Mail & Arianne
1: The Proposal
“I’m really proud of you, Ari.” Matt
told his girlfriend, the woman smiling humbly at his words. “You’ve been
working for this branch for more than five years. It’s time you’ve been
promoted to a much higher rank, you know.” She gripped at his hand as he led
both of them through the park, giggling faintly and looking up at him with her wide
green eyes. “Did he really tell you in person?” she shook her head.
“No,
it was through the computer. He was too busy to come over here in person, and
that’s understandable.” Matt ran a hand through her black hair gently, the
twosome coming to a wooden bench in the middle of the park. “He’s busy. But it
was still a promotion…” he merely smiled.
“I’m
glad all your work paid off,” he said softly, sitting them down. “After all
these years, you know?” she nodded, and he watched as she adjusted her white
woolen scarf he had gotten her for Christmas, along with a few other pieces of
clothing she enjoyed. “I told Matsumoto about it. He sends his regards and
congratulations.” She leaned her head on his shoulder, the smile still on her
face.
“Tell
him I send my thanks, love.”
“I
will.” They remained quiet for a moment, Matt slowly wrapping an arm around his
beloved. She moved closer to him at his touch, sighing softly, pleased with how
the events of the evening turned out to be. He had taken her to a restaurant, and
now they had taken a walk in the park. “Hey…are you cold?” he asked, frowning a
little in concern. Her teeth were chattering, and in the quiet stillness of the
night, he could hear. Ari shook her head quickly, trying to hide the fact.
“N-No,
I’m perfectly fine,” she tried, and her teeth chattered once more, giving her
away. Matt gave her a look and unwrapped his arm from her for a moment to slide
off his own thick black jacket, and gently covered her with it. Ari felt the
cold subside, and she let out a soft breath of warmed relief. “You’ll get
cold,” she attempted once more, and the man next to her merely shook his head.
“I’m
used to this weather, baby. Travelling the world has its perks.”
Ari
mumbled under her breath, “It also has its disadvantages.” He blinked, and a
small, hearty laugh left his lips. “Hey….” She looked up at him. “Hey.” He
looked at her. “I love you.”
Even
though they were in a relationship for five years, his heartbeat still
increased whenever she uttered those three words. Matt felt his cheeks redden,
and he kissed her on the forehead sweetly. “I love you too,” he replied softly.
“I love you so much.” Matt leaned in and kissed her lips gently, pleased at the
soft moan she gave as she kissed back. Her arms wrapped themselves around him,
and he reached out to cup her cheek as they kissed. They stayed that way for a couple
of seconds before pulling away, he smiling at the sight of the blush on her
cheeks.
“I’m
still not used to that,” she admitted, a little breathless. He smirked.
“That
and a lot of other things I presume.” She scowled at him, and he grinned
cheekily, stealing a kiss. “Relax, beautiful. Tonight’s the night for
relaxing…” he trailed off, feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket. He looked
at her. “Do you mind if I check this text, love?”
“I
don’t mind.”
Taking
his phone out from his pocket, he quickly read the message from Matsumoto
before Ari would find out. “Who’s it from?”
“Matsumoto.”
He keyed in a quick response and sent the text, tucking his phone back in his
pocket. “He’s asking if we can have lunch with him tomorrow…his treat.” His
girlfriend nodded and Matt stood up suddenly, tugging at her hand with an unexpected
eager look in his eyes.
“W-Wait,
where are we going now?”
“Just
come with me,” he urged. All she could do was comply. As he brought her to a different
area, somewhere far from the park, he could only pray and hope that Matsumoto
had gotten the fireworks set up.
* * * * *
Ari
was confused on why Matt had brought her up a high building. She was even more
puzzled at why he seemed so impatient – not with her, but with the sudden
passage of time. She nearly stumbled up the stairs if not for his strong arms,
and before she knew it, he was carrying her up, up and away, treating her light
body as if it was a sacred treasure at the same time. As they reached the top,
she was dumbstruck at the sight of potted plants and another bench at the very
top. Before them was the great view of Tokyo
“Well?”
he shifted around nervously, running a hand through his dark red hair. “What do
you think of the view?”
