by Ingrid Diaz
Valerie took a deep breath. “Okay, here it goes,” she said, closing her eyes. When she opened them, she looked right into mine. “I’ve never felt like I belonged anywhere before, but when I’m with you even the oddest places feel like home. I don’t want to lose you again, Alix. I know you just recently forgave me and everything, but I am completely in love with you and that’s not something that’s going to change with time. So whether I tell you this now or five years from now, it doesn’t matter. I want to be with you. Only you. Forever.”
In spite of my usual hate for corniness, I was touched.
She handed me the present. “Please don’t freak out. But. Happy birthday.”
I took the box, my heart suddenly hammering in my chest. I opened it slowly and nearly passed out when I saw what was inside. I stared at her. “What does this mean?”
“Whatever you want it to mean,” she said simply.
I took the ring out of its resting place and looked at it. It was beautiful. I wondered if she knew that opal was my birthstone? “I . . . um . . .” I had no idea what to say. “What does it mean to you?” I asked finally.
“That I’m yours forever.”
I smiled, too happy to speak. Instead, I kissed her deeply, every doubt in my mind suddenly melting away into nothingness until there was just us and no one else.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, I felt the pages of a new chapter start to open.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ingrid Diaz was born in the small island of Puerto Rico. Since then she’s lived in exotic places such as Cooper City, Florida and New Brunswick, New Jersey. After landing a B.A. in English from Rutgers University, Ingrid packed her bags and moved across seas to Lyon, France, where she currently resides. She spends her days smiling and nodding at the French people (whom she still doesn’t understand), and blogging for b5media. In her spare time, she enjoys playing World of Warcraft and terrorizing her next door neighbors by singing loudly and off-key. More often than not, she can also be found working away on her next novel.
