up with me, and then I remembered that there was a blanket and he was currently holding on to me.
"Why are you nervous?" I asked, looking straight at him.
"Because," he said. He gestured around us. "Look what I'm doing here."
"What are you doing?" I asked. I knew I was missing something.
"I'm trying to propose to you," he said.
"You are?" I said, my head quickly shifting around, looking around, taking it all in, feeling genuinely shocked. The thought had not crossed my mind at all.
"I thought you just missed me and made a cool picnic."
"Evelyn took care of the picnic. I was too worried about getting a ring, and shaving, and figuring out what I was going to say to you… which I've already wrecked, obviously."
"What do you mean you already wrecked it? Are you not asking me now?"
"No, no, I am going to ask you. I'm definitely asking you. I just already kind of blew it with telling you what I'm doing here instead of just doing it. I said my plan instead of doing it." He took a deep breath.
I smiled at him. He was genuinely nervous, and it was odd for him because he was always so calm and collected.
"Well, I would've said 'yes' no matter how you asked it."
He grinned at me, staring straight at me.
"This was a great idea for a place to propose, by the way," I said, looking around. "Good plan."
"Yeah? I had other stuff, too, all sorts of ideas about pirates and eye patches. I was going to come in on the boat and pretend we were strangers and give you the ring again like that first day. But then I was early getting here, and I wanted to come up here and see what all Evelyn had done. And then, I just felt unnatural to go back out on the boat and wait for you out there."
I stared at him for a minute, taking it all in before I said, "Did you just say there were eye patches involved?"
He let out a little laugh and nodded. "Just one eye patch, but yes."
"Your plan included an eye patch?"
He nodded.
"Did you purchase one and bring it with you, or was that just an idea you had?"
"Oh no, I definitely have an eye patch. It's just a little plastic toy one. That's probably why I didn't go through with it."
Drew was relaxed now. I could tell by how he was smiling and talking.
"Where is this eye patch?" I asked.
"In my pocket."
I grinned a little. "Are you joking with me?"
"No. I'm one hundred percent serious."
"Is there a real eye patch in your pocket right now?"
"Yes. Not real. It's a toy. But there is one."
"That's the best thing I've ever heard." I stared at him. "Which pocket? Your jacket pocket, or your jeans?"
"My jacket," he said.
"Can I dig in there and get it?"
"Of course you can."
Drew stayed there, unmoving, with his arms wrapped around me. I smiled at him as I shifted to dig in his pocket. Instead of finding an eye patch, I found a small box. I knew it was a ring box. My eyes met his the instant I figured it out.
"That's not an eye patch," I said.
"You have your hand in the wrong pocket."
I hesitated, blinking once as I stared at him. "You're really doing this," I said as more of a statement than a question.
"Yes."
"Can I look at it?"
"The ring?"
I nodded.
"Yes, it's yours."
"Hang on, let me see this first…" I started digging in his other pocket, searching for the eye patch. His keys were in there, but along with them, I found something flat and plastic that was definitely an eye patch. I smiled at him when I felt it.
"There is one," I said.
"I told you," he replied.
"Would you let me put it on you?" I asked.
"Sure."
I pulled out the black plastic eye patch. It looked like it came with a kid's Halloween costume. I let go of the ring box just long enough to use both hands to put it on him. There was a very thin elastic band and I stretched it over his head, gently positioning and securing the eye patch over one eye. I pulled back and stared at him once it was all straightened up.
"Not bad, actually," I said.
Drew grinned and nodded. "I know. That's why I was going to wear it. It looks pretty good on me."
I pulled back and stared at him, taking in the moment for what it was. I thought about how I