Red

Chapter Twenty Eight

A/N:

I apologize in advance for the huge time skip. Really. I'm very sorry.

Okay, onward we go.

***

FOUR YEARS LATER...

Chandler POV:

"Okay, Mommy and I are gonna be back soon," I tell MacKenzie, who is currently in my arms. I have her resting on my hip. Veronica stands beside me, smiling at our four-year-old daughter as she tugs on my shirt sleeve.

"Mama, where are you going?" she whines, looking sort of grumpy. She always gets like this when we have to leave to go somewhere, so we hardly ever do. I hardly ever let us, anyway. We haven't had date night in a few months, let's put it that way.

"We're just going out for a bit," I say. "You and Auntie Mac are going to have a great time, okay?"

"No, I want you and Mommy to stay!" she protests, crinkling up her nose like she always does when things aren't going her way.

"Sorry, sweetheart," Veronica says, ruffling MacKenzie's ginger hair. "We have boring grown-up stuff to do."

MacKenzie raises a tiny eyebrow at her, suspicious. She got the eyebrow raise from me. I'm proud. It makes Veronica laugh every time she sees it. "What kinds of boring grown-up stuff?" she asks.

"The boring kind," I tell her, smiling at her.

"We can play games and watch movies!" Mac says happily to her, moving so that MacKenzie can see her.

"What movie?" she asks, still clinging to me.

"Hm... Do you want to watch Toy Story again?" Mac asks her.

A smile plays on her lips, and she nods, causing her little curls to bounce. She loves Toy Story. We've probably seen it six hundred times.

"Okay, then hug Mommy goodbye," I tell her, and she sighs, letting me give her to Veronica, who hugs her tightly.

"I love you, Mommy," she says, nuzzling into Veronica's hair.

"I love you, too," Veronica replies, smiling.

Veronica puts her down then, and Mac takes her hand, leading her back into the house. She looks back at us once more before walking with Mac into the house where Mac is currently staying (courtesy of her parents), and I let out a sigh. I hate leaving her with a babysitter, but Mac is fine. She's just graduated college, and she's started working at her dad's jewelry store selling rings. She nannies on the side, however, so we often ask her to babysit. 

I know Veronica can tell that I'm anxious to leave her, and she takes my hand, squeezing it. "It's okay. She's gonna be just fine," Veronica tells me.

I nod. "I know. So, where are we going?"

"We haven't been to the Grove in a while."

"Sounds good to me," I say, and together, we walk towards her car. Why she wanted to do date night tonight in particular, I don't know. I'm sort of suspicious, however. Not that I would tell Veronica that.

***

Veronica POV:

"Chandler, you really need to not be so on edge," I tell my girlfriend as I hold her hand, leading her into the restaurant. "MacKenzie is with Mac and her parents. She's fine."

"I love Mac, I really do, but what if she fucks up?" she asks, looking over at me. "Then what?" 

"MacKenzie is four years old," I reply. "She'll be fine."

"God," Chandler says quietly, and I look over at her, pressing a kiss to her temple.

"It's okay," I tell her. "Let's just enjoy date night tonight, okay?"

"Okay," she replies. "Fine. Whatever you say."

We sit at our usual table near the back, and I slide into the booth. Chandler sits across from me. I can't help but smile at her. She looks absolutely incredible. She's wearing a red dress she bought the other day at the mall. We brought MacKenzie with us, of course, and I convinced Chandler to get the dress when she tried it on. She loved it, but she didn't want me to have to pay for it. Too bad for her, I guess. I work now, anyway. I work from home, of course. I've been editing for authors around Sherwood, and we have more than I thought. It's good for us.

"What?" Chandler asks as I smile at her, sounding suspicious.

"Nothing," I say, unable to stop smiling. "You just... you just look really nice."

She rolls her eyes, but a smile appears on her face. "Thanks, Sawyer."

"No problem," I reply, and my cheeks go hot. I'm nervous, and she just looks so perfect tonight. How am I supposed to do this? I should wait until after dinner anyway. Yeah. After dinner.

***

Chandler POV:

Once we've finished our meal, I'm still extremely suspicious of Veronica. She won't stop staring at me. She's blushing, and she looks nervous. 

"Okay, something's up," I say finally.

"What?" she asks, looking up at me.

"Something's up," I say again. "What is it?"

"Do me a favor," she replies. "Tell me I can do this."

"What?"

"Tell me I can do this," she repeats.

I'm confused, but I decide to go along with it. "You, uh... you can do this."

This brings a smile to her face, and she takes a deep breath, standing up from the booth. Oh God. What's happening? What the hell is happening? She kneels down next to me, and I feel tears burning behind my eyes. Holy shit.

"Heather Chandler," she begins. "So, I, uh... I don't really have a great speech prepared. There's really no words to describe you or us or what you've done to me over the course of our relationship, and I don't know how to tell you how much I care about you and how much I appreciate you and how much I... how much I love you. You are perfect, and I know you don't believe me when I tell you that, but you are. So, I just wanted to know if um..." She reaches into her purse, and I feel the tears start to roll down my cheeks. I clamp a hand over my mouth. Holy fucking shit. She pulls out a tiny, velvet box. "...if you would marry me?" she finishes. She opens the box, and inside is the most beautiful ring I have ever seen. It's silver with a band of gold twisting around it like a vine, and there's a square-cut diamond in the middle.

"You're such a fucking romantic," I say, wiping away tears.

"Is that a yes?" she asks, her voice shaking. Tears start to roll down her face, too.

"Of course it's a fucking yes, Sawyer," I reply, and I stand up to hug her. She stands, too, and I feel her embrace me, my head pressed against her shoulder. "Holy shit," I whisper into her ear.

"I love you," she says.

"I love you, too," I reply, still in a whisper. Best date night ever.

***

A/N:

I really hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Fluff featuring a little bit of baby Chandler (a.k.a. MacKenzie but y'know... baby Chandler). The next chapter will probably be more fluff, but there is angst to come so just like... watch your backs, y'know? Okay, that's all. As always, leave a vote and a comment if you care to! And I still need feedback on who might want a one-shots book! <3 

-LittleMissBlitz