Page 149 of Hitting the Goal Line
“Okay.” Another one of her laughs fills my ears in the best way possible. “Better question, why are you doing all of this?”
I’m about to answer her, but she slides one of her hands into my hair and I try not to get lost in the way her fingers move against my scalp. Trying but definitely not succeeding.
“I wanted to give you a special night. One where it’s just you and me while we relive a few key memories that brought us together.” I lean down and press my forehead against hers, wanting to be as close to her as possible.
“Is this the surprise?” she asks, curiosity coating her voice.
“Part of it,” I answer truthfully.
“What’s the other part?”
“Dance with me for a bit longer and I will show you.”
She gives me a nod and we glide abasing the ice as one song turns into two and then three.
During the fourth song, I break our comfortable silence. “Do you remember what I promised you that first day we met? Right before we got on the ice.”
Sophia moves her head as it’s still pressed against mine. “You told me not to worry, that you will protect me.”
“I still stand by that. It doesn’t matter if you’re afraid of falling on the ice, or if I’m barging into a hotel room. I will always protect you, you will never have to worry about that.”
“I know,” she lets out, her breath shaking a bit.
“I will also stand by your side whenever you need me and if you ever want to move to a different state because that’s where work is, then I will follow you, just like you came to Chicago with me. Wherever you go, I’ll go too.”
Tears start to form in her eyes and I can tell that she is trying her hardest to keep them at bay, but she is having a hard time.
“Before we got together, before you officially became mine, I never wanted to lose you. I didn’t want to tell you that I was in love with you because I would have been beside myself if I ever hurt you and lost you completely. Now, I still don’t want to lose you, but I’m going to tell you that I love you every single day forthe rest of my life. Because I do love you, with everything that I am and have.”
The tears that she was trying to keep in finally make their way out, so I reach over ever so slightly and wipe them way with my thumbs. My fingers caress her skin as I touch her face.
“I have two things for you. One was supposed to be your Christmas gift this past year and the other is something that I hope that you hold as dear as you hold the locket that I gave you when I was fifteen. Do you want to see them?”
Sophia nods eagerly, not saying a thing.
With a smile, I slide a few inches away from her, letting both of our hands fall off each other as I reach for the box that I’ve had since December and have been waiting to give her.
In retrospect, I should have given her this a long time ago. There were plenty of moments to do so, but for some reason, this felt like the best time to do it.
I take the small box out of my pocket and open it before handing it to her.
Inside are two pictures of the two of us that fit perfectly in her locket. One from last year from when the Knights won the cup and the other from a few weeks ago. Originally, I had a picture of the two of us from my first NHL game but when we officially got together, I wanted to use a more recent picture. One where we are in bed and Sophia is cradled under my arm as I take the picture.
She lets out a small chuckle as she looks at the small circles, all the while the tears fully escape. “I love these so much,” she says, looking up at me.
“I’m glad.”
“Thank you, my love.” She closes the distance between us and gives me a kiss.
“You’re welcome,” I say against her lips. “I have one more thing for you,” I tell her. Taking the box from her hand andclosing it again before sliding it into the pocket of my slacks. Can’t go losing the pictures.
“What is it?” she asks, her voice barely a whisper.
I reach into my other pant pocket and cradle the box that’s there with all the strength that I have.
“I love you, Sophia. I’ve loved you for as long as I can remember and I never want to let you go. You’re going to tell me that this is way too fast, that we just got together no more than five months ago, that there is no need to rush. But I’m not rushing. I’ve thought about this moment for years and when it comes to us, it would never be too fast. We know each other in a way that we will never know anyone else. We are two pieces of a locket that came together by chance and now people will have pry us open in order to separate us. You are my world, Sophia and you have been since I was a kid who barely knew how to tie skates. So, I want to ask you this.”
I put a bit of distance between us, and getting down on one knee as stable as I possibly can with skates on and opening up the ring box that I’ve had hidden in our apartment for three weeks now.
