Everyone in the party is now 23 years old and are slowly getting their lives figured out. El and Mike got married as soon as they could, so they've been married for about 4-5 years now. On the other hand, Max and Lucas haven't broken up since 1985. One Sunday at the party's weekly gathering Lucas made sure to talk to Will. Lucas said he needed help grabbing snacks from the kitchen so he pulled Will upstairs.
"I need a favor," Lucas told Will once they were in the kitchen.
"With what?" Lucas pulled a box from his pocket and opened it up. The ring was smaller with a dark green sapphire gemstone. Max wasn't one for diamonds, and he always thought she looked good in green.
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"Holy shit, Lucas," Will smiled and hit him playfully in the shoulder.
"I know, but I need your help."
"I'm totally in. What do you need?"
"Since you majored in art, I was hoping you could paint a picture of us on a vinyl cover."
"Definitely. What record are you putting inside it?"
"I'm going to get Will You Marry Me? By Paula Abdul, and then I'll have the worker at the record store put it in one of the bins before we go."
"Oh my god, that's so cute. I can't wait! When do you need the painting by?"
"How soon could you finish it?"
"Well, if I work on it throughout the week, I could get it to you by Friday."
"That's perfect. Thank you so much, man." They grabbed some chips and headed towards the stairs.
"Do you think she'll say yes," Will giggled.
"I sure hope so," Lucas got nervous just from the thought of it.
The weekdays went by so fast in Lucas's eyes. He was constantly worried about Max finding the ring in their apartment. He ended up giving it to Will so she wouldn't find it. Max could tell something was up with Lucas, but she just thought it was the stress of the holidays coming up.
"Why have you been so uptight recently?" Max asked while they made dinner that Friday night.
Lucas froze, not knowing what to say, but then he quickly recovered by saying, "I have a chance to get this big promotion at work, and I'm just a little stressed from it." Technically, that wasn't a lie; Lucas was up for a big promotion.
"You are one of the best workers in that company. I do not doubt that you won't get it," Max said in her soothing voice which helped calm Lucas down. Meanwhile, Will was sneaking into Lucas's car to put the record inside. He ran off after placing the bag, hoping Max didn't see him.
A few minutes later, the phone rang, and Max picked it up.
"Who is it?" Lucas asked confused.
"It's Will. He wants to talk to you," she says, handing Lucas the phone.
Lucas grabbed the phone and put his hand around the speaker to quiet what Will was going to say. "What's up?"
"I finished the painting. I was going to drop it off, but I saw both of you in the kitchen, so I just put it in your car."
"Sweet. Thank you."
"No problem. So are you asking her tomorrow or will you chicken out?" he laughed.
"I have to do it tomorrow. She's getting suspicious." Lucas whispered while peering into the other room.
Will laughed and told Lucas he and the party would be waiting at the restaurant for them. They said their goodbyes, and Lucas's heart began beating twice the speed, thinking about tomorrow.
The next day
Lucas woke up a nervous wreck, but he was also so excited. Luckily, he was up before Max, so he headed out to drop off the record and got some coffee's on the way home. They spent the day Christmas shopping for their friends and family. However, that went by pretty quickly in Lucas's opinion, even though it had been hours. They were able to get a gift for everyone except his mother, which he used as a reason to visit the record store. Walking into the store Lucas's hands started to get shaky.
They split up and began looking for a record for Mrs. Sinclair. Lucas saw Johnathan out of the corner of his eyes. Will told Johnathan about Lucas's plan, and he insisted to hide and be the photographer.
Max's voice made Lucas freeze as she said, "Lucas, babe, does this look like our prom photo, or am I officially losing it?"
"Oh my god, that's crazy. What song is it?" he said playing along. Max turned around setting the record on the table so she could carefully take it out. Lucas got down on one knee as she said, "It's Will You Marry Me? by Paula Abdul." Max spun around to show Lucas, and her eyes went wide when she saw him down on one knee.
"Will you...?" he said with a shaky breath. Max nodded her head speechless and glassy-eyed; Lucas got up from one knee and hugged her. They shared a brief kiss as the whole store clapped. The ring fit perfectly, and her smile was from ear to ear.
They walked hand in hand to the restaurant as Lucas let out a shaky breath he didn't he was holding in.
"Were you that nervous to ask me?" Max laughed.
"I was terrified. Are you kidding me?" Lucas laughed along with her.
"Why? Did you think I would say no?"
"I don't know, maybe," he chuckled. They laughed, entering the restaurant, and saw all their friends stand up wanting to know the answer.
"She said yes!" Lucas yelled as he threw their hands up in the air.
