He grabbed a blue polo and pulled it over his head as his phone vibrated on the desk. He reached over and grabbed it. It was a text from Amy. It read:

Are you mad at me? I miss you.

Ben fought the urge to call Amy with every ounce of will in his body. He missed her. He wanted to call her and say, "Good morning, gorgeous. I missed you last night. How are you? How is our daughter? I can't wait to hold you again," but he did not do so. He didn't want to cheapen the effect of their special evening plans. He replied back:

Morning! No, just busy. See you tonight.

Keeping this secret a secret was more painful than he had imagined it would be. He had no desire to make her think he was angry with her. How could he be angry with her? She was his everything. Sighing, he pulled his newly printed paper out of the printer and stapled the six sheets together. After sliding the essay in his backpack, he slung the strap over his shoulder and bent down to pick up the large white box. He clomped down the stairs and out to where the car was waiting to take him to school. He opened the door, pushed the box in across the seat, and then sat down himself.

"To school?" the driver asked. Ben nodded.

"To school," he confirmed. "This package is for Amy when you pick her up this evening. Bring it to the door for her. She'll know what to do from there."

"Very good," the driver responded with nod and a smile. "Such a large box, I'm sure Miss Juergens will be pleased."

"I hope so," Ben replied as they headed off to school.

--

Though she tried her best to work on her math all morning, Amy was too distracted to finish anything. Ben had always been better at math than she was anyway. He'd helped her understand the homework when they had math class together at Grant High. Ben, she thought. She felt lost without him. He'd said he wasn't mad at her this morning in his text, but for some reason she doubted him, even though she couldn't really think of what she'd done to make him mad at her. She'd been tired and a little grumpy the other day, but surely he understood his pregnant fiance being grumpy every once and a while. She shook her head, refocusing her eyes on the numbers.

She felt the baby kick and smiled. "Even if Ben is angry at me, I guess I'm never gonna be totally alone again, am I?" she said aloud, looking down at the bump and rubbing it lovingly.

--

Amy was just finishing up her makeup and hair when the doorbell rang. From downstairs, she heard her mother yell up to her, "Amy! That'll be Ben! You get it." Throwing down her bobby pins, she raced – as fast as she could in her state – down the stairs to meet him.

"Oh, hello," she said, surprised to see Ben's driver and not Ben himself. He was an older gentleman wearing a cap, and in his hands he held a large white box. She looked around him to see if Ben was hiding anywhere, but it seemed he was not.

"Ms. Juergens, this is for you. I was told you would understand what to do from here," he said, getting her attention and then handing her the box. "I'll be waiting in the car. No rush." She opened her arms to receive the clumsily proportioned box.

"Thank you," she replied in a confused tone of voice. She shut the door behind her with her free hand and made her way into the kitchen. Setting the huge box down on the table, she took in the sight of it. It was just a large, unmarked, white box with ribbon tied across it. Finally, after staring at it for a few moments, she noticed a small envelope tucked under the beige ribbon. Slipping the little enveloped out from its hiding place, she opened the card up that was contained inside.

This is for you.

I love you more than anything in the world.

Once you are ready, head out to the car.

Everything is already taken care of.

- Ben

She smiled and set the card aside. "What did you do, Ben?" she asked aloud as if he were present. Gripping the sides of the large white box with one hand on either side, she pulled upward and the lid slid cleanly off. Removing the lid revealed an immense volume of tissue paper, which obscured whatever was inside the box. No longer able to contain an ounce of curiosity or excitement, Amy dug through the tissue paper, brushing it from side to side until her fingers no longer felt the coarse texture of the paper, but the softness of expensive fabric. She gasped as she saw the familiar royal blue color. With all the tissue paper out of the way, the present inside was finally exposed and Amy could barely believe her eyes.

It was the dress that she had seen at the mall. It was the dress Ben had said he hadn't seen; the one that cost a fortune. Very carefully she lifted it from the box and allowed it to unfold itself, as the bottom hem traveled down to the floor. It was an empire waist, v-neck, royal blue gown with cap sleeves. It wasn't puffy like prom dresses tended to be, but the empire cut gave the skirt a nice volume.

It was the most beautiful thing she'd ever received. She couldn't believe that Ben had purchased it for her. Never in her wildest dreams had she expected this. Her heart raced as she walked up to her room and put on the dress. She changed her earrings and put up her hair. She looked in the mirror and smiled from ear to ear. Without even a word to her mother, she floated out the door and into the waiting car.

"Did you know about this?" Amy asked the driver. Looking back at her in the rearview mirror, he smiled.

"I only do what I am told, Miss. Young Benjamin told me to deliver the box to you, and so, I did. But, I must say, you look lovely this evening."

She blushed. "Thank you," she replied. "Where are we going? Do you know that?" Amy asked excitedly, assuming that she would not just be wearing this dress to Ben's house.

"That is a fact I have been sworn to secrecy on," he replied, starting the engine. They were off.

