"I'm Joan and this handsome devil is Morty," she said.
"I see you found a feisty one too, didn't you, Morty?" he asked.
"I sure did. I wouldn't have it any other way."
"How long have you been married?" Gideon asked.
"It's been 52 years," her husband said as he squeezed her tight. "All I have to do is look at her and it takes me back to the day we met. I can tell you down to the moment that I fell in love with her."
"Well, it's funny that you mention that. My friend here, Becca, has a thing with hearing about how couples met. Would you mind sharing that story with us?" Gideon asked.
"We went to school together," he said. "We lived in the same neighborhood. I was ten and she was the new girl in town. She got on the bus one September morning with her long, bright-red braids and as soon as I saw her, I knew that she was special."
"And you were just ten?" I asked.
"What can I say? When you know, you know," he said. "We did our homework together, we would study for tests, and we would talk for hours. It wasn't until years later, when we were in high school, that I realized that there was something more there. She started dating some jock and—"
"And he became an ass," Joan said. "I didn't know what happened. All of a sudden my friend was acting like a jealous jerk."
"Oh, I know how that is," I said as I gave Gideon the side eye.
"So I get it," Morty said. "I know what you're saying. You spent this time away for your own reasons. And if I'm right, it was like a big part of you was missing. I felt that when I was away in the war. She wasn't around, we hadn't been in touch for a long time, but she was right here." He touched his chest and smiled at Joan. "And she still is."
Gideon nodded. "See Becca, that's exactly what I'm saying. We were friends for all that time and it was great. And then we added some benefits," Gideon said with a smirk. "And if I may say so myself, those benefits were awesome. Unfortunately, being friends after that just wasn't. I didn't want to be your friend anymore. All I ever really wanted is for you to be happy, Becca. And I know I can make you happy. If you think this blond guy here can do the job, then that's fine. Or maybe even Morty over here. I understand it, he's a handsome devil and that's something I'll have to accept. But I guarantee you that no one will make you as happy, and no one will try as hard to make you happy every day for the rest of your life like I will."
Gideon took my hand and pulled me away from the crowd. I couldn't believe what was happening. After my pushing him away and after my acting like such a nut obsessing over our friendship and everything, he still wanted to be with me. It proved to me that he was right, he wasn't that guy who fell for every woman he met anymore. Everything he said made sense to me. He always knew the right thing to say.
"I'm not saying you have to marry me now," he said. "But just promise me you will. One day."
"Are you serious?" I asked
He turned around and handed the microphone to the first person who walked by.
"I'll show you how serious I am," he said.
He removed the ring that belonged to his grandfather, dropped down to one knee, and looked up at me while holding the ring out in front of him.
"See, I even have a ring. That's how serious I am, Becca. That's how much I mean everything I've been saying. I've never been more serious about anything before in my life. So what do you say? Will you marry me?"
"Yes," I said without thinking. I didn't need to think, I couldn't imagine being happier than spending the rest of my life with my best friend.
He tried to find a finger his ring would fit on but was out of luck. I laughed and took the ring from his hand and slipped it back onto his ring finger.
"I'll make it up to you, I promise," he said.
Gideon rose to his feet, picked me up, and spun me around before dipping me back and kissing me.
I was dizzy and out of breath, and not just from the spinning, or the kiss, but because that was the effect he always had on me and somehow deep down, I knew he always would. I was never more sure about anything than saying yes to marrying Gideon.
"I love you," he whispered as he held me tight.
"I love you too," I said.
"Hey, you know Xander told me there's a back room here that no one ever goes into. Care to find out if he's telling the truth?"
He waggled his brow and I laughed. I knew about that room, I remembered Ashley telling me about how she and Xander met.
"There's actually quite a few rooms, kitchens, museum exhibits, barns, and even coat closets that I know about," I said, thinking about my friends' stories. "Let's find some new places to make our own."
