III
That night, Carmen hadn't gotten any sleep as her mind continued to run through the night. Her reunion with James had played in her mind over and over until her alarm had sounded to tell her that it was time to get ready for work. And as she got ready, she couldn't remove the smile on her face.
She left her apartment when she was finished and walked down the stairs, looking at the time on her phone to see that she was still on time. She walked to the bus stop after leaving the building, noticing that the smile was still on her face.
It didn't take long for the bus to arrive. But as soon as it did, the loud sound of a car horn filled the air, causing everyone in the line to turn around to look at the car which was the source of that sound.
She felt as if her heart had skipped a beat when she noticed James sitting in the driver's seat of the car, waving at her. A large smile took over her face as she left the line for the bus and walked towards him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked him as he got out of the car and walked towards her. He placed a gentle kiss on her cheek, causing her to blush as she looked around, hoping no one had seen his public display of affection.
"I came to pick you up for work," he told her.
"How do you know what time I go to work?" she asked him. He smiled mischievously as he walked past her and opened the door for her, gesturing with his head for her to enter.
"I have my ways," he told her as she took a seat. And once she was seated, he leaned over to her, causing her breath to get stuck at the sudden close proximity. He buckled her seatbelt for her before pulling away and looking into her eyes. He used both of his hands to cup her face as he placed a soft kiss on her lips, causing her to close her eyes as savored the moment.
"You have no idea how much I've missed you, Carmen."
She couldn't fight the smile which took over her face as he closed the door and walked to the driver's side before taking his seat and starting the car.
- - -
Later that day after they had finished work, Carmen smiled as she looked at the man before her in the dimly lit restaurant where they had gone for dinner. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't tear her eyes away from him as a smile danced on her lips.
"You're going to burn a hole in my head with all of your staring," James said, looking up at her with a smile a he held his fork in his hand.
"You can't blame me for staring," she replied, leaning towards him and placing her head on her intertwined hands as she rested her elbows on the table. He looked around the restaurant before standing up just enough to lean over the table to kiss her.
She immediately pulled back in surprise as she covered her lips, looking around and hoping that no one had seen him kiss her.
"Why did you do that?" she asked in a loud whisper.
"You can't blame me," he replied, mirroring her words and causing her to smile once again as she shook her head. He pointed to her food as he said,
"It's getting cold."
Carmen bit her lower lip as she looked at him for a few moments before starting to eat her food. And as the night went on, she couldn't ignore the warmth which filled her at the thought of being able to reunite with him. After meeting him again, she couldn't even remember how she had been living without him for all those years.
- - -
One Year Later
Carmen had just left her bedroom after changing and was walking towards the living room where James had been picking a movie for them to watch. She couldn't remove the smile on her face as she walked towards the living room. She wrapped her arms around his neck from behind where he sat on the couch.
"What are we watching tonight?" she asked.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" he replied, turning his head to plant a kiss on her lips. She walked over to sit beside him once they broke apart and snuggled beside him as he scrolled through their options. And after a few moments, he placed the remote controller on the center table.
"What's wrong?" she asked him when he didn't pick a movie. He stood up and adjusted his shirt.
"I'm sorry Carm, but I forgot that I had an important appointment tonight. I really can't skip it," he told her. She stood up and pushed aside her disappointment.
"Don't worry about it, we all forget things once in a while," she told him, trying to keep her disappointment at bay. Since they had started dating a year ago, something like this had never happened before. And because of that, she didn't really know how to feel about it.
"I promise, I'll make it up to you," he told her before planting another kiss on her lips and walking towards the door of her apartment. He quickly wore his shoes and jacket before opening the door. She walked closer to him and forced a small smile.
"I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked. She nodded her head rigidly.
"Yeah."
And with one last kiss, he left her. She watched his figure as he walked away, feeling her shoulders drop. She closed the door once he had disappeared and walked to the kitchen to remove the casserole she had prepared for their dinner as it finished. She looked at the bag on the counter with a bottle of wine that she had bought for their date and picked up a wine glass.
She walked towards the bag and removed the bottle from the bag before opening it and pouring herself a glass. She took a few sips before walking to the living room and plopping herself onto the couch. She picked up the remote and scrolled through the movies until she landed on a recent romantic comedy.
But as soon as the movie started, she heard the sound of someone entering the passcode at her door. She turned her head just in time to find James open the door before shutting it behind him.
"What happened to the appointment?" she asked him, wondering why he had returned after only five minutes. He smiled as he removed his shoes before walking towards her.
"I forgot something important," he told her.
"What? Did you leave something?"
He shook his head as he walked towards her head.
"There was an important question that I had to ask you tonight."
"What is it?" she asked, placing the wine glass on the table. He took a deep breath as he knelt down on one knee.
"James," she begin to say his name. But before she could say anything else, he removed a small box from his pocket.
"Carmen," he said her name as he opened the small box to reveal a ring. She felt as if time had stopped as she looked at him.
"Four years ago, I left you to chase after my dream. And in those four years, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't remove you from my thoughts. Not a day went by where I didn't think about you. But now, four years after that day, we're together like this. And I would be lying if I said the last year hadn't been the best year of my life. And because of that, I thought to myself 'why not make every day the best day of my life with you by my side?' And so Carmen, if you'll take me as your husband, I would be honored to have you as my wife."
The whole time that he spoke, she couldn't tear her eyes away from him. And as he finished speaking, she felt tears running down her face.
But she couldn't tell whether those tears were from the happiness that she felt from being able to be with such a wonderful man or if it was because of the large secret that she was still keeping from him.
But before she could think another thought, she felt her head nodding as one word left her lips.
"Yes."
James' face lit up as he removed the ring from the box.
"You'll marry me?" he asked her. And once again, she replied with one word:
"Yes."
ns 15.158.61.17da2
