Yours Truly

The liquor store was basically empty when I entered it, not surprisingly seeing as it was a Wednesday night, and it didn’t take me long to find what I was looking for. I pulled the bottle of wine of the shelf, moving over to find the champagne I needed, and double checked my phone to make sure I was getting the right kind. I wouldn’t normally buy champagne, seeing as I preferred wine or hard liquor, but Zayn had text me a few hours earlier, requesting I pick up a certain brand. I finally found it, my eyes bulging at the price, and hesitantly grabbed it and took it to the register to pay. The attendant annoying chomped on her gum, letting no personality show as she rung up my purchases, and shoved the paper bag across the counter as the transaction completed.

I ducked out into the warm spring air, unlocking the doors of my newly acquired Mini Cooper, and carefully set the bag into the passenger seat. The car still smelled new, since it was less than a week old, and it was easily my most prized possession. I had started saving for it when I was 15 and had my first job, rejecting Zayn’s offers to help me pay for it, and had finally gotten to my goal amount a few weeks back. Since it was going to be my first new car, I had gone all out on the accessories and premium items, meaning I had to wait for a week to pick up the car I actually wanted. The cherry red paint was still shiny, as well as the cream colored interior, all masked by the darkly tinted windows. I turned up the stereo, pulling out into the street, and drove the rather short distance back to the flat.

When I finally got the door to the flat open, the bag holding the wine and champagne balanced on my hips, it was oddly dark, the only light coming from the kitchen. I walked in, finding Zayn leaning over something on the stove, and announced my presence so I wouldn’t scare him. He turned around; his white t-shirt splattered with whatever he was cooking, and grabbed the paper bag from my hands.

“What are you making? It’s smells amazing,” I said, trying to peer around him.

“It’s a surprise,” he said, blocking my view, “I’m treating you to a fancy dinner where we won’t have any interruptions, like waiters and paparazzi, because we never get those anymore. There’s a gift for you on the bed, so go freshen up and change into it.”

I raised my eyebrows, intrigued by what he could’ve bought me, and kissed him quickly, before heading to the bedroom. I walked in, my eyes flying to the dark reddish-pink dress laying on the bed, as well as the shoe box, holding the most expensive shoes I would now own. I rushed over, tossing the lid from the box, and pulled the black leather pumps from their packaging. I stared at them in awe, letting my fingers run over the red bottoms, and hurriedly ran to the bathroom so I could freshen up. I washed my face, reapplying my makeup better than I had earlier in the day, and fixed the curls I had put into my hair earlier in the day. I went and found my favorite strapless bra, remembering the dress only covered one shoulder, and paired it with matching panties. I pulled them on, skipping back out to the dress, and slid it on eagerly. The dressed hugged my body from my thighs to my hips, and got looser around my stomach and chest. I pulled the one strap over my left arm, and managed to fully zip it up since the zipper was on the side. I stepped into the pumps next, smiling at how well they fit, and examined myself in the full length mirror on the wall. Not to sound vain, but I felt like I looked stunning in the outfit he had bought me. The color of the dress brought out the natural blush in my cheeks, and the pumps accented the muscles in my legs. I couldn’t help but to grab my phone, snapping a cheesy mirror picture, before shutting it off and tossing it onto the dresser.

“Well don’t you look handsome,” I said, walking out to find Zayn in the ‘dining room’, now wearing a suit.

“You look absolutely gorgeous, Valerie,” he said, pulling me into a soft hug before pulling out my chair.

“Thank you,” I said, blushing slightly and letting him push me in, “Thank you for the dress and heels, they’re absolutely perfect.”

“Perfect outfit for a perfect girl,” he winked, grabbing two plates from the counter, “I hope you’re in the mood for some Italian.”

“If you cooked it, I know it’s good,” I smiled, staring down at the noodles and red sauce in front of me.

