Why Don't We date already? | oneshots

the ring

I walked in to my apartment, pulling the earbuds out of my ears. I found Daniel sitting at his desk, probably typing away at a paper for his class.

    "Hey, baby," I said, placing a kiss on his forehead.

    "Hey, yourself," he smiled, placing a chaste kiss on my lips. "How was your run?"

    "Refreshing," I said, pulling my chair next to him. "How's the paper going?"

    He rolled his eyes. "It's a bunch of bullshit, but other than that, it's going well."

    I rested my head against his shoulder, my eyes scanning the document. "Looks good."

    "You said that last time and I got a 95%," he complained.

    "I'm not the one getting my masters," I replied, getting up. "How's Charlize?"

    "An angel, as usual," he said, following me into the kitchen. "She's napping right now."

    "I swear she looks more like you than me," I said, pulling out several sweet potatoes and a salad as well as a loaf of garlic bread. I set the bread and potatoes into the oven as Daniel made the salad.

    "Well, she acts so much like you," he said, dumping dressing onto the leafy greens. "I'm fairly sure she gave me the stinkeye when I took her Bunzibuns away from her so she could take a nap."

    "I need something to cuddle with," I replied, coming up to him and wrapping my arms around his waist. He put a hand on my back, absentmindedly kissing my forehead as he mixed the salad.

    "What did you use before you used me?" He asked, a smirk lighting up his face.

    "My pillows," I shrugged before a cry, followed by a string of blabber, came from one corner of the small studio. I walked over to the crib, picking up the little one-year old.

    Charlize came into the world just as Daniel and I had reached our year-and a half dating anniversary and had graduated college. Daniel had sped through the requirements to be an architect as fast as he could, nearly pushing him over the limit. I taught at a dance studio nearby, as well as moonlighting as an online guidance counselor for people going to college. We had bought our apartment and moved in together just in time.

    "You are the cutest thing, Charlize Jamie Seavey," I murmured, lifting up the little girl and nuzzling my face into her stomach. Charlize giggled and wrapped her tiny arms around my neck, immediately picking up the small locket I never took off.

    "I thought I was the cutest thing, Ava," Daniel pouted, his arms on his hips as he stood above our recently set table, the food on plates.

    I shrugged, causing him to huff, trying to hide a smile. I set Charlize onto my lap as Daniel brought out her food, beginning to spoon feed her as I ate my own dinner. We spent the rest of the night talking, laughing, playing with Charlize, and eventually falling asleep.

*****

    I was dancing in my room, the window letting in the weak evening light as I played my favorite jams, not caring who was looking into my window.

    Thunk.

    A small rock bounced off my window. I stopped dancing, frowning. I walked over to the window and looked down, not seeping anyone there.

    Another hit the window. I paused, confused. Where were they coming from?

    I opened my window and slid the screen onto my bed, looking around.

    "Over here."

    I looked up. A grinning boy was waving at me from his window. "Hey."

    "Hey yourself," I said. "What are you doing?"

    "I saw you dancing," he grinned. "You seem cool."

    "If by cool you mean quirky, then yeah," I said, matching his grin. "What's your name?"

    "Daniel. And yours?"

    "Ava."

    "Nice to meet you, Ava."

*****

    I smiled into the LA horizon, remembering that night almost six years ago. Or exactly six years ago. Yeah. It was the anniversary of me and Daniel meeting.

    "What are you smiling about?" Daniel asked, coming up behind me with mugs of hot milk in his hands. I gratefully took one and he sipped out of the other.

    "Nothing much, really," I said. His smile faltered slightly. I gazed at the sunset, almost not seeing the glittering ring Daniel had just slipped out of his back pocket.

    I glanced at him, seeing the sunset colors light up his face. However, his gaze was fixated on something in his hand. I followed it to a beautiful ring in his hand. It was silver and diamond, the thin filigree twisted around seven small diamonds.

    "What's that?" I asked, gesturing at the ring in his hands.

    "What? Oh, this. Um. It's a ring," he stammered.

    "No shit, Sherlock," I said, taking a sip out of my mug. I took another sip, nearly choking on it as Daniel sunk to one knee in front of me, holding the ring up.

    "Ava Charlotte Wallaise," he said, "ever since I saw you dancing inside your room in the middle of the night, I knew there was something special about you. You were so different from everyone around me. You opened my eyes to a different side of everything, and--"

    I set my mug onto a nearby table, flinging my arms around him. "Shut up and put the damn ring on."

    He chuckled, sliding the ring onto my ring finger. "I love you, Ava Charlotte Seavey."

    "I love you more, Daniel James Seavey."