What Happens in Arizona

Chapter 31 – From Arizona with love

I woke up to the sound of the lawn mower making its way through the thick weave of grass, and John’s breathing. A ray of the sun was peeking through the thin fabrics of my curtain and it was blinding my eyes, I got up slowly and closed the blinds. John got up slowly and rubbed his eyes; he sat up, turned to me and smiled.

“Good Morning.” He said softly.

I smiled back at him and returned to the bed, “Morning.” I replied, sitting next to him.
He didn’t reply and just looked at me; I turned back to him and made a blowfish face while crossing my eyes which made him laugh adorably. He wrapped his arm around my back and laid both of us down the soft mattress; he sighed deeply and turned again to me smiling.

“What?” I asked curiously.

He shook his head slowly and giggled softly, “Oh nothing—I just missed being with you like this.”

“Ooooh, I see…” I replied, he threw his other arm around my waist and pulled me closer to him. Our bodies touching one another, it gave me a fuzzy feeling though. He leaned in and his lips touched mine gently as he held on to my waist, the kiss deepened, his tongue met mine and the temperature suddenly rose inside the room.

He straddled upon me, still not breaking the bond between our lips. Soft moans escaped my mouth as his hands travelled around my back, pulling my shirt off and then his lips moved down to my neck, and then to my chest, and then way down deep. My head shot up automatically and I sat up quickly, he stopped with what he was doing and turned to me.

“What’s wrong?” he exclaimed, trying to catch his breath.

I looked at him for a split second and smiled softly, “Nothing—I just forgot to give you this.” I replied, taking out a small black box from my purse that was placed on the bed post. He looked at me curiously and asked me what was in it, I opened the little box gently and there rested 2 golden rings with our names engraved on the inner side. There was a hint of amazement on his face when I opened the box, and then he crawled in next to me.

“Wow, is this—”

“Yup, I got these made when I was Paris designing for the winter collection. I was supposed to get the necklace but Ella begged me for it so…” but before I could finish my sentence, he threw his arms quickly over me and pulled me into a tight hug. He placed a soft kiss on my forehead and then he took the box from my hand, he pulled out one ring and placed it on my ring finger.

“It fits perfectly.” He said softly, I smiled widely at him and took out the other ring from the box. I held his left hand and placed the ring on his ring finger too just like what he did to mine, and it fitted perfectly. “He he—it’s not much but I hope you like it.” I sighed.
He smiled back at me and held my hands, “I love it Amy—I don’t like it.” He replied. I laughed softly and we carried on to what we were doing a while ago, it felt great the first time…but it felt much more better the second time. Haha, it might sound silly but it’s true—at least I saw this coming.

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“So you guys are leaving next week…again?” Ella asked.

We all hanged out at the living room all day and waited ‘til gets cooked, it felt great having everyone around again. It was like a big family reunion, and my Uncle was also cooking dinner which made everything a hundred times special. He’s a famous chef in a popular bistro and his dishes are just so good, also his cupcakes.

Kennedy nodded slowly and turned to me, “Aren’t you going back to Paris too though?” he asked.

“Hmm, yup we will. But we won’t be leaving ‘till the 25th and that’s 4 weeks from now.” I replied.

“Well, we can eat outside for dinner before they leave. Like a sending off party!” Lily squeaked cheerfully.

I nodded at her in agreement and smiled at Kennedy and Ella, “D’aww…cheer up Els, you still have one week to spend with your man.”

She turned to me and smiled, “Hmm—I guess you’re right, we’ll just have to make the best of it. Right bb?” she said, planting a kiss on Kennedy’s cheek. Kennedy replied with a kiss on her cheek and they just started fooling around, while Garrett and Brooklyn were having a serious conversation.

John excused himself suddenly and headed inside the kitchen where Dad and Uncle were at, I looked at him as he disappeared from my sight.

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- John’s Point of View -

I’ve been waiting for the right time and I think it’s now, Amy is back and she’s in my arms now. I can’t let this moment go, so before I leave—I’m going to propose to her. It may sound too fast but I can’t wait much longer, if I leave for a few months—she might not be there when I come back. So I have to do this, because I love her and she loves me back—and this is the only thing left to do. Yes, it sounds naïve but this is what kids do. Besides, I’m planning to marry her anyways in the future so why not do it now?

