“What do you want to happen?” I ask him. Colton tears his eyes from the fountain and looks down at me. He brushes a strand of hair away from my face and leans back on the swing. Using his legs, he gently starts moving it back and forth.
“I want us to get through all of this alive,” he starts. I watch him as he speaks. He’s trying to keep a smile at bay. “I want to wake up to you in the morning and not worry about whether or not you were attacked in your sleep. I want to watch you open your eyes and look over at me and whisper a good morning as you sit up and stretch and then try to tame your unruly hair.” He laughs and turns toward me. “I love your crazy hair,” he says as he grabs a curl and twirls it around his finger.
“I want to get down on one knee and propose to you and watch you say yes as tears stream down your face,” I scoff at the tears comment even though I know it’ll probably happen. “I want to watch you walk down the aisle in a ridiculous white dress and listen to you say I do. I want to go on a honeymoon and finally be able to love you as my wife,” he says.
“You want to wait until our wedding night?” I ask.
“Call me traditional,” he tells me as he tightens his arm around me. I lean back against his chest and listen to the rest of his vision. “I know that you’ve always wanted to wait until your wedding night as well,” he whispers. It’s true. I’m pretty old fashioned when it comes to relationships. “I want to buy a small house on a secluded beach, that’s also surrounded by trees. A couple of years after that, I want to start a family. Two kids. Little Coltons or Ryannes running around. It doesn’t matter as long as they’re healthy.
“I want to watch them grow up and teach them about magic. Help train them. I want to go to all the sports events, school plays, award ceremonies, everything. I want to grow up with you and watch our children grow as well. I want to watch them walk across the stage and receive their diploma and then give my little girl off on her wedding day.
“Most importantly though, I want to make you happy. I want to be the reason why you smile in the morning and have sweet dreams at night. I want to make you laugh until you cry. If I can do that, I don’t care about the other stuff. You’re my life now Ryanne and if I’m with you, I’ll be happy.”
“You already make me happy, Colton. I’d probably be going insane right about now if it weren’t for you. You’re my anchor remember?” Colton removes his arm from my shoulder and rolls up the sleeve on his tight black shirt. I grab his wrist when I see the design wrapping around it.
“You got a tattoo?” I ask him.
“I told you you’ve been training a lot,” he says. I lightly trace the design around his wrist.
“When did you get it?”
“Two days ago,” he answers. I look up at him surprised. He’s had this for two days and I haven’t noticed. How did I not see it during the training sessions? He wore a tank top then. “You’re not the most observant person, Ryanne.”
“Apparently not,” I mumble. I lightly kiss the anchor and put his arm back around my shoulder. Leaning into him, I listen to all the sounds around me. It’s obviously late, but I don’t know what time it is specifically. I look up at the stars around me. I could sit outside all night and watch the stars. There’s something so amazing about the sky. The world is so vast and each individual is so small. We’re like a constellation. On our own, we’re not that important. We become important when we work together to create a larger picture—the constellation.
I look toward Colton again. “I want all of that too.” He looks at me confused, so I explain further. “That life you talked about…I want all of that too. I want to be your wife and I want to be a mom…someday…in the very far future,” I say with a laugh.
The love in his eyes spurs me on, so I continue. “Before I met you, Colton, I had no confidence or self-esteem. I thought that no one would ever want me, and I’d go through life alone.” Colton opens to his mouth, but I place a finger on his lips. “Wait a minute, let me finish. Meeting you changed all that. Whenever you look at me, I start to feel beautiful. Your gaze makes my knees go weak and my heart skip a beat.” I smile up at him. “I get my strength from your faith in me. You make me feel wanted and you have no idea how good that feels. I’ve never had many friends and no guy ever seemed interested in me. Now, I have you—my best friend and soulmate.
“I want to wake up every morning in your arms. I love opening my eyes and looking straight into your green ones and want to do that for the rest of my life. I do want to wear a stupid big white dress and walk down the aisle toward you. I want to be able to call you my husband. I want to call myself Mrs. Colton Wagner.