Wes and I sat across the table at Java Hut in silence. It wasn't an awkward silence, it was more of a content silence. We both warmed our hands by gripping the sides of the recycled-paper cups full of delicious, steaming hot chocolate. My taste buds welcomed the warmth as I took the first sip, reveling in it's chocolately goodness. I smiled involuntarily when the warmth spread to my stomach. It felt incredibly similar to the way I always felt around Wes; warm, happy, and comforting.
We spent over ten minutes that way, in perfectly contented silence before Wes broke the silence.
"So... Can I have a hint at least?"
I smiled at him, and shook my head. "Nope. You're on your own. I want to be surprised, Wes, and I can't be surprised if I tell you how to ask me."
"Right." He sighed, then looked at me pleadingly. "PLEASEEEEEEE?"
"No Wes!!" I laughed at his sad puppy-dog face. "And stop doing that face! You know I can't resist it!"
He kept the face on for another few seconds before joining in my laughter. "I know, that was the whole point of me doing it!"
The conversation from that point was light and superficial. He asked if we could sit together again in Calculus, using the excuse that he missed the crazy doodles I would draw on the top of my notes. I knew he felt uncomfortable sitting next to Lydia, who was consistently flirting with him, but I didn't say anything, letting him think I believed his excuse.
He went home later that day to visit his parents for the weekend, so I was left to my own devices, wondering secretly if he was getting advice from his parents or his friends back home on how to ask me out. Thinking about it always made me smile, and confused my roommates to no end. Sometimes I'd be working on a calculus problem and I'd start laughing at the thought of Wes pleading to his mom for ideas. Whoever was sitting closest to me would look at me like I was crazy, shake her head and then return to whatever they had been doing before I interrupted.
Monday rolled around and Wes was back in town. We resumed sitting next to each other in calculus and I couldn't help but feel satisfaction as I watched Lydia's face fall when she noticed me sitting in what had become her "usual" seat. She walked over to our table slowly, most likely hoping I'd get up and move for her, but I didn't. When she finally realized I wasn't moving, she flipped her flat-ironed blonde hair in defiance and headed to the only open seat left- the one I had deserted.
Wes passed me a note a few minutes later that read-
Lydia looked so pissed! I hope she doesn't hate me for this. She's actually not a bad friend, once I got around her flirting with me all the time. But... I suppose losing one friend for you isn't too bad.
I read the note once, and slyly looked over at Wes who was smirking with one side of his mouth curling upwards in the mirror of my smirk. The rest of the class proceeded in a dull lecture that neither of us really paid much attention to, thanks to my "crazy doodles" that I became engrossed in.
After class let out, Wes told me he had an appointment with his counselor. I didn't think much of it, after all, this was the time of year when everyone was figuring out their schedules for the spring semester. I headed off to my dorm alone, not paying much attention to anyone else around me.
My door was unlocked when I came back, and I figured it was because one of my roommates was there.
"Rhyan? Lauren? Alex?" I called out nonchalantly, expecting nothing more than a hey or in here.
Except there was nothing. No reply came from the bedroom or the bathroom. Okay, I thought, they're just sleeping. So I put down my backpack quietly, not wanting to wake up my roommates, if they were napping.
I poked my head in the bedroom door and noticed all of their beds were empty. But when I turned my gaze to the right side of the room where my bed was, it wasn't deserted like the other side had been. Wes was sitting in my bed, his guitar resting on his lap and a long, shallow metallic box in his hands.
"What... Wes?" I was at a loss for words. "How... how did you get in here?"
"I talked to Rhyan last week and she agreed to let me in... As well as leaving us alone." He smiled softly at me and put his guitar down on the bed.
He took the two steps towards me and handed me the silver box. "Go ahead. Open it."
I took the box hesitantly. It was light and wrapped in some kind of shiny slightly transparent silver wrapping paper. The box itself was about a foot long and 6 inches wide with a tiny emblem pressed into the top of the cardboard. I squinted at it, but I couldn't make out what it was through the paper. Just open it. I told myself. I closed my eyes and took two slow breaths in an attempt to calm myself down. Lifting off the top of the box, I gasped as soon as I saw what was inside.
Nestled in thin sheets of white and gold tissue paper lay a golden rose in full bloom. The detail etched into every petal was exquisite, almost like the rose had just simply been painted gold after being picked from the garden. I reached out hesitantly to touch it, pulling back for a second for fear that I would break it.
"Pick it up. There's something inside of it." Wes said quietly over my left shoulder. I jumped at his voice, forgetting he was still there.
I did as I was told and picked up the rose only to find the bloom wasn't a full-petaled flower as I had thought before. It was a small bowl that held a small golden bracelet inside. Wes picked up the bracelet from the rose and motioned for me to put the box and rose down. I obeyed and turned back to him, curious as to what more surprises this held.
Wes motioned to hold my wrist out so he could put the bracelet on. He deftly closed the clasp around my small wrist and to my surprise, it fit perfectly. Dangling from one of the gold links was a small emblem. It was a heart, and I noticed something was engraved into one of the sides. As I squinted to read it, I made out 6 words written in flowing calligraphy: mon amour, ma voie, ma vie. I translated the simple phrase as "My love, my voice, my life." Tears unexpectedly sprung up in my eyes, blurring the sweetest words I'd ever seen.
"Wes...." I choked.
"Wait. There's more. I haven't gotten to the best part yet." He gently took me by the shoulders and led me over to the bed, forcing me to sit on one end.
He retrieved his guitar and sat down on the bed facing me. After taking a deep breath, he began to strum. Wes's voice started to sing a recent favorite of mine, Syndicate by The Fray. The deeper he got into the song, the more beautiful he became. He closed his eyes after the first chorus and didn't open them until the end of the song. The stress lines disappeared from his face, and his mouth relaxed along with the rest of his body. I realized I was seeing him as pure as I would ever see him.
At the end of the last chord, tears were freely flowing down my cheeks in salty rivers of joy. He opened his piercing blue eyes that held so many emotions at that one moment I could never describe them. He took one look at me and his face turned to confusion.
"Tia... Why are you crying?" He asked, genuinely confused.
I took a few deep breaths, wiped the tears away and replied, "Wes... That was beautiful."
He smiled. "Well there's still one more part." he said, reaching into his back pocket. "Here," he handed me a folded paper. "Read it."
I took the paper and unfolded it. All the note said was-
Was that creative enough for you?
I turned back to Wes, feeling the tears welling up again. I nodded slowly.
He smiled at me, and gently put his guitar down on the bed. He scooted closer to me and held out his arms in an invitation for me to fall into them, which I did. I wrapped my arms around his strong torso as he returned my gesture, pulling me closer. As I buried my face into his chest, breathing in deep his leather and wood smokey smell, he gently rocked me back and forth. He started humming the first song I'd ever played for him on guitar, and I snuggled in closer, enjoying his warmth. After what seemed like forever, he finally broke the silence.
"So do you accept my offer now?"
I lifted my head up to look at him. One lock of his curly blond hair had fallen down in front of his face like a superman curl and I giggled at it. He raised one eyebrow at me, and I giggled even harder at the gesture.
"Yes, Wes. I accept. This was better than anything I could have imagined."
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