A Dream Come True
It was just one of those days that seemed like something out a picture frame. Outside it was nice and breezy- not overly hot, not freezing (of course, it was also summer)- just nice. Outside the streets were clean- minus the holiday decorations around on display. They were filled with life of happy teenagers and young adults smiling and trading with others.
Inside the Mall was covered with decorations. In the kitchen making Christmas cookies was Alice with Trudy lending a hand as Brady was being watched by Salene with Ryan by her side. Lex and Tai-san were upstairs holding hands and enjoying each others company under lit candles and dinner. KC and Cloe were kissing under the mistletoe, Pride and May were cleaning up as the twins messed around. Jack was messing around on his computer as Luke and Ellie moved gifts under the tree for everyone eagerly.
Indeed, it was something out of heaven and in the middle of it all was Bray, Amber, and their little girl. The love of Bray’s life, she looked so much like her mother, blonde hair with a smile to match. She had Amber’s eyes as well. Bray watched the baby playing eagerly as he held her.
Amber laughed from the door as she came into the room.
‘Hey look there’s mommy,’ he exclaimed to his daughter’s ear holding her as he played with her, Amber coming in and smiling as she moved to take a seat, already pregnant with their second as big as could be.
‘Hey there little one,’ she said as she moved to sit down next to Bray, ‘Dinner’s almost ready, the tribal gathering is tomorrow morning, and Salene said she’d handle our own handful here so- it’s just you and me for Christmas eve,’ she declared with a smile kissing Bray.
Automatically, Bray felt the passion in the kiss- her breath drawing him in as he took in her scent and his light warm feeling side placing his hand on her side. It felt like a piece of heaven.
Then, Salene came in into the doorway knocking it as she watched them lip lock with the baby in their lap, ‘Hey you want me to take her now?’ she asked stepping in.
‘Oh yea,’ Amber said breaking from Bray as she got up with their daughter handing her over, ‘Is dinner ready?’
‘Yea, I asked Ryan to carry up a tray for you two so you could eat up here,’ she told them with a smile.
‘That’s great, thanks Sal,’ Bray said as Ryan came into viewing carry a tray with a candle, matches, two bowls of food, and Cloe trailing holding a bag of gifts.
‘Here- your two’s Christmas gifts incase you don’t come back down until tomorrow,’ Cloe exclaimed with a smile as she placed them in the corner.
‘Thanks Cloe,’ Amber whispered.
‘Anytime,’ she responded as Ryan set the tray on the table and chairs Amber had placed in their room earlier.
‘You’re set now,’ he said with a warm smile as he moved to go.
‘Thanks Ryan,’ Bray muttered as he held a chair for Amber to get her seat and smiled at Salene who was heading out herself.
She then turned back to them briefly, ‘Have fun guys, and uh- I like what you did with the place,’ she said with a smile going with their kid.
Amber smiled as she shook her head, ‘At least she noticed- I spent four hours last week putting up decorations and Jack and Lex totally missed it,’ she said sighing.
‘I know so did Trudy even at first,’ Bray said sitting down across from her and taking his bowl of food, ‘So should we open gifts tonight or wait?’
‘We should wait- and just open one tonight- that’s what my family used to do before the virus anyway,’ Amber told him as she put another piece of fruit in her mouth.
Bray gave a hidden smile, ‘That works for me,’ he proclaimed happily as he started to look over towards their mini tree where he placed her engagement ring wrapped up in a small box. He couldn’t wait all right.
After they finished, they talked for a while and then moved over towards the small tree like it was the real thing.
‘So who gets to be Santa and actually pick what we open?’ Amber asked with a smile as she sat down cross legged.
‘I’ll get yours and mine,’ he offered picking out the ring for her and handing her the box. Then randomly grabbing a gift with his name on it not sure which Mallrat it actually came from.
‘Okay so whose first?’ she asked finally after they both took a minute to examine their boxes as if trying to figure out who owned what.
‘I’ll be first,’ Bray said, ‘Besides yours is very special and shouldn’t be rushed,’ he said seriously.
‘Okay?’ she said oddly looking at him as if trying to mentally figure out what it was.
