A/N: Prompt given by Miri. Thank you:) PLEASE review if you like it~

Like I promised, here we go! I tried to be creative;^; Alternative Title for this is Counting Stars.

8

Proposal

The reflected lights blurring in her bright, magenta eyes make her even more beautiful that night - if that was even possible.

Underneath his skin, the grass is something between soft and rough as his palm rubs against the ground they rest on. There's no wind, not even the weakest of breezes, so the air is still, pleasant, quiet. Above their heads, the sky is ink black with thousands - millions of stars scattered strategically among it. It's a sight one doesn't get to see back in the city, where light pollution and smog erase everything over the horizon, leaving a dark, dull grey.

It's refreshing.

Thomas frowns to himself uneasily as his girlfriend jabbers on about - damnit, he'd stopped listening. Smile and nod! he thinks quickly when she glances at him for a reply. Rio appears satisfied as he agrees with whatever she'd just said and he smirks inwardly. Nailed it.

It's not his fault that he's so distracted...okay, maybe it is. But Thomas mentally slaps himself to clear his mind and takes a deep, soundless breath to calm his nerves.

When Rio has settled down significantly, finally at a loss for conversation, her long-time boyfriend lifts his right arm toward the heavens. Sprawled on the floor comfortably, she raises a brow curiously. With his index finger, Thomas points at the North Star. "See it?"

Rio purses her lips, puzzled but interested, and nods. "Yes."

"That was the first star to show up in the whole sky the night we first made out," he insists with a low chuckle in his tone.

Rio laughs and smacks his abdomen playfully. "You're making that up."

"Am not!" he retorts, acting offended.

"Liar~"

Thomas shrugs, smirking. He motions at something else, waiting for the woman next to him to look in that particular direction. In a serene sort of voice, careful not to shatter the flawless atmosphere they invade, he murmurs, "If you use your imagination, that group over there forms the constellation Cygnus, which was a swan from Greek mythology."

"You seem to be trying to prove a point," Rio thinks aloud, grinning with anticipation.

"Of course," Thomas chirps, stretching his stiffening limbs slightly. His foot had gotten numb and he moved to get the blood flowing again. "Cygnus was at its peak the evening you and I broke the news to Ryouga that we were dating."

She bursts out in gasps of amusement, clutching her stomach at the humorous memory.

Smiling, he directs his line of vision to another stretch of the visible universe. "And over that way is Capricornus. He was watching that midnight when we stayed up to see the fireworks."

"I remember that!" Rio exclaims, suddenly excited. "We wanted to see the Explosives Show at about twelve o'clock that night and you fell asleep at least three times."

Thomas blushes deeply, somewhat embarrassed now. Being discreet as his hands work to his blind side, he keeps talking. "Do you recall that early morning when we got up hours before our alarm and watched the comet?" His words are formal, in a fashion that implies he's a genius or a telemarketer or something like that. Rio hums in acknowledgement as he continues. "That time, you fell asleep five times before it arrived." She scowls, but the twinkle in her eye is rather noticeable.

His left hand slips into his pocket and he prays she doesn't hear or see the movement.

Using his right still, Thomas ushers for her to peer up at a particularly bright white-blue speck in the vast twilight canvas. "That star is named Vega."

"...And...?"

The man beams over at her. "I don't have a story for that one yet."

"You must," Rio tells him, as if in a state of denial. "There's always a tale from you. You love astronomy."

Thomas simpers to himself. And that's because every syllable he's allowed to leave his mouth so far has been nothing but the truth. He's been locking these events in his head for years, never forgetting a second of their hours together beneath the unending stretch of unexplored outer space. Slowly, he sighs. "...Alright. I may have one."

Rio immediately shifts to another position so she can listen more intently. Her partner and the boy she loves so dearly places his right fist behind his upper neck for better support.

"I know a guy...who asked the lady he was madly and desperately in love with a very important question under the shine of Vega. He took her out to eat at her favorite restaurant and they enjoyed simply being alone as a couple for the rest of their outing."

Rio is staring at him now, eyebrows knitted.

"That night, as they lay together reminiscing, sharing anecdotes, relaxing, and just having fun, he popped that question..."

The shooting star that is streaking across the sky had caught both of their attention. There was no possible way he could have planned such a phenomena, yet Thomas leaps for it, playing off of that beautiful, lucky son of a bitch that appeared at the exact perfect millisecond.

"-When the meteorite flew by, lighting up their moment like a cheap Disney movie-" Rio stifles a nervous giggle, completely on edge currently. He gulps but keeps his throat from going hoarse. "-he leaned over,-"

Thomas rolls onto his side so he can stare her straight in her star-reflectant eyes.

"-and he asked his soul mate something that would change their lives forever."

Removing his hand from behind his back, he holds it above their bodies in between them as they lay there. Tied to his fourth finger is a thin, red string that dangles right before their faces. At the end of it is a shimmering, gold ring. It's delicate, with two diamonds decorating it. Both gems are encased by each side of an infinity sign, bonding the stones into a single, silvery setting.

Thomas whispers, "I promise to have a much more interesting story for Vega," he notes the tears welling behind her lids, "if you, Kamishiro Rio, will marry me...?"

For a terrible heartbeat, she is utterly silent, the only noise in the grassy field being the pounding in his chest that roars in his ears. For a wonderful lifetime, she smiles through the salty rain that cascades down her flushing cheeks and almost squeaks, "Yes... Yes, yes, I will marry you!"

Relief swells in Thomas's chest as he briefly wonders how his future brother-in-law will accept this announcement. He reaches out and embraces his official fiancée, who is still crying happy sobs. Rio calls him a "sap" before pressing her lips against his.

They kiss beneath their seal of engagement, which hangs from that red string of fate while Vega casts its light down on the finished story.

~Finish~