Chapter 19: Be My Wife

"Please be mine / Share my life / Stay with me / Be my wife"

"Why are we working in the annex today?" Annabelle asked, trailing behind Payson as she led the girl through the parking lot to the Rock's annex.

"Just like with the triple, the first few times you do your new dismount off the harness are going to be into pit," Payson explained. Annabelle nodded, skipping a little. Payson smiled.

"Samantha comes home tomorrow?" Payson asked, even though she already knew the answer.

"Yeah," Annabelle said, smiling broadly.

"Well, I'm glad you two will be together again, but we'll miss having you around the house," Payson said as she opened the doors to the annex and led Annabelle inside. Annabelle shucked her warm ups and set them on a chair in the corner. This early in the day there wasn't anyone else working there, so they had it to themselves.

"I'll miss you guys too," Annabelle said. "Especially Harper. At least I'll still get to see you and Sasha every day."

"You can come over any time you like. Now let's get started."

"Can I ask you a question?" Annabelle asked as she pulled herself from the pit after an hour of working her double front tuck full.

"Sure," Payson said. She gathered her clipboard and waited as Annabelle put her warm ups back on. They were going to give the new dismount a break and train her other apparatuses.

"Did you and Sasha really have something going on when you were still competing?" Annabelle asked. Payson stopped in her tracks.

"What?" Annabelle blushed and shrugged.

"I just, I was reading some news articles this weekend, and there were a few about you two having some secret affair," Annabelle explained. Payson sighed and shook her head.

"No, Belle, we were never together until I started working at the Rock."

"I didn't figure, I just…was curious," Annabelle said. Payson smiled softly at her.

"It's fine, I'm just surprised those articles are still online. That was…God, that was a lifetime ago," Payson said, laughing at the memory.

As they crossed the parking lot back to the main gym, a Porsche screeched into one of the guest parking spaces, nearly running them over. Payson groaned.

"Oh my God, is that…"

"Lauren, hey," Payson said. It had been three weeks since Sasha had sent her an email politely declining to use her Wonder Woman atrocity and they hadn't heard a word from her. Payson had mistakenly thought they might be off the hook.

"Hi Pay. I brought over some new sketches, come on." She waved a thick manila folder at Payson and led the way inside.

"That's Lo Tanner. I LOVE her stuff," Annabelle whispered to Payson. "Oh my God, is she designing something for you? Like a wedding dress?"

Payson shook her head.

"No, Belle. She wants to design Team USA's Olympic leos," Payson assured her. Annabelle huffed.

"When are you and Sasha going to get married already?"

Payson bought herself some time by taking a few deep breaths. She and Sasha hadn't talked about it since the day she told him she wanted to marry him. She knew that he wanted to propose to her, to make it special and all that, but until she actually had a ring on her finger…what was she supposed to call herself? Was she his fiancée? Or still just his girlfriend?

"I don't know. Why do you think we should get married?" Annabelle shrugged.

"You guys are just, like…meant to be," Annabelle said.

"Payson!" Payson jumped at the shrill sound of Lauren's voice and then rolled her eyes.

"Go work you floor routine, I'll be down in a little bit." Annabelle bounced off to work on her floor routine and Payson sighed, climbing the stairs to the office as slowly as she could. When her eyes were level with the window, Payson took a quick peek at what she would be walking in on.

Lauren was pointing furiously at her sketches while Sasha rubbed his forehead. Payson smiled as Lauren waved her arms and Sasha sighed. She saw his shoulders slump and knew that if she didn't get in there soon, he was going to give in. Payson ran the last few steps and put on her best fake smile.

"Lauren! What a surprise," Payson said sweetly. "What can we do for you?" Payson settled herself onto the edge of the desk and waited for Lauren to launch into her sales pitch.

"I brought four new sketches for the Team USA leos. I still don't understand why you guys didn't like the first ones, but you clearly don't have my fashion sense. I mean…look at you," Lauren said, waving at Payson. Payson looked down at her jeans and t-shirt combo and then looked at Sasha, who rolled his eyes.

