by N. T. Smith
“I knew that they were up to something,” she said to him.
“What do you mean?” Peter asked.
“My parents never have emergencies like this. They usually have people to take care of this sort of thing, and people to take care of those people. Something tells me that they’re full of it, and they just left us so that we would be alone. I know what they’re up to,” she said.
Peter realized at that moment what they were up to as well.
“I knew it as well. It just took me a minute to realize it,” he said. A part of him should be angry, but in reality, he was actually pumped for this.
“Well, I guess we can spend some time together. It’s not like it’s a bad thing or anything,” she said with a blush.
The two of them checked into the hotel, and soon they went out to explore the land. They went to a gift shop, where Peter bought her a shell necklace. He wasn’t trying to be a penny pincher right now, but rather he realized that her parents just gave the two of them a chance to have some time alone together. He would have to be a fool to not take this opportunity by the horns and go through with that.
Then, he remembered what he had in mind. He had the ring in his pocket. He knew that it was going to be awkward if he did tell her and she said no, but he had been planning for this moment. He brought it with him whenever he was around her, in hopes that maybe, just maybe one day he could finally tell her his true feelings. It still haunted him to this day, so he knew that he needed to be upfront about it all right now. It was now or never, and he knew for a fact that if he was honest about things now, it would get better with time.
It was time for him to stop having a worrisome outlook on life. Sure, there might be the chance that she says no, but in reality, he knew that deep down they would realize the feelings that they had for one another. It might take them a little bit, but Peter wanted to show her how he felt, and he wanted to express these feelings to her. It would be the best thing ever if she felt the same way and finally told him that she did feel this way.
Of course, tonight Peter had a plan. He would take her out to dinner, spoil her a little bit, and he would then take her to the beach. He didn’t know what he would do after that, but that was the plan for tonight.
The hours passed, and soon they went back to the hotel room. Peter turned to Cindy, smiling warmly.
“Do you have a pretty dress?” he asked.
She looked at her luggage. She did bring a few dresses.
“I did bring a few. What’s up?” she asked him. She didn’t think Peter had anything planned. It’s not like he was romantic or anything.
“Put it on. I have a surprise for you tonight,” he said to her.
She glanced at him, a bit shocked by it all. Was he really going to show off his romantic side? She had never seen it before, but a part of her was utterly curious about this.
“Okay,” she told him.
She got dressed, blushing as she thought about what he was going to do. After she had finished up, she looked at Peter, and for a moment, her heart stopped.
He was dressed in a clean suit, looking impeccable. He never dressed this fancy for her, and at that moment, she felt like she was at a loss for words with this man. Did he really feel the need to do this? Did he finally realize how to be romantic? At that moment, she felt like her heart had stopped.
They walked out, and Peter took her to this fancy restaurant. He never took her to a place this fancy before, and for a moment, she wondered if this was a dream. It had to be, it just had to. But they sat down, and Peter took care of everything. Apparently he was paying for dinner that night. He wasn’t using her parent’s money or anything. This was all on him.
They had a nice meal together, but Cindy was still trying to decipher what was really going on. However, Peter grasped her hand, looking at her with a smile.
“Come with me. I want to take you somewhere,” he told her.
They walked on the beach, the sand against their shoes. Cindy was curious as to where they were going, and then finally, they got to a small hill. They climbed up there, and when they got there, Peter looked at her, gesturing for her to sit.
“Let’s sit on the beach. It’s got a nice view,” he told her.
They sat down, the water crashing against the shore with light strokes. It looked like something out of a picture, and Cindy couldn’t help but love this.
“Wow, this is beautiful,” she said.
“It is. I wanted to take you somewhere nice, and I wanted to show you that I can be romantic at times. This is the first time I’ve ever really done something like this, so I hope you like it. I even got you a couple of things as well,” he said.
Cindy wondered what else he had gotten her. She wore the shell necklace that he bought for her, but then, he pulled out a flower from behind his back.
“I found this on the way here, and it looked as beautiful as you, so I wanted to give it to you,” he said.
Cindy blushed, trying to find the right words for this moment, but nothing came out.
“Oh my goodness. Thank you,” she breathed.
“You’re very welcome my dear. I also have another thing as well. This one might be a bit weird for both of us, but I’ve wanted to tell you this for a very long time. I know that it might be weird considering how you feel, but I hope that you can see me for who I am, and understand the gesture I’m about to do,” he said to her.
“I will try to. Just don’t make it too weird,” she said.
Then, Peter got up. He grasped her hand, pulling her up. Their bodies were right next to one another, and the only thing that they could think about was the feeling of their chests rising and falling. There was nobody else around besides them, and at that moment, it was time for Peter to say what he wanted to say.
He moved down on one knee, and Cindy felt the air leave her body once again. There was no way, no way that this was real. A part of her already wanted to say no, but the other part of her, the part that knew of her true feelings, was the one in charge right now. She just stood there, frozen in time as she looked at the man who seemed to have the most serious look she had ever seen on this face.
