OO-RAH!

Chapter 13

I woke up on my own this time. I also didn't wake up in my own bed. I told Chase he should sleep over, but he wanted to be with his grandparents on his last night so Mrs. Taylor said I could stay over there instead. I had no intentions of the night getting heated, it wasn't the right kind of mood. I see all these movies where the guy or the girl in the relationship is leaving for a long time, somewhere far away, and there's always a scene where the girl cries or confesses her feelings for the guy because she doesn't know when she'll see him again. The guy can't stand seeing her cry so he kisses her to shut her up, and to seal their last few moments together to sleep with each other. I always thought that it seemed logical, and that it would probably be something even I would do if I had someone like that to love. But I was completely wrong, because the movies always fail to capture the one thing that people don't realize: the sex makes it all that harder to let go. 

I wanted nothing else but to lie in bed with Chase and let him hold me. And that's just what we did. There were dozens of moments where we didn't even say anything to each because everything we wanted to say had already been said. He knew how I felt, and I knew how he felt. There were times when I thought Chase didn't really understand how hard this was for me, but then I thought about how hard it was for him. He signed up to fight for his country, to fight for those who needed a savior. He risks his life almost everyday of his life, willingly, to help those who are defenseless. He faces the threat of die like it's just a bug, and swats it away so he can just move on. He has to leave the only family he's ever had, what little childhood memories he had, and now, the one person who stole his heart completely. And there worst part is, he didn't expect it to happen. He didn't plan on giving me his heart, telling me secrets and personal things that probably no one else has or ever will hear. 

I don't really remember when I fell asleep, but it didn't feel like I was out for long. When I opened my eyes, I was wearing one of Chase's t-shirts and my underwear. My body was shaped perfectly to Chase's with one of my legs tucked between his. One of his arms was wrapped around my neck, substituting for a pillow with my head resting on his bicep. His other arm was resting on the middle of my back under his shirt. He skin was always so warm, even when he was sleeping. I tried not to move, because I was afraid that if I did he'd wake up and then would be gone sooner. I just let my eyes scan over his facial features and focused on the motion of chest as he breathed steadily. I realized he had insanely long eyelashes, and I wanted to touch them so bad. I laughed a little to myself at the fact that I still wanted to do ridiculous things in even the most heartbreaking situations.

"What?" Chase asked. I jumped a little, not even realizing he was awake. He kept his eyes closed, but his hold on me tightened and pulled me impossibly closer to his body. I wrapped my arm around him to make more room for the rest of me, and gently started rubbing his back with my hand. 

"Nothing, just thinking." I say softly. He takes a deep breath and smirks, his eyes still closed. 

"That can be dangerous. What are you thinking about, Darlin'?" he asks. I focus on rubbing circles on his back so I don't start crying for the billionth time. 

"About how much I'm gonna miss how warm your skin is." I say. Honestly, I really was going to miss it. Chase chuckled a little and shifted so that he was laying on his back and he guided my head to his chest. I left my arm draped over his stomach, but I purposely rested my head on his chest so that I could hear his heart beat perfectly. 

"It's even better when it starts getting cold outside." he brags. I smile at the thought of lying in a bed with tons of think blankets with his arms around me. "You wanna know what I'm thinking?" he asks me. I turn my face up towards him and see that his eyes are open now, and his blue orbs are staring right into mine. 

"What's that?" I ask. He reaches his free hand over and tucks some of my hair behind my ear before answering. 

"I was never the kind of guy who believed in love at first sight, but I do believe in true love. And I just keep thinking back to the first day I met you two weeks ago, downstairs in my grandparents' living room. You walked in wearing a Tarheels shirt and an old hat with your hair poking out like you had just been working. You wore these damn worn out jeans that made it really hard not to stare." I laugh when he mentions my jeans. "But when you walked in, the first this I noticed were those blue eyes. They were the same color as the sky that day, and were so bright. I remember thinking that I had never seen eyes like that before. And when you shook my hand, I saw the freckles on your nose and cheeks and thought, 'Damn, she's somethin.' Then there was that smile. That's when I felt something, something that I couldn't describe or even found familiar. It was like my stomach tightened, my heart raced so fast I thought I was going to have a heart attack right there in front of my grandparents, and I was so nervous to say anything. 

"And when you left after I managed to piss you off, I watched you leave from the window. You just excused yourself, not wanting to deal with my dumb ass. And as I watched you leave, that feeling came back. Watching you walk away from me both attracted me to you even more, and made me realize that if I let a girl like you walk away I'd regret it for the rest of my life." I never realized how much he thought about the first day we met. It was usually a girl that would get all sappy over that moment, but here he was speaking what was on his mind that day. 

"Well, it's a good thing you tried to chase me. I don't think I'd be sane right now if you hadn't." he say jokingly. 

"I'm glad I did, too. Because the more I think  about it, the more I realize what the weird feeling was." Chase props himself onto his elbow, his head resting on his hand, starring down at me longingly. "You, Hayden Blair Alistair, are the evidence that proves love at first sight exists." He leans down and places a kiss on my lips. When he pulls back, he reaches past my head and does what I assume is check the time. I bite my lip to savor the familiar feeling, and also to coax the tears back. 

"You know, I'd never expect any of this to come from a Marine. I thought y'all were supposed to be tough." I tease. He scoffs at my joke and looks at me like I just shoved a pie in his face. 

"Even soldiers have a soft side." he says. "We just don't like to flaunt it to much or the bad guys will think we're weak." he jokes back. I roll my eyes at his defense and flop my head back on the pillow, and smile up at him. 

"What am I gonna do without you, Marine?" I ask. He gazes down at me and shifts so that he's on his stomach with his body supported on his forearms. 

"Probably go crazy." he teases, winking at me to make me laugh, which I did, of course. "But I know a way to make sure you never lose me." he says. I cock an eyebrow at him, confused by what he's trying to say. And then I see it. 

A silver band decorated with intricate designs around the head of the ring and a shimmering diamond placed on four prongs was held between Chase's thumb and forefinger. I immediately bring my hand to my mouth to muffle the gasp that escapes my lips. But it's not the surprise proposal that makes me tear up, it's the ring itself. I knew that ring anywhere. It's antique, slightly tarnished silver band has been worn by three generations of women in my family. First my great-grandmother, then my grandmother, then my momma. The ring was supposed to go to Daisy since she was the oldest, but she didn't want "some old ring that's not sparkly enough", so after mom had died it was given to Billie-Mae's mom for sake keeping.

"Chase--" I began, but he cut me off right away. 

"I know what you're thinking. This is crazy, probably really stupid, and that we've only known each other for two weeks, and only been together for one. But Hayden, I have never been more sure about anything in my life. Even when I enlisted, I was hesitant on if I was making the right choice, if I would end up regretting it. And look where that got me. Now, I'm not saying that just because I got lucky with taking one risk I'm gonna get lucky taking a second one. But you told me that story about how your friend would always tell you to fight for the fairy tale, because it did exist. Well, this is my fairy tale. I wasn't gonna let you get away then, and I'm sure as hell not gonna let you get away now. These kinds of loves only work in movies and fairy tales, but if I have to fight for it, then so be it, with God as my witness." he preaches. That's when he stands up from the bend, only to get on one knee. He takes a shaky breath before he looks at me. 

"Hayden Blair Alistair, I knew I loved I since the day you walked into my life. You've shown me that love at first sight can be real, and so can the love of women who steals your heart entirely. Hayden, will you marry me?"