More Than Love-A Hardzello AU

23 - Close Your Eyes

Near the end of May

Ben's pov

Everything was going right in my life for the first time in what seemed like forever. Joe and I have been as close together as we could ever be. Emma now has an entire room to herself that is painted light pink. Joe has been pregnant now for seven months and he has a big bump. Two more months to go and I'm so excited. I just can't wait to welcome our daughter into the world. I did decide what her middle will be. I wanted her middle name to be Elizabeth. I thought that Emma Elizabeth Hardy would be cute. 

I woke up at 7 o'clock and I got ready because I'm going to go out and get something for Joe. I'm planning on doing something special for him because I love him so much and I want him to have what I'm getting him. 

I got completely ready and was about to head out but I wanted Joe to know that I was going somewhere. I got a piece of paper and wrote on it, "I'm getting you and I breakfast. I'll be back in a little." I put it on the nightstand for him to see.

I got in the car and drove off. I went to the jewelry store that my friend, Lauren worked at and went in. I saw her and said hello.
"Hey, Lauren."
"Oh, hey, Ben. What are you doing here?" She asked me with a smile.
"I'm thinking about proposing to my boyfriend and I was hoping you can help me get a ring."
She then told me to follow her to the engagement ring section. She told me about the male engagement rings and what they look like. They all looked like the cliche male engagement ring. To me, they all looked the same. I needed something special for the love of my life.

I then found the one. It had a few diamonds/crystals on it but they were subtle. That ring was the one. I saw the price and it was $750, but I didn't care about the price. I needed this ring now!

I thanked Lauren and went back into my car and drove to get breakfast because I didn't want Joe to get suspicious if I didn't come home with the breakfast I promised.

I got some breakfast from a diner and went back home. I saw Joe waiting for me on the couch.
"Hey, Benny. It's so nice of you to get us breakfast," he said to me with a smile and I put the breakfast down on the table. We started eating and I excused myself to "go get something that i forgot", but in reality, I was just putting the ring in a good hiding spot. I decided that the best hiding spot would be in my underwear drawer. I took the ring in the box out of my pocket and opened the box to look at it. I looked at it longingly with a smile. I closed the box and kissed it before putting it in the drawer. 

I went back to Joe and continued eating my breakfast. Thankfully, he didn't ask me about what I was "getting" from the room. 

We were soon done and he was about to get up but I stopped him.
"Joe, I want to ask you something," I said to him and he sat back down in front of me.
"Would you like to go on a date with me tonight?" He smiled.
"I'd love to."

He got ready and we headed out to the flower shop. It still bugs me that he is heavily pregnant and still working. It makes me happy that he wants to work his hardest, but our daughter is going to be here in just two more months. So I don't think he should work himself to the bone. 

At the same time, it is really nice working with my boyfriend. I get to see him even more than I already do. I can stare at his gorgeous face every single day for the rest of my life and I could die happy. I love him so much.

-

By 4 o'clock, both of our shifts were over and I could take Joe on that date. He and I went into the car and we went back home. I told him that I would put the things that will be needed for the date in the trunk of the car. While doing that, I went back into our room and got the ring and put it in my pocket. He asked me if he needs to dress up fancy and I told him that the date that we were going on didn't need fancy clothing. 

He and I got back in the car and I drove off. He kept making observations about where we were going. I kept on telling him no in hopes that I wouldn't spoil the surprise. 

We were soon at our destination and Joe looked forward at the place through the windshield of the car.
"The beach?" Joe asked me as he turned his head to me and I nodded. He smiled at me and kissed me. Then we both got out of the car and he started walking to a good spot on the beach while I got the things out of the trunk. Which were just a blanket and our swimming suits. No one else was on the beach. 

Perfect.  

I went up to him and placed the blanket on the sand. We started to strip to put on our swimming suits. Joe and I were only in swim shorts and Joe's torso was exposed, making his bump appear bigger.

The entire scene was beautiful. The sun glowing on the sand and the small grains shined like diamonds. The sun not only shined on the sand, but on Joe as well. His skin glistened as the sunlight hit it. It made his beauty stand out.

I took his hand and started walking into the water. Joe jumped a little about how cold the water was. Soon though, he got used to it. We started swimming and just splashing each other with the water. We occasionally kissed whenever we felt like it was the right moment. He is definitely the one I want to spend the rest of my life with.

The sun had now set and the only thing lighting up the night sky was the big moon. It seemed like the perfect setting for a proposal. The ring was still in my jeans and this was the right time to do it. He and I were laying on the blanket together, looking up at the stars. I sat up a bit and took the ring out of my jeans that were next to the blanket. I made sure that he didn't see it.
"Joe, can I show you something?" He made a confused face but said yes. I took his hand and we got up and started walking closer to the tide of the water. He and I could see the the beautiful moon perfectly.
"Do you like this?" I asked him as I went to his side.
"Yes, I do," he chuckled a little as he turned to me. He smiled at me and I smiled back. I took both of his hands and I took the ring out of my pocket. I went down on one knee. 
"Ben, what are you doing?" Joe asked me in shock and I just chuckled.
"I love you so much, Joe. I want to be with you for the rest of my life." This is when his eyes started to tear up. "Joe Mazzello, will you marry me?" He had tears coming down his face. He nodded happily.
"Of course I will marry you." I smiled and got up. We shared a sweet kiss. I could feel the tears on his face since our faces were together. We pulled apart and I took the ring out of the box and slid it onto Joe's finger. It was a perfect fit.

We smiled at each other and he put his arms around my neck as I put my arms around his waist. "I love you, Joe." He smiled at me.
"I love you, too. I love you so much." We hugged after that.

We were now engaged.

Alright.
Thank you so much for reading.
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So yeah, I really want to eat breakfast so I'm going to do that!
Love you!!!