*I do not own Hunter Hayes- although I'm still internally debating what's cuter: him or a basket full of puppies?- or Lady Antebellum. And of course, absolutely no part of HSM is mine, either.*

Chapter 24: Quiet Time

The next day- Sunday- was semi-awkward for all involved. Troy and Gabriella spent the day with his parents playing tourist in downtown San Francisco and tried to keep their reconciliation to themselves for the time being. They would share the news with their parents in time, but for now they just wanted to stay in their own personal bubble of bliss.

However, over the next twenty-four hours, Jack and Lucille began to notice something different in the way Troy and Gabriella were acting around each other. Even though they had yet to reveal their good news of getting back together, Lucille's womanly instincts took over when the four met up for dinner and she noticed a certain air surrounding Gabriella. The gleam in her brown eyes that Lucille noticed was missing during their talk was back, as was the brilliance in Troy's blue eyes. In Lucille's mind, that could only mean one thing.

Troy and Gabriella, however- not yet ready to burst their bubble- tried to keep up the pretense of their breakup. The fact that they had yet to confirm Lucille's suspicions only increased her frustration. As hard as they tried in Jack and Lucille's presence, it was hard to pretend the situation hadn't improved between them. But when the older couple showed up at the apartment again on Tuesday afternoon to spend time with their son, they were shocked when the younger couple announced that they were going out.

"Um... You're going out?" Lucille questioned with raised eyebrows. "I'm sorry, the two of you are going out – together?" She tried her best to refrain from a motherly lecture or an intense lovey-dovey scrutiny of the change.

"Yeah, actually. We uh... we'll be back later. We're just going to grab some dinner," Troy told her.

"But it's only 4:30. Why dinner so early?"

Troy opened his mouth to answer, but was quickly interrupted by Jack.

"Wait a minute, Son. I think I can speak on behalf of your mother when I say... we're confused."

"About what?" Troy asked innocently. He sneaked a peek at Gabriella standing near the door and noticed that she was struggling to hide a smile. She knew he was teasing his parents and she was enjoying watching Coach squirm and decided to get in on the action, too.

"You guys don't need to worry. I'm going out with my boyfriend, so I'll be safe. I'll make sure he has me home by curfew," she quipped, causing Troy to let out a snort in his effort of trying to hold in his laughter as he came to stand next to Gabriella.

"Hold it right there, young lady," Lucille spoke up, pointing an accusatory finger in Gabriella's direction. "With that look…" she then turned her finger toward Troy, "…and that laugh…You two are up to something. Your father and I want answers and we want them now. What is going on?" The fact that she was standing with her hands on her hips worried Gabriella a little... until she realized that it made just as much sense to be frightened of Lucille as it did her own biological mother.

Troy and Gabriella shared an amused look. "Should we tell them?" he asked her.

Gabriella shifted her gaze from Troy to Jack and Lucille. "I don't know. I'm kind of having fun watching the vein in your dad's forehead. How much longer do you think we can keep this going before it bursts?" She and Troy looked at each other for a split second before breaking into laughter.

"Mom, Dad... Gabriella and I have some... well, some good news."

"This better be what I think it is, Troy Alexander," Lucille scolded.

"Will I be grounded if it's not?" he said in an attempt to joke with his mom.

Lucille let out a frustrated groan at her son's humor. "Blah! Just because you're a college graduate now doesn't mean you're too old for me to take you over my knee and-"

"Okay, Lucille," Jack interrupted, coming to his son's rescue. "Let's just let the kids talk. I'm sure if we're quiet, they just might tell us!"

"Mom, Dad... Gabriella and I talked the other day and we kind of..." he trailed off as he moved to stand behind her and wrapped his arm around her middle from behind, splaying his open palm flat across Gabriella's stomach. "We made up... making up... whatever, either way. Point is, we're back together."

"As well you should be!" Lucille exclaimed, taking Gabriella by surprise. She had assumed that all three of their parents would be thrilled at their news, but Lucille sounded almost angry in her opinion. "It's about time you two get some sense knocked into your thick skulls."

"I think what your mom is trying to say," Jack spoke up, draping an arm around Lucille's shoulders and bringing a hand up to cover her mouth in an attempt to get her to calm down "is that we're very happy for you two. Even I could tell you were both miserable the other day and frankly it was depressing me! I'm glad things are getting back to normal." He jumped when he felt his wife lick his hand. "Hey!" he exclaimed as he wiped his hand on his jeans.

