Regret (Ianthony)

One Month, One Week Prior

Sweat beading down Anthony's forehead (despite the continuous flow of cool air), Anthony smiled faintly at Ian and lied, "I'm bored. I'm gonna go check out the shops around here."

Ian looked at Anthony strangely before allowing, "Yeah. Okay."

Brushing off his shorts, Anthony stood and commanded, "Call me when the oil change's over, alright?" After seeing Ian's sharp nod in response, Anthony stumbled out of the car repair garage, careful not to interrupt the employees that were busy attacking engines and the bottoms sides of cars with over-sized wrenches and miniature screw drivers. He and Ian had been sitting in some cheap plastic chairs to the side of the garage while Ian watched the workers swarm his precious car and pass each other parts through suspicious eyes. Ian was very particular about who messed with his car, which was why they were in the dank garage instead of inside with the rest of the waiting people.

All that Anthony had needed was an excuse, and Ian had practically handed it to him on a silver platter.

Scrutinizing the crowded shops lining the streets, Anthony made his way to the sidewalk and started his journey to Gina's Jewels, a jewelry shop that was about five stores down. The rumble of the engines of passing cars and the clap of his flip flops hitting the cement were his only accompaniment, and he welcomed the break in silence.

So, why was he heading to a jeweler's without telling Ian?

It was an easy question with an easy answer.

Anthony padded thickly beside the streets, occasionally stopping to look in the few windows that he passed before reaching his destination. He pulled the door open and stepped in after reading the sign that boasted of the store's success (Over hundreds of engagement rings sold!). The store was brightly lit and composed of a labyrinth of transparent glass counter tops that allowed visitors to see the jewelery the counters contained. It was quite a small shop (only about as big as a normal high school classroom), but it definitely had what Anthony was searching for. Engagements rings glinted happily from almost every glass case, giving an overall effect of richness and wealth. It was a very well-stocked store.

From the center of the maze of counter tops stood a lanky woman that was roughly thirty years old and sported way-too-big silver hoop earrings and a face full of various powders and other forms of makeup. Her clothing reminded Anthony of a peacock with its various colors and designs that he didn't care to specifically remember, and the way she perked up when he walked in the door made him feel like the sign that he had read earlier wasn't one hundred percent accurate.

"Hi, what can I do for you?" she cheerfully questioned, moving from her original station to a couple of feet to the left so she could be closer to her potential customer. She sounded like one of those obliviously prosperous people who didn't know what they had until it was taken away, northeast accent slightly leaning against her words.

Biting his bottom lip and taking a step back from the happy woman, Anthony replied, "I' trying to find an engagement-"

Interrupting his request, she offered, "Engagement rings? Our special offer rings are over here," she pointed to the far right, "and our limited editions are there," she gestured to the back of the store, "and the birthstone rings are in the back, but you can pick your custom designs up here," she finished, smiling in that jovial way that made Anthony annoyed but pleased while pointing down at the display below her fingertips. Upon looking there, Anthony realized that all the rings had a certain feminine quality and a ridiculously high amount of shininess.

Sighing, Anthony inserted, "Um, I'm not exactly looking for-"

Again asserting her own opinion, the lady interjected, "More glamor? More ridges? Less flashiness, more memoir?"

From the back of the shop, a feminine voice yelled, "Julie, quit telling the poor guy what he wants!" A door to what Anthony assumed was where the top-quality jewelery was stored, a woman burst forth. She had an exasperated groan on her tongue and wore no makeup, completely contradicting the lady named Julie's appearance. She wore some shorts of appropriate length and a tee-shirt that had Boba Fett on it. She walked over to the entrance of the center of the main jewelery counter and entered, going to stand by Julie.

"Sorry about her," she apologized, earning a disgruntled huff from Julie to which she responded, "Get as mad as you want, I'll fire your ass if you don't chill." Then, she turned back to Anthony, equipped with a forced smile. "Sorry again... So, what are you looking for exactly?"

Anthony found his voice speaking before his mind thinking. "I'm thinking about proposing to my boyfriend and hoped that I could find something simple."

Raising an eyebrow, the woman asked, "Minimal jewels?"

Nodding, Anthony directed, "If there are any jewels, they should probably be small and red." Anthony didn't even have control over what he was saying at this point. The words were just tumbling out like an evacuation, but he still had confidence in what he said. Ian liked red. Red was cool.

Scratching the back of her neck, the woman cocked her head to the side and spoke, "I think I know what you need." She exited the main jewelery center, leaving Julie all by her lonesome with a pissed expression on her face. Anthony began following the woman, who was heading to the back of the store. However, something in one of the cases caught his eye, and he instantly stopped and began gravitating towards it.

The woman turned, only to see that her customer was no longer following her. Instead, his gaze was caught on a ring in the sale section that she had never expected anyone to want. She walked around to the other side of the counter that he was staring at and opened the case.

"Wanna see it up close?" she offered.

Swallowing thickly, Anthony answered, "Yes." The woman's unpainted fingernails caught the particular ring and pulled it out, setting it on the counter with a small clink.

The ring was too perfect.

It was a large, solid band of iron that had a faint glow, but no luster. That alone would have probably satisfied Anthony, but what had caught his eye was the main feature. A Smosh symbol was carved into the side and had small lines of what appeared to be aquamarines set in the symbol. The aquamarines reminded Anthony of Ian's eyes, which made a smile blossom on his face unintentionally.

Without asking how much it costed, Anthony whispered, "I'll take it."