Wishing I Was 23

↞chapter forty↠

Lanie's POV:
Today, I was going over to Stormie and Mark's house. Rydel and Andy, Walker, Justice, and Savannah were coming also. I drove over to their house and saw that I was the last one to get there. I walked in to see everyone gathered around Stormie, looking at pictures of their husband or boyfriend.
"Lanie! Hello! Come sit down. I have those scrapbooks over there for Riker," Stormie pointed to a pile of scrapbooks. I sat down and began to look through them.
Riker's POV:
"Guys, I can't!" I said nervously.
"And why not? We all had to go through the same nervous crap, but it was worth it!" Rocky said while casually sitting in the couch.
"You were never nearly as nervous as I am! You freakin got on a stage and proposed, and I'm scared to do it at all!"
"See! So, it's gonna be easy! Just you and her!" Ross said.
"Shut up, Ross! You are too scared too," I snapped at him.
"No! I'm not ready yet! I love Walker with all my heart, but I want to be in the right place before I propose," Ross replied.
"Riker, what's holding you back?" my dad asked.
"Nervousness, the possibility of rejection, her dumping me because I'm an idiot for proposing this soon-"
"So, you think it's too soon?" my dad interrupted.
"No, that's not what I meant. I mean she thinks it's too soon. The time is great for me, but it maybe not be for her."
"Man, I love you as a brother, but you are a sincere imbecile. She watches wedding dress shows. She likes to babysit Andy. She talks about you like you guys are already married. She loves you and says it quite often!" Ryland said.
"Riker, everything we are naming is pretty obvious. She wants to get married!" Ellington said.
"Guys, as much as I want to, I'm too much of a chicken. I thought I was gonna do it. I went out, bought the ring, and everything, but I was too nervous and gave up. I don't want her to remember getting proposed to with me throwing up all over her!"
"JUST DO IT!" They all yelled.
Lanie's POV:
As I looked through the scrapbooks, I found my favorite to be the baby pictures, but I also got cracked up on his teenage album. I really shouldn't laugh, but it's amazing how much he's changed! Everybody has that awkward stage, and his was pretty awkward.
We all enjoyed the rest of our evening together until we began to leave.
"Momma, is it ok if I take this one scrapbook home? I'll bring it back soon," I asked.
"Of course, sweetheart. Goodnight!" she replied. I wished her goodnight and left with the scrapbook.
Riker's POV:
"Riker, you picked well!" Ryland said.
"Holy cow! How much did that thing cost?!" Ross exclaimed. My dad smacked his arm lightly.
"That doesn't matter, Ross. All that matters is- that Lanie is back!" my dad changed his sentence seeing that Lanie was back. I quickly put the ring is Ross's back pocket.
"Welp, that's our cue! Gotta go. Bye!" Ryland said as he, Ellington, and Rocky walked out. Ross went upstairs and left us alone.
"Am I really that bad?" Lanie asked, playfully. I walked over and hugged her.
"No, you're wonderful," I told her.
"I don't know how wonderful I'm gonna be after this," she smirked. I was confused until she pulled out a scrapbook.
Oh.
Crap.
That was my mom's scrapbook of my tween and teen years. It's awful. Like, really, really bad.
"Please tell me you haven't looked at those," I said, scratching the back of my neck nervously.
"I've looked at all of them," she replied. I swallowed hard.
"Even the one wh-"
"Yes. Even that one," she said.
"Well, I'm very tired, so I'm just gonna go to bed now," I said and sped up the stairs. I heard footsteps behind me. I quickly laid in my bed and pretended to be asleep.
"Babe, I know you are still awake. Can we talk?" Lanie asked me. I sighed and sat up, not looking up. "Why are you so embarrassed about these pictures?"
"Because they're awful and awkward. I tried so hard after that to change the way I looked. I got a haircut, contacts, everything. That's why," I said.
"I'm not gonna look at you any differently just because you weren't gorgeous when you were 14. I'll be honest. You weren't very attractive in these pictures, but they are what made you into the person you are today. If you didn't have this awkward phase, you wouldn't be the man I love today," she said. She tilted my head up and pecked my lips. I smiled as she pulled away.
"I love you," I told her.
"I love you too, Riker," she responded. "By the way, I think my favorite picture is probably the one where you're sneezing." I chuckled as she walked out. Ah, what a dweeb I was.
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Dweeb Riker anyone?
Is it gettin juicy?????😏😂
What does the ring look like?
Find out in Chapter 87
Just kidding😂
~Elizabeth✌️