Toxic Truth

30

ZELLA

I was at my parents house when Liam called me and told me that he'll be picking me up for dinner today.

I told him to pick me up from here and decided to get ready with my mom's help.

"I'm so glad you guys are back together, you two are good for each other," Mom says as she takes another strand of my hair and wraps it around her curling iron.

I just smile at her reflection in the mirror.

I'm glad too. Way more than glad actually. I'm fucking ecstatic. Liam and I are together again, he's my boyfriend. One that I'm never letting go of.

"Where are you guys going?" She asks and I shrug.

"Don't know, he didn't tell me. He said it's a surprise."

"Surprise huh?" She raises her eyebrows and grins.

I blush and she pats my shoulder with a knowing look. A ping of notification on my phone has my lurching forward.

"Careful! You'll burn yourself," Mom clicks her tongue but I ignore her as I read the text.

"It's liam, he's saying he'll be here in 10 minutes! Oh my God I'm not ready, I haven't even changed yet!" I ramble and mom sighs loudly.

"Stop it Zella, your hair and makeup is done. You just have to change, get up and do that." She grips my shoulder and makes my stand up, before pushing me forward lightly. "Quickly, go!"

"Okay, Okay!" I throw my hands up in surrender and pick up my dress and go to the bathroom to change.

I decided on wearing a dress for tonight. The sleeveless red dress has a long v-neck and the flowy silky material has floral patterns of a darker shade and falls below my thighs.

Looking into the mirror, I smooth down my hair and reapply my lipgloss.

The sound of the doorbell indicates me that Liam is here. Putting down the lipgloss, I quickly rush out of bathroom to wear my heels.

My mom isn't in the room which means she's downstairs with Liam. Quickly strapping my heels, I hurry downstairs.

Reaching the last few steps of the stairs, I slow down and catch my breath. Liam is standing in the entrance with mom and dad, talking to them in hushed voices.

He spots me lurking by the staircase and stops whatever he was telling my dad. Following his gaze, mom and dad turn their heads to me too and dad gives a wistful look.

My eyes narrow in confusion as I walk forward and make my way towards them. Liam steps forward and hands me a bouquet of red roses, then he leans down and gives me a peck on my lips.

"You look beautiful," He whispers in my ear before pulling away.

"Thank you," I blush and look at my mom who's smiling at us.

My dad comes to my side and wraps an arm around me, "She's all yours for tonight."

I roll my eyes but a smile coats my lips as I lean into him and place my head on his shoulder.

Liam inclines his head forward, "Thank you sir."

After exchanging a few more words with my parents, Liam places a hand on my back and leads me outside to his car.

He drives us to a restaurant which faces the beach. The table he reserved for us was on the terrace of the restaurant, where we could see the beach and hear the sounds of the waves. No one else was outside with us, which made me think that Liam probably had something to do with that.

After the dinner, Liam asks me to walk on the beach with him. The sounds of waves crashing rhythmically against the shore greets us as we retreat from the low hum of the restaurant.

I crouch down to unstrap my heels, but Liam stops me and lowers down on a knee and takes off my heel before getting up and holding them in his hand.

We walk besides the waves until he suddenly comes to a halt. I furrow my brows and look at him in confusion. He takes a deep breath and then holds my hands in his.

"Zella," He begins, his voice filled with emotions, "from the moment we met I knew there was something extraordinary about you. You've brought joy, laughter and a sense of completeness into my life that I never thought was possible."

Leaving the hold on my hand, he pushes his hand in his pocket and pulls out a small velvet box.

My eyes widen in surprise as he starts kneeling on one knee.

"Liam, are you..?" I gasp.

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you, wake up next to you, share all my joys and challenges with you." He opens then box and the ring inside sparkles softly in the moonlight. "Zella Walter, will you marry me?"

Tears start welling up my eyes and my voice trembles as I answer, "Yes Liam, a thousand times yes!"

Slipping the ring into my finger, he stands up and pulls me tight against him. Placing his hands on both sides of my face, he kisses me firmly and sucks on my bottom lip, making me groan.

"I love you so much," He mumbles against my lips.

Pulling away, I lean my forehead against his and whisper. "I love you more than anything."

We stand together, wrapped in each other's arms, knowing that this moment marked the beginning of our forever.