Hearts are never Broken {Pricefield} #wattys2016

Roadtrippin Part II

I park the truck at the foot of the hill. And yes it's still that same musty beat up truck she used to drive when we were in school. The only thing that really needed replacement was the exterior. All the paint started to fall off so we decided to make a fun activity out of it, and tried to paint it together. That really went as well as we'd expected, which was pretty fucking bad. As it turned out neither of us actually knew what they were doing. After we both admitted to that, we decided to let the professionals take over. We brought it to a bodyshop and they did a tremendous paint job, then again it's easier if you have access to the right tools. Chloe begged to get it sprayed in blue, which I didn't understand since it's her truck anyway, but it was so cute how she really wanted me on board for that. The interior is still kind of crappy and will probably smell like stale fart forever, but from the outside it looks pretty decent. We made a promise to only get rid of the truck once it really starts falling apart and becomes unsafe to drive.

At night there's barely anything you can see through the thick brush of trees leading up to the look out spot. Besides, of course, the lighthouse. It's light rotating slowly above the treeline. Once we step out the car I am immediately greeted by the sounds of the night creatures. An owl hoots in the distance, the crickets create a subtle rhythm and the wind gently pushes it's way through the labyrinth of branches and leaves.
I take in the smell of the ocean and let all of the other different sensations flow over me like water.

Chloe makes her way around the car. As the light of the lighthouse passes over us once again I can see her smile and a shimmer in those beautiful blue eyes. She stretches out her hand towards me and I instinctively grab it.
"Ok, so you know how I'm really bad at surprises." She says while avoiding my eyes.
"Well yeah, you've spoiled my birthday gift every single year." I say with a chuckle at the end.
"Seriously, the thing is I just hate lying to you. I've been planning this for a few weeks and I couldn't wait to bring you here." She takes a quick look behind her and then back at me.
"Follow me, I will literally explode if this takes any longer."
She says as she takes the lead and gently pulls me into the direction of the dirt path leading into the forest.
It's pitch black, but Chloe takes out a flashlight from her jacket and shines her light in front of us. Her excitement rubs off on me, and the general curiosity of what's about to happen has rid me of my tiredness.

We traverse further into the forest until suddenly she takes us off the road and into the overgrown woods. Our steps trampling leaves and branches underneath our feet, our hands tightly locked. "We're almost there." Chloe says enthusiasticly as she speeds up. We start running  a little, laughing and totally out of breath. We burst through a line of trees and come into a sort of open space. The moon shines right above us, rendering the flashlight useless. Chloe turns it off and pockets it. A few tree stumps covered in moss dress this grassy plane. Something about this place triggers my memory. I am transported to a summer afternoon in July. William, Joyce, my parents, Chloe and I ard all together in this exact spot. The two of us running around dressed up, our parents sharing a big blanket with all sorts of food and drink, catching up, discussing how their children are growing older.
"I remember this place." I mumble as I let go of Chloe's hand and look around. "We used to play here all the time. With your dad, and every summer both our parents would take us here for a picnic, and we'd just be exploring the forest. Or well, in our minds, the ocean." I say with a hint of nostalgia cracking through my voice.
One of the trees has a treasure map carved into it. I softly run my fingers over the carved out woods and turn to Chloe. "Remember how I crashed into this tree and lost a tooth." We both start laughing thinking about the days we'd spend here. All the bruises, mud and general exploring made for some fun comics we'd draw out once we got home. Those were simpler times, peaceful times, but what I miss most of all is the innocence of not knowing what the next day would bring. Alongside the prospect that every day would be a good day as long as Chloe and I would be adventuring together. Now I realise that we've always been more than friends. We were partners back then, and we still are, only with more romantic feelings.

Chloe joins me at the tree and places a hand on my shoulder as she explains, "I rediscovered this place a year ago. I'd come here to relax if things got heated and mostly thought about us. The life we've been living, the strength of our relationship. How I love waking up next to you every single morning. The things I did wrong, our worst fights and our most precious memories. The horrible things we went through, but also how we always support and love each other."
As she utters the last sentence, I turn to face her, and she plants a kiss on my forehead. Her hand caresses my cheek and I fully give in to her tenderness.
Her eyes stare deeply into mine as she parts her lips to continue her speech.
"Max, you make me feel truly loved, understood and special and I can only hope that I make you feel the same way. Because I fucking love you and I would really like to spend the rest of my life with you. Whether it's in Seattle or on the other side of the freaking world."
Chloe steadily drops onto one knee. I want to say that I can't believe this is happening, but I actually can. We've been together for 6 years now. We live together, manage a household together, adopted a dog that is basically our child and have been talking about marrying for some time now. Of course I didn't expect it to happen at four thirty in the morning in the middle of the woods, but then again this is Chloe Price. The girl that made a junk yard into her secret lair away from society's bullshit. One of the biggest pleasures of this relationship for me is Chloe's spontaniety. Spending the rest of my life with her is bound to be filled with adventure, laughter, unconditional love and, as an honourable mention, our sex life.

While basking in the romantic setting, and Chloe's heartfelt words I realize that I've started tearing up. Tears of joy, happiness and excitement. All these joyous emotions are hitting me at the same time.
"Maxine Caulfield, would you do me the honour of becoming my co-captain in life and marry me?"
Chloe says, her voice slightly shaking with nervousness as she takes out a small black box with two elegant silver rings. It's perfect, and what I love most is that she got rings for the both of us. I drop to my knees take her precious face into my hands and pull her in for a romantic, and slightly wet from the tears, kiss.
"How could I say no to that!" I say laughing and crying at the same time. "Of course, I will marry you Chloe." We share another passionate kiss and rest our heads against eachother as we part.
"I would love nothing more than to share the rest of this life with you." I take a short pause to look her in the eyes. "I love you so much. "

I hear Chloe whisper to herself, "She said yes." In victory as she embraces me and plants multiple kisses on my cheek. She takes one of the rings and gently slides it onto my ring finger. "Now you'll officially be my wife." She exclaims with a smile stretching from ear to ear.
"Wife... I like the sound of that." I say sharing that same excited smile.
I follow her lead and take the other ring out of the box. There's a small engraving on the inside of the ring, a very subtle "M&C" in calligraphy.
The moon's light reflects onto our rings and honestly in the back of my mind I wish I could take a picture right now. It would ruin the moment and no matter how awesome a shot this scene would be... the emotions I'm experiencing now could never be captured. That is something that will be engraved into my memory forever, and something I want to enjoy now for as long as possible. If I could manipulate time and space to freeze this exact moment, I would.

Author's Note

I saw some comments asking to continue the last chapter and ironically at 4 in the morning I got very inspired to write this. Enjoy this chapter full of fluff ❤️

Stay hella dope
Love yourself, wash yo hands, wear a mask, be safe and have a very nice day/evening everybody ❤️

Yours Truly
BluePunkRockRebel