"Thanks, Dad. Yeah, we're pretty happy, too. But um, if you don't mind, we kind of..." Troy trailed off as he pointed to the door.

"Jack, let the kids go. They've got some lost time to make up for."

"We are, though, kind of taking things slow getting back into this," Gabriella told them. "I mean, we don't want to just jump right back into where we were. We've got a lot to talk about and a lot to work through."

"Yeah, it's kind of like we're sixteen again," Troy added, but received confused looks from all three surrounding him. "Okay, maybe not. I don't know. Anyway, as glad as we are that you two are happy, can we kind of celebrate later? We're both starving. We're just going to drive downtown grab some dinner and dessert and then we'll be back, alright?"

The two couples shared their goodbyes and Troy and Gabriella left, leaving Jack and Lucille standing alone in the apartment.

"Well..." Jack started. "That was..." he trailed off, wracking his brain for the right word he wanted to use. "Well, I don't exactly know what that was."

"It doesn't matter what the last five minutes were. What matters is that they're back together."

"I agree," Jack told her.

"And it was all because of me," Lucille continued.

Jack turned to face his wife with an entertained expression. "Oh, I can't wait to hear this one."

"Well, if I hadn't talked to Gabriella on Saturday, they wouldn't have talked and worked everything out."

"Um, I kind of talked to them, too, Luce."

"Not the point, Jack. I'm the mama. I deserve credit for everything. I thought you would have figured that out by now."

Jack let out a snort of amusement. "Alright then, Ms. I'm-Always-Right. I'll remember that in the future." He laughed when Lucille stuck her tongue out at him in response. "At any rate, what should we do while we wait on the kids? Didn't you say something about wanting to go get Gabriella's graduation present? Why don't we go do that and we can grab some dinner ourselves while we're out?"

Lucille sent Troy a quick text, letting him know their game plan for the evening and that the four of them would meet back at the apartment later, and the two left on their own adventure, locking the door behind them.

TGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGF

Troy and Gabriella were walking off the calories from dinner, taking their time to get to the coffee shop where they were going to get dessert. Troy had his arm draped across Gabriella's shoulder and she had her right hand raised to hold his as it rested on her shoulder.

"So I've been thinking..." he began.

"Be careful with that," she teased, giving him a wink.

"Haha. Smarty pants. Just because you go to Stanford-"

"Went," she corrected.

"What?"

"Went to Stanford. As of yesterday when I took my last exam, I'm technically not a student anymore, remember? All I have left is graduation practice on Thursday and graduation itself on Saturday. So therefore..."

"Anyway... point is..." He trailed off and gave her a pointed look as she giggled. He momentarily marveled at the feeling it gave him; it had been way too long since he heard that melodious sound come from her mouth on his account. Gabriella wrapped her petite arms around his waist and gave a small squeeze, causing Troy to release a chuckle.

"I'm sorry, Wildcat. I couldn't resist. You're just too easy." She reached up to pinch his right cheek and followed it up by a slight pat and a wink.

"Whatever," he said with a roll of his eyes. "Now as I was saying, I've been thinking," he told her as they approached the coffee shop. Troy held the door open and placed his hand gently on the small of her back to guide her inside. "Why don't you tell me what you want and then get a table? I'll join you after I order and tell you my thoughts."

Gabriella agreed, gave Troy her order, then walked to an empty table in the corner and waited. Within minutes, he joined her at the table with their two cups and sat down across from her.

"So you've been thinking..." she started for him.

He picked up where she left off. "...about our future."

Gabriella raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Oh, yeah?" she asked as she brought her cup up to her mouth, taking a drink. "In what realm?"

Troy licked his lips and took a deep breath. He had been thinking about this ever since he and Gabriella talked the night of his graduation. He knew it was something that meant a lot to her and if he was truly serious about having a future with her, then he would make sure it would become more important to him, too.

"I uh... I'm going to start making it a priority that I go to church with you on a regular basis."

Gabriella paused with her cup halfway to her mouth and stared at Troy in disbelief. "Really?" she asked.

"Yeah. It's important to you. It's a part of who you are. I'm going to make sure it becomes more important to me and that it becomes more of a part of who I am, too" he told her sincerely.

"Troy..."

"Wait," he held his hand up, silently telling her to let him finish. "Going on that premise, I think it might be a good idea if..." Troy allowed his voice to trail off again and lowered his eyes to look at the table. Gabriella could swear that she saw him blush.