Mr. Johnson and Amy’s uncle were chatting on the dining table while waiting for the food to get cooked when I approached them, I cleared my throat softly and they both turned to me in unison. I made sure the door was closed so no one could hear our conversation, Jared and the rest already knows about this except for Amy. And now, her father will know about my plan too.

“Oh hey John, is there anything I can help you with?” Mr. Johnson greeted.

I took a deep breath and walked over to them with a smile, “Oh uhm—Mr. Johnson can I uhm…can I talk to you for a bit?” I asked.

Amy’s uncle stood up quickly and excused himself, leaving me and Mr. Johnson alone in the dining room. He looked at me curiously as silence filled the whole room, no pressure John—fuck pressure. Again, I took a deep breath and started talking.

“Mr. Johnson, I know this may sound too young and naïve…and you might think that I’m only doing this because I’m irrevocably and madly in love with your daughter, and you might also think that this isn’t going to work out in the future but I assure you that it will. I’m willing to take care of your daughter, and cherish her with everything I’ve got. And I’m pretty much definite, that I want to spend the rest of my life with her. So uhm, Mr. Johnson…please—please allow me to marry your daughter.” I said, well that went better than expected since Mr. Johnson’s face didn’t start to distort when I started talking about cherishing and taking care of Amy. It took a fair amount of time before he replied, I could see that he was in deep thought but he managed to get back.

“Ooh…John, please call me Steve. You’ve been in and out of our house since you boys were still what? 14? 15? To be honest, I’m quite surprised that you’ve decided to take a step forward in your relationship with Amy. But, that’s yours and her decision to make and I’m not in the position to stop you kids from doing something that you really want to do. All I can say is—I’ll just be here for the both of you. You see son, sometimes things don’t go as well as you plan. Because apparently, based on my experience—miracles aren’t planned and love is a miracle. Just…just don’t hurt her, alright?” he replied.

I was surprised with what his reaction was, I was expecting more of shouting and lecturing but he didn’t do it. He just spread his arms and gave me a hug; also he called me “son” which was pretty overwhelming. So that was it, the wedding is on. By the end of the week, she’ll be Mrs. O’Callaghan and feels so fucking great on the inside. When we finished our conversation, the food got cooked in time too. So I called out everyone and we all had a wonderful dinner.

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- Back to Amy’s Point Of View -

The next morning I found a basket of Lilies lying outside my bedroom door, a small note was putted at side which says, “Meet me at 8123 tonight at 7.” And the handwriting looked really familiar, scribbled type which looked like a 3rd grader’s handwriting. I smiled softly to myself and took the lilies inside, placed it on the wooden table and took a bath and headed downstairs.

Ella, Lily and Brooklyn were all waiting inside the kitchen eating cereal. “Where’s Dad?” I asked, Ella turned to me, “He went to the flower shop.” She replied. Lily slapped her arm and looked at her meaningfully; she swallowed the big chunk of chewed cereal quickly and turned back to me. “I mean—he’s with your uncle, they headed to the flower shop because you know…your uncle.” She exclaimed.

“Oh…alright, well I’m gonna go to John’s and return his shirt. He forgot to bring it home yesterday.” I replied. But before I could even turn around, Brooklyn appeared behind me with a huge grin in her face.

“Amy! Aww my sweet Amy, come! How about I’ll wash your hair? Yeah?” she exclaimed, blocking my way.

I let out a laugh and looked at her with confusion, “But B, I just took a bath. I’m just going to return this to John and head back here…”

“No! Wait, he texted me. He said you can keep it and he won’t be home, they’re going somewhere you know. Preparing for their tour, oh you know those boys! Ha—ha.” She replied with panic in her voice.

I narrowed my eyes and looked at her deeply, “Is there something wrong? That I should know about?” I asked them.

Lily and Ella exchanged glances and shook their heads quickly, “No! Nothing Ames, it’s nothing.” Ella replied.

“Is John cheating on me or…”

“What? NO! He isn’t—Ames, just calm down okay? Come sit with us, let’s eat cereal and spend all day beautifying ourselves.” She retorted.

I nodded slowly and smiled, “Alright.” setting down the white shirt on the counter.

And so we did spend all day fixing my hair and putting facial masks on which made me feel like a mummy, haha! Ella lent me her dress for tonight and Brooklyn, as a model, agreed to do my make-up. I don’t quite actually know why I’m dressing up for my meeting tonight with John, I mean all we’re gonna do is spend all night talking and talking and probably kissing but mostly talking. My mind was still befuddled but the best thing to do is just to go with the flow, I guess.

