Jacob lies with his head on Patricia’s lap as she keeps stroking his hair. He opens his eyes lazily to look at her. She watches his face, a bit absentmindedly, but with a gentle smile.
“Patricia?” he says suddenly.
“Hm?”
“Marry me.”
She smiles more broadly, her fingers still running through his curls. “Why would I marry you?” she asks casually.
“So I could call you my wife.” She chuckles but says nothing. “Fine! I’ll take fiancée for now,” he sighs theatrically.
Patricia’s hand slows down, and she gives him a closer look. “You’re already calling me your wife”.
He reaches for her hand, resting on his chest. “So let’s make it official.”
Then she gets more earnest and her strokes finally stop. “Are you seriously proposing?”
Her question hits him with a huge impact, and he feels a wave of panic. Is he proposing…? He didn’t think about his words, they just came to him when he was the most vulnerable. Not that he ever complained about this kind of vulnerability, but he just now realises the importance of the whole situation.
“I don’t know… It depends…” he replies carefully. She raises her eyebrow. “What would be your answer…?”
“Yes!” she says, laughing softly.
His blood starts rushing through his veins even faster. “Wait, really?”
He has to be failing miserably at hiding his nervousness because Patricia looks at him sceptically. “Well, your reaction kind of makes me reconsider…”
“No, but I’m serious!” He squeezes her hand. “Would you say yes…?”
She doesn’t reply right away, but instead, she leans down, cups his face and kisses his nose. “Yes,” she almost whispers.
Jacob stares at her and then quickly gets up. “You really want to get married?” he asks in disbelief.
“I mean, if you do… then yes,” she replies with a smile. Jacob beams and gets closer to kiss her lips. “So, is it a proposal after all?” she adds with amusement when they part.
“Absolutely not,” he says sternly. Patricia frowns, but he continues before she can comment. “I have to prepare to propose properly.”
“What’s not proper right now?” she chuckles.
“First of all, I’m not even kneeling…”
“It could be changed,” she interrupts him teasingly.
“No, it has to be special…”
She laughs again as he kisses her. He’s not sure if he’ll be able to think of something special enough to express his love for her, but it’s a problem for later. And even if he fails, he’ll have their whole life to try and do better.