"Troy, are you embarrassed to say this?"

"Not so much embarrassed, I don't think. I guess I'm more apprehensive about what you'll have to say about this idea."

"You don't have to be, you know." Gabriella reached across the table and took his hand in hers, hoping to reassure him.

"I know." He squeezed her hand and gave a small smile before continuing. "I guess it's more of the change it'll mean for both of us and our relationship." Gabriella immediately felt the panic rise inside of her and tried to keep her breathing level. Her eyes darted all around her as she struggled to hide her terror at what he could possibly be getting ready to say. She slowly pulled her hand out of Troy's grasp and sat back in her seat.

"Um... okay..." she said, as she lowered her eyes to study the table top and tried to keep her confusion at bay. Troy however had always been able to read her like a book and quickly leaned forward in his own seat so he could better reach across the table and placed his index finger under her chin to gently lift so her eyes met his.

"Hey," he said to gain her attention. "Let me finish what I'm saying. Please?"

Gabriella swallowed and nodded. "Sorry. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. Continue..."

Once Troy was certain he had her full attention again, he moved his fingers from under her chin and sat back in his chair so he could better take in her expression when he said what was on his mind. He took a sip of his drink before continuing.

"What I was going to say regarding our future is something that's going to be more new and different for me than for you, but I want to do this. I want our relationship to go in this direction because I know it means a lot to you and I want it to mean a lot to me, too."

"Troy, you're confusing me."

"Really?" He watched as she furrowed her eyebrows and cocked her head, nodding it slowly as she watched an unusual glow come across his face. "Wow. That never happens." Gabriella watched in further confusion as his eyes drifted to a spot on the wall above her head and an odd grin spread across his face.

"Troy, what are you-" She stopped when he held up a hand.

"I'm relishing in the fact that I've confused you. It doesn't happen that often. You're too smart for me to confuse you. Give me a minute."

Gabriella rolled her eyes and reached across the table to smack Troy on his very muscular arm. "Will you stop it?!" she reprimanded.

"Sorry," Troy said when his laughter subsided.

"Anyway, as you were saying..."

"As I was saying... Remember earlier this year when you were disappointed when you realized that living off campus meant you couldn't go to the dorm Bible study that you had been going to?"

"Yeah."

"I want us to see if your church has a college group or a young couples group or something for people our age that we can start going to. Together."

A pause filled the air as she allowed his words to permeate in her brain. "Really?" Gabriella asked, as a small smile started to form on her face.

"Really. I know that it's important to you. Your Bible study and being involved in the church and all that. I'm going to start going with you more often- on a regular basis. I want to be the kind of man and future husband that your dad was for your mom. I know that's important to you and I want to do that. For myself and for you... for us."

Gabriella sat there for a moment, just looking at Troy in wonder. It was amazing the changes that she had seen in him within the past few days since their relationship had been on the mend. Nothing in particular, he had just become more of a gentleman in general. And now telling her that he wanted to become a better person and work on his relationship with God...

If only Daddy could see this...

"Now, here's the part that's hard for me to get used to. With us wanting to improve our relationship, I'm thinking that maybe we should stay in our separate rooms. You know, really control ourselves fully." He lowered his voice at that last word in hopes of conveying his full meaning.

She allowed a small smile to tug at the corners of her mouth before it finally exploded and turned into a full out grin. She leaned across the small table and gave Troy and small peck on his lips.

"So I take it you like that idea?" he asked, mildly amused at her reaction.

"I love that idea," she told him. "I can't tell you how many times I wished that you would go to church with me more often than you do and that we could be involved together. This is... it's an answered prayer that you came to this conclusion all on your own."

"But what about the 'separate room' idea?"

"I think that's something that while yes, it will definitely take some adjusting, it also will be very good and beneficial for us. I mean, if we're going to try and mature our relationship and all, I say we give it a shot. Thank you, Wildcat."

"You're welcome," he told her before giving her another brief kiss.

TGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGF

The two returned home that evening and spent some time with Jack and Lucille before they left for the night, going back to the hotel. The foursome discussed meeting for breakfast the next morning, but Troy announced that he had gotten called in to pick up some shifts at the restaurant now that his schedule was more open since he had graduated and as it turned out, Wednesday was one of those shifts. So Gabriella made plans with Jack and Lucille on her own.

