with us? It will be a fun double. We can knock back a few pints; you can just have a good time. How's that sound?" Jeremy said as he patted him on the shoulder

Rory smiled at his friend thankful for the support, "Sounds like a plan. I'll check with Amy and give you a call."

Jeremy nodded and headed out of the break room. Rory spent a couple more minutes just thinking before getting up and heading home himself.

Amy knew the last couple of months with Rory hadn't been the easiest. When the Doctor left, Amy had closed herself off from everyone, especially Rory. It was as if she was living her worst nightmare. She had waited so long for him to come back, only to have her abandon her again. She was going to run away with him, and she was sure that Rory knew that. She and Rory had been dating for almost two years and they had been friends practically their entire lives. The fact that she was still willing to runaway with the Doctor scared her. She liked the Doctor more than she wanted to admit, yet she had only known him for a couple of hours.

So she had shut down hoping that by ignoring it would get rid of the pain and fear. She knew she felt something for the Doctor; he was her childhood hero after all. She also felt something for Rory, the man who was always there for her, but still couldn't tell him she loved him. They were both her hero in different ways, but Amy didn't know what that meant for her.

It wasn't working though. She was lost until Mels had a talk with her. She told Amy that if she stayed shut down and confused any longer, she was going to lose Rory. That had scared her more than when the Doctor left. With time she was able to fix things with Rory. It had been easier than she had thought it would be too.

Things had been going so well that she had planned a romantic getaway for them over the weekend. She was heading over to his place now to surprise him. Amy was happy again, and she didn't want that to change. While she couldn't keep the Doctor from leaving, she could certainly do her best to keep Rory from doing the same.

The drive home had allowed Rory to really clear his mind and consider things properly. He realized that he had been so focused on Amy's feelings, he failed to consider his own. Everything that surrounded his purchasing of the ring was such a blur, that he had never really stopped and thought about whether he was ready or not.

When he did, his decision became obvious. Rory loved her, of that there was no doubt. He had entered that jewelry store though because he was upset. He had just failed an important exam, which was going to make it tougher for him to ever be a doctor himself. He was upset and suddenly became jealous of Amy's Raggedy Doctor and how excited he had made her while he was here. He had wanted her to feel that way towards him and thought proposing would do it. He was such an idiot.

Now that he was calm and rational, he saw that they were not ready for marriage yet. They were just too young, and there was still too many things standing in their way. He wasn't going to ask her. He would keep the ring though for when they were both ready. He was sure it would come eventually, and he would wait as long as he needed to.

After Rory parked, he pulled out the ring to look at it. "It will happen," he told himself. He took a deep breath as he closed the ring box, got out of the car and headed into his apartment.

"Surprise," Amy yelled as he walked in. Rory jumped back, slightly startled not expecting Amy at his place today. He then realized the ring was still in his hand and quickly hid it behind his back.

"Amy," Rory called out hoping to distract her from what he was sure she saw. "What a surprise." He moved in to hug her.

"What was that?" Amy said holding out her arm to stop him. She had noticed him hiding something from her.

"Umm, what was what?" Rory tried to cover. He was glancing around trying to find a place he could hide the ring, "I wasn't expecting you. What are you doing here."

"I came to surprise you with a romantic holiday. Now don't change the subject, moron," Amy told him. "I can clearly see you're trying to hide something from me? What do you have behind your back?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Just some work I was going to do at home," Rory said reaching for anything to say.

"Than why are you hiding it from me?"

"Oh, it's just boring work stuff. I didn't think you want to be bothered by it."

"It didn't look like work stuff, it looked more like jewelry," Amy said eyeing his arm which was still holding something behind his back. "Rory Williams, are you trying to hide a gift from me?" Amy said as she slowly stalked Rory around the room.

"Me? No. I-I mean, yes," Rory said trying to get out of her reach. "Yes it is jewelry. In fact it would be a perfect gift for this holiday you have planned. So you should wait." Rory tried to explain. He was hoping she would agree. It would at least give him a day to come up with a back up plan or pick her up a real gift.

"Oh," Amy said as she stopped moving, "Okay then. I guess that would make it more special." Rory started to relax, thankful his ploy had worked. "Now come here, kiss." Rory smiled and leaned in for a kiss. As he did, Amy quickly reached over and snatched the box from Rory's hand.

