The Proposal
Reagan Bouchard
The wind blowing off the coast blew her brown curly hair behind her, exposing her tan skin. I watched as the moon shone down on her, creating a shimmer against her long, fitted, silver dress. She relaxed her hands on the white banister in front of her, letting her silver bracelet slightly hang off her wrist. This is the woman I have always loved. I gripped the ring box in my suit pocket, my sweat soaking into the leather material that held my future.
I had to remind myself over and over again that I’ve been preparing for this for months now. I tried to steady my breathing, hoping not to give the surprise away. I slid open the glass door, letting the cool breeze fill my lungs. “Enjoying the view?”
“This is incredible, William. I’ve never stayed so close to the ocean.” She turned to face me, displaying a look of affection I hope to see every day of my life. Her cheeks were rosy, contradicting with her dark glossy eyes that I wish to wake up to each day. “I don’t know how we will be able to go back to our normal lives after this.”
Her arms draped around my neck, pulling me close enough for her vanilla perfume to waltz into my heart. Her fingers traced through my hair, pulling a strand of blonde down my forehead and into my view. Her touch made me shiver, yet it was so familiar and comfortable that I wished we could stay in that moment forever.
“Shall we go for a walk?” I gestured to the empty beach where the waves awaited an audience. Her eyes glowed at the suggestion, leading me to take her hand and guide her down the staircase. As we walked along the wooden boardwalk that would bring us to the soft sand, I felt the weight of the ring drag down my jacket.
“Are you alright? You seem quiet.” Her soft voice radiated with concern. I could feel the heat between my hand and hers grow larger. I was almost worried she could feel my pulse rapidly beating against her wrist.
“Me? Ya, I’m good. How are you feeling, Veronica?” Fear crept into my thoughts, I’m going to give it away. She can see right through me.
Her face was scrunched with a weird expression. “Yes, I’m fine. Why are you acting so weird? Did something happen at the party?” She studied my face, and I forced myself to relax. My hand, still wrapped around the ring box, began to shake. I looked out into the open ocean, watching each wave calmly fold over the next. “Was it Jessica? She was all over you the other night.” Her voice, laced with jealousy, took me by surprise.
“No, of course not. It’s you that I love.” I pulled her to a stop in front of me. I glided my hands gently across her cheeks. Was now the moment?
“It wouldn’t kill you to show it sometimes,” Veronica whispered. She ripped away from my hands. “I mean, you spent our romantic vacation away from me, and I thought this week was going to be a time for us to reconnect.”
“I had one hour to myself, and all I did was play poker with a few guys.” I followed behind her as she sped up. The sand kicked behind her with every step, hitting my shins that quickly followed suit.
“Great, now you are getting defensive. Can we please just try and keep this civil?” She stopped and whipped around so I could see the stark difference in her eyes from earlier in the night. What once was innocent and sweet turned into an angry blaze. “I try, and I try to do everything I can to make sure I am enough for you, but you never put in the effort back! I mean, I know the accident was hard for you; it was for me too, but you need to be able to move past it so we ca-”
“The accident was hard for me? No, Veronica. That accident ruined my life, and it took my best friend’s life. God, if you knew anything about loss, maybe you can try and understand that I was grieving!” My veins ignited in a raging fire, and suddenly, I was the one walking away. The faint sound of her silver charms clanging against each other trailed my tracks on the sand.
“Are you saying I’ve never experienced loss before? My father lost his business, and we had to move because we couldn’t show our faces in the city again! You have no idea how I have been dealing with all of this. Did you ever stop to think that there was someone else affected by this accident? You are so selfish.” She breathed out hard like she has been holding this in for months.
I whipped back around and fell to a stop. “I’m so incredibly sorry that you lost all your daddy’s money, but some us had to work for the things we own. Some of us actually built real and genuine relationships with people, so when we lose that person, it is going to take us some time to recover. I miss him more than anything.” This wasn’t how the night was supposed to go. It was supposed to end with two smiles and a diamond ring in between.
Her face was painted with betrayal, and it hurt me in a way her words couldn’t. “You know he is always with you, watching over.” She looked down to the plain sand, and her voice softened, “It has been a year. A year, William. How long do you expect me to wait for your magic recovery?” I couldn’t believe each word that managed to escape her throat.
I removed my hand from the leather box and curled it into a fist. “Grief takes time, V.” I sighed, the back of my throat beginning to ache. “And god, I hate it when people tell me he is still here. I don’t get to hear his voice anymore or see his smile. We aren’t by the pool talking about the latest football game because he isn’t here.”
“Will-”
“No. I am allowed to miss his presence. I am allowed to believe that he found a better place than just watching over me in this messed up world. It should have been me in that accident. I was the one driving, and it should have been me. He was always the good one, putting everyone else above him. He had a family to look after- a wife and kids who won’t even look at me anymore. I hope he isn’t watching over us because if he is, he would see just how much pain I cost his family, and he would hate me for it. ” The words escaped my throat rapidly, and she just watched as my wall of emotion crumbled before her. “I lost the one person who ever truly knew me, who was by my side through the highs and the lows, and who I could always depend on.”
“Well, I guess that’s the issue then.” Her smooth hands gripped mine, causing the tight fists to loosen. “William, I should be that person.” It hit like a knife lodged in my back.
“What?” I backed away from her.
“I should be the one you go to with your problems, I should be the one that knows every detail about you- the good and the bad. But I’m not, right?” Her silver silk flowed behind her as she turned on her toes to face the dark ocean. “We worked before. You had Eric to talk to about certain things I could never understand, but ever since, we’ve been slowly falling apart.”
His name shattered my heart over and over again until the pieces could not be put back together. The ring impatiently weighs down my pocket for a time that’ll now never come. I’ve fallen in love with this girl who won’t even look me in the eyes as she leaves me.
“Nothing to say?” She spins back around, her hair flying across her eyes before she swiftly brushes it aside. “That’s okay, but I don’t think we work anymore.” She adjusts her dress straps before giving me one last glance and walking off into the distance back towards the house.
Even though my heart didn’t fully understand what I was feeling, it still felt right. This feeling was… freeing. Like the last part of my haunting past had finally let go. I reached into my pocket, grabbing the leather box stuffed inside. I carefully lifted the lid, and a glimmer shined with the moonlight. Was Eric watching this moment? I hope not. A tear trickled down my cheek and fell onto the diamond below.