After Jack and Lucille left, Troy excused himself to get in the shower. Gabriella took the few quiet moments to make a phone call. She brought the phone to her ear and listened as it rang.

"Hello?" she heard in her ear.

"Taylor? Hey. It's me."

"Oh. Hey. I wasn't expecting to hear from you."

"Really?" Gabriella scrunched her face in confusion and pulled the phone away from her face to look at it. "Why not? I thought everything was getting better between us?"

"Well, yeah, they are. But aren't the future in-laws in town?" Taylor asked. The smirk on her face was very clear in her voice and Gabriella couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Taylor..." Gabriella said, the tone of her voice warning Taylor that she was about to tread in a dangerous territory.

"I'm kidding; I'm kidding!" Taylor reassured her. "I won't make that mistake again. I was miserable without you!"

"And believe me... I won't let you make that mistake again!" Gabriella pointed her finger into the phone, imagining that it was Taylor's face. "I was miserable, too," she told her, letting the pout that was on her face be evident through her voice.

"So... what's up?" Taylor asked, trying to get the conversation back on topic.

"Well, I'm going to keep this brief. I just wanted to call for a few and let you know something. It's not exactly Facebook or Twitter worthy, so a brief phone call has to suffice."

"And what would that be?"

Gabriella allowed a small smile to grace her Latino features. "That I was right and you were wrong."

"I'm sorry, what?"

"You heard me."

"Yeah... I kinda did. I just don't want to admit it," Taylor admitted sheepishly.

"You don't even know what I was right about," Gabriella pointed out.

"Watch it, Miss Cocky."

"Sorry." Gabriella giggled.

"So what were you right and I was wrong about?"

"About me and Troy." Gabriella proceeded to tell Taylor about the conversation that took place between her and Troy on Saturday evening after his graduation. She included every detail- even the fact that he showed her the box that holds the ring that will one day be on her finger. She also told Taylor about the conversation that the two of them had just that afternoon. "So you see, Taylor... If you hadn't jumped to conclusions..." She sing-songed the end of her statement to show Taylor that she was teasing her and allowed her voice to trail off.

"Oh-kay!" Taylor said. "You've made your point, smarty pants. I get it. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions like I did and believe me if I could do it over..."

"I know. I just had to pick on you," Gabriella reassured her friend. "Anyway, I better run. I'm getting up in the morning to meet Troy's parents for breakfast."

"Have fun." Taylor wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, knowing that action was in vain since Gabriella couldn't see her. "We'll talk soon."

"Sounds good. Love you!"

"Love you, too!"

"Who was that?"

Gabriella heard that voice behind her and turned around to see Troy standing there in a pair of sweat pants and no shirt on. "Taylor. I called her to brag a little bit."

"Oh, yeah? How'd she take that?"

"It was a very interesting conversation." The two laughed before Gabriella continued. "In all actuality, though, I think everything's going to be just fine between us. She realizes what she did and has apologized until I can't stand to hear the phrase 'I'm sorry' from her anyone."

"Well, then I'll remember that for when I screw up. 'Oh, Baby... I can't tell you that I'm sorry because you can't stand to hear that phrase, so instead I'll just say-' Ow!" Troy stopped talking and rubbed his chest where Gabriella just hit him with a pillow.

"Watch it, Bubba!" she warned.

"So what's on tv tonight?" he asked, as he repositioned himself on the couch to better allow Gabriella to snuggle into his side and he wrapped his arm around her to pull her closer to him. He leaned down to place a gentle kiss to the top of her head as Gabriella reveled in the feel of being wrapped in his arms once more. "I love you, Brie."

"I love you, too, Wildcat."

The two of them settled in for a quiet night of watching tv... and relished every minute of it.

TGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGF

Gabriella spent the next day with Jack and Lucille while Troy worked a double shift at the restaurant. She loved spending time with the two of them. Jack wanted to catch a Giants game while they were there for the graduations and it just so happened that luck was on his side: they were playing a three game home series that week against the Atlanta Braves with the series opener on that particular Wednesday. The three of them went to the game with hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, and beers being their lunch of choice while at AT&T Park on that sunny, cloudless afternoon.

As they were leaving the ballpark and discussing their plans for the rest of the afternoon, Gabriella's phone rang with an incoming text. As she pulled her phone from her purse and brought it to life so she could read the text message, she stopped and stood rooted to her spot.

"Hey, guys," she called out to Jack and Lucille. When they turned around and walked the few steps back to where she was, she continued. "It's from Troy."