“…it’s
amazing,” she murmured softly, walking forward and trying to take in as much as
she could. She couldn’t remember the last time she even saw such a fantastic
sight of the city from afar. “J told me about Peters doing something like this
for her….I can see why she loved it so much.” Matt’s smile faltered slightly.
Drat. He had gotten this tip from Peters; he didn’t expect her to mention it
immediately.
A
lump rose in his throat in pure anxiety. Feeling his phone vibrate once more,
he quickly took it out, read the text, and replied – while his girlfriend looked
over the Tokyo
“What
do you mean –?”
As
soon as the words left her lips, fireworks exploded into the air. The shock
caused her to stumble back, a hand flying to her mouth. Matt took her into his
arms and gently tilted her head up, making her watch as the red, white, gold,
and green colors lit up the sky even more.
In
that moment, her attention wasn’t on the city.
It
wasn’t even on the fireworks.
What’s Matt planning to do?
“Beautiful,
isn’t it?” his voice in her ear. A shiver ran down her spine, and she nodded. She
could feel him smile. “…I wasn’t referring to the fireworks, baby.” Ari was
about to turn to him to ask what was going on, but he spoke before she even
opened her mouth. “Watch the fireworks.”
She
didn’t want to, honestly.
She
wanted to look at him and demand what was going on.
But
all thoughts of interrogation and suspicion immediately left her mind at the
next thing she saw. From the four colors she saw only moments back, the sky was
lit with a multitude of shades and hues, sparkles and possibly glitters, she
wasn’t sure. She felt her eyes blur with tears and they slipped down her
cheeks, the woman whispering a hushed prayer hoping that what she was seeing
was true and wasn’t just a dream.
Arianne, will you marry me?
“Oh
my God…” she didn’t realize that Matt wasn’t holding her all of a sudden. “Matt,
are you serious?” she started, turning around, expecting to see a grin on his
playful face, holding his hands up as if giving in.
This
was not the case.
He
was on one knee, holding out a small black leather box. He looked more serious
than Ari had ever seen him, and she covered her mouth once more, trying to register
what was currently happening. “What…Matt…”
“I
love you.” She shivered at the tone of his voice. Strong, willing, determined…and
he was on his knee for her. “I’ve said it a million times, possibly more. I
remember telling it to you five years ago, by the same park we were just in,
right by the fountain. I remember saying it a while back at the same place, on
that bench where we kissed. I know how to say those three words in a lot of
languages – English, German, Japanese, French, Italian…but there is no such
dialect that I have discovered that lets me articulate how much I’ve loved you
for all this time.” he opened the box and her eyes saw the gold ring with a
diamond on top. She wasn’t aware of the tears streaming down her face until she
let out a small sniff, staring at him instead of the piece of jewelry he held
on his hand.
“I
won’t leave you again.” He said softly. “I promise.” That seemed to convince
her. “You know the only thing I want to do is protect you and love you. Nothing
to harm you in any way.” He took a deep breath. “And I would do anything to
ensure your safety. If you fall, I will pick you up. If you cry, I will wipe
away your tears. If you get hurt, I will heal you. And if I fail you…” he
smiled sadly, “you have permission to leave me.”
She
was silent. The fireworks had stopped.
“…you’re
such an idiot,” she managed. He then turned confused, his expression changing.
This wasn’t an answer he expected. “Damn it Matt, do you really think I’d leave
you just because you failed me once?” her voice shook slightly. “W-Why would I
leave you just because of one mistake…you should be the one leaving me, even.” But
then, she smiled. “But you’ve put up with me for all these years…” Ari got on
her knees as well, taking his hands (and making sure he didn’t drop the ring) and
leaned her forehead on his. “And that is enough for me to say yes.”
“…yes?”
he repeated, making sure.
She
beamed.
“Yes,
Matt. I’ll marry you.”
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