Closed Good Times For A Change

[Edmund Westwick]

Edmund liked to pretend he was never afraid of anything. Certainly the usual things had never scared him, darkness and horror feeling more like an embrace than a pursuer. He delighted in the things that scared others, wore them like armour around himself to keep the world at bay. Working as an Unspeakable had only heightened those feelings; with all the time he spent around the inexplicable and bizarre, how could Edmund find fear in anything the world had to offer? The terrifying and esoteric were puzzles to be solved, new friends to be made, never enemies, never frightening.

But try as he might, Edmund still felt fear. Today in particular, he was gripped by a level of fear he had never even imagined before. He had pictured today more times than he would ever admit, the process of planning, shopping, booking the table all giving him ample time to imagine thousands of different versions of the day's events. And while some were quite wonderful, some were desperately, nightmarishly terrible, gripping Edmund with the kind of fear he had never known. Today had to be perfect. There was no other option. He pulled Analei's seat out for her before taking his own, smiling at the blonde across the table and trying to pretend his palms weren't sweating buckets. The box in his pocket seemed to burn against his skin as he tried to make conversation like nothing was wrong, giving Analei what he hoped was a normal, human smile. "You... look beautiful." He said softly, voice wavering slightly as he spoke.

 

[Analei Westwick]

Analei was nearing the end of her training, and she couldn't believe that she was going to be a fully fledged Auror within the next few months. It was the main thing that her mind was fixated on, she didn't notice any oddities happening with her already odd boyfriend.
Tonight, however, with her focus purely on Edmund, she noticed, just briefly, the waver in his voice. The blonde smiled at him, giving him a small, curious look as she sat down. "Thank you. You don't look too bad yourself." Analei replied, looking around at the resturant. "This place is stunning."

 

[Edmund Westwick]

Edmund laughed nervously when Analei complimented him, hoping desperately that his laugh wasn't too loud. "Thank you." He smiled nervously, settling into his own seat. He nodded when she compliimented the restaurant, glad for something else to talk about. "Well, you deserve beautiful things." He said, throat feeling froggy all at once. He could feel his palms sweating, and all at once the paranoid vision of himself dropping the ring and watching it roll away and get lost slipped into his head. But that was absurd, the ring was in a velvet box, there was no way he was dropping that. Was that why they used velvet? To stick to sweaty nervous hands? Edmund realised he had been silent for far too long, lost in meaningless thoughts, and tried to bring himself back to the moment, giving Analei a weak smile. "I, um... I had something I wanted to, um... to talk about tonight. With you." He started, fumbling for words. It felt best to ask before dinner though - he wouldn't be forced to pretend to be fine for a whole meal, and this way they could toast to celebrate if she said yes. And if she said no, well... there probably wouldn't be a restaurant bill to worry about.

 

[Analei Westwick]

Analei blinked a couple of times, surprised by the elevated volume of Edmund's laugh. She raised an eyebrow at him curiously, before grinning when he told her she deserved beautiful things. Analei leaned her elbows onto the table, placing her hands under her chin, before saying, "That's why I have you." with a smile. The blonde watched her boyfriend as he went silent for a while, wondering what on earth was going on with him. When he finally spoke, Analei nodded, letting her hands drop to the table, wanting to reach across and hold his hand. "Yes, of course. What's going on? You seem....weird."

 

[Edmund Westwick]

Edmund laughed awkwardly at Analei's comment, still not used to compliments even after all these years. He tried to collect himself as she commented on his demeanour, clearing his throat nervously. "I, erm, I've been... there's been a question on my mind for, for some time and, ah, I wanted to... I wanted to ask you. It's... I mean, erm..." He cleared his throat again, all of the beautiful words he had planned to say fleeing his head in a rush. "I... you are... an important part of my life, in all ways, and the, ah, the... appreciation and, and... gratitude I feel for your partnership is... is perhaps the most powerful feeling I have ever had in my life. I, erm, I... everything about you has... has captivated me from the moment we met, and as... as time passes, that love only grows. I hope, erm, I hope you would agree that our relationship is... is deeply important, and something I hope we... continue to share for, for... as long as possible." He reached into his pocket, sweaty hands fumbling slightly with the box as he set it on the table, blood rushing in his ears as he opened it. "So... would you... erm... would you do me the honour of... of marrying me?"

 

[Analei Westwick]

Analei watched, concerned as Edmund started speaking, but as he continued to speak, Analei felt her worry melt away, replaced by excited butterflies. Now his behaviour made sense. Her eyes started to prickle with tears, and she let out a small giggle as he fumbled with the box. With a massive grin on her face as he asked her to marry him, Analei pushed her seat backwards and stood up, moving over to him, leaning down and placing her hands on either side of his face. "Of course." She said quietly, before kissing him.

 

[Edmund Westwick]

Edmund knew Analei loved him, knew he loved her, but he knew all too well how easily love could fall apart. What if he was asking too soon? If she didn't want to get married? There was so much that could go wrong, and it was all he could do not to be sick as he waited for Analei's answer. His heart stopped entirely when she stood up, horrified that he had ruined everything, that she was just going to walk away and never come back. But she was smiling, she was coming closer. And then she spoke, the words Edmund had wanted to hear so desperately. He couldn't hold it back, beaming with joy as he tried to kiss her back, unable to stop smiling properly enough. He was going to marry the love of his life.