Time passed by really quick and the next we know; it was already 6:30 pm. They were rushing and getting me prepared for my somehow “date” with John, and it was unusual because it was just another regular date. Nothing more and nothing less…I think. I got the dress on, it was a sky blue dress that stopped below my knees, it was simple and perfect. I fixed my hair and Ella dragged me down to my car, and sent me off.

The drive to 8123 was very short since there was no traffic and I just arrived there very fast. The whole parking lot was empty, no cars, and no nothing. But what’s unusual is that, there were red rose petals everywhere, scattered on the ground. I hopped out of my car and adjusted my dress; I looked around for bit and decided to follow the small trail of white petals. It was sort of a long hike but eventually, I got there. And it was probably the most beautiful place *slash* thing ever, there stood a tall man in plaid, jeans and a familiar looking cowboy boots. Behind him was this gap-toothed guy whom my best friend loves probably more than her life, next to him was my first guy best friend who loves slaying zombies and Brooklyn, and then next to him was this adorable look guy with long brown hair that rested upon his shoulders. What exactly is happening? I was a bit confused for while but I didn’t let them notice. And then this guy in plaid wearing cowboy boots approached me with a smile, and I smiled back at him.

“Good evening love.” He greeted me softly.

My smile grew bigger and I greeted him back, “You look dashing tonight John.” I continued.

He held his head up high and led me to our seats, “What is this?” I asked cheerfully.

“It’s our dinner table love.” He replied.

“Ooh, I see. Wait, can I ask what all of this is about?” I said, puzzled. He didn’t reply though, but instead just smiled, that certain smile that could melt a thousand hearts. Well, I dropped it and we carried on to our dinner. Everything was all fancy and elegant when Jared popped out with an acoustic guitar in his hand, and Kennedy beside him singing one of their songs “Saving Grace” which was my favorite, and also the song that I wanted to play on my wedding day. Heh, anyways I was giggling and laughing amusedly the whole time. Because, it’s my first having dinner at a parking lot and Kennedy’s voice was so wonderful. I just realized how lucky Ella is for having Kennedy around her all the time; he can sing her to sleep if he must.

John rose from his seat and offered me his hand, I took it and he pulled me into the empty space which was supposedly the dance floor…I think. John’s nose gently touched mine as we dance to the tune of my favorite song, it felt so wonderful and I just wished time would just stop and we’d stay like forever. But unfortunately, that’s impossible and the song ended. John took a step back and smiled, he knelt down again on one knee just like what he did before at my kitchen. I looked at him confusedly with amusement, “Amy…” he started.
“Yes John?” I replied, smiling back at him.

He held my hand and looked at me deeply, “Well—we’ve already got the ring and you Dad…I mean, Steve and I have already talked about it. It may sound too fast but Amy, will you—will you be my wife?” he said.

I swear, my heart skipped a beat and I felt my knees weaken. I looked at him for while, not knowing what to say. For the first time, I was seriously and definitely speechless. “John, I—I…well, yes. I would.” I stuttered. A huge smile plastered across his face and he got up, he looked at me for while and threw himself upon me for a hug. And then everyone appeared, Ella and the other girls and my Dad. And they were applauding with smiles on their faces, it was so perfect. Everything was perfect; it was like a fairy tale’s happy ending.

Dad approached me with a smile on his face, “Amy—I want you to be happy and I know you are. And I just want you to know, that I am beyond happy for you and John.” He said.

My eyes started to burn and tears started forming in the corner of my eyes, it’s just happening so fast but I don’t care. I’m happy, we’re all happy and words cannot describe what I’m feeling right now.

“Amy, this might all be surprising to you but…I’ve already arranged everything, the wedding and reception, everything.”

“Everything? The wedding? How…”

“Well, Tessa and your best friend helped me out so I kinda didn’t do a lot of work.”

“What haha, John really…you didn’t have to rush every—”

“Amy, I do. Before I leave for tour, I just want to. Okay?”

“Alright, I’ll see you at the altar then?”

“Hmm yup, I’ll be the one wearing a black tux.”

“And cowboy boots right?”

“And cowboy boots!” he exclaimed, pulling me into a hug.

Well, just a few more days of preparations and inviting people from different states then I’ll be Mrs. O’Callaghan. It feels great having a happy ending for my own, and I can’t wait for that day.

“I was the dark before the dawn,
the voice without a song,
the words that came out wrong,
but you heard me all along.”