Epilogue
ALMOST TWO YEARS LATER
ASHLEY
“You owe me for this,” Sebastian says as we step into the downtown karaoke lounge. He lets out a longsuffering sigh, then adds, “You know how awful my singing voice is.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I reply, rolling my eyes. He complains sometimes about going out late with my friends, but I caught him looking up Bon Jovi lyrics earlier, so I think he’s playing up not liking karaoke.
Then again, it’s March and it’s cold, so a night in sounds more inviting.
“It’s my best friend’s birthday, so suck it up. ”
Last year, Laurel and Cal hosted a low-key gathering for their birthdays, but since they’ve just moved to their new townhouse and aren’t fully unpacked, we’ve all come downtown on a Saturday to this bar that has private rooms, so it’s like having a karaoke machine in a very large living room, but with bar service.
It’s been a while since our last karaoke night, and we’ve become more subdued over the years now that most of our friends are coupled up.
Still, as a former musical theater kid, I can’t resist the chance to sing in front of a crowd, and Sebastian gets a kick out of it even if he pretends to hate it and complains about the terrible songs.
Isn’t cheesy music the whole point of karaoke?
Laurel has already ordered a wide array of snacks and several pitchers of beer.
Cal hands us party hats when we enter, though his amused expression suggests he’d rather not wear one.
Jason is in the corner with Tess and her boyfriend of a few months, and even Mark has come out with his wife Jenn.
We sit down, and I immediately start skimming the song list.
Back when the Milers were starting out and most of us were under thirty, we had some wild nights.
On one memorable occasion, we tried to outdo each other with dares to perform the most suggestive songs in the catalog.
It ended with Laurel doing some improv dance moves to “Do You Wanna Touch Me.” Now that we’re older and more sober, we usually stick with the classics.
I can’t resist a little nostalgia. “Laurel, are you going to do your Joan Jett?”
She laughs, and Jason yells out, “Oh my God, that was an epic night,” and suddenly we’re in party mode.
Other friends arrive, and the singing gets going. We hit all the classic karaoke tunes: Journey, ABBA, Cyndi Lauper, Britney Spears. Stevie and Andy show up late and do a Fleetwood Mac number in honor of her namesake.
Sebastian is subdued, not making little digs about the songs or even talking much. As Cal and Laurel go up to cover Bryan Adams, I lean over and squeeze his thigh. He turns, seemingly startled.
“What’s up, Bash? Are you hanging in?” I ask, a little worried that something is wrong. “We can go home if you really want.”
I’d prefer to stay longer, seeing as it’s my best friend’s birthday, but if he’s genuinely not okay, we can leave.
Over the past year and a half, we’ve worked a lot on checking in, sharing our feelings, intertwining the pieces of our lives little by little so it’s not overwhelming.
It took us both a while to get used to being coupled since we were both so independent, but it’s been worth it.
Since he moved into my apartment last year, he’s gotten close to Cal.
It’s nice to see Sebastian opening up, not being such a lone wolf.
Still, sometimes he’d prefer to have me all to himself, and I’m not sure he’s enjoying himself tonight.
“No, not at all!” He gives me a sappy smile. “I just got lost in thought.”
“Ah yes, karaoke lounges are great for deep thinking,” I joke, but he doesn’t react. Tired of his mood, I kiss him on the cheek and get up to recruit someone to sing Broadway classics with me.
The time flies by as we have fun performing.
My friends aren’t the best singers, but we make up for it in zeal.
Laurel and I do an animated rendition of “Summer Nights,” and I drag Sebastian up once, though he’s not that enthusiastic.
I’m about to check on him again when I see Cal pat him on the shoulder.
I decide to leave him with some guy time.
Laurel sits down next to me. She pours herself another pint from one of our pitchers of beer, then squeezes my shoulder.
“Having a good time?” she asks.
“Definitely! I haven’t partied this much since your wedding.”
She laughs. “I wish we could have done karaoke at the wedding. My Irish family would have loved it since we only need the smallest excuse to sing, but I think my in-laws would have flipped.”
I look across the room and frown. “Sebastian’s acting weird. Does he seem okay to you?”
She glances over with an inscrutable expression. “He’s probably tired. Didn’t you say he’s been working a lot?”
It’s true. The app collaborations have increased, and he’s had quite a few meetings in the past few weeks.
Plus he and Seth are working on a new project that’s taking up a lot of time.