"Lauren, Sasha and I would really prefer to stick with GK for the leos. We've built a rapport with them and we're just very comfortable with them. We don't need haute couture leos," Payson said. Lauren rolled her eyes.

"Just look at these. Look," Lauren insisted, shoving the sketches at Payson. When Payson didn't immediately reach for them, Lauren waved them insistently.

"Fine, we'll take a look," Payson sighed, reaching for the manila folder. Lauren grinned triumphantly and crossed her arms over her chest. "Later, Lauren. We'll look at them later."

"Oh. Well, fine. Well just so you know I'm going to need an answer by Monday, because we really don't have that much more time," Lauren advised. Payson took a deep breath and felt Sasha's fingers around her wrist.

"Yes, Lauren, we understand. Thank you for stopping by."

#

"I have an idea," Sasha said as Annabelle started clearing the table after dinner.

"What's that?" Payson asked. She stood up and grabbed a wash cloth to get Harper cleaned up as Sasha moved to help Annabelle.

"I think that tonight we deserve some ice cream," he said. Payson frowned.

"Why tonight?"

"Sasha, if I go out for ice cream I'm not going to be able to do my triple in Johannesburg," Annabelle warned, earning a warm chuckle from Sasha.

"If it will make you feel better you can get frozen yogurt," Sasha promised.

"You still haven't told us why tonight especially deserves ice cream," Payson pressed. Sasha shrugged, a playful glint in his eyes.

"It just does. So are you coming?" Sasha asked as he picked up his keys and twirled them around his finger.

"Yes!" Harper shrieked. "Please Mommy?" Payson glared at Sasha, though it had no real fire behind it, and then rolled her eyes.

"Fine, ice cream it is."

The four of them piled into the car and Sasha drove them through town, to an ice cream stand Payson hadn't realized was even still around. She recognized the bright, multi-colored swirls of paint on the outside and the big, bold sign that professed to have the best ice cream in Boulder immediately.

"Sasha!" She gasped, unable to keep from smiling. He winked at her from the driver's seat.

"What?" Annabelle asked, lunging forward from the back seat to see what all the fuss was about.

"The last time Sasha brought me here I was sixteen," Payson said. Annabelle's head whipped towards Sasha.

"You made her eat ice cream too! You are a terrible coach," Annabelle said dramatically, shaking her head and clucking her tongue. Sasha laughed.

"She had frozen yogurt, just like you're going too. Come on," Sasha said, navigating the car into a parking space. Annabelle and Harper ran up to the window hand in hand while Payson and Sasha followed slowly behind.

"Feeling nostalgic?" Payson asked, leaning her head on his shoulder. Sasha pressed a kiss to her hair.

"Something like that."

When everyone had ordered their ice cream, Sasha suggested a walk. Annabelle and Harper ran ahead, playing and laughing, and Payson wished right then that she could adopt Annabelle, make her officially part of the family. She had no idea what they were going to do when Annabelle was no longer staying with them. Of course, she was glad that Samantha was finally able to come home, but she was going to miss Annabelle.

"Harper's going to miss having a big sister around," Payson whispered. Sasha gave her shoulder a squeeze.

"I know, love. It will be good for Annabelle to spend time with her real family though." They walked for a little while longer, through the quaint downtown, until Sasha called out for Annabelle and Harper to stop. "Right here, ladies!"

Payson took in her surroundings and her heart started to beat hard. The grand steps leading up to the theatre where Sasha had taken her to the ballet loomed just ahead. Annabelle and Harper were playing on them as Sasha led her halfway up.

"What is this place, Daddy?" Harper asked, bouncing up to Sasha and hugging his leg. Sasha reached out to smooth back her hair, smiling down at her.

"This puiule, is a very magical place. I took your mom here when she was sixteen," Sasha explained.

"The same night you forced her to eat ice cream?" Annabelle asked with more sass in her voice than Sasha usually appreciated from his gymnasts. But he smiled.

"Yes," he said. Payson felt her entire body humming with nervous energy as Sasha took her hands and sank to one knee. Suddenly she couldn't catch her breath, and she thought that if Sasha let go of her hands she might topple over.

