DARLIN' , tom holland

lxxiii. | real life

it had been two weeks since gwen and arisa had come back to la from their trip to hawaii and to say that tom was nervous would be a huge understatement.

he, along with arisa, had just gone out for a date and were currently walking back towards arisa's apartment just like they usually would. this time, however, they did check on the weather forecast before deciding not to hail a cab.

arisa noticed that they were taking a different route than usual but she didn't say anything, she thought that they were simply just taking a shortcut.

however, arisa was confused when they stopped in front of a terrace with dozens of fairy lights hanging off of each pillar and rose petals scattered on the floor.

tom smiled at arisa's puzzlement before leading her in the middle of it, watching as she looked around in awe.

"darling, i'm going to say something here so don't say anything for a moment, alright?" still confused, arisa nodded her head, watching as tom took a deep breath.

"when i first met you, i thought that you were this crazy girl and it turns out, i was right," tom said earning a glare and a punch to the arm from arisa which he laughed at.

"but then i started to get to know you more and see you in a different light. it was then that i found out that you're way more than you show to the public. you and i have been through the ups and downs of life, going through several trials but somehow, we managed to get through all of them.

i never thought that i would find someone who i would love unconditionally and as soon as i had. you're the joy in my life, the one who gave me strength and support. you've played such a big role in my life that i can no longer imagine waking up without you by my side. you demand nothing of me yet you've given me so much already that i can no longer repay you. there's so much more that i want to say to you but i'm scared that it would sound hollow or fake.

i want to be the one to be there for you when you're in your lowest of lows and highest of highs. i want to be the one who could experience what the world still has to offer with you. i want to be the one you can share your troubles, fears, anxieties and not be scared of judgement with. i can't promise you a happy ever after but i can promise you an honest and sincere effort in creating a successful marriage," tom took a deep breath, kneeling down on one knee, and grabbing a small box from his pocket.

arisa stood as still as a statue, gaping at the beautiful ring that glistened under the lights.

"adamaris eloise xaviers, will you marry me?"

arisa took a deep breath, snapping out of her trance. "are you kidding me? if this is a god damn prank, i will slaughter you, holland." tom raised an eyebrow at her, tilting his head ever so slightly. "why would i be joking? i just gave you a whole speech spilling my heart out and you're asking if i'm kidding?"

arisa rolled her eyes playfully before laughing. "i'm sorry, i just— holy crap." tom stared at her in silence. "so are you saying yes or not because this ground is not very comfortable."

"of course it's a yes, thomas."

tom gave her a huge grin, slipping the ring on her finger before standing up to hug her as tight as he could without restricting her breathing.

arisa laughed slightly through the tears that were now falling down her cheeks. "oh god, you could've warned me so i wouldn't have worn as much makeup. i look insane."

tom placed a kiss on arisa's temple before leaning his head back to look at her. "even when you look like you've been through hell and back, you would still be the most beautiful lady in my eyes." arisa felt her cheeks redden, a smile forming on her lips. "god, i just agreed to marry an extremely cheesy loser, what has my life come to?"

tom scoffed, poking her ribs which caused her to squirm. "tom, don't you even dare," came arisa's warning tone. tom sent her a smirk, poking her ribs even more. arisa yelped, walking backwards but tom didn't stop, he just kept coming closer.

tom tickled her sides, causing a loud laugh to erupt from arisa. tom was merciless, mischief in his eyes and never stopping what he was doing.

once arisa had enough, she took a deep breath of air,
her hands holding tightly on to tom's so he wouldn't try to do it all again.

"well this is quite a compromising position," tom commented, cocking an eyebrow with a smirk. arisa let go of his hands, her eyes widening as she noticed how close they were, her back against one of the pillars and tom's breath slightly fanning her face.

get a hold on yourself, arisa. why in the hell does this still make you so damn nervous?

"shut up, holland." tom chuckled at her, amusement clear in his eyes. "do i still make you nervous?" arisa quickly shook her head. "no, of course you don't. why would you?"

"well, you're extremely—," tom didn't have the chance to continue his sentence before arisa pressed her lips against his, keeping a hold on his jaw.

"fuck yes!"

arisa broke off from the kiss, turning her head in confusion to search for the source of the noise. her jaw dropped once she saw gwen and harrison high fiving each other not too far away from where she and tom stood.

"since when have those two been there?" arisa asked tom incredulously, her jaw hanging open. tom laughed— both at arisa's expression and the situation at hand, "an hour or two before us. they insisted that they set this whole place up."

arisa looked back at gwen and harrison again mouthing the words thank you with a grin. the two gave her a nod, their faces painted with the same huge smiles.

—♚—

no idea what the little building is called so i called it a 'terrace' even if it's not that but it's this one

anyways, completely unrelated to this book but i watched venom last night and i can imagine spidey, deadpool, and venom being an iconic trio and i need it to happen