Two Years Later

"Mikayla!" An excited shriek broke through the stillness, making the several servants milling around me jump. The castle door swung open and Rebecca ran out, eyes shining and face flushed with happiness.

"Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla!" She yelled, grabbing both my hands and jumping up and down.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw the servants start to trickle out of the courtyard, leaving the two of us alone.

"What is it?" I asked. "What's up?"
She just kept jumping up and down.

"REBECCA!" I yelled.

"Sorry!" She stopped jumping. "Guess what?!"
"What?" I asked wearily.

She waved her hand energetically in front of my face.

I saw the sparkle of a diamond of her ring finger. "Oh my gosh!" I exclaimed, suddenly feeling excited too. "You're getting married!"

"Yes!" She shrieked. "Boomer just proposed! I'm getting married!"

I shrieked and threw my arms around her.

We continued hugging and shrieking until we were interrupted by her cell phone ringing.

She let go of me, pulled it out of her pocket, and said, "Oh! It's my mom! I gotta tell her the news! See you, Mikayla!" She walked out of the courtyard, her phone to her ear.

"Hey Mom! Oh, I have the most exciting news…" I heard her say before she got too far away for me to hear her.

I beamed. I was so happy for her! Boomer had finally done it. He'd finally popped the question! Now I just wished Brady would do the same thing. We'd been dating for the past two years, and then a little while ago we'd agreed we'd wait until we were a little older before we got married, but now I was eighteen and we weren't even engaged. Rebecca said he was just nervous, he'd come around eventually, but I couldn't help worrying. I thought Brady loved me, so why didn't he want to be with me forever?

"Mikayla!"

I whirled around. Brady was jogging towards me, wearing swim shorts and a swim shirt and dripping wet. He had that bright, happy smile on his face, which meant he'd just been having the time of his life.

"Hey! Where were you?" I asked.

"Boz and I were catching some waves. It was so much fun." He leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. "How was your day?"
"Good," I said, smiling at him. "Boomer asked Rebecca to marry him."

I might have just been imagining it, but right then it looked like a shadow crossed his face.

"He did?" He asked, sounding nervous.

I nodded. "Yeah. But what's wrong? Aren't you happy your brother's getting married?"

He nodded slowly, obviously lost in thought. "Yeah, yeah of course. I gotta go. See you later, beautiful." He kissed my cheek absentmindedly and went inside.

I kept looking at the door to the Throne Room after he'd disappeared through it. What was up with him? All I'd said was his brother was getting married. What was wrong with that?

I sighed. Brady had changed. He was no longer the quiet, untrusting refugee I'd met in the Sublevels so long ago. He was dumb and goofy and loved to make trouble. But he was quieter than he'd been before his island had been destroyed, at least that's what Boomer and Boz had told me. More… serious. Not that any of that change had made a difference in how I felt about him, in fact, it made me love him even more. I loved his goofiness and his adorable smile… just everything about him. Ugh, I sound crazy, don't I? I never thought I'd fall for anyone, and here I was, hopelessly in love with a boy who didn't love me enough to make me his bride. And there was no way of knowing what lay ahead for us. Life's like that, I guess. No crystal balls, no time machines, no way of knowing what's going to come. But I don't know… Maybe, just maybe, that's all for the best.

~XXX~

"Mikayla?"

I looked up from the Great Book to see Boz standing right in front of me. "Yes?"

"Brady's waiting for you up on the Ledge," he said, shuffling his feet. "He says to come as quick as you can."

"This late at night?" I asked. "It's already dark out." I hadn't talk to Brady since the thing this afternoon about Boomer. What did he want?

He shrugged. "I guess so."

"Okay then, thanks Boz," I said, flashing him a smile. "I'll be there soon."

He nodded and left.

As soon as he was gone, I ran up the stairs and into my bedroom. There I quickly changed into my new blue dress, brushed on a bit more mascara, and ran a comb through my hair. I gave my reflection a once-over and ran out the door, headed for the Ledge.

The Ledge is me and Brady's special place. It's this ledge of rock that overlooks one of the most beautiful beaches on the island. We always meet there when we want to be… alone.

Brady was waiting for me when I got there, just like Boz had said. He looked really cute, even though he was just wearing jeans and a dark blue t-shirt. "Hey Mikayla," he said, giving me that special smile he reserved just for me.

"Hey," I said, suddenly feeling shy. Which doesn't make any sense… He's been my boyfriend for two years, any shyness I ever felt around him was long gone by now.

He was still gazing at me, smiling that same smile. For the next few seconds he just stayed like that, almost as if he could look at me forever.

I finally got my nerve back. "Brady, what to you want me to meet you here for?"

He started. "What? Oh yeah…" He suddenly looked really nervous.

"Brady, what's up with you today?" I asked. "You've been acting weirdly…"

And then before I knew what was happening he was kissing me. I melted into his arms and he held me for a one blissful minute.

"Do you love me?" He asked as we slowly pulled apart. "Do you really love me?"
"You know I do," I breathed, looking straight into those spell-binding hazel eyes. "I've told you a million times."

"Then," he said slowly, looking nervous again. "Will you marry me?"

This was what I'd been waiting for!

"Yes!" I exclaimed, a tear of happiness rolling down my cheek. "Yes, I'll marry you!" I threw my arms around his neck and hugging him tight.

His arms encircled my waist, pulling me even closer.

"My Mikayla," he breathed into my ear. "You're still my angel. And I will love you forever."

Awwwww! Another story ended. Still so sad for me :(

Now I want to name all of my reviewers, favoriters, and followers…

My reviewers: Wendy Pierce, PrettyLittleAspiringWriter, SGJBMCfan98, MarriedToWriting, mussolover, StylishFashionista, Katie, and Guest

My favoriters: Wendy Pierce, mussolover, PrettyLittleAspiringWriter, TheTenthSaint, and SGJBMCfan98

My followers: Wendy Pierce, SGJBMCfan98, humanusscriptor, Ninjago123, WonderingWhatIf, and Wolfblood2o12

Thanks, all of you! Most of you have been following my stuff for a while, and you've all been great with reviews and all that, so thanks! You guys are what keeps me doing this stuff!

Which reminds me… on the subject of me retiring… I'm not sure if that'll happen or not. If I'm not retiring, you'll see a new story from very soon. If not, it's been a good run!

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