Chapter 24 #3
“But I brought you these,” he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a handful of slips of paper.
“We can put them back in the jar, tackle each of them together. I don’t know if I’ll keep the nose ring, or ever sleep again knowing there’s a tarantula in our apartment, but I will jump into a volcano for you, I will go cave diving, whatever that means, I will go snorkeling with sharks and go plucking catfish out of muddy holes in Mississippi.
I will do those things for you and I will do them with you.
I will be your one hundred percent partner in everything you want to do. I promise.”
“I don’t care about any of that anymore,” she said, pushing his hand away.
“You don’t?”
“It doesn’t matter who I wanted to be back then, what I wanted my life to be like.” She took a breath and he felt as though he were in free fall again. Was he about to lose her for good? “What matters is that you and I make it together from here on out. Now, can you hand me my bag?”
She pointed. In the corner was her duffel bag, her go bag. The swell of relief had turned his legs to jelly and he could barely manage his way over there, but he did so dutifully.
“I need something out of it,” she said.
He did as he was told, retrieved the bag, and Wren reached inside one of the pockets and pulled out the small black box. She opened it and held the ring up, the fluorescent hospital lighting bouncing off it. His stomach did a backflip when he saw it.
“Are you…Are you stealing this from me?” he said with a shocked smile. “This was supposed to be my moment.”
“You already got to do it once. Sorry I screwed it up.”
He nodded: Go ahead.
“Arthur Peterson, would you do me the great honor of not having this baby out of wedlock?”
He could barely contain himself. Being here, with Wren, their baby coming into the world any moment now, finally committing to each other for a lifetime and beyond. His body shook as he tried to hold it all in.
“I want to spend all my tomorrows with you,” she said.
He didn’t hesitate. “Yes! Of course, Wren. Absolutely, one hundred percent yes.”
He held his hand out, as if she might slide the ring on his finger. “Oh my God, what am I doing?” He laughed. “Here.” He took the ring. “This is yours. It’s always been yours.”
He put the ring on her finger. Her finger, which was a little puffier these days. No matter. He got it on there. It had just enough friction to stay.
This was everything he’d ever wanted. Her beaming smile said the same. He kissed her now, as passionately as he could, as if it were the first time, or the last time, and he wanted every time he kissed her for the rest of their lives to feel exactly like this.
Suddenly, a buzz in his pocket interrupted the moment. Arthur looked down at his phone to see who it was. It was a message from the skydiving instructor:
It’s Thomas from Velocity. The full gallery and the video will take a few days, but wanted to get you a few shots to show off. Congrats, papa.
“Is it your parents?” Wren asked.
“No. I guess I did have one more thing to share.”
Arthur turned his phone to face her. On the screen, a photo, at the very first moment of weightlessness, right after the initial jump, Arthur’s face contorted in sheer terror, Thomas smiling behind him and giving the “rock on” sign.
“Oh my God, I’m so glad there’s photographic evidence of this. I almost didn’t believe it,” she said. “Any more?”
There was. In the next photo, he was mid-dive, his face even more screwed up. Then one more on the ground, Arthur and Thomas posing triumphantly after a successful jump.
“Some hurry you were in to get here!” Wren teased. “Couldn’t miss that photo op for the birth of your child.”
“I figured you would have wanted me to enjoy the moment at least a little bit.”
Wren smiled. “You really jumped out of a plane. Wow.” She was still laughing, but it was winding down, and she began repeating herself. “You jumped out of a plane. You jumped out of a plane.”
“Sure did.”
Then:
“Why the hell would you jump out of a plane?!” She smacked him on the arm for emphasis.
“Ow!”
“You could have died. At the very least been horribly disfigured. What if you’d broken your legs on the landing? Leave me to take care of a newborn and your paralyzed ass at the same time? No, absolutely not. You are never going to do anything like that ever again.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice.”
“But all that being said,” she said, taking a deep breath and calming herself, “consider me surprised. In the best way.” She was getting sleepy, settling back into the bed and letting her eyelids fall just a little. It had been a long day for her already, with more to come. She’d need her strength.
“So what now?”
“Now…we wait.”
Arthur dragged a chair over, held Wren’s hand tight.
“I’m not going to leave your side. Never, ever, ever again.”
She patted his hand with hers.
“Good,” she said.
Five seconds later.
“Arthur.”
“Yeah?”
“Before you never leave my side ever again, could you go find me a snack? I think I’m still allowed to eat. Maybe a Jell-O or something.”
There she was.
“Of course. Anything for you.”