The Witness

Chapter Ten

November 29, 2000

Today was going to be the day. I had to do it now. I had already waited 4 years, so I couldn't wait any longer. It was 7:30 in the morning. I brushed my teeth and got into a polo and jeans and ran out of the house and into a taxi. I called my mom and told her about the occasion and she happily agreed, so I asked the taxi to go to the nearest jewelers. I was a bit too pumped and I told myself to calm down. Calm down, Tristan, calm down. If she says no, hopefully you can still return it. I started meditating and when we got there, I stopped and stretched a little bit. Helped a lot, I guess. When I walked into the jewelers, a woman greeted me with a nice smile and a handshake. I asked, "Do you have any engagement rings?"

"Oh, we have a big selection of them. Please follow me, sir," she said. She led me to a thick glass case with about 250 rings inside, some made out of silver and others diamond and topaz. I stared at practically each of them and then saw one that caught my eye. It was made out of silver, diamonds, and one other gem that I didn't know about, so I asked the woman, "Can you show me that ring right over there?" I pointed at it and she said, "Oh, good choice! That is a pure silver ring with studded diamonds and a blue diamond on top. Would you like this one?"

"Let me see if there are any other ones she might like," I responded, looking through them once more. I didn't find anything more beautiful than the ring I had found. I told her, "I'll take this one. Can you give me a size seven?" She nodded and went to the cash register and typed in some numbers. Ok, that will be 50,000 dollars. In my head, I was screaming, "Aaaaaaah!!! Run away! Too expensive!" but I knew that this would only happen once in my life, so I accepted it. "Are we allowed to pay by check?" I asked, getting ready to get my checkbook out.

"Of course! Just write it for DG Jewelers," she replied, like it was an everyday thing to get a ring for $50,000. Once I wrote the check and gave it to her, I left the building and started running home.

Once I got home, I knocked on the door with my rhythmic pattern as always. I was so out of breath after the thirty minutes of running, I almost collapsed. When Jenna opened the door, she asked, "A run at 8:45? That doesn't happen often for you. Did something happen?"

"It's a long story. I'll tell you inside," I panted. When I got inside, I fell on the couch and almost fell off. I told Jenna how I was proposing to Mahala and that I just spent 50,000 dollars on a ring. Her mouth literally fell open and I chuckled. I got out the ring container and I opened it to her. "Do you like it?" I asked.

"Of course I like it. I hope my fiance gets me a ring like that," she replied, still surprised at the price as it seemed. It felt like yesterday was my first date with Mahala and today I'm proposing to her. It was overwhelming. I asked Jenna, "Where should I meet her? Central Park? Times Square?" I asked, thinking about all the thoughts and the different outcomes.

" I think you should meet at somewhere very secluded, like Central Park. That would be a good idea. Meet at night. It makes it more romantic," she said, acting like a romance professional. Compared to me, though, she was. I started pacing in the hallway and thought about how to propose to her. Will you marry me until death do us part? Way too soapy. Will you marry me? I don't know if the original will work. When will I tell her? An hour in? Two hours? Half an hour? When I got tired of thinking about it, I asked Jenna impatiently, "What should I do?"

"I don't know too much about proposals, but I think an hour or an hour and a half in? That makes sense to me. Also, I think making it a surprise in a lot better than making it obvious that you're about to propose. Just keep the ring in your... ugh! Where should you keep the case?" Jenna groaned. She was thinking of where to put the case, so I said, "I don't really need to bring the case, do I? I can just take the ring out when I'm ready to go."