--

Ben fussed with his tie as he waited for Amy to arrive. It was well past six-thirty when he saw the car pull up across the street. It was just starting to get dark out and there were really no people around. He breathed in deeply, and watched as she came slowly, closer and closer to him. It took what seemed like hours for her to make her way across the street and onto the grass to meet him. When she was fifty feet or so away, he finally was able to see her close enough and without any obstructions. She looked amazing.

"Wow," he said aloud as she suddenly stopped about ten feet in front of him. "I – I honestly can't think of any other words. Um, wow," he said again.

"This dress is too much, Ben. It's perfect. Thank you," she said with a smile. "I think it's my color," she added.

"You look beautiful, Amy."

"Ben, I can't believe you bought the dress," she said, touching the soft fabric. "You said you didn't even see it when I mentioned it at lunch. I didn't mean you had to buy it for me," she began. "And you," she said, noticing his full, black suit, complete with tie. "You look pretty handsome yourself."

"Amy, do you know where we are?" he asked, looking around and then back to her.

She hadn't really stopped to think about it. The car had dropped her off and she had seen Ben. She was too preoccupied with dress and the magic of the evening to have even really considered the location. She looked around.

"It's the park," she whispered with a quiver in her voice. Ben nodded.

"It's the place where I asked you to marry me, all those months ago, Amy."

"But why, Ben? Why all of this right now?" she asked, trying to understand. She was still smiling.

He stepped closer to her and held out his hand as he had done many times in the past. She took it and he walked with her a few steps until they were standing right in front of the bench where they had sat all those months ago. He let go of her hand and reached under the bench. He brought up a small CD player and pressed a few buttons. Music began to play quietly.

He took her hand again and brought her in close to him. He placed his hand around her waist and began to sway. Slowly, she let her body synch into rhythm with his.

"Why?" he repeated, looking straight into her eyes. "Because I love you, because you deserve it, and because I know you've been feeling kind of lonely and unlovely these past few days. I know this whole baby thing has been really hard in many ways, not the least of which is your changing shape and size. I wanted you to feel beautiful again. I wanted you to feel like the woman I see when I look at you - the woman you are."

"I feel like a princess," she replied, sheepishly, not realizing the irony in that statement.

"I told you, Amy. I'll be your prince if you let me."

Tears formed behind her eyes. "You already are, Ben," she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling herself even closer to him. She lingered there a moment, silently. "How did you know?" she asked, laying her head on his shoulder.

"I could just tell," he answered softly. "I'm still an idiot sometimes, but this time, I could just tell," he whispered. His lips lingered just inches away from hers. She closed the space between them so quickly, that the air that had existed in that space rushed towards Amy's face at a frenzied pace.

"I missed you so much, last night, Ben," she whispered back. "I know I should be able to get by one night, but I couldn't. Is living with you after the baby arrives, still an option?"

"Of course," he replied. "You know that's what I've wanted all along. You can move in anytime. You don't have to wait, if you're sure that's what you want. I thought you needed time? I'm willing to give you time."

"I know I said I needed to think about it, but I was wrong. As usual, I was just scared of taking the next step. I don't need to think about it anymore," she continued. "I realized last night that – without a doubt – I want to live with you. I can't even stand to be away from you for one day, Ben. If I can't stand a day, how could I last how ever many months it will be until the wedding? It's the truth, regardless of how pathetic it is. I'm such an emotional girl these days."

"It's not pathetic," he answered. "I feel the same way."

"Really?" she asked, still a little surprised at his honest expressions of his emotions.

"Of course, Amy. Do you think I wanted to be away from you? Don't you understand that everything I do is an attempt to keep us together or bring us closer together? That feeling is not pathetic, Amy. That feeling is what love is. It isn't the words, it's the actions. It's the reason I proposed to you even though you're pregnant; it's because I care more about your well-being than my own. It's being close to you when you need me to be," he replied. "It's why it felt so natural to hold your hand even on our first date."

She pulled away from his embrace and ran her hands down his arms to clasp her hands in his. She laced her fingers through his and held his hand like he had held hers that very first night.

"Like this?" she asked. He smiled

"Like this," he repeated, leaning in and kissing her lips softly.

"Thank you for loving me," she replied.

"Thank you for letting me love you," he responded.

Momentarily, she pulled him towards the bench, they sat down, and still holding his hand, she turned to face him. She was silent for a moment, and Ben watched her eyes waiting for a sign of some kind. Amy just savored the comfort of these silent moments with Ben, relishing the feeling of just holding his hand. Finally, she spoke.

"The baby kicked today," she said. "I'd felt it before, but I wasn't sure what it was. Wasn't sure whether it was the baby or a hunger pain. Today, she kicked really hard. I knew it was her. Do you want to feel it?" she asked.

Ben pursed his lips together, smiled and nodded. She placed his hand on the bump and the two waited in silence for a few moments.

"I felt it," Ben exclaimed. "I can't wait to meet our daughter, Amy."