Five Rings

Maddie rushed through the bustling streets of New York City, her breath hitting the frosty air like tiny clouds. She wrapped her jacket tight around her as a gust of wind blew past her right as she was entering the Subway tunnel. Most passengers on the train this evening looked joyous, it was Christmas Eve after all, but not Maddie. Five times in one day, she was sure that this had to be a record.

She made the solemn walk to her apartment alone. This day definitely did not go the way she had planned. The creaky old elevator in her building took her up to her 5th-floor apartment. As she unlocked the door, she heard the faint whisper of music from the floors above; she rolled her eyes. Why was everyone so happy except for me. With a click, the key turned in the lock and at last, she was home. She unceremoniously tossed her purse onto her futon and headed straight to bed. Maddie’s head hit her silk pillow and she was ready for some rest. I deserve it after the day I’ve had, she thought as she drifted into a night of dreams about rings and white dresses. She longed for the time when she didn’t have to worry about one boyfriend, let alone four.

This whole dilemma really had not been her fault, if you thought about it technically it had all been Rachel’s fault. I mean this whole fiasco had been Rachel’s scheming. But no, Maddie had gone along with it. “What could go wrong?” Rachel said. “ It will be like your own version of The Bachelorette.” 

Maddie had been single for two years now and she honestly was starting to get a little desperate. Always the bridesmaid and never the bride; this saying rang true after being in several weddings with no prospects for her own. She was skeptical at first, it’s not like she intended to hurt anyone’s feelings. Rachel set Maddie up on a dating site, and the matches came flooding in. But, having four boyfriends was like a dream come true, and she relished the experience. I mean she rarely had to pay for dinner and she got four times the number of birthday presents. She could hardly believe her incredibly good luck. Maybe Rachel really was right… What could go wrong?

But then, things did indeed go very very wrong.

Maddie woke up on the morning of Christmas Eve in a festive mood contrary to the mood she would be in just a mere fourteen hours later. Maddie almost flew out of bed when she looked at her blaring alarm clock.  She swiped on some quick lipstick and grabbed her puffy coat- late for a date in Central Park with Todd. This was one of the downsides of dating four guys, she constantly running late. She slowed down her stride as the park came into view. Did it really matter if she was a few minutes late? After all, Todd would not be too happy after he heard what she had to say anyway. Maddie entered the park and spotted a giant heart towering over her with her name on it. She was taken aback, he couldn’t really be proposing, not today. Maddie yanked Todd aside before he could even start talking. 

“Todd listen-” Maddie said.

All too quickly, Todd rushed out the dreaded words. “Maddie will you marry me?” He finally stopped to take a breath. 

Maddie hung her head. “I’m sorry, Todd, but I can’t marry you.” Before Maddie could say another word, Todd fled deeper into the park somewhere. 

She wanted to stop and wait for a moment just to comprehend what had just happened, but she was already running behind to meet Mark at Rockefeller.

She put on her gloves and wished she was going to go ice skating like she had originally planned to with Mark. But she was getting ready for another breakup. A group of people all holding signs skated up to her. To her horror, the signs spelled out W-I-L-L Y-O-U M-A-R-R-Y M-E-? 

She left before he could even talk to her. It may have been mean, but she was sure he got the message.

The third proposal was a little less dramatic. This one came from a creepy old man on the subway. She easily ignored this; she was no stranger to weird people in New York. She laughed to herself. That did make three proposals today alone. Three more than the zero she’d gotten in her whole life.

Next, she was going to see Kevin for coffee. This date would be safe, right? I mean no one proposes at coffee. But I guess Kevin thought coffee shops were meaningful. As she was halfway through her peppermint latte, she heard Kevin say, “I’ve been meaning to ask this for a while.” His chair creaked as he stood up only to get down on one knee. She and Kevin had only been dating for two months. Maddie did not even feel bad saying no to this proposal. 

She just had to get through one more date. This date was with Grant. She was meeting him for dinner at a fancy French restaurant. This time she hoped he would propose. She had dumped all her other boyfriends just for him.

Dinner was going perfectly. After the horrible day she had, it was like a dream come true. The warmth and the smell of fresh bread almost put Maddie to sleep, almost. She heard something she’d be hearing all day, but this time it did not cause her dismay. Finally, this was happening, and with the right guy. She couldn’t contain her excitement, she wanted that shiny ring on her finger. Grant spoke, “ Maddie, will you marry me?” 

Something caught her eye, a crowd of guys were walking in, and they definitely did not look happy. Oh no.

 “ What is going on?” asked Kevin, Mark, and Todd. Maddie had a lot of explaining to do.