A Proposal

I felt the butterflies multiplying in my stomach with every step. A blanket of red and gold leaves crunched beneath our feet as we hiked up the hill. Tyler walked ahead of me. Even though he was leading the way he still insisted on holding my hand. I smiled as his hand dangled limply behind his back, connected with mine.

"It shouldn't be too much farther!” He shouted excitedly.

I felt the butterflies again. Tyler never actually said why we were going to the forest, but I had a guess. I kept brushing off the idea so I wouldn’t get disappointed if I was wrong, but I couldn’t help it. 

We had been dating for five years tomorrow. He was my college sweetheart. We did everything together. He always said he would love me forever, and as soon as we graduated we could start our life together. Well, we graduated last year, started living together, and now there was really only one thing left to make us “official.” My heart fluttered at the idea. A romantic walk in the woods, day before our anniversary, him saying there was “something important” he wanted to talk about. It had to be a proposal.

Tyler was never great at hiding surprises, but I knew he must have worked really hard at this one. The last thing I wanted to do was spoil things by making it obvious I knew. I dressed nice but practical. Exactly what would be expected for a nature date. Although, I did put on a little bit of makeup, in case he wanted to take pictures.

As I thought of this I lost my footing and slipped. Tyler tried catching his balance by grabbing onto a tree. Luckily, it stopped both of us from falling. He grabbed at his jacket pocket before he looked back at me and smiled.

“Hey, careful there!” He laughed. “I’ve got something important. I don't want to lose it.”

My heart raced as we continued on. That confirmed it! It had to be a ring, this had to be a proposal, we were going to get married! I was happy he was turned away from me. I don’t think I could have hidden my excitement if I tried. I was so glad things were finally turning around for us.

Like I said, Tyler was never very good at hiding things. Which is why I found out pretty quickly he had lost his job. I guess he meant to toss the letter in the trash, but he must have missed. I found it wadded up under the dresser by the trash can when I was cleaning a couple weeks ago. Of course, I was worried, but I knew Tyler must have been devastated. He loved his job and it was providing for most of our income. 

I didn’t talk to him about it. I figured if he wanted me to know he would have told me. He probably didn’t want me worrying. He tried acting like everything was normal: going “to work” every day, talking about what happened in the office, always smiles and laughs, but I noticed how sulky and distant he’d gotten recently. His distance worried me a lot more than the money did. I knew he had some abandonment issues from when his mom walked out, but I hoped he knew better than to think I would ever do that.

“We’re almost there, Jules!” He said excitedly, he was practically skipping.

I smiled and tried to keep pace. I was glad he’d gotten out of that funk. I just hoped he didn’t spend too much on the ring. I know he always wanted to give me the best, but I didn’t need anything fancy. He was all I needed. We were strong, we loved each other, together we could overcome anything that went wrong in life.

I heard the sound of rushing water just past the tree line. Tyler sped up a little. I almost had to jog to follow him. As we burst through the trees I was suddenly blinded by sunlight. I covered my eyes with my free hand. Tyler stopped. All I could hear was the sound of water and the rustle of leaves.

“Jules, look,” he said gently.

I opened my eyes to a beautiful landscape laid out before me. We were at the top of a small cliff, a stream babbled past us before going over the cliff to form a waterfall, it cascaded into the river below. The sun was just beginning to set now, that’s why I had been blinded, but now that my eyes were adjusting I noticed the scene was bathed in the same beautiful shades of red and gold as the leaves surrounding us. It was like being inside a painting. Tyler squeezed my hand gently.

“Do you like it?” He asked.

“It’s perfect,” I whispered, still staring out at the forest.

He gave a small chuckle before tugging at my hand gently. I turned to him, he had a huge smile on his face. He reached out and grabbed my other hand. His eyes met mine.

“Julia, I love you so much,” he said.

“I love you too, Ty.”

“I know,” he said, bringing my hands to his lips to kiss them. “Which is why I want to come clean to you.” He paused and looked away. “I lost my job a few weeks back. I know, I should have said something, but I was scared.”

“Scared of what?” I asked.

He shrugged. “Scared that you might leave. You already know my mom left around middle school. Well, she did it because Dad lost his job. She said she couldn’t be with a man who couldn’t even provide for her. That any man who couldn’t pay the bills shouldn’t even be called a man.”

“That’s terrible,” I said, squeezing his hands.

  He looked back at me, a sad smile filled his face. He leaned forward and pressed his forehead against mine.

“I know,” he said softly. “It pretty much killed Dad. He started drinking a lot. Kept wallowing in what a failure he was as a man and a husband. He just kind of faded away. It had a silver lining, I guess. The best advice he ever gave me came when he was drunk. He told me ‘Ty, find yourself a girl who will stay with you forever. A girl who loves you exactly the way you are. The kind of woman who would live and die by your side.’ Well, I think I’ve found her.”

My heart thumped in my chest. This was it. A confession, a heartfelt story, it was all leading up to the “big moment” I’d been waiting for. He smiled at my blush.

“Have I, Jules?” He asked.

“Have you what?”

“Found her,” he said. “Are you willing to be that woman for me? The kind to stay with me forever? The woman to live and die by my side?”

I leaned forward and kissed him gently. “Of course I am, Ty. You and me forever, no matter what.”

  He pulled me close suddenly and held me tightly. A little too tight, almost desperate. He must have been terrified to tell me all this.

“I wanted to do this somewhere perfect. Somewhere beautiful,” he said softly. "Close your eyes, Jules."

I did. After a moment he let me go. This was it. I’d open my eyes, he’d be on his knee, the question, the answer, and then the beginning of the rest of our lives. Together forever.

A loud crack broke through the silence. My eyes shot open. Tyler wasn’t on his knee, he was standing, holding a smoking pistol. Tears streamed silently down his face. My chest ached. It ached a lot, and felt warm. I looked down. Blood was seeping through my jacket. 

My legs gave way, I collapsed. Tyler ran over and took me in his arms. He kissed my face a dozen times, his tears wet my cheeks as he did. I felt my vision fading. He gently brushed the hair from my eyes. The same sad smile filled his face. He pressed the gun to his temple.

“You and me forever, Jules,” he whispered lovingly.

As my vision went black I heard one last shot echo through the forest.