Girl Meets Senior Year

Making Plans

"Dad, can I talk to you about something?" Maya walked into the living room where Shawn was working on his laptop.

"Sure, kiddo," he closes the laptop and tosses it on the arm chair to his side, and pats the couch next to him motioning for Maya to sit down.

"It's something important."

"Ok? Is everything alright with you and Riley?" he asks her, now concerned.

"Yes, everything is great with us," she paused and fiddled with her hands. "It's perfect. Which is why I need to talk to you."

"Are you going to tell me what you wanted to talk about?"

"I want to ask her to marry me." Maya didn't look at him when she said it. It was the first time she had said it out loud, despite thinking about it for months now.

"Maya thats great," he said, pulling her into a hug. "Do you know what this means?"

Maya looked up at him smiling.

"Cory and I will actually be related now! By law, but still!"

"How on earth did you find a way to make this about you?" she gawked in disbelief.

"Cory and Shawn show remember? It all comes back to us in the end," he replied.

She shook her head.

"But really, Maya. I am so happy for you."

"Do you think she would say yes? We haven't even had a one year anniversary yet, but we are going to graduate next week and it just feels right."

"If I know Riley, she's going to say yes." Maya's smile was so genuine that Shawn was reminded of the day he married Katy. "You're going to need a ring you know."

"Actually, I sort of picked one out already." Maya reached into her back pocket and pulled out a folded up piece of paper. She unfolded it and handed it to Shawn.

He looked down at it the paper. It had been torn from a jewelry catalogue. Shawn could tell the paper had been unfolded and folded quite a lot, he suspected by Maya taking it out to look at it over and over again. The ring was simple but modern. A 1 1/2 carat round cut diamond with a 14k white gold band that looped around it in a swirl.

"I can't afford it though. It's perfect. I don't want to settle on something else. She deserves the best," Maya smiled thinking of her girlfriend.

"I'm giving you the money. Let's go buy it," Shawn stood up.

"No, you can't do that. I have to be the one to buy this. I can't let you pay for it."

"A loan then? You can pay me back," he asked.

"Really?" Maya's face lit up. "I would. I mean it would take me a while. It's almost $6,000 and I only have $1,034.72 saved so far."

He gave her a look.

"What? I've been literally saving every single penny," Maya told him.

"You will make payments. If it takes you ten years, then thats how long it will take. You want to ask her now right?"

"I do. I really do," she said.

"Then this is what we will do."

She threw her arms around him, "Thank you so much, Sh-Dad!" Tears of happiness pooled in her eyes.

"I'm happy to do it."

She broke away from the hug, "Now I have to figure out a way to ask her!"

A mischievous grin crossed over Shawn's face, "Actually, I may have an idea."

"Are we scheming?"

"Let me tell you a story," he started.

She hung on every word he said, a huge smile on her face.