“Cindy, I know that it’s going to sound weird, but I want to ask you this. Can you be my princess? I know that you’re trying to get away from that, but I want you to be mine. I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life looking after you, to make you happy and smile, and to protect you. I may not be as fancy and rich as the rest of those guys out there I may not be the most romantic person in the world, but I can swear that I do love you and I always will. I will work hard to support you and the family that we will create together. So I have to ask you this: will you marry me?” he told her.
Cindy was at a loss for words. She just nodded, looking at him with a smile and surprised eyes.
Peter knew the answer. He knew that she was happy. She looked at him, finally trying to remember how to speak at that moment, and she smiled.
“Yes. I will marry you,” she said, gasping for air. It felt so weird, because it was almost like the air that she had in her lungs was gone for that moment. She could feel that little devil of doubt looming over her, but then it was pushed out by the true feelings at the bottom of her heart. Some might say that she was crazy, but the truth was, she was just expressing the true feelings that she had at the bottom of her heart. Deep down, she did love Peter, but she was just too afraid to tell him after all this time. She was afraid to admit her true feelings.
“I love you Peter. I’m sorry for never telling you until now. I was scared to tell you the truth, the feelings that were deep within me. I’m so sorry that I hurt you as well. I was an idiot for not realizing this, and I’m an idiot for not seeing the truth that was right there in front of me. I know who my real prince charming is, and that is you. You make me feel happy, love me to pieces, and you make me realize that you are worthy of my love and want to protect me. To be honest, you make me feel like a real princess. It’s not anything flashy or a
ny expensive gifts of being all over me in a romantic way, but instead you mean the world to me in a totally different way. You give me something that no other man has ever given me, something that I didn’t realize until just now was actually really important. That is unconditional love, something that means more to me and should’ve been the first thing that I noticed about you. I was a fool for not realizing this until now, and I’m so sorry for all of the pain of the past that I’ve conjured up. I should’ve been smarter, read the signs, and treated you the way you wanted to be treated. But thank you for giving me unconditional love, something that I’ve needed to learn for a very long time. I will look after you and love you for the rest of my life as well. Come hell or high water, I will always love you,” she replied
Peter felt like his heart was fluttering with excitement. He grasped the ring, putting it on her hand, grabbing her hands and looking at her, smiling a beaming grin that he had never shown before.
“Thank you so much. I love you,” he said.
Soon, he pressed his lips to hers, and for a moment, they both felt that time had stopped. They kissed each other hard, both of them trying to make up for the years of unexpressed feelings that they had for one another, years of not realizing what they were doing and the truth about the love that they had for one another.
Cindy loved the way that he kissed realizing that this was the first time he ever really expressed this sort of affection. This was a different kind of affection from the one that she was used to, but rather, she was feeling a type of love that not everyone had for one another. Instead, it was a kind of love that she was missing in her life, and with the way their lips fit perfectly against one another, she knew that she wasn’t doing the wrong thing, but instead the right thing.
The two of them made love that night, a feeling that they both finally got to have with one another. It was like a whole new world of experience, because this wasn’t just sexual contact, but rater this was an experience of loving one another and experiencing the love that they had for one another.
“I love you Peter. I’m so glad we finally said these words to one another,” she said to him.
“I love you as well Cindy. Thank you for giving me a second chance. I will not disappoint you. Rather, I will treat you like the princess that you are, and I will love you more than anything else in the world. You’re the most important person to me, and you always will be,” he replied.
Chapter 10
After that night, the two of them finally let out the feelings and words that had been holding them back. It had been a bit of a relief for both, and soon Peter was making some surprise arrangements. He vested Cindy constantly, but he started to put money towards something else, something that she didn’t even expect. He was going to be the best husband he could be to her, and about a year later Peter showed up at Cindy’s workplace. She had taken a position as a manager at the office, and it was something that made Peter happy. He knew that she was doing what had made her happy, and working for her family was something that she thoroughly enjoyed. Her brother seemed to have moved on and started his own company. He met a girl as well, and although they had only been dating for a month, it seemed to have done a drastic change to his outlook on life. Peter did joke with her brother over the fact that he was finally coming clean with himself and finally working to live a more decent, honest life. They had both changed, and it seemed that they were changing for the better.
That’s what made Peter so happy about the surprise that he had. He knew that this surprise was going to shock her, and he couldn’t wait to see what it was that would happen when she found out. That day was going to be the day, and when he stopped inside the office Cindy looked at him with a surprised glance.
“You’re here early,” she pointed out.
“Hey there babe. I have a surprise for you. When will you be done?” he asked her.
She looked at the clock. “I can leave right now,” she replied.
“Great. Then let’s head on out,” he said to her.
They left the office, and Cindy wondered where in the world he was planning on taking her. He had been working hard at something lately, but she didn’t know what it was. It made her wonder if this was some sort of secret big surprise, and if it was what it would entail exactly.
