Come up to meet you, tell you I'm sorry You don't know how lovely you are I had to find you Tell you I need you Tell you I set you apart Tell me your secrets And ask me your questions Oh, let's go back to the start
Perfect. Absolutely perfect song with my absolutely perfect man. This couldn’t possibly get any better. Mack holds my waist and dances with all of the grace of a middle school boy, but it’s so charming, I just love him even more for his lack of skill.
I lean my head against his chest and breathe him in. “Thank you for this Mack. For all of this. I, well, I don’t even know what to say except that it’s magical.”
Tell me you love me Come back and haunt me Oh, and I rush to the start Running in circles Chasing our tails Coming back as we are
“That’s appropriate,” he chuckles and I look up at him.
“Why’s that?”
“Didn’t our first prom have a princess theme or something?” He looks down at me.
“Yeah, well, the theme was fairy tales. So, yeah, it’s fitting that tonight is magical,” I smile back.
“Well, what’s a fairy tale without a happy ending?” Mack stops our dance and looks me straight in the eyes. I think he’s going to kiss me, my lips are already pushed up into a pout and instead he slides down onto his good leg, kneeling before me.
He lets go of my hand and reaches into his tuxedo jacket, pulling out the familiar velvet box that held the engagement ring he gave me on the Ferris wheel. It isn’t just familiar because of his proposal. It’s because ever since he walked out of my car at the police station that ring has been sitting on my bedside table in that very box.
“How did you get that?” I don’t mean to accuse him; I’m just surprised to see it back in his hand.
He lifts the lid, and sure enough, it’s the same ring. “Chelsea snuck it into my pocket before we left,” he smiles up at me, his eyes twinkling.
Of course she did. She’s so stealthy.
“Lauren, will you give me the chance to start over with you? To fulfill the destiny, I’ve known was mine since I was six years old? Will you become my wife?”
In my mind, I can still see his round face at six. His sweet smile that transformed into his irresistible smirk over the years. “Yes, of course I will. Yes!” I hold out my trembling hand and Mack slips the ring back into place on my finger. I know in my heart that it will never be taken off again. What Mack and I have can never be destroyed. Fate has just pushed us back where we always belonged. In each other’s arms.
Mack stands back up and wraps his arms around me, his lips softly opening mine until our tongues finish this dance for us. In each other’s arms. It’s where we’ve always been, it’s where we’ll always be. Until death do us part.
Nobody said it was easy Oh, it's such a shame for us to part Nobody said it was easy No one ever said it would be so hard I'm going back to the start.
Epilogue
Lauren - Present Day
“What a gorgeous day, “I look up at the dark blue sky and breathe in a lungful of air that somehow feels cleaner. Like it always does in September.
“You wanna talk about gorgeous? Look at you two,” Mack leans over and kisses me on the cheek and then over further to kiss our ten month-old daughter, Honor, on her button nose.
Honor giggles and grabs her daddy’s face with both hands and slobbers with an open mouth down the side of his beard. She hasn’t quite perfected the art of kissing yet.
Mack laughs and wipes the baby drool off with the back of his arm.
“Can I hold her?” Chris interrupts.
I’ve gotta admit, I was nervous when I first learned I was pregnant with Honor. The age gap between her and Chris seemed too insurmountable for them to ever be close. I’m so happy that my fears were unfounded. Her big brother might be a lot older than her, but their bond couldn’t be better. He absolutely adores his baby sister. If anything, it seems like the age gap has worked to his benefit. He’s had eleven years of being an only child and soaking up all the attention, he seems relieved to share the limelight with someone new. We’ll see how that goes once the infamous teen years hit, but right now, I’m just enjoying living in the moment.
“Sure, bud. You can hold her.” I carefully move Honor into my son’s arms. She’s still not walking yet, but she’s so squirmy she can be difficult to hang onto. Luckily, today she’s feeling pretty snuggly, so she tucks her head in against Chris’s chest and shows off her new teeth in a tiny grin. With her mocha skin and large brown eyes, she’s already breaking all the baby boy’s hearts.
“Guys! Hey! Look, you’re on the kiss cam!” Chelsea excitedly points to the giant screen across the stadium. I look over to where her finger is waving and, sure enough, Mack and I are smiling at ourselves from across the field.