"What did he say?" Lucille asked.

"Apparently he got off work early."

"Good. Tell him to shower and change and we'll go grab some dinner in a little bit or something," Lucille suggested.

"Um, actually, I think he has other plans for us," Gabriella told them as she turned her phone around for his parents to read the text she had received.

"Stanford...commons...45 minutes" was all it said.

"Gee Son... glad to know you're fluent in Cryptic-ese," Jack joked.

"Right?! That's all it says!" Gabriella exclaimed. "I don't have a clue what he means by that."

"There's only one way to find out," Lucille pointed out. "Don't worry about us. We'll catch BART and go entertain ourselves. You head back to Stanford and see what he's up to."

"Alright," Gabriella agreed. "I hate this, though! You guys came to spend time with us and we've blown you off almost every night for one reason or another!"

"Gabriella," Jack spoke up to get her attention. "You two have been through a lot within this past month. You're both slowly trying to get things back on track. If my son takes after me like I know he does, then he's got something up his sleeve and you need to go see what it is. Ouch!" he yelled, when his wife playfully smacked him in the arm causing Gabriella to break into a fit of giggles. "Lucille! What was that for?"

"For being forgetful and cocky at the same time," she answered. When he looked at her confused, she sighed and kept going. "You're forgetting that he's both of our son. We both raised him. Any romantic gestures he has in his mind came from both of us, not just you. Remember when he came to San Francisco to track down Gabriella during their senior year of high school? Where do you think he got that idea?"

"Um, while you two stand here and debate Troy's romantic ancestry, I'm going to make my way to Stanford and see what he's got on his mind for this evening," Gabriella told them as she pointed in the direction of the parking lot where she had parked her Hyundai Santa Fe earlier that afternoon. "We'll text you and iron out the details for tomorrow."

The three bid their good byes and went their separate ways, while Gabriella's head was spinning as she tried to figure out what Troy could have possibly planned for that evening. Knowing him, there was no telling. That thought alone made her smile as she buckled her seat belt and prepared for the forty minute drive to the campus of her almost alma mater.

TGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGFTGF

When Gabriella arrived to the Stanford commons and found the tree that the two of them claimed as "theirs" back during their senior year of high school when Troy followed her, she was pleasantly surprised by the sight that greeted her. She was slightly stunned by the fifty or so tea light candles that were set in a circle formation around the wooden bench at the base of the tree and the iPod docking station that was sitting there, too. She looked around and wasn't surprised when she didn't see Troy anywhere. She knew where he was.

"What is it with you and trees?" she asked with a grin on her face as she remembered that very special day when she said those words just a few years prior. Gabriella only looked up when she heard his voice above her.

"I'm not going to let you go that easily, you know?" he said as he hopped down from his perch up in the tree.

"But I thought we already established that you're not letting me go and I'm not going anywhere. Not anymore, anyways." Her cheeks were starting to hurt from the grin that graced her features. He acknowledged her statement by approaching her and placing a simple kiss to her soft lips. "What is all this, anyway?" she asked him as she walked in a circle, taking in the whole scene around her. When she faced him again, she caught sight of Troy reaching into his pocket and her eyes widened and her heart pounded as only one thought ran through her mind.

Is this it? Is this what he had planned?

"It's not what you think it is," he told her with a grin on his face, not looking up from his pocket and interrupting her thoughts.

"How do you know what I think it is?" she asked, her eyes narrowed in challenge.

Troy took the few steps needed so he was standing directly in front of her. "Because I know you. That's not what tonight is about, so get that thought out of your head. That's later," he told her with a wink as he tapped the tip of her nose and retracted his hand from the pocket of his jeans holding tightly to the remote for the iPod docking station.

"So what is tonight about, then?" she asked as she watched him. Troy pressed the button on the remote and the area around them came to life with the sounds of Hunter Hayes singing "Wanted" coming through the speakers.

You know I'd fall apart without you

I don't know how you do what you do

'Cause everything that don't make sense about me

Makes sense when I'm with you...

"Troy," she cooed lovingly. "That's the song you always sing to me whenever it comes on." She reached up to lock her hands around his neck and pulled him close and his own hands came to grasp her hips, holding her tight.

"Dance with me?" he whispered.

"Of course," she whispered back as she ran her fingers through his hair.

