Jakki One Shots

OTP Writing Challenge- Day Twenty

Day Twenty Prompt:
Token
Person A gives person B something of theirs. Or arcade tokens. Or both??

Upon visiting his father one day with Nikki, Jack decided to have a look around his flat, while Nikki and Conor sat chatting. He found himself in Conor's bedroom, admiring each and every picture that hung on the wall, or sat on the windowsill. He was in a majority of them, him on his own, with his parents, with Ryan. They were happy memories, even if his family was no longer full like it used to be, with his mother no longer around and his brother in prison.

Scanning the room a second time, something on the dresser caught Jack's eye. His mother's engagement ring, a treasure that Jack hadn't seen in years. She had left it in Conor's possession before her death, in a worry that Jack would misplace it. But Ma had told his father to save it for Jack, for when he found someone special enough to give it to.

"What you up to?"

Jack turned his head to find Nikki standing in the doorway, a bright smile upon her face. Making eye contact with him, she came over, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her head against his back.

"Found my Ma's old engagement ring."

He held it out to her, the stone glowing from the light in the room.

"Gosh, it's gorgeous," Nikki gasped, stroking it tenderly with the tip of her thumb.

Jack instantly knew that the ring he held between his fingers was meant for Nikki. Conor definitely approved of her and he just knew that his mum would've too. And of course, he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

"Ma would've loved you," he said to Nikki, "And she would've loved you to have this."

He dropped the ring into Nikki's palm as she looked on, eyes wide. She broke away from Jack, holding onto it, staying silent as if she was waiting for him to say something else.

Jack didn't. He didn't understand what she wanted him to do; she carried on staring, not taking her eyes off him.

"Is this your strange idea of a proposal?" she eventually questioned.

Jack's eyes widened. How did he not realise? The symbolism of the ring hadn't even crossed his mind; his stupid brain had just assumed it to be a gift. He panicked, spilling out the first words that came to his mind.

"God... no."

His heart broke as he watched Nikki's face drop. He hadn't meant to sound so blunt. He hadn't meant to sound blunt at all.

"Ok," she replied quietly.

Jack felt terrible. Getting engaged hadn't been the first thing in his mind when he woke up that morning, but the more he thought about it, the better the idea seemed. Nikki had already started leaving the room, the light gone from her eyes, when Jack called out to her.

"Do you want it to be a proposal?"

She turned back at his voice. It was so clear to Jack that she did, the way she was standing, the way her eyes were filled with the utmost hope.

"Do you?" she asked.

Jack had thought about marrying her the first time he'd seen her, the first time they'd kissed. It was something he knew he wanted to do with Nikki desperately; he wanted to spend his entire life with her. And now, suddenly, it felt like the right time to do it.

"Right, come here."

Nikki obeyed Jack's command, walking back to where she'd been standing minutes before. Jack gently opened her hand, picking out the ring from it. With that, he took a deep breath, before getting down on one knee.

"Nicola Alexander, will you marry me?"

Nikki beamed from ear to ear, gazing down at him.

"Don't you ever call me that again," she giggled, "But yes, I will marry you."

In seconds, the ring was placed on her finger and Jack had lifted her off the ground in an embrace.
He could see tears glistening in her eyes when he leaned in to kiss her, causing his own to well up.
She wrapped her legs around his waist, holding on for dear life, burying her head in his shoulder. This was a moment he would never forget.

When Jack walked back into the living room to join his father, Conor instantly knew something was up. Jack had a strange glint in his eye as he sat down, as if he were under a trance.

"I just proposed to the love of my life," he said simply, glancing up at Conor with an overwhelmed smile.

Conor was shocked. Jack hadn't mentioned anything to him about his plans to propose to Nikki and his flat certainly wasn't the place every girl dreamed of getting engaged in.

"In my bedroom? That's hardly romantic,"

"It wasn't planned!" Jack chuckled, "It just happened."

Jack was grinning uncontrollably at him now, his smile too infectious to prevent Conor from doing the same.

"From the look on your face, I'm guessing she said yes."

"I most certainly did."

Both men looked up to find Nikki had entered, sharing the same happy expression. She locked eyes with Conor, who clapped his hands together in delight, standing up to wrap his arms around her. He pulled Jack in too and soon the three of them were in fits of excitement and laughter, so comfortable in each other's company. Their new family was finally coming together.