Until You Met Me

Molly blinked slowly, sending tears trickling down her cheeks as she tried to drown out the roar of blood in her ears. She couldn’t say that she hadn’t thought about it. After they had talked about the prospect of a potential engagement, and with her having spent weeks helping Sofia and Sebastian perfect their wedding, she had found herself thinking about it more and more, but now that it was actually happening, she couldn’t process it. She had thought of a hundred ways that it could happen, of a hundred different occasions where she could envisage Gerard lowering himself to one knee in front of her, but none of them matched the understated, and perfect, reality of that moment. It was just the two of them, nothing else, and for Molly, it was perfect. It was all she wanted.

Lifting a hand, she wiped at her damp cheeks, choking out a little sob.

Gerard ducked his head, drawing in a deep breath, before he slowly pushed himself back to his feet. “This isn’t how I was going to do this” he admitted, mostly talking to break the lingering silence “You can ask anyone” he added.

Molly’s eyes, which had been drawn back to the box in his hand, lifted to meet his, a watery smile brightening her features. “Who’s anyone?” she asked.

“Pop” Gerard replied “Or Ava. Your parents. My parents. Pretty much anyone you and I both know” he added.

Molly bit her lip, shaking her head amusedly. “How were you going to do it, then?” she asked.

Gerard glanced at the box in his hand, his expression slightly sheepish, before he shrugged his shoulders slightly. “Honestly? It was still a work in progress” he admitted “I bought this a while ago, and since I did, I have been thinking about how to do it. I had figured out that it should probably just be the two of us, I thought you’d prefer it like that, and I was going to do something that reminded you of the good memories we’ve shared, but it wasn’t set in stone” he added.

Molly wiped at her cheeks again. “It’s just the two of us now” she said.

Gerard lifted his head, his forehead creasing slightly. “What?” he asked.

“I don’t see anyone else standing in this room with us” Molly clarified.

Gerard blinked a couple of times, trying to wrap his head around what she was hinting at, before he slowly nodded his head in agreement. Quirking a slightly dazed smile, he closed the small distance that existed between them and took one of her hands in his, kneeling down ahead of her again. “I don’t know when I started to love you” he said gently “And I am pretty sure that the reason I can’t pinpoint a moment exactly is because I have always loved you in one way or another. You have been one of the most important people in my life for as long as I can remember. You’ve been the most amazing friend, and girlfriend, and I...I want more amazing. I want more laughter, and more inside jokes. I want to be that annoying kind of cute that other people hate. I want to build a home, and have a family, and I want to do it with my favourite person. I want you for as long as I can get you. Molly, will you marry me?” he asked.

Molly let out a shaky breath before she nodded her head, letting out a slightly hysterical laugh. “Of course I will” she answered.

Gerard didn’t move for a beat, too awed by the sound of her answer, before a slow, wide smile blossomed across his face. “Really?” he choked out.

Molly nodded again, beaming.

Letting out a shuddering breath of relief, Gerard shakily slipped the ring out of its box and held it out to Molly, offering her another soft smile. “Then” he said “I think this is for you” he added.

Molly carefully slipped the ring out of his fingers, marvelling at it for a couple of moments, before she slipped it onto her finger, the tears spilling down her cheeks again.

Gerard stood up and stepped closer to her, his thumb gently brushing the tears off of her skin. “I love you so much” he murmured, pressing his lips to her temple.

Molly leant into him, allowing Gerard to bury his nose in her hair. “I am sorry” he muttered “I had so many big plans. I promised you something ridiculous, and what you got instead was me proposing to you in a wardrobe” he added, smiling ruefully against her head.

Molly pulled out of their embrace slightly to meet his eyes. “Which is ridiculous” she quipped.

Gerard shook his head, looking away. “It’s not what I meant” he countered.

Molly cupped his face in her hands, guiding his stare to hers. “It was perfect” she said “It was ridiculous, and so simple, and so us and I just...I don’t think I can stress how wonderful it was, or how I know I would have said yes to you, regardless of how you chose to ask. It is you, Gerard. You could have written it across the sky, or you could have asked me in this wardrobe, and I would still think that it’s the most amazing thing that’s ever happened, because it is.” she added, smiling up at him.

Gerard's eyes searched her face for a long moment, looking for any sign that she didn’t mean what she had said, before he nodded his head, something which caused Molly to push herself up onto her toes, pressing her lips to his. “I love you” she murmured “And I am very happy to be your fiancée” she added.

Gerard's answering laugh was soft with amazement. “Fiancée” he repeated in awe

Molly pressed her lips to his again, savouring the contact for a moment, before she pulled away, smiling up at him softly. “You know how I said that we didn’t have anywhere to be today?” she asked.

Gerard nodded. “You made some very big promises” he quipped playfully.

Molly rolled her eyes. “I did” she confirmed “But, would you forgive me if I broke them in light of this?” she asked, showing off the ring on her finger.

Gerard gently caught her hand in his, pressing a kiss to her palm, before he nodded his head. “Whatever you want” he said “Anything for my fiancée” he added, grinning amazedly as the words fell out of his mouth.

Molly laughed, a soft sound somewhere between deliriously happy and awed, before she skittered out of the room, desperate to find her phone and make sure that her parents were home. It was news that could keep. If they wanted to, it wasn’t impossible to keep it between the two of them, but Molly couldn’t wait. She was ecstatic, and she knew that a lot of people around them would be too.