I woke up to the usual raucous that Taekwoon created every Sunday morning. I got out of bed and began my daily ritual. Brushing my teeth, taking a shower, changing, and then walking into the kitchen to the smell of delicious food.

“I think Sunday mornings are the sole reason I love you so much,” I told him.

“I actually believe that that’s true,” he said, with a giggle. His eyes were still red and swollen from the night before.

“So, why did you go drinking last night?” I asked him.

“I… think I already told you. But, I’m not sure if it was a dream or if it was reality.” He looked a little frustrated, probably with himself.

“Well, I don’t remember you telling me anything out of the ordinary?” I said.

“That’s surprising. Well, I’m glad you didn’t. It would have ruined...”

“Ruined what?” I asked, interrupting him. I had to try and make my story seem more plausible, didn’t I?

“Well… I...” He trailed off, reaching into his pocket. It was a few moments of blabbering to himself later that he walked up to me and went down on one knee. “Will you marry me, Yoon Soo?”

I stared down at the ring and then up at his face, for a few seconds. I was expecting this… but I wasn’t. I wasn’t expecting it to be this cute, or, his face to be looking like a tomato. I wasn’t anticipating his demeanor to be that of a lost puppy, finally reaching home. I giggled, involuntarily, which made him look up at me, all worried.

“Yes, Taek Woon, I’ll marry you,” I told him. I didn’t take too long, only because I already knew what the answer would have been. It was the answer I would have given just a year into the relationship.

-

“I wish I had just taken his advice,” Taek joked, as we walked down the beach. “I mean… it’s been a year. If he thought we looked old enough to be married, we perhaps are?”

“Hey, it’s not funny. Marriage… is so scary,” I muttered. “Being tethered to one person for the rest of my life? That’s the scariest concept ever.”

“Not the fact that we might all just end up being college graduates without jobs?” He told me.

“I think they’re equally scary,” I muttered. “Maybe, it’s because we’re just in the third year of college… but, it’s scary. I can assure you that it is scary. And, I’m being scared to death right now.”

“No, you’re not. Anyway...” He trailed off, turning to look at the sunset.

At that moment, I had decided that he had just gotten distracted by the sunset. The beauty was breathtaking. To be honest, I loved Taekwoon, just the same even then. And, despite my fears, I would have said yes to him. That had been the day of our one year anniversary.

Six years later when Taekwoon actually proposed, I recognized the ring I was wearing. It was one that we had seen in the window of jewelry shop ages ago. I had loved it more than words could convey. It was a blue sapphire with diamonds all around it. He had bought it then… and, had wanted to propose that day. But, he feared… my fear.

-

“I can’t believe you said yes,” Taek said and kissed my cheek. “I half expected a slap.”

“I never said I’d say no, because I’d never say no to you,” I told him, truthfully. “The only reason I didn’t want to get married was because I feared we weren’t stable enough. But, then, we have plenty of time to get stable after marriage… we’re not rushing into any other responsibilities yet.”

“Well, I’m glad you have everything sorted out,” he said, with a laugh.

“Well, I do have things sorted out now. So, are we telling people?” I asked him.

“Well, I don’t think the ring will go completely unnoticed,” he said, with a grin.

“It’s really pretty.”

He smiled.

We stayed in on Sunday. We lazed around, watched movies and just before sleeping I texted Joon, telling him about our engagement. He would convey the message to everyone on our side of the family. Knowing well and good, that I didn’t have the courage it took to reach out to those many people.

The next morning, however, I realized that the blue tint of my ring would grab more attention than a diamond ever would. I had always been against buying diamond rings