One year later

"Babe, let's go!" Rey called from the entryway of their shared townhome, a couple of boxes still littering the hallway as they slowly settled into their new space. She heard an audible groan from the living room, and she rolled her eyes and walked back to where she knew Ben was sprawled out on the couch.

"Do we have to go anywhere?" He asked, his tone petulant. "I was having a great time just sitting here and doing nothing with you. And now you want to do things ?"

She giggled. "You old man! I promise it'll be fun. I'll even throw in a Werther's for you, if you're good." She winked at him, and turned back to head towards the foyer, swishing her hips back and forth enticingly as she retreated. Ben groaned again, but stood up and joined her, putting his shoes on, followed by his trusty leather jacket. Rey loved that jacket; she had gotten it for him their first Christmas together nearly a year ago, and it quickly became his most worn garment.

"Where are we going, again?" Ben inquired as they made their way out to Rey's car. She hopped in the driver's seat, not letting Ben in on the secret.

"You'll see," was all she said, a cheshire grin on her face.

A quick drive later they pulled up to a very familiar place to both of them.

"Oh, this is…" Ben started, but Rey's enthusiasm for her surprise cut him off.

"Yes! Where we met! Come on, I thought we'd pick the perfect pumpkin together." They got out of the car, and she quickly grabbed his hand and dragged him along behind her as they made their way through the crowd to the small pumpkin patch towards the back of the farmer's market.

It was a different blemish-covered teenager manning the booth this year, but it didn't matter. Rey was happy to relive the moment they met, in what quickly became her favorite place.

They wandered aimlessly through the aisles of pumpkins, in all different shapes and sizes, hand-in-hand for a few minutes. Nothing quite jumped out to Rey's eyes, and she soon split up from Ben to go on her own quest to find the perfect pumpkin for their shared porch this year.

She briefly reminisced on the last year; their fairytale courtship, how he quickly became her favorite person, her found family . How, despite his reluctance, she took to his parents as if she had known them her whole life. Their silly arguments, their domestic moments of intimacy. How they realized, after months of her staying over at his place, that it just made sense to move in together.

She stumbled across a neglected pile near the back of the patch, and after a few minutes of sifting through what appeared to be the reject gourds, she found the perfect one. Symmetrically round, flat bottom. Beautiful shade of orange, with a solid stem. She grabbed it by the stem, full of enthusiasm, and bounded off to find Ben.

She wandered through several aisles before finally finding him kneeling in the middle of several pumpkins strewn about him, appearing as if he was fiddling with the stem of one of the pumpkins. She approached him, whistling to get his attention and brandishing her find. His head swiveled to hers, and the smile on his face was so earth shatteringly beautiful, she again couldn't believe this soft, mammoth of a man was hers . She slowed down as she stepped up to him and he didn't stand. He remained kneeling, his jaw working in a telltale sign of nerves as he wiped his hands on his knees.

"What's wrong, Ben?" She asked, setting her pumpkin on the ground next to the one he had been playing with.

That's when she saw it.

The solitaire engagement ring, positioned ever so perfectly on the top of the pumpkin. She straightened up, her eyes wide and her hand already reaching to cover her mouth in astonishment.

"Rey. From the moment you barged into my life--" a chuckle from her, at his choice of words, "I have not looked back. Jesus, I'm not good with words. I--" he broke off again, licking his lips and wiping his hands on his jeans again, while Rey just smiled the biggest smile from behind her hand.

"I was a mess last year. And you, in this very spot, inserted yourself into my life. For better or for worse. You have been the one person to see the best in me, to believe in me when no one else bothered to. I love you, Rey. And I want to love you forever, if you'll let me." His open face looked up to hers, the emotion obvious in his face.

"Ben! Yes! I--" before she could continue, he surged up from his kneeling position, enveloping him in her arms in a passionate embrace, ring forgotten on the pumpkin. Rey remembered first, breaking away and surging down to grab the ring off the pumpkin, slipping it on her finger. She admired it briefly, noting his hands had not left her hips the whole time she was preoccupied by her new jewelry. She looked back up at him, pressing a sweet, chaste kiss to his lips.

Before he could sink back into the feeling of her embrace, however, she extricated herself from his hold, bent down to grab both gourds, and marched past him to the counter to purchase their selections. Ben followed her, half in confusion and half in awe as she acted as if nothing monumental had just happened. He crept up behind her at the counter, placing a hand on the small of her back and lowering to whisper in her ear, "everything okay?"

She looked back and flashed him a thousand-watt smile before whispering back to him, "Of course, Ben. I just have plans for us, and the last time I enacted those plans outside our home you were covered in hives. So, if you don't mind, I'd like to go home." She leaned back and winked, leaving him speechless as she finished their transaction.

The minute she grabbed the pumpkins, he swept her off her feet, carrying her all the way back to the car. Whatever she had planned for him, he was happy to follow her. For the rest of his life.