Bray then looked down at the box covered in red tissue paper tied over it as he moved to undo the wrapping job- it was a semi big box as he moved to free the top he opened the lid.
Looking down he saw a book and started to laugh, ‘101 ways to less saintly- ten guesses it?s from Lex with Ryan’s help on the reading,’ Bray exclaimed.
Amber laughed, ‘Probably. Good old Lex- make someone else get it so that he can steal the show and cause the trouble’.
‘Yea, so now I guess it’s your turn,’ Bray said sucking in his breath as if to almost hold it.
This was it- as Amber started to toy with wrapping Bray started to feel his hands sweat and his heartbeat, she was about to open his ring- clinging onto the nearest thing he waited for her to open it. As she slowly undid it, he could feel the pressure rising within him. This was their moment, his moment, and now it was time to show her exactly what he felt for her.
As she opened the small black white box he got- her eyes opened in surprise and then her eyes filled with mirth as she laughed. Bray then turned over to her, his expression sharp and in shock- why was she laughing? What was funny about this diamond ring? Was it not a real diamond- did he mess up on the card?
Bray then watched as Amber removed a pair of pink laced panties and bra, Bray’s mouth then dropped open as the card fell down and it said from Lex in Ryan’s hand writing. Bray paled and turned a sheet of white- Lex used the same wrapping and box as him?’
‘You’ve got to be kidding me,’ he muttered.
Amber finally stopped laughing and looked at him, ‘Bray, are you okay? You didn’t seem to be amused as it as me? Lex didn’t mean anything by it, you know that. I’m not his type- okay well Lex’s type is any female with a pulse but I think he realistically knows it would never happen. He was trying to be funny or something?’ she said really fast.
‘No, that’s not it, I mean it get it wasn’t supposed to be? I mean he has Tai-san and all? it’s just? I thought’ you know what never mind? Can we open one more gift tonight?’ Bray asked with a pleading look, there was no way he could sleep now.
Not after he had spent the last week preparing his speech, practicing his kneeling, and got Salene to watch their daughter.
‘We should wait until morning Bray, I mean is it- or whatever you want that important that you can’t wait till then?’ Amber asked studying his face as if trying to get an answer on it without actually getting one.
‘Kind of,’ he said pressingly, for many reasons but the one on his mind being mainly that it would ruin his vision.
Amber sighed as she inspected all the gifts in the room, the tree, and the lit candles as they both turned towards the bed that was nicely lit.
‘How about we do them first thing- come on- we have candle wax to melt and a night to have all to ourselves- we won’t have this chance again for a while,’ she said moving to get up as Bray watched her at first before relenting and going to help her up.
'Yea, I guess,'he said sadly as she finally got into the air, she stopped and studied his face.
"It’s that important?’
Bray nodded.
‘Okay, find it then,’ she said after a second.
Bray smiled quickly at her before he went to dive for her gift before coming up with the gift that was identical in size and wrapping- he then smiled- this had to be it this time, as he went over to her and handed it to her standing up- Amber moved to sit down.
‘No, don’t. Just open it,’ he said after a second getting ready to kneel as Amber looked him oddly before tearing into the card.
She then started to read slowly as she unwrapped the gift itself- tears already filling her eyes as she read it and smiled at him, ‘Oh Bray?’
‘Don’t just- look at it,’ he said after a second as he did kneel finally.
Amber not even paying attention to him then opened the box and froze when she saw the diamond ring staring up at her. Her eyes growing semi large as she looked down and realized Bray was kneeling before her.
‘So will you marry me?’ he said as she finally read the card below the ring that his proposal.
Amber’s mouth dropped open as she moved to wipe away her tears nodding as she leaned down to kiss him passionately as they both ended up falling down and her landing on top of Bray but that not enough to stop their kisses as they slowly got up making their way to bed and started to undress.
Bray was unable to keep his smile from his lips in between kisses- she said yes, they were going to be married on the first tribal Christmas, in their finally free new world under a nice new government with their family and their tribe. Indeed, today was greatest day of his life and hopefully the start of something new.