That’s probably it. When I look over again, I’m surprised to see him get up and take the microphone.
Sebastian isn’t a great singer and will typically only sing if pressed, but by the looks of it, he’s going for it alone.
“Oh my God, what is happening?” I say to Laurel, gesturing to my boyfriend as he taps the microphone like he’s nervous. “Did someone make a bet? My money’s on Jason.”
If Jason is the culprit, I can expect something deeply embarrassing or extremely suggestive, most likely both. Instead, I hear the first bars of a Taylor Swift song. Sebastian isn’t much of a Swiftie, so I’m perplexed as he busts into the opening of “Love Story.”
I give him a bemused look and turn to see if Laurel is finding this as goofy as I am, but she’s grinning from ear to ear. I look back at Sebastian. He’s gazing at me intently, his dark brown eyes meeting mine as he sings slightly off key.
Something clicks in my brain; I remember how I heard this song when I was trying to decide what to do about our relationship. I used to sing it for him when I was feeling sappy, but it’s been a while. Why’s he singing it now?
Ohhhh. It can’t be, can it?
When he gets to the second verse, he reaches for my hand and pulls me up. I stand awkwardly, my brain whirling. He wouldn’t propose at my best friend’s birthday party. That would be stealing her spotlight, unless she’s in on it. Given her expression a few minutes ago, that suddenly makes sense.
I try to keep my face normal in case I came to the wrong conclusion.
It would be so embarrassing if I thought I was being proposed to and it was just a strange song choice, but then Sebastian gets to the last chorus, the one where it talks about a ring.
Suddenly he’s on one knee, reaching into his pocket, and I burst into happy tears.
My Sebastian, the one who told me for over a decade that he’d never settle down, that his family was cursed in the area of commitments, wants to get married? The man who watched me walk away while my heart was breaking, but who also chased after me to make things right?
I almost wonder if I’m hallucinating, but then I look into Sebastian’s eyes and read raw emotion in them. There’s a hint of trepidation, like he’s a little worried I’ll say no.
The song ends and he opens a small box to reveal a beautiful diamond engagement ring and says, “Ashley, will you marry me?”
“Yes, of course.” With tears streaming down my face, I kneel with him on the grimy karaoke room floor. I kiss him hard, and he pulls me into him so swiftly that we almost fall over. We end up kissing and laughing while our friends clap and cheer.
“I seem to recall you once said you like me too much to ever be romantically involved,” I whisper into Sebastian’s ear.
He turns even pinker than he already was. “My younger self was a complete idiot. I hope I’ve made up for that.”
I kiss him on the cheek, and we get up as a server enters with a bottle of champagne and a tray of glasses. Sebastian starts pouring drinks, and Laurel rushes up to pull me into a huge hug. She hands me a gift bag containing a pink tumbler that says Engaged AF.
“You’re not supposed to give me presents on your birthday,” I protest, laughing.
She grins.
“So, I take it you were in on planning all of this?” I ask.
“Guilty. There’s one more surprise.”
She glances at her phone, then at the door, and ten seconds later my mom and my sister walk in. They rush over and I’m enveloped in a group hug. Then my sister pulls away, grabs my left hand, and squeals at the ring.
“You’re engaged!” Samantha’s eyes fill with happy tears.
“How did you know?” I ask stupidly.
“This one clued us in,” Samantha replies, gesturing to Sebastian who has come up beside me. She leans in and whispers in my ear, “Don’t worry, we’re staying at a hotel in case you want to celebrate privately.”
My mom grins at me and then at Sebastian.
“Congratulations!” she exclaims, then looks directly at Sebastian. “I’m glad you got yourself figured out.”
He looks bashful as he pulls me closer into his side. “Me too.”
I turn to the room of our friends, and with my one arm linked to my new fiancé, gesture to the champagne. “Thanks, everyone! Let’s get the celebrations started!”
The glasses get passed around, and a few people take turns making toasts that make me laugh and cry.
Then Sebastian raises a champagne flute, giving my hand a squeeze, and says, “Here’s to my beautiful future bride, the best person I know.
I’m so lucky she saw the person I could be and gave me a second chance.
I don’t know where I’d be without you, Ash. ”
Our eyes meet and I’m so proud of the man that he is and the couple we’ve become that it leaves me almost speechless. I lean in to kiss the man I love as everyone is clinking glasses, and all I can say afterwards is “I love you too.”