Three Years Till Forever

Noah paced back and forth in his hotel as his thoughts went to the events of the rest of the day. He ran his hands through his hair, messing it up more than it already was. This was going to be life-changing for both him and Lillian. If it went wrong, a three-year relationship was going to be ruined in seconds.

Although it could go right, she was probably going to beat the shit out of him.

Lillian was going to graduate from college tomorrow, and Noah had decided he would pop the question tonight.

He had planned a lovely dinner at a 'fancy-schmancy' restaurant as she would call it, and then he was going to propose. Noah had to travel across the country by road for 72 hours to be here, and there was a chance she was going to say no.

All of a sudden, his phone rang, interrupting his train of thought. He checked the caller ID and was more than happy to see that it was his best friend Davis. He picked up the phone, his heart racing.

"Hey man," Davis' voice sounded through the phone speaker.

"Hey Dave, how's the plan going?"

"Pretty great, she's in the car with Elsie right now. By the way, Elsie told me to inform you that she officially hates you."

"And why's that? I didn't do anything to her this time."

"She said you plagued her with the responsibility of keeping a secret."

"I don't care if she can't keep a secret; just make sure you keep Lilli distracted and keep Els quiet."

"No problem bro. Talk to you later bye."

"Bye Dave," Noah said, ending the call.

Hours later, Noah was just about to leave his apartment when he got a call from Lillian. He dropped his phone in shock, but luckily, his screen wasn't cracked when he picked it back up. The excited young man heaved a sigh of relief. By then, the call had ended.

The drive to Lillian's college lasted about fifteen minutes, but it felt like three seconds to Noah. Once he had parked in her driveway, he texted her to inform her that he was there. She replied instantly, telling him that she was ready. He entered the dorm and got into the elevator. 

A group of girls in the elevator with Noah kept whispering loudly and sending him dirty looks. Noah kept shifting uncomfortably under their eagle-like gaze. He adjusted the collar of his shirt as the whispers increased until he couldn't take it anymore. He stared back at them with a piercing gaze.

"Can I help you?" He asked, an annoyed edge to his voice.

"So, he can talk," a brown-haired girl spoke.

"Riley, don't say stuff like that; it's rude" a petite blondie spoke this time.

Before Noah could make a nasty remark, the elevator dinged, signifying that he could get off. He sighed and stormed out. Nothing can ruin my mood, he told himself. Tonight is going to be awesome.

He arrived at Lillian's door and took a deep breath. He raised his knuckle to the door, taking in a deep breath. He hesitated for a split second. As he let out his breath, he gently tapped his knuckles against the door. 

The door slid open to reveal Lillian in a beautiful gem-encrusted dress. Her curly hair cascading down her back, her plump lips stretched into a smile, and her bright eyes accentuated by the dark makeup around them. Noah's breath caught in his throat at her sight, and for a second, he wasn't nervous anymore. Instead, he broke into a huge grin.

"Are you lovebirds done?" Elsie's voice broke the silence as she appeared behind Lillian. Noah pointedly glared at her, but Elsie only stuck out her tongue at him. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair for the umpteenth time today.

"We should get going," Noah finally said.

"Sure thing. Bye Els," Lillian said, waving goodbye.

The trip to the restaurant was short and uneventful except for the occasional moments where Lillian would randomly begin singing along to the radio. Noah was surprisingly excited when they arrived. Lillian just made him happy without really trying.

One they entered the building, they were escorted by a nice petite lady to their table. They settled down quickly, but Lillian kept looking around like a kid in a candy store. Noah couldn't help but chuckle at her behavior, to which she scowled in response. 

Just then, a waiter walked up to them, requesting for their orders. They picked up their menus, their eyes scanning through the options. Just as Lillian opened her mouth to speak, Noah cut her off.

"We'll have the steak please," Noah said, ignoring the glare Lillian was shooting at him.

"Will that be all sir?" the waiter asked.

"Yes please."

As soon as the waiter walked off, Lillian pinched his thigh from underneath the table. 

"OW! Why would you do that?"

"What is wrong with you, I can order food by myself."

"But weren't you going to order the steak?" Noah asked, a smug look on his face.

"Um … well yeah but…" she stuttered, her face turning bright red

"But….?" Noah drawled out.

"Shut up," she finally said, a playful frown on her face.

Their food arrived after a couple of minutes of waiting, and they enjoyed their meal with a light conversation. When they were done, their waiter walked up to them again and asked what they wanted for dessert. Once Noah had ordered for both of them, he patted his pocket to be sure he had the ring. Now comes the hard part, he thought to himself.

"Lilli, we need to talk," Noah said, gripping her hand loosely in his from across the table.

"Sure!" she said, a calm look on her face "What do you want to talk about?"

"As you probably know, we have been dating for three years which is a long time for couples to last nowadays."

"Yeah I am aware of that," Lillian said, her face now morphed into a confused expression.

"And being in a relationship for that long is not a very easy commitment." He continued.

"So, what are you saying?" she asked visibly upset.

"I'm saying, that I don't want to be your boyfriend anymore…"

At this point, tears were freely falling down her face. Noah couldn't bear to make her sadder than she already was, so he finished his sentence.

"… I want to be your husband," he stated confidently.

"What?" Lillian said, still blinking back tears.

Noah got on one knee and retrieved the ring box from his pocket.

"Lillian, I am asking you to marry me. These three years we've been together have been the best years of my life. I wouldn't want anyone else to spend the rest of my life with. So, Lillian will you marry me?" Noah asked, both their eyes holding tears, his gaze locked solely on her.

"Yes!"