They got to a house, one that they hadn’t been to before. It was big, something that Cindy was a bit surprised about. It wasn’t like her parent’s house, but it was certainly bigger than the average house on the street.
“What is this? Why are we in this area of town?” she asked him.
He looked at her, smiling warmly at her words.
“You haven’t figured it out yet?” he asked.
She looked at him, and then at the place. It had a beautiful brick and marble finish, and the siding of was brick. It looked like an older house, but it was obvious that it had been built recently.
“Wait, you don’t mean—“
“I do Cindy. This is our home now,” he told her.
For a moment, Cindy’s breath had been taken away. Peter had a bad habit of doing that to her, and it was amazing to see this place. She didn’t expect a home to be like this.
“Wait, are you serious?” she asked him. This felt like some sort of dream. She didn’t know that he had a home planned for her. It felt like this was some sort of prank, but she knew that it wasn’t.
“I’m serious. I got this for us. Actually, I wanted to tell you that I had this place custom built for the two of us. I figured it would be a great gift to commemorate the year that we’ve finally been together. This is why I’ve been a little bit distant lately, why I have really had a whole lot of time to spend with you. I was working with a construction company to get this finished, because I wanted to make it the best home possible for us,” he said to her.
She couldn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe that he planned to give her a home like this! It was by far one of the best presents ever, and she could see that he even gave it the personal touch. They had a mailbox with a flower bed by it, some gorgeous gardens that looked like they had been tended to, and other features that one wouldn’t see in any old home.
“Oh my gosh. I can’t believe this still. It feels like a dream,” she said.
“Well it’s not a dream babe. This is a reality, and I want to provide for you in many ways. This was a little pet project I’ve been keeping under wraps, and once it was fully finished I had to show you. That’s why I got off work early today, because I wanted to show you right away the beautiful thing that I created for you,” he said.
This wasn’t just some home that one would buy and that’s that, but rather this was a home that was made with hard work and perseverance, and she still thought that this was a dream. This was his gift to her, and it was a memorable gift, because he didn’t just throw money at some guys to make it, but rather he had it built for her and he worked at it himself to finally build something that was of note to her. It was more sentimental than anything, because Peter took the time to have this built for her. It was like he was trying to make it so that the two of them could have a symbolic place for them to start their lives together, and that’s what made it amazing.
“Well, do you want to check it out? I figured it was time for the two of us to have our own place. We are planning to get married after all, and I think we both should probably move out of the places we are at right not at some point,” he joked.
He did have a point. She didn’t mind living with her parents, but after she finally got back to battery, it seemed futile to have to stay there when her life was starting with him. She wanted to move on, to have a new life, and he would be the perfect person to be with.
“Yeah. It’s great that we have this though. I mean, I know that you’ve been working hard, and I figured since we are getting married it was time for us to move out of the house at some point,” she told him.
Peter agreed with that. The two of them got out of the car and headed towards the entryway. The en
tryway was beautiful, with some plants flanking each side and some solar-powered lights. She looked up, and she could see a small stained glass orifice over the door. This place must have cost him a fortune, but then again he is an engineer so he probably had everything planned out and just needed the materials and a few others to help out with this.
“The construction company I work for helped me with this. I mean, I love that my job allows me to know how to build houses. It’s kind of nifty,” he said to her.
“I agree,” she said, still engrossed in the way the house looked. For now, that was the only thing on her mind, and she didn’t care about anything else.
They went inside, and the entryway was sprawling and beautiful. There was a front room, and she could see that it was furnished with some of their items. Cindy didn’t have any furniture because of the drama that happened and she only grabbed what she could from Tommy’s house. It felt like forever ago that it happened that way, and she couldn’t believe that Peter was here with her now. It was nice feeling like it was a new life for them.
The place was smaller inside than it looked. There was a living room, small but nice. There was a small kitchen. The second floor had two bedrooms, a main bedroom and a guest bedroom. It was really pretty, Peter also had some of the seashells that they got together on the beach the time they declared their love to one another hanging around the place. Cindy realized that he put a lot of effort into making it sentimental abode. In the sitting room, she also noticed that some of the pictures that he took during their first year together were hanging around, and as she looked up at them, her heart warmed.
“Wow, it’s shocking to see that we’ve been together for only a year, but it feels like forever,” she admitted.
“Well we’re back together again. I’ve always loved you Cindy, and I’ve wanted to create a great place for us,” he told her.
She nodded. “You have. You really have,” she replied.
It wasn’t the largest house out there but for two people it was more than enough room. The façade outside made it look sprawling, but it was enough space for everything that they had and then some. They didn’t have a ton of furniture before, so Peter did furnish the place with some nice stuff. They were items that he found at auction sales, not too expensive but looked great. The place also had a small Jacuzzi on the side, along with a little rock garden that had a pond over it as well. It was very romantic, and Cindy could see herself spending a lot of time in there with him.