'Cause I wanna wrap you up

Wanna kiss your lips

I wanna make you feel wanted

And I wanna call you mine

Wanna hold your hand forever

Never let you forget it

Yeah, I wanna make you feel wanted...

The young couple got lost in their own world as they slow danced to one of their many special songs. After several seconds, Troy pulled back so he could look Gabriella in her deep brown eyes.

"This is a way for us to start fresh," he told her. "We're going to pretend like nothing ever happened between us and just move forward from where we left off. Taylor hasn't even been to visit us for Spring Break yet. You're excited about her coming and I'm preparing for Georgia-"

"-and I want to show you just how much I don't want you to leave..." she said as she fingered the hair at the nape of his neck with that all too familiar-to-him glint in her eyes.

"Don't pull that part of things into this yet," he warned as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, leaning his forehead against hers.

"Sorry," she said, sheepishly. "I've missed you, Troy."

"I've missed you, too, Baby, but tonight's not about that. Besides, what about our talk from yesterday?" he reminded her and chuckled as she rolled her eyes and burrowed her head in his chest as the song changed and "Just a Kiss" by Lady Antebellum started to play.

"Okay, back to what I was saying... Taylor's on her way out here and I'm preparing for the tournament." He paused and looked at the sporty Citizen watch that she gave him for his own graduation- a present that she bought back at the beginning of March and gave him on the night of their reconciliation- and counted to fifteen. "Okay, now she's in California and I'm in Georgia." He paused again and took another look at the watch, counting to fifteen again. "And now her visit is over and I'm back in San Francisco. I've been back in town for a month and a half and we haven't spent that much time together, just us, because everything has been so hectic with the end of the year and finals and such. Now I've planned the prefect date for us at the end of the semester to celebrate both of our graduations- similar to the one in my back yard four years ago- and here we are."

"Wow, those 2 months really sped by," she teased.

"That's because I was sick and tired of school and ready for it all to be over," he said, returning the teasing tone and topping it with a kiss to the top of her head.

"So what other songs do you have set to play on the iPod for tonight?"

"Only the ones that are the most special to us," he told us while tucking a stray curl behind her hair.

The two allowed themselves to get lost in the arms of the other while the iPod played on. Occasionally their sweet kisses would be interrupted by the sound of sweet giggles and masculine chuckles, but mostly it was sweet, loving words that were shared between the two. Finally, Gabriella broke the serene bubble by stating the one part of their future- their very near future- that had yet to have been discussed.

"You know, at some point, we still need to discuss graduate school and all of that."

"That's on the agenda for tonight, but not until later."

"What's on the agenda first?" she asked.

Troy gave her a sneaky smile as he took a few steps in the direction of the tree and walked around to the other side out of her sight.

"What do you have up your sleeve, Wildcat?" When no sound was heard, she continued. "Should I be worried?"

"No, of course not," he said as he came back into her view, carrying a picnic basket, a pizza box, and a blanket.

"Troy! You didn't!" she exclaimed giddily.

"Oh, but I did."

"You sly little devil, you! Tell me it's not!" Gabriella ran the few feet to him and took the blanket from his hands to spread it on the ground, bringing a few of the tea lights off the bench surrounding the tree to offer a little bit more light so they could see to eat.

"Look for yourself," he instructed and watched as she lifted the lid to the pizza box and her grin spread to cover the rest of her face, blinding him with the brilliance of her pearly whites.

"Margherita pizza! I knew it!"

"No special occasion night is complete without that, a bottle of wine, and-"

"Chocolate covered strawberries!" she interrupted as she pulled a separate container from the picnic basket, causing him to chuckle at her cuteness. He sat down on the blanket next to her and reached into the basket himself, pulling out the two acrylic wine glasses, the bottle of Turning Leaf Red Moscato, and the bottle opener. He poured the two glasses of the sweet red wine and handed one to her, but stopped her from taking a sip.

"A toast?" he proposed. She nodded as she readjusted her body so she was sitting on her knees and he continued. "Here's to new beginnings and to the future," he said as the same curl from earlier began to blow in the wind once more and he reached up to tuck it back behind her ear.

"No, Troy." She gave a small smile as another memory from a few years before came back to her. "Here's to right now."

Troy returned the smile as he, too, had the same memory. She then leaned in closer, curling her index finger for him to do the same. When he did so, she lowered her voice to a whisper. "Here's to happily ever after."

"I'll drink to that!" he whispered in response as she pressed her lips to his in a soft kiss.