// as suggested by @Naty_the_fangirl Locked Away feat. Adam Levine goes great with this story :) //
You met Lauren in your freshman year of college when she sat next to you in one of your classes and sent a charming smile your way as she took the seat next to you. The first thing that grasped your attention was her raspy voice that radiated such confidence when she spoke about subjects that she was clearly passionate about. Her heart and soul were in it and anyone with eyes could see that. The only difference between them and you was that she only had eyes for you. The two of you bonded over many things you had in common, but that wasn't what made each of you stay together for the long run. It was your differences that really drew you together because you each completed a part of each other that the other didn't have. She was outspoken and very confident and you were that girl who could barely sputter out a word in front of a group of people, but she loved it. She loved it so much, she vowed to never leave you. She even went the extra mile to place a ring pop on your ring finger in declaration because lets face it, college students aren't in any position to by any type of engagement rings. Little did you know, future you wouldn't be in that position either.
At first, Lauren and you lived quite a good life. You were able to provide for each other with an enormous amount of love and with hot food on the table when you came home from work. You both managed to afford the bills that were necessities while you only struggled to keep the phone bill at a low cost, which was kinda impossible with the job Lauren had. She worked for a business that allowed her to work from home most of the time which worked in your favor because it allowed you to save money on gas; however, Lauren tended to make up for it on data.
She constantly had to send emails and was always on conference calls with someone, but you both compared it and that was cheaper, so you didn't complained much. ...but the key word in the whole situation was managed. You both managed to keep your life good and it wasn't easy by far. You had a good job at a market across town, which wasn't too far, but it still didn't work in your favor. You preferred to be working in an art studio doing what you loved and you know that Lauren would much rather be involved in the musical arts as well, but sadly, it doesn't always work that way. Even though you both had the proper qualifications to do so, thanks to you both attending NYU, opportunities just didn't come your way. So you both settled for your jobs at home and at the market across town.
Over the past few months, gas has been getting more expensive, Lauren has been taking more conference calls and the food portions on your plate have slowly been decreasing in size. You both know it, but refuse to say anything for the sake of trying to keep good spirits.
The worst part is, you were planing on proposing to her before it all went to shit. You had it all planned out and even had a separate jar set aside for buying the ring, but you had to use it all to provide food for a month. When Lauren had asked you where all this money suddenly came from, you had simply told her that it came from working overtime for the past couple months. Which wasn't at all a lie, but you failed to mention the part where you also picked up another job cleaning after art students in a local art studio every day. You just told Lauren that you have to say after work at the market, unload the trucks and put away the supplies. All together, she believed you.
However, that doesn't make you feel any better at all because lying is something that you never forgive yourself for. It's so much easier to tell the truth, but the whole part of a proposal is the surprise. For the sake of being traditional, you keep your mouth shut. Day after day, you put at least a few dollars aside, that you earn into tips, into the empty jar you hide under your side of the bed. Your tips plus the extra money coming in made the jar soon return to its full volume, which you were pleased to see.
