that being tough and being solitary were what I needed to be to
have a good life. I had no idea about the joy another person
could bring. You’ve taught me so much. You’ve given me a
family. Your parents love me and have accepted me as another
daughter. You’ve made sure that I know I’ll never be alone.
You taught me I was worth fighting for. You’ve shown me
kindness, compassion, humility. You’ve taught me how to
smile and not stop. You’ve taught me what’s truly important in
life. Most important, you’ve taught me how to love. I want to
keep loving you. I want to be the one to grow old with you. To
raise a family with you. I want to take care of you, stand by
your side, and love you. Always. Will you marry me? Again?
For real this time?”
Emily’s eyes filled up with tears, but she was smiling the
hugest, most radiant smile. She walked over and took the ring
from Dani. She slipped it onto her finger and held it out,
sparkling in the candlelight. “Yes,” she breathed. “I would
love to marry you again. For real.”
Dani had another surprise. She stood and pulled a second
ring from her pocket. It was much simpler, a white gold band
with an even smaller diamond. “I got one for me too,” she
said. “So that everyone can see that we belong to each other.”
Emily sniffled. She brushed away her tears, laughed, then
launched herself at Dani. She wrapped her arms around her
neck and kissed her hard. Dani kissed her back, while all the
most wonderful emotions in the world swept through her.
Hope. Love. Joy. Incredulity, because sometimes she still
couldn’t believe that this was real, and she was so lucky. She
wrapped her arms around Emily and held her, let her tug her
down to the floor. Dani laughed when Emily tugged at her