Ring…ring!
"Good morning, Nelson and Associates, how may I direct your call?"
"Mallory? Is that you?"
"Jessi? Oh, my God! Are you back in town?"
"Yes, and I have important news, but I don't want to tell you about it on the phone. Besides, I probably shouldn't be calling you at work. Can you meet me for lunch?"
"Yeah, sure. Where do you want to meet?"
"How about the Rosebud Café for old time's sake?"
"Um, Jessi…the Rosebud doesn't exist anymore. Remember it got bought out a couple of years ago by Souplantation?"
"Oh! Yeah, I totally forgot. God, I've been away from Stoneybrook for too long. Well, how about good old Pizza Express? That's still around, right?"
"Yeah, it's still around. And, sure. I could go for some pizza today. I'll meet you there at noon, okay?"
"Sounds good. I can't wait to see you!"

I hung up the phone and grinned from ear to ear. Not only hadn't I seen my best friend, Mallory Pike, in about two years, I hadn't been back in Stoneybrook for at least five. My name is Jessica Ramsey, but all my friends call me Jessi. I grew up in a small town called Stoneybrook, in Connecticut. I used to say that I grew up in Oakley, New Jersey, but now that I'm older I have to be honest and say that I did most of my growing up in good old Stoneybrook. I moved there when I was the tender age of eleven - still a baby, really, although at the time I didn't think so. I remember how I used to think my life was so horrible because I couldn't get contact lenses or baby-sit at night. Yeah, those are the problems you want to have.

That's where I met Mallory. She was in my sixth grade homeroom class, and was the only person who was nice to me unconditionally right from the start. My family had a difficult time adjusting to life in Stoneybrook at first because we're black, and, well, Stoneybrook isn't. WASP central, that's Stoneybrook. But not Mallory or her family. They've always been more open minded and liberal. Well, what do you expect from a family with eight kids?

Now I'm 25. Oh, I know I'm still pretty young in the grand scheme of things, but hey, I've officially been an adult for four years now. I can drive, vote, and drink. I graduated Julliard two years ago and have been a professional ballerina with the American Ballet Company ever since. ABC is where I met the love of my life, Graham Morris. He's originally from London, and has the most adorable accent. He's a fantastic ballet dancer too, and I admired him from afar until a few months later when our company director announced that we would be performing "Romeo and Juliet" as our next big production. I of course auditioned for Juliet - I danced an easier and more abbreviated version of her as a child when I was still taking lessons in Stamford with Mme. Noelle. To dance the full role of Juliet would be a dream come true. Anyway, to make a long story short, I won the role of Juliet and Graham won the role of Romeo. Here's the interesting bit - Graham is white. That made me nervous at first because I know a lot of people are still afraid of interracial couples, and "Romeo and Juliet" is a very well known story, beloved by many. I've dealt with racism and prejudice my entire life. I wasn't looking forward to a major public backlash if we presented this classic story in any way other than the traditional telling. When I presented my fears to the director, he explained to me that he cast based on talent alone. Skin color didn't even factor into his consciousness until I brought it up. Then he smiled at me and said that Shakespeare never described Romeo and Juliet's physical appearance. Perhaps the families feud because of racial tensions. I had never thought of it that way before!

The ballet was a big success. The critics ended up loving our company's "bold and inventive retelling of a timeless classic"! Afterwards, Graham and I started seeing each other, and fell in love. The ballet world is a tough one to live in - constant auditions, rehearsals, and shows. A successful ballet dancer doesn't have much free time, but we made it work.

Last week Graham took me out to our favorite restaurant to celebrate our one year anniversary. After we ate, he ordered a bottle of champagne.

"Are we celebrating something?" I asked.

"Of course! We're celebrating each other. It's our anniversary, remember?" I felt horrible - I had forgotten. How could I forget something as important as that? I felt my face grow hot and I dropped my eyes to my lap. Then he continued. "Well, okay, so our actual anniversary isn't until tomorrow, but I couldn't wait." I only felt minimally better - I had forgotten completely which day our anniversary was. Just then the waiter arrived with the champagne and two glasses. He poured, then left.

"Close your eyes for a minute, Jessi," he said softly. Graham loves surprises, so I did as he asked without question. I heard some rustling and a soft "plunk" noise. "Open your eyes." I did so, and the first thing I saw was my champagne glass. It had something in it, but I couldn't tell what it was. Graham saw me eyeing my glass suspiciously and told me that if I wanted to find out what it was I had to drink my champagne. So I did. Now, you're probably smarter than I am and have already figured out what was at the bottom of my glass. But I was clueless until something hard and sharp hit my lip. I turned my glass over and out slipped the mystery object into the palm of my hand. It was the most beautiful diamond ring I have ever seen. I think I must have gasped out loud, because Graham took that as his cue to take the ring from my hand and ask, "Jessica Ramsey, will you be my wife?" I was so choked up with emotion that I couldn't speak. I felt tears welling up in my eyes and my throat was tight. So I merely smiled and nodded "yes". He laughed with joy, turned my left hand over, and slid the ring onto my finger. It was a perfect fit.

Now here I am, a week later, in my hometown of Stoneybrook, ready to tell my best friend my happy news and ask her to be my maid of honor.