He grinned; grabbing the newly opened bottle of wine I had bought earlier, and poured us both a glass before taking his own seat. I placed the cloth napkin across my lap, having forgotten we even owned them, and dug into the delicious smelling food. We talked about everything, the conversation flowing easily as usual, and managed to drink a majority of the wine before we decided to clear the table. We threw the dishes in the dishwasher, only hand washing the pot from the noodles, and had the kitchen put back together in no time.

He told me to go out to the balcony, saying he would bring desert out in a minute, and ushered me out quickly. My heels clicked across the wood floors, producing the only noise in the flat, and I smiled when I saw all the candles set up on the balcony, just waiting to be lit. I grabbed the lighter from the table, lighting each candle individually, and leaned against the railing when I was done. I stared up at the sky, only a few stars currently visible, and barely heard Zayn walking outside. I turned to him, champagne and the familiar white box filling his hands, and gladly accepted the flute he extended to me. I slid under his arm, sliding my arm around his waist, and leaned into him as I sipped at the glass. He did the same, placing the box on the ledge in front of us, and kissed the top of my head lightly. I smiled up at him, taking my chance to kiss him on the lips, and allowed him to pull me closer and deepen the kiss.

“I love you, Valerie,” he mumbled against my lips, barely breaking contact to make the statement.

“I love you too, Zayn,” I said, pecking him once more, “Now, not to ruin our moment or anything, but I know what’s in that box, and really want a bite of it.”

He just laughed, passing the box over to me, allowing me to open up my favorite treat. As I predicted, an oversized red velvet cupcake sat inside, with perfectly whipped cream cheese frosting on top, and the heart shaped chocolate sitting on top. I reached in to pull it out, ready to devour at least half of it, but abruptly stopped when I noticed what was leaning against the chocolate. I shot my widened eyes up to Zayn, noticing him nervously gnawing at his bottom lip, and glanced back down at the ring. Zayn softly took the box from me, pulling the ring out into his fingers, and set the box back on the ledge.

“Valerie, I know that you are my soul mate,” he started, grabbing my hands in his lightly, “You’ve been with me through everything, and have never once turned your back on me. I would be nowhere without you, because you’re the one who taught me that following your dreams was the best thing you could do in life.

“Even though we’re young, I want to grow old with you. I can’t imagine coming home, and having you not being here. We may have our ups and downs, but I always know that we’ll end up back in each other’s arms, apologizing for how stupid we were acting.”

I bit my lip, smiling as tears threatened to fall from my eyes, and stared directly into his twinkling ones. He grabbed my left hand, falling onto one knee, and asking the one question I knew he had been building up to.

“Valerie Marie Barnes, will you give me the honor of becoming my wife?”

“Yes,” I spit out quickly, not even having to think twice, “Yes, Zayn Javadd Malik, I will marry you.”

He slid my promise ring off, replacing it with the engagement ring, and I pulled him up to kiss him passionately. When we broke apart, I took a moment to take in the beauty of the ring, and commented on how well Zayn had done. The platinum band was thin, completely encrusted with diamonds, and had a large princess cut diamond in the center. I pulled him into another kiss, this one lasting longer than the first, and guided him towards the door, hoping he’d catch my drift. He did, breaking the kiss, and picked me up bridal style and carrying me inside to our bedroom.

He dropped me onto the bed, connecting our lips once more, and wasted no time in sliding the zipper of my dress down. I worked feverishly on the small buttons of his shirt, kicking my shoes off at the same time, and pushed it off his shoulders slowly. He broke our kiss, tossing his shirt to the side, and attached his lips to the spot on my neck that always managed to make me weak in the knees. I arched my back up, allowing him to slide my dress off easier, and felt goose bumps rise on my skin as he ghosted his hands back up my body. I used his neck to pull his lips back to mine, the two of us immediately using our tongues in a fight for dominance, letting our hands touch every inch of the others body.

The rest of our clothes quickly followed, becoming nothing more than a wrinkled mess on the side of the bed. Sweat glistened on our bodies, our breathing slowly returning to normal, and I cuddled into his side pulling the blankets up over us. He brushed my bangs from my face, kissing my forehead softly, whispering sweet nothings as we fell asleep.