All Was Golden in the Sky

“I don’t really see—“

“Shut up, Anne.”

“That was rude, Spencer. But really, is the blindfold necessary?”

“Is that something you say to Brendon a lot?”

“Fuck off, Beckett.”

I could hear the guys all giggling as they tied my hands together behind the chair they had forced me onto. They were having a fine time kidnapping me. It sounded like Gabe kept rolling around the floor snorting; William, and I knew it was him because only William would dare, kept poking me in my sides where I was ticklish, knowing damn well I couldn’t slap him when my arms were tied behind my back. Spencer was nice enough to make sure they didn’t tie the scarves too tight around my wrists on my eyes, but he was the brilliant one who suggested they put an oversized sombrero on me. I assumed Ryan was distancing himself from the revelry, but I could hear Jon sniggering as he clicked pictures on someone’s phone.

“You look so ridiculous!” Gabe sounded like he was being tickled by some incessant feather. I knew that rolling my eyes would have little effect since they were covered, but it was a habit.

“You guys mind telling me what the fuck you’re even doing?” I sighed. It was fun, but I was starting to get anxious being tied up like that.

“Um, it’s called Pirate Day, Annie?” I could picture the smirk Spencer had on his face, and I knew he was feeling very smug. “Look, we’re just gonna take a couple pictures to send to Brendon then we’ll make you an omelet or something, okay?”

I knew I didn’t have much of a say, so I sat quietly for a few minutes while I guessed they were posing. When they finished they untied me and showed me the pictures, and I couldn’t help but laugh at how funny some of them were. The guys were all standing around me with their fake swords, tongues sticking out and pirate scowls glaring at the camera. Gabe was even flipping it off. And I was just sitting there, looking very bored, blindfolded and wearing a stupid sombrero.

I knew it was going to end up on Instagram, and I was completely okay with that.

True to their word, once they had released me from my bindings they let me plop down on their couch as Spencer whipped up some breakfast for everyone. I laughed watching Gabe and Jon scarf their food down before sprinting downstairs.

“Where are they off to?” I asked, raising an eyebrow when William ran after them.

Spencer shrugged as he washed off the frying pan in the sink. “Honestly have no idea. Probably off to do scallywag things.”

I laughed and turned back around on the couch, feeling my side itching like I was being watched. I glanced over and saw Ryan staring at me from his place in the chair, a slight smirk gracing his face when he noticed he’d been caught. I pretended to only see him in a glance and turned my attention back onto Spencer when his phone started ringing.

He grinned. “It’s Brendon.” Still scrubbing at the pan, he flicked the call onto speaker. “H’lo?”

“The fuck did you guys do to my girlfriend?!” Brendon’s voice had that shrill ring to it that usually only happened when I accidently washed some of his laundry with my underwear. Accidently.

Spencer chuckled, drying off the pan with ease. “What are you talking about? I just made Anne some breakfast.”

“You guys tied her up? Don’t you think that’s a bit far, Spence?”

“You guys are so alike. She asked us pretty much the same thing.” Spencer stuck his tongue out at me and I flicked mine out in retaliation, trying very hard to ignore the stare Ryan still held on me.

“Well no shit, it’s ‘cause we’re awesome. Put her on the phone, I wanna talk to her.”

Spencer clicked his tongue scolding, taking the phone off speaker and bringing it to his ear. “You’re not allowed to talk to our hostage, Brendon. Honestly, don’t you even get pirate day?” He was silent as Brendon responded, and his face paled before he choked out a laugh. “You guys kidnapped Jon? Oh, well played, sir. But no, you still don’t get to talk to Annie. Kay, love you, bye!”

He hung up the phone and threw a glance over at Ryan. “Will you keep an eye on her for a sec? I’m gonna go find Will and Gabe.” Ryan nodded and Spencer flashed me a smile and wave before taking off. I shifted in my seat and started picking at my nails, still trying to avoid looking at Ryan and the odd look he was giving me.

“Are you just never going to talk to me then?” he finally said. I shrugged and started paying great attention to each cuticle. He rolled his eyes and moved over to the couch, sitting closer to me. “Anne, c’mon. We were friends.”

I finally dragged my eyes up to meet his, managing to not narrow them into a glare. “You said some nasty things to Brendon before, Ryan. I’m not exactly happy with you about it.”

His smile faltered. “Isn’t that between me and Brendon?”

I flashed him a bright grin. “Oh, Ry. Don’t you know by now that anything that pisses off Brendon pisses the fuck out of me, too?”

He rolled his eyes and sat back into the cushions, releasing an incredulous laugh. “Sassy as always, Annie. God, it’s been way too long.”

Ryan was always difficult to understand. When I’d first met him, Panic! had all still been on pretty decent terms, and I had liked him well enough. He was funny, we’d joke around, and then he started getting mad about not singing as much as he wanted. And then I started to see Ryan Ross for who he was—a brilliant lyricist with an attitude problem that let his own ego come before his own friends. If he hadn’t said such awful things to Brendon in one of his moods, I could have forgiven him. But he never even apologized, and that day he lost me as one of his number one fans.

