Two Minutes

Two minutes, but they were the most agonizing two minutes of my life. That included the time that I had to sit through two hours of boring lectures. And, the day that the power went out, and I had to watch paint dry.

There I was, down on one knee, looking up into the face of my true love, the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, the only person who saw me. Truth be told, the whole thing was unconventional. I was unconventional, but Joseph knew that. He always knew that. Girls didn't propose. Girls weren't the ones carrying around the black ring box, but there I was, millions of thoughts running through my mind as he didn't do anything but stare at me.

What if he said no? What if he outright refused me? What would I do? What would we do? Would we break up? Gosh, I wasn't sure if I could handle that. I had spent three years with him. Three amazing years that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world. All the good times we had together. All the nights we spent sleeping under the stars. All the dinners we spent talking and laughing. I loved him, and he knew that, right? That’s why I was doing this. 

What if he didn’t feel the same way? What if I had misread the entire situation? What if had come here to break up with me? We were at the scene of our first day, after all. Maybe he was just trying to be sentimental before he broke it off.

What if he just ran off? He wasn't that dramatic, but what if he did? Would I chase after him? Would that be too desperate? I definitely didn't want to seem desperate, but he would be worth it. I’d follow him to the ends of the earth if it meant that we were together. 

I caught sight of one of the other customers in the restaurant. They were looking at the two of us expectantly like they were waiting for one of us to say something, anything. Believe me, lady, I thought, I'm waiting too. That's when it hit me. 

What if I hadn't waited long enough? We'd been dating for a few years, but what if he didn't think that was enough? What if I had just messed everything up by going out and buying a ring? I silently cursed myself, wishing he had just asked instead. I shouldn't be doing this, I thought, but then the memory of when we first met surfaced. 

I was a hurried girl who was completely lost in the streets of Manhattan, fresh out of college. The office should be right here, I had thought, looking futilely at a map. That's when he appeared like an angel sent from heaven. He looked the part too.

"Are you lost," he had asked gently. My heart nearly stopped at the sight of him. His blond hair was perfectly tousled, the sun glistening off it. One look into his sea-blue eyes and I was drowning. All of this happened in a few seconds as he waited for an answer. 

"Yes, actually," I'd answered, managing to keep my voice even. "I'm looking for the Boone Offices." The man just laughed, the sounds shaking me to my very core. I wanted to bottle up the sound and keep it forever. Or, record it and play it over and over again. 

"You're on the wrong block for that," he declared. "I'm heading there too. We can go together." I looked at him silently, weighing my options. If I didn't go with him, I'd probably stay helplessly lost. But, if I followed him, I risked something worse than being lost. I'd gone to college in New York, after all. I knew the dangers of trusting a random man on the street. Still, he seemed alright, and I had my pepper spray in my pocket.

"Alright," I had said and walked at his side. "I'm Alice Mills, by the way." The man smiled and nodded, amusement dancing in his eyes. 

"Joseph Keller," he had answered. "So, what brings you to the Boone offices?" 

"I'm one of the new ITs."

"Really? There aren't many female ITs." 

"Is that a problem," I had snapped, instantly regretting it. This cute guy was helping me, and I just snapped at me. He just shook his head. 

"Just an observation." I looked him over, noting the carefully pressed suit and tie. 

"Do you work there," I asked. He just smirked. 

"You could say that." Now, I remembered how the light glimmering in his eyes had sent my mind spiraling. I was half tempted to ask him out, but that was way too forward. Besides, I still didn't know if I could trust him. 

Finally, we arrived at the offices, a large building that was way less intimidating the last time I had been there. 

"What floor," Joseph asked. 

"Fifth. I'm supposed to meet the boss man," I had replied, ignoring the pounding in my chest.

“You haven’t met him?”

“No, my interview was done with one of the other ITs. I don’t know who I’m working for.” Joseph just hummed, amusement dancing in his eyes. Is he making fun of me, I wondered as I stiffened.

On the fifth floor, we both started toward the same place, passing about a dozen little gray cubicles. No one even looked up. 

Joseph led the way to the boss man's office. It was a large room with an oak desk that had three stacks of paper on top. Diplomas and other awards donned the walls, and I spun around to read all of them. Then, Joseph sat in the leather chair and started rummaging through the drawers. 

“What are you doing,” I hissed, but he didn’t stop. “You’re going to get us in trouble.” Joseph just looked up, a smirk on his face, and nodded toward the plaque on the desk. Joseph Keller, it read. All I could do was stare open-mouthed. 

“Oh, my gosh,” I said hurriedly. “I’m so sorry.”

“You can make it up to me by allowing me to take you to dinner,” he answered with a smug grin. 

That’s how we met and scheduled our first date. For three years, we joked about that day, those circumstances, that brought us together. For three years, I had dreamed of the day when he would get down on one knee and ask me the question of a lifetime. Now, I was the one popping the question.

I was all too aware of the stares I was getting from all over the restaurant. I glanced quickly at the clock. Two minutes. It had only been two minutes, and Joseph just smiled. Dread flooded my veins, and my heart thudded in my chest. 

“I can’t believe you beat me to it,” he scoffed, pulling a small box out of his pockets. “Of course, I’ll marry you, Alice Mills.” I just gasped as I pulled myself up and threw my arms around his neck. Oh, he was well worth the wait.