"Amy don't," Rory said as she opened the box backing away from him. It was too late though. She had seen the ring and simply stood there in shock.

"Rory, what is this?" Amy said staring at the ring unsure of what to think, "Is this what I think it is?"

"Yeah, it's an engagement ring," Rory answered not able to move anything but his mouth.

"Were you going to ask me to marry you Rory?" Amy said still in shock.

"I was thinking about it."

"What do you mean thinking about it?"

"Well," Rory was a bit scared of what Amy might do to him if he said the wrong thing, "I was going to ask you. I just figured we were still too young. I just wasn't as ready as I thought I was."

"All right then," Amy answered calmly. When she saw the ring, her heart had leapt into her throat and she almost started to panic. She should have been relieved now that Rory wasn't going to ask, but she wasn't. Amy was sad as she closed the box. She tried to shake it off, she should be happy that her and Rory were thinking the same thing. He was right, they were still too young to get married. She was even still a kissogram, not a suitable job for a wife. "That makes sense. We are young."

"So are we good?" Rory asked not sure what to expect. He couldn't gauge Amy's reaction, so he was just standing there too, afraid to move.

Amy shook off her stupor smiling at Rory, "Of course we are." She set the ring on the counter as she gave Rory a hug. "We are perfectly fine."

As they hugged, Amy realized she didn't want to let go. She always felt safe and protected with him. She had always been afraid of commitment, afraid that they would leave after she had opened up to them. Rory had stuck with her for her whole life though. He had never left her, and she felt like he never would. Amy was just staring at the box when a question came to her.

"Rory, why did you buy the ring?"

"What?" Rory said as they released each other.

"You said that you weren't ready to get married. But this ring Rory," she said as she picked up the box. "This ring is beautiful. It doesn't look like something you picked up on a whim."

"What do you mean?"

"Why did you buy the ring Rory? I need to know."

Rory's first thought was of the Doctor. He had been so upset and jealous that he entered the store. There was something else though. He took the box away from Amy and opened it, staring at the ring. He started smiling, as he remembered the four hours he had spent selecting the perfect setting and band for her. "I wasn't sure what I was doing there at first. Silly old Rory, you know."

Rory looked up at Amy. He still couldn't read her expression, but he thought he saw a smile flash across her face. It was enough to give him strength to finish. "I knew I found the ring, because I could picture it on your hand. I could see me asking you and placing it there. I could see how happy we would be together."

"Then ask me."

"What?" Rory asked unsure of what she was saying.

"Ask me."

"But Amy, we both said we weren't ready."

"I know you idiot," Amy said, "Just do it."

Rory pulled the ring out of the box carefully, afraid he was going to drop it. "Amy, one of the best days of my life was the day I tried to run away and instead met you. I think even then a part of me knew this day would come," Rory said as he slowly got on one knee. Amy had a tight smile on her face trying to hold back her emotions.

"When we are together, I feel like I could do anything, and I couldn't imagine being with or sharing my life with anyone else." Rory looked up at Amy. She was covering her hands with her mouth as she let out a little laugh.

"Amelia Jessica Pond, will you marry me?" Rory said carefully trying to keep his voice from cracking.

Amy looked from the ring to Rory as she knelt down herself. She was more scared than she had ever been before. Staring into Rory's eyes she realized one thing, she wanted to be with him too, and it was as simple as that.

"Yes, yes I will," Amy answered.

Rory placed the ring on her finger and just held her hand staring at it. It looked just as he had imagined. He and Amy were giggling like idiots. Rory pulled Amy in as they started kissing. Neither of them could believe they had just gotten engaged. Rory didn't know what to think as his mind was doing backflips in his head. And as always for Amy, being with Rory made it easy to push every fear she had out of her mind. They were both happy.

A/N: And we are almost to the days in the TARDIS. Thanks for the follows and reviews. Please keep it up everyone. I am glad so many people seem to be enjoying this story.

This was another tough chapter because they needed to get engaged while still having the seeds that caused the problems when Amy first travelled with the Doctor. I liked the idea that their engagement was kind of accidental.

Land of Dreams: Thanks for the review! I enjoy a good love at first sight story, but that doesn't really apply to this couple. They had problems going into the TARDIS and their strength to fight through them for each other is what makes them such an amazing couple.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy!