by Isabelle Rae
When we finally left the house, it was almost five in the evening. I had my arms full of presents, ranging from notebooks for college, to earrings, to a digital camera. Sam being Sam, bought me a diary and asked that I fill it with all things ‘non Will related’ and then let him read it.
I sighed contentedly as we drove away from the house. Today had to be the best birthday ever. We hadn’t done anything much, but just being with Will was incredible. The only thing that could make what had already happened better was if Will had been there for the lunch tradition. I’m betting he could have kicked my dad’s butt at the eating contest and wouldn’t have had to cheat. Next year we’d see if I was right.
As we were driving down the road Will suddenly pulled over and shut off the engine. I looked around curiously wondering what he was doing, but I had no clue where we were. It was just a random street as far as I could make out.
“What are we doing here?” I questioned.
He smiled. “I want to take you somewhere, but I want it to be a surprise so you need to wear this.” He reached into the back of the car before turning back to me and producing a grey knitted winter scarf.
I laughed, a little shocked. “Really? I thought we were going for dinner tonight,” I inquired, a little lost as to what was going on in his very fine head.
He laughed. “We are.”
I frowned and looked at the time on his dashboard clock. 17:42. “Well where are we going now then? I mean, what time are we going out to eat and stuff tonight, because I want to get changed first. I can’t go to dinner like this,” I countered, waving my hand down at the jeans and plain black V-neck top that I was wearing.
He laughed. “Cutie, don’t stress. There’s plenty of time for everything. Not sure why you would need to change though, those are my favourite jeans,” he commented. He leant over and trailed little kisses up the side of my neck, as his hand traced my leg from my knee to the top of my thigh, making my body tremble and my eyes to close involuntarily.
I silently wished time would pass faster. I didn’t even want to go to dinner; all I wanted was what was happening after, when we would go back to his place. I wanted the intimacy and the closeness; I wanted to renew the bond that we’d been missing for the last six months.
“You like all of my skinny jeans,” I muttered breathlessly as he nibbled on my collarbone.
He laughed, his breath blowing across my skin making it prickle with sensation. “Very true,” he confirmed. He kissed my neck one more time before pulling back and stretching the scarf between his hands, smiling at me reassuringly. “Turn your head and let’s get going. Don’t worry, Cutie, we’ll have plenty of time to eat and stuff tonight.”
I sighed and chewed on my lip before turning in my seat, letting him place the makeshift blindfold over my eyes. He tied it tightly at the back of my head. I smiled and touched the soft fabric with my fingertips, pushing it off of my nose so I could breathe properly. Will gripped my shoulders and turned me back to face him, adjusting the scarf until he was happy with it. “Perfect,” he stated, before capturing my lips in a soft kiss.
I smiled and sat back, playing with my fingers, wracking my brain trying to think of somewhere he would want take me as a surprise. It had to be somewhere remote because we literally took no risks at all with people seeing us out. So I knew it wasn’t going to be to the mall, or a ball game or anything populated like that. The only place I could think of was the field that he once took me too for a date, one of the best nights of my life where we had danced in the dark with only the car headlights shining. I actually hoped it was there, I hoped we were going to lie on the hood of his car and listen to some cheesy love songs while he held me tightly.
By the time the car stopped I was so apprehensive that I felt a little sick. We’d been driving for a good forty minutes since he insisted that I be blindfolded. Where on earth is he taking me? This can’t be our field, could it? It was only ten minutes’ drive, tops. Unless he’s driven around a few times so I had no idea where I was, maybe he’s trying to trick me or something.
I chewed on my lip as I heard his door open, and him fumbling with something at the back of the car, maybe getting something out of the trunk, or putting something in there.
When my door opened a minute later I jumped out of my skin, and he laughed quietly. “Here, take my hand, Cutie.” His hand closed around mine. I frowned behind the blindfold. He wasn’t going to let me see still? Where the heck were we?
“Why can’t I just look now?” I whined, pouting.
Something brushed against my lips lightly, I barely had time to realise that he’d kissed me before he pulled away again. “Because I want to see the full effect of the surprise. This is supposed to be romantic,” he answered, giving my hand a little tug, signalling he wanted me to get out of the car.
I stepped out and let him blindly lead me to wherever it was that he deemed ‘romantic’. The wind whipped my hair around my face, making me hunch my shoulders against the slight chill. Hmm, I really should have brought a jacket. Will stopped walking and let go of my hand. I smiled, thinking we had reached the desired destination, but instead of taking off the blindfold, he draped something around my shoulders. I clutched at the soft material and pulled it tighter around me, smelling the familiar beautiful yet manly smell that was solely my boyfriend. He’d obviously given me his hoodie. I grinned and pulled it to my face, breathing in his scent.
He laughed and took my hand again. “Stalker,” he teased, making me walk again by tugging me along gently.
We walked for a few more minutes. The ground was a little uneven under my feet, I had sneakers on so I had no idea if we were on grass or dirt, but it was bumpy so I knew we were definitely off road. He stopped again, almost making me walk into his back.
He let go of my hand and grasped my shoulders. “Stay right there. Don’t move,” he instructed, his voice stern.
“Did you just use your teacher voice on me?” I joked, sticking out my tongue like a five year old.
He laughed and pressed his lips to mine, kissing me passionately before he pulled away from me, leaving me alone and clutching his hoodie around me tightly against the slight wind. I could hear him fumbling around near me. I stood there patiently, waiting for him to tell me it was all right for me to move. In total honesty I kind of wished this moment would last forever, my birthday was incredible so far, and I wanted it to last forever, so he could take all the time he wanted.
Something cold brushed against my lips making them part as the smell of fresh strawberries hit my nose. I felt my mouth fill with water, and I heard a little moan then realised it came out of me.
“Open,” he whispered, kissing my cheek lightly.
I opened my mouth and the chilled strawberry was popped between my teeth. Instinctively I bit down, the sweet juice hitting my taste buds. His lips closed over mine as soon as I had swallowed the berry, the taste was almost heady with his lips pressed against mine. He licked the corner of my mouth where there was probably a little of the juice. My senses seemed to be heightened with the blindfold. Experts always said that, that if you took away one sense then it made the others stronger. It definitely made the taste stronger; I had never tasted anything more delicious in my life.
As he kissed me I felt him fumbling with the knot at the back of my head, untying the scarf. I kissed him fiercely, clutching at the belt loops of his jeans so he couldn’t pull back from me. I felt the soft material being pulled away from my eyes, but instead of pulling back and opening my eyes I pressed myself to him tighter, savouring the last few seconds before the kiss broke. I treasured every single one of Will’s kisses; I treated each one like it was the last in case he never graced me with another one.
He pulled back and kissed the tip of my nose. “You can open your eyes now, Cutie,” he whispered.
I smiled as I cracked my eyes open, wincing slightly at the sudden brightness after being in the dark for so long. The first thing I saw was his face, inches from min
e, a beautiful smile on his lips. His grey eyes were burning into mine and held such a passion that it almost knocked me sideways. I reluctantly dragged my eyes from him, to my surroundings.
Emotion swelled over me, my heart was literally aching as my stomach trembled. My eyes filled with tears as I looked at what he’d done. Romantic wasn’t the word to describe this scene, it was more like perfection. It was the epitome of all things romantic and spectacular.
We were at the top of break point, the highest point in town. We were at the edge of the cliff, he’d laid out a blanket with a few cushions scattered around too. A bunch of red tulips sat at the edge of the blanket, already in their own water. A picnic hamper rested in the middle with the lid off, I could see the box of strawberries on the top. I could also see most of my other favourite foods in there too; I chewed on my lip as a tear fell down my face because this special guy had gone to so much effort, just for me.
“Want to sit down?” he asked, stepping away from me and onto the blanket, nodding for me to sit down first. If there had been a chair, he would have pulled it out for me, Will was a little old-fashioned like that, but his dad was exactly the same from what I’d witnessed. The saying was certainly right in their family, ‘like father, like son’.
I sat down at one end of the blanket and looked out at the spectacular view of the town. It was beautiful, I’d actually never been up here before and that made it all the more special for me because I was doing it with Will. I watched as he pulled out carton after carton of food, glasses, plates, and cutlery. He’d thought of everything.
When he pulled out a bottle of champagne I raised one eyebrow at him. “You do realise I’m not old enough to drink that yet,” I teased.
He laughed. “Yeah, one birthday at a time. I just thought we could have a glass to watch the sunset with. You don’t have to if you don’t want one. I brought alternatives…” He tipped the hamper so I could see what was left inside and I burst out laughing when I saw a bottle of banana milkshake, my favourite kind of course, and a bottle of Dr Pepper.
“I’ll have the alternative for now. Maybe I’ll have the champagne later then, if we’re staying here to watch the sunset,” I mused, shrugging. How did I get so lucky to get a guy like Will? I really, really don’t deserve him.
He smiled and poured me a glass of milkshake and grabbed a Pepsi for himself. I helped him open all of the cartons of food, marvelling how he seemed to have made every single one of my favourites. “You make this all yourself?” I asked curiously, eyeing the pasta salad warily. Will wasn’t exactly the best cook.
He laughed and dug a fork into the pasta, spearing a couple of pieces, and then held them up to my mouth. As I opened my mouth I silently prayed he wouldn’t give me food poisoning. I was pleasantly surprised by the flavour of it, it was delicious. “I cheated and had my mom make most of it. I thought it was better to play it safe rather than us be sorry later when we’re both throwing up,” he admitted, laughing sheepishly.
I got up to my knees and moved so I could kiss him, smiling at him gratefully. “Thank you.” Was all I said, it was all that needed to be said, at least I hoped that he knew how grateful I was, because I couldn’t find the words to express myself better than that. I was literally rendered speechless by him and his thoughtfulness.
We ate and laughed, talked and flirted. Everything was perfect. As the wind picked up, he pulled out another blanket, wrapping it around my shoulders. When I couldn’t eat another bite he packed everything away into the hamper, before turning back to me with a huge smile on his face.
I looked at him curiously, wondering what caused that expression. He held out one hand to me, opening his fist to reveal a little black box the size of his palm. There was a red ribbon stuck on top.
I closed my eyes and smiled as I shook my head at him. “You really shouldn’t have bought me anything.”
He rolled his eyes. “I wanted to, so just shush,” he stated, moving his hand closer to me, silently telling me to take the gift and open it.
I took it from his hand, revelling in the soft, velvety feel of the box on my fingertips. I bit my lip excitedly, knowing that it was a jewellery box and that he had already said he wanted to get me something I could keep. I was so excited that I could barely remember how to breathe. I’ll get to wear this, whatever it is, everyday and think of Will.
“You’re not getting any younger,” he teased, laughing and scooting closer to me so that his legs were either side of mine. He hooked his hands under my calves and moved my legs so that they were draped over his, and were practically wrapped around his waist. His face studied every inch of mine as his hands rested on the tops of my thighs, squeezing gently as a prompt.
I smiled and opened the little box. My breath caught in my throat. Inside the box was a little gold charm bracelet. The links were delicate and intricate, there was one little charm hanging off of one side of it. I reached out a shaky hand and rubbed my fingertip across it, turning it over so I could see it better. Suddenly I realised what the little charm was. It was the sign for Pi, the maths symbol. I bit my lip and looked up at him in awe. I guess the charm was personal to him, something that kind of symbolised something that he loved, so it would be like I was wearing his sign in a small way. It was beautiful.
“This is incredible, thank you so much,” I croaked. Tears pooled in my eyes but I tried not to let them fall.
He smiled and cocked his head to the side. “You like it?”
I leant forward and pressed my lips to his, kissing him gratefully, tasting a salty tear so I must have lost the fight with myself not to cry. “I love it,” I whispered against his lips. I gripped the little box tightly in my hand so that I didn’t drop it. I was already in love with this little bracelet, and once it was on my body I was never taking it off.
He smiled at me happily. “Good. I wanted to get you something you could keep. I’m really glad you like it.” He brushed his hand against my face, wiping my tears away softly before kissing my forehead. “I love you, Cutie.”
I closed my eyes and gripped the front of his shirt, pressing myself to him, tightening my legs around his waist, just marvelling over this guy actually being mine. He’s just too incredible for me, surely. “I love you too. Thank you so much, Will. This is just beautiful,” I breathed, kissing the side of his neck. I pulled back and held it out to him. “Put it on for me?” I requested, wanting to get the incredible thing on my arm as quickly as possible.
He grinned and plucked the bracelet from the box, unclasping it and wrapping it around my offered wrist. I smiled at the feel of the cool gold against my skin. The little Pi symbol hung against my wrist, shining in the last rays of the sun.
He kissed me again until I was literally feeling like my insides were turning into mush. I was like a quivering mess, and the only thing that was keeping me upright was his arms that were wrapped tight around my waist.
He broke the kiss and smiled. He took hold of my wrist and brought it up, examining my bracelet, playing with the little charm on it, fingering it a little nervously. “This charm looks a little lonely,” he mused, kissing the inside of my wrist, on my pulse point. My skin prickled with pleasure at that one tiny little show of affection.
I smiled and brushed my free hand across his forehead, sweeping the hair away from his eyes so I could see them better. “I like just having that one charm on there. It’s perfect. A math symbol, from my math nerd boyfriend,” I teased, laughing as he bit my wrist.
He put my hand in his lap and straightened up, looking at me softly. “I actually bought you another charm to go on there too,” he whispered, trailing his fingers over my wrist lightly, making my stomach start to flutter.
He’s bought me something else? “You did? Will, you shouldn’t have got me anything at all, this was already too much,” I protested, shaking my head. I didn’t need him to spend his money on me at all. Not that I didn’t love the bracelet, because I did, but I just didn’t need expensive things from him.
I was just about to ask him what was wrong, when he took my hand and turned it over, palm facing upwards. He untied the string, tipping the bag up into my hand.
Out fell a miniature gold diamond ring, a charm for my bracelet, but it was a ring one.
My mouth dropped open. It was beautiful. “Will, that’s…” I trailed off, my eyes filling with tears again.
He seemed to take a deep breath as he picked up the little charm, fiddling with the little clasp that was attached to it. “I wanted to get you this because… well, it’s kind of like a promise ring, and I was wondering if you would wear it?” he asked, his voice a little husky and croaky. He was looking at the charm, seeming to be avoiding my gaze.
A promise ring? What’s that supposed to mean? “A what?” I chewed on my lip and bent my head slightly so I could see his face better. When I saw his expression I felt even more confused. He looked terrified, genuinely scared for some reason. What am I missing here?
He gulped again, lifting his gaze to meet mine again. “A promise ring. Like, I promise one day to replace that ring, with a real one. It’s like a commitment, but without the title,” he explained. “I love you, Cutie, I’ll always love you, and if things were different, if you were older and not my student and things were easier, then that wouldn’t be a promise ring, it’d be the real thing.” His beautiful eyes were searching mine, looking for some sort of response.
