One Shots

“Brandon! Wait up!” you huffed, out of breath. But Brandon Saad’s figure was had already blended away into the dark. He probably though you were following him, but you didn’t have the speed or stamina of the NHL player to keep up. So you settled for walking down the beaten trail, glancing up and watching the stars.

The forest had always been one of your favorite places, and you felt comfortable amid the light, warm breeze and quietly rustling leaves. The night was warm, and the silence soothing. You found yourself staring up into the atmosphere, watching for shooting stars.

You didn’t even hear Brandon creeping up on you, until he had his arms around your waist, spinning you around. You yelped in surprise, and he chuckled. “I was worried you might have gotten lost,” he smiled.

“Pfft, me?” you grinned. You pushed him off a little, laughing, adding, “Please, I’d never get lost.”

“Good,” he said, kissing to top of your head. It made you think of when you first met, of how awkward the height difference was. Now, it felt absolutely normal. He grabbed your hand, leading you through the woods to a little clearing with a creek at the southern edge. There was already a small bonfire blazing, as well as a small tent set up near the edge, and a lush blanket on the grass beneath the stars.

Needless to say, you were impressed. “You did all this… for me?”

Saad grinned. “With a little help from Shawzy.” He padded over to the tent, pulling out a lunchbag filled with marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers, and two thin metal rods, which you assumed were for the marshmallows. He held the ingredients out to you with a smile. ‘I brought s’mores!”

You sat side by side on an old log bench, roasting marshmallows in the flames. Brandon had one arm around your shoulders, drawing you in close. You took turns feeding the gooey s’mores to each other or eating the melting marshmallows off each other’s fingers, laughing at failed attempts, or kissing to get the last of the stickiness off your lips.

Once the fire burned low, you moved to the blanket on the grass, laying there pointing up at the stars, trying to find constellations or make them up, or just talking.

You were happy, content, wishing you could stay this way forever, wrapped in Brandon’s arms. Safe, and comfortable, without a worry in the world.

“I’ve got one more thing for you,” he whispered, slowly easing himself up and heading to his truck. You hadn’t noticed it before, hidden in the shadows behind the tent. He opened the door to pick up a small bundle wrapped in a blanket. As soon as he closed the door, the bundle wriggled, and you saw the cutest little nose poke out.

He handed the bundle to you, and you unwrapped it to find a small German Shepherd puppy, tail wagging. You instantly fell in love as soon as it yipped and licked your chin.

“I hope you like him,” Brandon said, smiling affectionately. “He’s got all his tags, but none of them are on his collar yet. He doesn’t have a name yet, either. I thought you might want to name him.”

“I love him already! Thank you,” you said, delighted, leaning over to kiss him on the lips, still holding the squirming puppy. The puppy groaned as soon as he saw the kiss, making both you and Brandon burst out laughing.

“I think I may have forgotten to take the price tag off his collar, though. Could you check for me, please?” he asked, handing you a small flashlight.

You agreed, running your fingers through the soft fur of the little dog’s back, up to his neck to locate the collar. You felt around the collar until you felt something cold and metal. You shone the flashlight at the object, seeing a tag with a ring attached (but hadn’t he just said that none of his tags were on his collar?). Looking closer, you realized the ring had a diamond on, and the tag had a message written on it. You gasped, nearly dropping the puppy, who you’d inwardly named Caspar, when you read the tag.

It had two words on it:"Marry Me?"

Notes