"Payson, I think I fell a little bit in love with you that night. I certainly didn't realize it right away, or if I did I forced myself to forget, but watching you grow, watching you realize that you could be strong and feminine, graceful and powerful, was the most beautiful transformation I have ever seen. Every day since then I have loved you in one way or another, and if you let me, I will never stop loving you for as long as I live." Sasha reached into his pocket with one hand and pulled out a small black box.

"Dragostea de viata mea, esti totul pentru mine; motivul pentru care am trezi în fiecare dimineaţă. Payson Keeler, will you marry me?"

A wave of peace settled over Payson at his words, the same kind of peace she found when she was standing before the bars, waiting to begin a routine; she knew that leaping onto the those bars was dangerous; it could, and had, end very badly, but there was no place in the world she would rather be. No place where she felt more at home, more secure in her life's path than swinging high above the ground with no safety net to catch her if she fell. She smiled.

"Yes," she whispered. Then she cleared her throat and her voice was a little stronger. "Yes, of course I'll marry you."

Annabelle shrieked, taking Harper's hands and dancing around with her. Sasha surged to his feet, wrapping his arms around her waist and twirling her before setting her back down and kissing her so thoroughly she wasn't sure where she ended and he began.

Sasha pulled away and opened the ring box. Nestled inside was the most gorgeous diamond ring Payson had ever seen. The oval cut center diamond had to be at least two carats, with three smaller diamonds laid into the platinum band on either side. Slowly, Sasha slipped it onto her left ring finger. Payson wiggled her fingers, watching it sparkle beneath the street lights.

"I love you so much."

#

"As much as I love seeing your beautiful face, why couldn't this wait until our next regularly scheduled video chat?" Kelly asked. Payson looked between the three little boxes on the screen, each with an image of Kaylie, Emily, or Kelly. Payson smiled. It was a miracle she'd managed to wait three days after her and Sasha's official engagement to call the video conference, she couldn't imagine waiting another four until their next scheduled chat.

"Well, I have something very important that I want to ask you all," Payson said, trying not to immediately give the news away.

"Okay, well…what is it?" Emily asked.

"What do you all have planned for the weekend of May 20th?"

"Like two months from now?" Kaylie asked, sounding confused. Payson nodded.

"Yeah, two months from now exactly," Payson said.

"I'm free," Emily said.

"Me too," Kaylie said. Kelly narrowed her eyes at Payson.

"Why?" She asked. Payson huffed.

"Are you free or not?"

"Of course I'm free. Now, why?"

"Because," Payson said coyly. "I'm going to need some bridesmaids."

Payson held up her hand, showing of her engagement ring. The girls shrieked and screamed and Payson could have sworn that they were in the room with her. Even Kelly, hard ass, pessimistic Kelly, was grinning broadly and bouncing with excitement.

"You said yes?" Kelly gasped.

"I did."

"Pay, that ring is gorgeous! I've never seen anything like it," Kaylie breathed.

"Thanks. So what do you say, guys? Will you stand up with me?"

"Of course we will!" Kaylie cried. "But Payson, are you sure two months is long enough to plan a wedding?"

"Especially with Trials coming up," Kelly broke in. "I mean, you're planning to get married four weeks before the Olympic Trials. You won't even be able to take a honeymoon until after Johannesburg."

Payson shrugged and shook her head. "No matter when we got married we wouldn't be taking a honeymoon until after Johannesburg. And Kaylie, two months is plenty. We have to get a dress, a place, and a caterer. I could plan this thing in two weeks."

"Oh honey, it takes so much more than that to plan a wedding. Don't worry, we'll figure it out," Kaylie promised.

"Enough of this wedding talk," Kelly said, waving her hand. "What about the bachelorette party?"

A/N: Thank you, thank you to JTellersOldLady, Tracy137, HarryPotterFan2010, franxample, goalie19, Egyptian Kiss, Kiwiflea, and SunStar123 for your reviews!

I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! I know it's a little short, but that's just the way this one ended up. I will try to make the next one longer, promise. Also, next chapter we'll be taking a break from the wedding stuff and focusing on some gymnastics.

As always, I would absolutely LOVE it if you left me a review telling me what you thought. Until next time!