A Cross Examination of a Disgrace and Syrup with Honey

T is for That Boy That You Love

Living life the way they wanted to live it was easier than Nate had ever imagined it could be.  Waking up next to Garrett every morning was easy, helping him in the bakery during the day was easy, going to his photography classes three times a week was easy, going to Fort Wayne for dinner with their family was easy, falling asleep in Garrett's arms was easy.  Nate had never thought his life could be like that, but it was and he loved every second of it.

Sundays were still his favorite days.  It was just him and Garrett with nothing coming in between them.  It was about lazy mornings, long walks with Robert, watching their favorite movies, and just being with each other, which was what Nate treasured most.

But it was a sunny, warm Saturday morning in April when Nate drove to Fort Wayne alone.  Garrett had stayed behind, working at the bakery, since Nate had told him he needed to work with some classmates on a project.  Instead he parked outside the Phillips' household barely after ten and knocked on the door to find a surprised Derek.

"I didn't know you were coming over today, Nate," he said, letting him in and squeezing his shoulder as a greeting.

"I was hoping you'd come with me," Nate answered, shrugging, trying to act nonchalant, but failing miserably.

Derek didn't even hesitate.  He put down the half empty cup of coffee he was holding.  "Sure I'll go with you.  But where are we going?"

Nate took a deep breath.  "Well, I was wondering if you'd help me pick out an engagement ring."

Derek blinked for a second, but then he screamed--he actually screamed, and it was so high pitched that Nate had to look around the room to make sure Garrett wasn't there with them--and hugged him so hard that Nate's feet didn't touch the floor anymore.

He decided to take that as Derek's blessing.

----

As the end of classes approached, Nate had to get ready for a Photography exhibit he was supposed to put together to get his diploma.  It was normal now to see him with his camera hanging around his neck all day.  He even woke up in the middle of the night sometimes to snap a picture of something that happened to inspire him.  He took pictures of Ellie's customers, of things at the park when they went out for walks, of anything that caught his eye.

He couldn't tell who was more excited about the exhibit: him or Garrett.

"You're graduating!  And on time!  Considering how late you started classes last year, you'd think you wouldn't have had enough time to graduate now!" Garrett had said excitedly as soon as Nate told him about the event.

"Calm down, love," Nate had replied, laughing.  "I need to know if you'd like to go so I can get you a ticket--"

"Get three!" And Nate had been happy that he had actually listened to his boyfriend because once Derek and Dana heard about it, they demanded tickets as well.

Nate was nervous.  His potential career as a photographer could depend on how his work for the exhibit was graded.  But that wasn't the only valid reason for him to be freaking out inside.

He also wanted to propose after the exhibit.

He didn't think Garrett would say no, but he couldn't stop thinking about all the things that could go wrong.  Maybe Garrett wasn't ready yet or maybe he didn't want to get engaged until he knew they could get married.  Gay marriage still wasn't legal in Indiana yet--that could change soon--but that didn't mean he didn't want to see a ring on Garrett's finger and another ring on his own finger.  It was funny how much he wanted to be married to him after spending years and years of his life not even allowing himself to dream about loving someone and being loved back.