I didn’t even really understand why Pete invited him. After all the bullshit Ryan’s “manager” had said on Twitter, I thought that’d be it. But bless Pete for trying to make peace between everyone.

I could tell Ryan wanted to continue making me uncomfortable, but luckily at that moment Gabe came running back in, gasping and severely out of breath, nearly keeling over. He stopped right in front of me, hunching over as his lungs welcomed a rush of oxygen back in, and then waved some kind of paper in front of my face.

“I…found…a…treasure…map!” he gasped, wiping away the sweat on his forehead with his other hand. Ryan and I exchanged a glance and Gabe climbed onto the couch next to me. “Annie! Look!”

I did, and I had to stifle a giggle. It was the most pitiful excuse of a homemade map I’d ever seen. It had a crude doodle of what I assumed to be the two houses we were all staying in, with little dotted lines running between them and onto the beach of my beach house, stopped by a giant X splotched onto the page.

“Well, Gabe, that’s something else. Wherever did you find it?” I asked.

Gabe grinned. “I stole it. When your house took Jon, I snatched it.”

Of course. Something that looked that lame had to have been the handiwork or Brendon or Pete. And my guess was that it was Brendon.

“Why are you showing this to me again? I’m your prisoner, remember?”

Gabe grinned. “Exactly, and as my prisoner you’re going to help me find the treasure.” He nodded towards Ryan. “Dude, you go help William and Spencer serve as a distractor so I can sneak Annie over there without them catching us.” Ryan rolled his eyes, obviously thinking himself above such childish games, but he knew better than to argue. Gabe was almost as big a sucker for themes as I was, and even though I was bummed I was dictated the prisoner role in today’s games, I still highly approved of the chosen script.

Gabe grabbed my hand and led me downstairs after Ryan. When we got outside he wiggled his eyebrows and nodded towards that tacky pirate moped. “Hop on,” he smirked.

I groaned. “Aw, Gabe, do I have to—“

“Annabelle, you hop on there right now—“

“That’s not even my name—“

“Anne…just…okay?” Sometimes it was sad how exasperated I made my friends. With a very exaggerated sigh, I allowed Gabe to place me on the stupid thing, holding tight onto his waist as he made us speed away. He took the roundabout way, presumably to give Ryan time to catch up with the others in their “distraction.” I wondered what Brendon was doing, and how much fun he was having. Probably a lot. He lived for this kind of stuff.

When we got to the house, things were pretty quiet. Gabe parked on the other side of the car Pete had rented, hiding it from view of the house. I expected him to hop off and start dragging me somewhere, but he didn’t make any move to suggest he was going anywhere. Instead, he looked back at me with tired eyes and handed me the “map.”

“You know what, Annie, you go ahead. I’m getting pretty tired.” He threw in a yawn for my benefit, but I could see some kind of fire behind his eyes suggesting he was wide awake.

I narrowed my eyes at him. Something was definitely up. “You’re just gonna let me go.” He shrugged and nodded. I couldn’t figure out what I was missing. “Gabe, you’re just about the worst pirate ever.”

Gabe snorted. “No need to get personal, doll face. Now get outta here before I make you walk the plank!” I ruffled his hair as I climbed off and waved to him as he sped away.

I was very tempted to go inside and relax in my room until everyone had tired out, but something told me it might be worthwhile to go to the beach and see what treasure Brendon or Pete had set up there. I was sure it was probably something cheesy, but it was bound to be cute, too. I glanced at the paper Gabe had shoved into my hand and shrugged, trudging over to the sand to walk down to the shore.

As I walked, I started daydreaming, as I usually do. I stared thinking about my job, and the conversation I was bound to have with my boss when I got home. He’d hinted there’d be one coming if I kept taking so much time off, and something told me it wasn’t going to be something casual where I told him all about my adventures. It wasn’t like I especially loved my job; I’d had it for years now, practically since I had moved out to California, and I had only gotten it because I needed a job.

I’d still be lying if I said I wasn’t terrified of what he would probably have to say, though. Something told me he’d be watching a whole lot of Donald Trump to practice.

I was so caught up in my thoughts that I hardly realized where I was until I heard a soft chuckle whispering against the waves. I glanced up from my shoes in confusion. There stood Brendon, wearing all his pirate gear and that secret smile, holding a big, red cardboard X. If I didn’t know better, I’d have sworn I saw tears in his eyes, but I brushed it off to just being the sea salt blowing into his eyes.

“You know, I’d have thought that if you ever found a treasure map you’d be a lot more excited to go looking for it,” he said, still clutching the X to his chest as I approached.

“What are you doing out here?” I grinned and reached up to stroke his cheek. “Did you beat me to my treasure? You bloody pirate.”

He laughed and shook his head, reaching up and holding my hand in place as he nuzzled into my palm. “Man, you know all the compliments to win a man’s heart,” he sighed, turning his face and pressing kisses onto my palm.

I giggled and tucked some of the hair that had escaped my bandana behind my ear. Brendon tossed the X down onto the sand and pulled me into his chest, burying his face into my neck with a sigh as he embraced me. “So where’s the treasure?” I asked.

