The day Neil and Andrew got ‘engaged’ so to speak was an uneventful day. Some decade had passed since they’d been together, and by now they had settled into quite the life. Same pro team, a house together, the cats. Life together was good.
It was in the off season, so the pair were able to just spend time at home. They were watching TV on the couch, some show to fill the noise, Neil was only half paying attention. Something Neil hears vaguely on the TV triggers his thoughts.
“Should we be married?”, Neil asks.
Andrew pauses before saying “probably”.
“Okay,” Neil replies, “can we get married then?”
Andrew looks at him for a long moment, sees the seriousness in Neils face. “I’ll organise it this week.”
That was all they said about it. It was unspoken that they did not mean the typical marriage, with a wedding, but the binding between them under the law. However, one aspect left Neil unsure, and it picked at him for the rest of the afternoon.
When they went to bed that night, Neil asks.
“You can’t wear a ring when you’re playing exy you know.” Andrew says without looking up from his book.
“I’d take it off for games, or wear it in the off seasons. It’d be more for the symbolism anyway”, Neil shrugs.
“Since when do you care about symbolism?”
“Since you gave me a key and called it home, remember? Since you.”