The Unraveling of Isla Rose

For as Long as I can Imagine

 Each rose represented a month in which we had been together and the blindfold was still unknown to me.

"Happy birthday, and might I say you look rather beautiful."

I blushed and noted his button down shirt with the sleeve rolled up and a pair of wash out blue jeans looking cuter than ever.

"You don't look half bad yourself" I teased.

I looked at the blindfold and back up at him questioningly.

"Put that on and come with me."

he tied the blindfold around my eyes with a cheeky grin on his face. I laughed as he guided me to his car.

"I don't know if I trust you..."

I said wearily as he had only gotten his P's a few days earlier.

"Don't worry I am a very capable driver and we will only be in the car for like 20mins."

I smiled and carefully climbed into the passenger seat. It felt like we were only in the car for 10mins before he stopped and untied the blindfold. I noticed we were at the beach and couldn't help but think of the time up at the beach house and everything that had happened. He took my hand and said,

"I really hope you are hungry because I am and the first place we are going kind of requires you to consume food."

I laughed and walked next to him, having learned by now not to ask questions. We reached a small beachside restaurant with fairy lights along the decking and soft lit hanging lights inside making it feel like a boat house and very cozy. It was nothing at all like those horrible, overrated fancy restaurants that most tacky guys take girls to. We found a table on the outside decking and watched the ocean as we ate burgers and talked idly me hardly able to wipe the smile off my face.

"Did you get my little present this morning other than the dress obviously ."

I felt my face reddening and smiled shyly biting my lip and saying,

"mmm yeah, I'm pretty sure I found everything..."

He grinned and said,

"Well then shall we continue?"

I felt my heart beat faster as we stood up and walked down the steps onto the beach.

we walked a fairway with his arm around me and my bare feet in the shallows of the water. When he stopped and said.

"The next bit requires the blindfold again." I laughed and let him tie it around my eyes for the second time and let him guide me a little further before I felt him remove the piece of fabric.

We were in this part of the beach partially hidden from onlookers both up on the footpath and walking along the beach by huge rocks. The place was like a private little cove and in the very middle a little way back front the water was a huge white tent type thing. All four sides had large white curtains tied to wooden posts around a huge bed with flower petals and a small table at the foot of the bed. On the table sat a small box and with a card resting on top of it. I looked at Tom in amazement.

"Tom this is amazing!" He grinned at me and said,

"I thought it was pretty cool too, wait till you see some of the other stuff it has!"

I let go of his hand and skipped over to the bed dusting my feet and lying down face first on the bed my dress pooling out around me.

"Haven't changed a bit"

he chuckled as he came over to join my picking the box and letter up from the table as he did so. I looked at it and back up at him inquisitively. He handed me the letter saying,

"first of all. I think you should read this."

I carefully opened the envelope and pulled out a sheet of paper. The letter read;

"Dear Ilah, You are still the crazy girl I fell in love with earlier this year. I never thought it would be possible for me to become this obsessed with such a beautiful, witty girl. There have been so many incredible and magical times as well as some pretty funny and messed up ones... (I will never forget the sunscreen incident) We have been through a lot together and I have seen you in such overwhelming happiness and overwhelming pain. I truly hope that all I see from now on is your gorgeous smiling face and eyes that catch the light making them change colour. I trust you completely and feel privileged to call you my girlfriend and to have been able to be the boy that you trusted enough with so many things. Ilah, the last time I wrote you a note like this I was asking you to be my girlfriend and I can't believe how much has changed since then. This time I am asking if you will let me love you for as long as I could imagine?" The notes ended there and I looked up at Tom's hopeful face with tears in my eyes. He then opened the box and looked at me asking in a somewhat husky voice, "So, Will you let me?"

I looked down into the box lined with velvet and saw a beautiful silver necklace with a fine chain and a tiny circle with The initials,

TM+ IR and a tiny love heart ingrained next to it. I nodded quickly, still unable to speak as he picked up the necklace and clasped it around my neck. I leaned forward and kissed him passionately and with so much feeling I thought I might suffocate then and there. He pulled back laughing and said,

"ok weirdo, here's a little party trick." He rolled over and picked up a tiny little remote.

There were two buttons on it. He pressed the first one and the lights looped around the beams dimmed and softened the area as the curtains began to close around us and we became enclosed in a little room with white curtains and fairy lights. He then pressed the second button and a projector began to lower down in the space facing the beach directly in front of us. A short film started to play and it was a collection of photos and videos of when we were both little all the way up to when we met. There were photos of us at school and up at the beach house. He had somehow managed to take heaps of photos without me realizing. There were some from when we were up on the look out or at the fair. Photos from days at the beach and me running after the dog. He had somehow managed to get the photos of us kissing that day in the water and some others from when we were messing around when I was in the hospital. When the movie ended I looked up at him and he kissed me again longer this time and we stayed there for a while until he said,

"ok, there is just one last thing."

I moaned in protest wanting to stay there and kiss him forever. He got up and took me by the hand out of our little tent to the water's edge. He then proceeded to unbutton his shirt and slip off his jeans.

"So, how cold do ya reckon it is around here?" I laughed and shoved him so he fell face first into the water.

When he came up again he shook his head and stared at me expectantly. I glanced down at my dress and remembered what was underneath. I laughed and ran behind the curtains to step out of the dress leaving me in the lacy lingerie I had received earlier that day. I stepped out from behind the curtain self-consciously and walked slowly to the water's edge. Meanwhile, Tom stared in amazement and wolf whistled. I stuck my tongue out at him and he said,

"Well aren't I just the luckiest guy in the world."

That was when he suddenly stood up running towards me and swept me up in his arms. I squealed with excitement as he carried me into the water. Once he was waist deep he put me down and looked at me his arms still around my waist.

"I mean I have no idea how you knew this would fit"

I said acting innocent and pretending I had no idea what was going to happen next. He then proceeded to take my face in his hand and kiss me again. We stood there or a solid 15 minutes completely consumed in each other. His hands exploring my body while his was pressed close to me. It was now well past sunset and there was no one left on the beach but us standing there submerged in dark blue water with the moon illuminating our half naked silhouettes.