Brendon scoffed as if hurt. “I was holding the X. Aren’t I treasure enough for you?”

I smiled and brought my hands up to his cheeks when he pulled back to look at me, reveling in the caresses he left along my back. “You are the best treasure in the world, my darling,” I whispered against his lips. I expected Brendon to grin and kiss me into oblivion, but just like he always does, he surprised me.

He pulled his face away from mine, staring deep into my eyes. The way he was looking at me gave me chills, and I felt my stomach churn in excitement. It was the same look he had given me the first time we’d made love, and the first time he’d whispered “I love you” to me as we lay panting in his bed afterward.

“Annie,” he whispered, almost drowned out by the waves. I saw a tiny droplet of sweat roll down his neck and his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. Why was he nervous? I linked my fingers through his, holding them between his and giving him a reassuring smile to calm his nerves. The grin he gave me signaled that it had worked.

“Annie,” he said, stronger this time, “I’ve been wanting to say something to you for a while now, and I think I’ve finally got the balls to say it.” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. I was about to open my mouth to ask him what was wrong, but then Brendon was falling. I gasped and stared down at him, but his grip on my hands was tight, and then he was on one knee, staring up at me with wide eyes and trembling lips.

It was at that moment that I realized what was going on.

Brendon felt me tense up, and it seemed to provide him with the courage he needed. “I have been in love with you since that day in the grocery store, when you helped me pick up all those apples and saved me from looking like a complete dipshit to the entire store. Did you know I only knocked that whole display over because I was so busy staring at you? You were mesmerizing, even as you were just standing there looking over the spinach.” I giggled and shook my head; he’d never told me that before. I always thought he had just been his clumsy self getting excited over the caramel, and I guess in a way he had been.

“You are the sweetest, most amazing person I’ve ever met in my life. Every day you make me want to be a better person, just so I feel like I can come even close to deserving you.”

My throat was suddenly very dry, and I licked my lips. Brendon squeezed my fingers and continued. “Every day with you has made me happier than I ever thought I could be in life. I was an idiot to ever think I was happy before I met you. I didn’t know what happy was until you told me you loved me.” One of his hands let me go, and it started digging around in his pocket. I could feel my breath catching in my throat. I swear I was about to choke up a dust ball or something.

Then, there it was—that velvet box, cradled in Brendon’s palm, waiting for his fingers to open it. He waited until I was looking into his eyes, and then his face crinkled into that beautiful smile, the one that made the world swoon and my heart bruise my ribs.

“It was always you, Annie,” he whispered, and then his fingers pried open the box, and my eyes landed on the treasure he had mapped out for me to find. It was beautiful, and perfect—a simple diamond on a silver band, sparkling under the sun that blossomed over us. I felt tears spring into my eyes, and when Brendon spoke next, I knew they were tickling behind his eyelids, too.

“Anne Greene, will you marry me?”

I couldn’t tear my eyes away from Brendon’s hands, or, more specifically, the beautiful rock that lay in them. The answer was screaming in my head, but when I opened my mouth to shout it, all that came out was, “That’s what you asked my dad.”

Brendon’s smile faltered slightly in surprise, but then it came back in full force as he nodded gently. “Yes, yes it was. I’m traditional, what can I say?”

Still, my mouth wouldn’t cooperate. I gestured behind me, my hands waving at all the sand. “And, this whole pirate day…”

“I got Pete to set it up,” Brendon answered. Bless him for being so patient with me. “I know you, Anne, you’re a sucker for themes. Everyone was in on helping me make it happen.” He stood up and pet back my hair with one hand, searching my eyes warily. “Is this…okay?”

I felt like a child when I looked up at him, bottom lip trembling and eyes wide with fear. “Do you really want to marry me?” I asked. Could I really be that lucky? Could this wonderful man really want to spend forever with me, a chubby little nobody?

The smile he offered relieved me of all my fears, and he pulled my face closer to rest his forehead against mine. “I really, really do,” he said.

I could feel my stomach bubble in happiness, and I wrapped my arms around his neck, careful not jostle the box he still held in his free hand. “I want to marry you, too,” I said quietly.

His eyes were shining bright with tears and relief flooded his face. “Yeah?” He started pressing kisses all over my face, and my giggles were muffled by the smack of each kiss as he brushed away my tears. “You’ll marry me?”

I nodded my head furiously. “Yes, I’ll marry you.” I squealed when Brendon lifted me off my feet, spinning me around and kissing me as if our lips would never find each other again. We were laughing, kicking up sand, sprinkling the ground with our happy tears. Finally, Brendon gingerly placed me back down, pressing one last kiss to my nose before holding up the ring between his thumb and forefinger.

He was wearing that secret smile he’d been flashing for the past few months as he slipped the ring on my finger, pleased to find that it fit perfectly. I finally understood that smile; it was the one he wore when daydreaming about the future, and the one that brought out the dimples in his cheeks when his dream was coming true.

He held me tight to his chest, swaying us gently in time with the crashing of the tide, and I clung to him, desperate to have this moment last forever. “I love you so much, Annie,” he whispered into my hair.

“Oh, Brendon…you have no idea.”