9125 Miles- A Joanne Story

Forever

"that famous happy end,"

Christmas 2020

Bunbury

Dianne looked out onto the horizon, allowing the cool sea air to fill her lungs. She was wearing a gorgeous, long, navy blue sundress and white sandals. Dianne felt extremely peaceful and at ease with her surroundings and could hardly contain her excitement at being back in her hometown. Joe had watched her transform before his eyes as her childlike wonder increased tenfold as soon as they had gotten off the flight. He knew that she was strong but being so far away for such an extended period of time would take its toll on anyone. Joe himself, was fascinated by seeing where Dianne had been raised and she had enjoyed taking him to her favourite spots in the town when she was a little girl. He'd seen them all before when they came last year but it was special reminiscing about Dianne's childhood in these places as they so rarely got to visit. Presently, Dianne was sat on the beach taking in the beautiful scenery. She felt so serene and tranquil.

"Boo!" shouted Joe, having silently crept up on her. 

"Aah!" she cried, placing her hands on her chest. She breathed heavily attempting to recover from the shock that her boyfriend just gave her. Joe could hardly breathe for laughing and tried to pull her into his arms. She resisted at first but soon gave in to his cuddle. 

"Why do you do that to me?" she whined into his chest. 

"I'm sorry my love," he said turning his head so she wouldn't see his grin. 

They stayed in that position for a while, very content to be in each other's arms. No words were needed and a comfortable long silence dragged out. In that exact moment, it felt as though they were the only two people in the world. 

"I love you," Dianne murmured into Joe's chest. His heart instantly swelled with love and care for the girl in his arms. This made his next job just that little bit easier. 

"Come on," he said pulling Dianne to her feet. 

"What? No Joseph, I just want to stay here and cuddle you," she said pouting her lips. 

"Lets just go for a little walk sweetheart," he said persuasively. "I need to stretch my legs,"

With their hands interlocked, Joe and Dianne set off along the sand. It was still an incredibly peaceful setting but Joe's heart was pounding out of his chest. The sweat beads beginning to form on his forehead also had nothing to do with the heat. Joe decided he couldn't take it any longer and had to start a conversation. 

"I love it here," he said softly. "I definitely think we should get a house here when we're older and we have children,"

Dianne nodded. "I'd love that. I'd want my kids to think of this as home as well as England. Not just a holiday spot,"

"Of course they will," said Joe firmly. "I'll make sure of that. It's far away but-"

"9125 miles away Joseph. I googled it before because I wanted to know how far away Bunbury was from Wiltshire," said Dianne, a blush rising to her cheeks.

"Really?" said Joe his eyebrows raised. "God, it's crazy when you put it like that. That there was someone absolutely perfect for me on the complete opposite side of the world,"

"It's definitely fate," said Dianne squeezing his hand. 

They continued further down the sand. Joe analysed the area and couldn't see anyone. He was silently very impressed at how well they had managed to hide. He had wanted to capture the moment forever, but not so that it would ruin the surprise for Dianne. 

"Hold on Dot let me tie my shoe," said Joe. 

"Okay," she said, letting go of Joe's hand. She hadn't noticed that the shoes he was wearing didn't, in fact, have any laces. She also didn't notice him slip his hand into the pockets of his shorts and pull out a small black box. Joseph cleared his throat and she turned round. Dianne clapped her hands to her mouth and gasped. 

"Dianne Claire Buswell, I've never met anyone who is more perfect for me than you. Everyday, I am constantly in awe of how beautiful, funny and confident you are. I thank God that we both took a chance on an English dancing show and that you fell into my life all the way from Down Under. I may not have spent every second of your life by your side, but I promise to be here for the rest, either 9125 miles from where I grew up or anywhere that you happen to be. I've rambled on for a while so you can probably guess where this is going,"

Joe opened the box to reveal a beautiful diamond ring. Dianne could hardly see it through her tears and her pure focus was on the boy in front of her. 

"I love you so much Dianne. Will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

"Yes!" she said. "Yes! Yes! A million times yes!" she said half laughing, half crying from happiness. She threw her arms around his neck and he held her tight, both feeling like the luckiest people in the whole world. Dianne couldn't hear the snapping of professional photographers that Joe had specifically hired to capture the event. She was blissfully, blissfully happy. She withdrew from his arms slightly to kiss his lips, the perfect kiss. Their first as a newly engaged couple. 

"I love you Joe," she said looking into his enchanting blue eyes. 

"I love you Dot," he replied, giving her another loving kiss. 

The End. 

Author's Note- I can't actually believe that this story is over! I've really enjoyed myself writing my first ever story and I can't thank everyone enough for all the positive feedback. All your lovely comments kept me going when I had no idea how to progress and just thank you so much! I'll probably make a start on the new one shot story at the weekend so I hope people enjoy that. Once again, thanks for all the reads!