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Post by ROBERT A. PARKER on Jun 27, 2012 21:38:33 GMT -5
every morning was the same. rob got up at 5:30 a.m. and got ready for work, went over his lesson plans for the day, and drove himself and madeline to get coffee at the shop down the street, and then to the conservatory. this morning was a little different though. he still woke up at 5:30, but today he was surprising her by making them breakfast. he was hoping she would kind of catch on and be somewhat prepared for his proposal in a few weeks. he had yet to find the right ring, but he was close. as soon as the food was ready, he snuck back into the bedroom of their loft and leaned over her on the bed while standing up, kissing her cheek. "wake up, sleeping beauty."
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Post by Madeline J. Claibourne on Jun 27, 2012 21:45:45 GMT -5
After six years, it was inevitable for a couple to fall into a sort of pattern. For Madeline and Rob, it was the same every morning before they carpooled to work at the conservatory together. It wasn't really the kind of thing Madeline had always dreamed of, this kind of predictability. But with Rob, she wanted it and even craved it in a strange sort of way. Knowing that he was always going to be there, every morning at 5:30 to wake her up and drive her to the coffee shop before work was comforting in a way she'd never really expected. She had sensed a shift in Rob lately, however, and could sense that something big was coming. It was easy to guess what that something was, and Madeline was trying to make sense of it all and figure out how she felt about it. As she felt his lips on her cheek and heard his voice rousing her from her sleep, she smiled automatically and looked up at him. "Morning you."
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Post by ROBERT A. PARKER on Jun 27, 2012 21:49:57 GMT -5
at thirty-four--almost thirty-five--years old, rob knew it was time to get settled down and start a family. and after six years with madeline, he was sure of what he wanted. his parents had married when they were in their mid-twenties, but he was now in his mid-thirties so he wasn't following in their footsteps. nor did he care to, but that was beside the point. all he knew is he wanted to be with madeline forever, and be her husband. "morning," he said when she was awake. "sleep well?" rob hadn't had a bad night of sleep ever since he and madeline started living together three and a half years ago.
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Post by Madeline J. Claibourne on Jun 27, 2012 21:54:13 GMT -5
before rob, madeline had never really thought about settling down and doing the whole family thing. husband, kids, it just never looked like it was in the cards for her. and then he came along and changed everything for her. first, making her second guess what she thought she knew all along, that she was meant to be on broadway and that was that. and then by making her think that she could want all of those things. children, a real family, and all of it with him. if he really did propose, she doubted she could say no. or even want to, despite everything she thought she knew about herself. she nodded in response to his question if she slept well. "you?"
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Post by ROBERT A. PARKER on Jun 27, 2012 21:57:01 GMT -5
nodding, rob said, "as always." he kissed her lips and then the side of her face quickly. "i have something for you." rob stood up straight and held out his hand for her to take. he was going to start pulling out all the stops, and once he found the ring--bam!... it would happen. he needed the right ring, and for it to be the right time, though, or else it might fall apart on him. he didn't want that.
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Post by Madeline J. Claibourne on Jun 27, 2012 22:00:39 GMT -5
madeline kissed rob back and looked at him with interest when he said that he had something for her before offering his hand. she wondered for a second if this was what she'd been waiting for over the last couple of weeks. but she figured that rob would do something more romantic than proposing to her when she was half-asleep. she took his hand and got out of the bed. "you're acting very sneaky, mr. parker," she said playfully as she followed him.
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Post by ROBERT A. PARKER on Jun 27, 2012 22:03:49 GMT -5
taking her hand and leading her to the kitchen, he smirked and looked back at her. "i'm surprised that this is news to you," he joked. normally he wasn't all that sneaky, but he wanted her to know something was up and wanted her to be prepared for it. while it would probably be fun to just act normal and then surprise her completely, rob wasn't really into that. he strove to be different on purpose. once they were in the kitchen, he stopped just a few feet from the table where breakfast was ready and waiting for them. of course it was her favorite, or else it was kind of pointless to do this.
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Post by Madeline J. Claibourne on Jun 27, 2012 22:08:02 GMT -5
it was clear to madeline that rob was up to something and wanted her to know that he was up to something. that was what led her to believe that he was about to ask her to marry him, because this usually wasn't his way. walking into the kitchen with him, she smiled as she saw her favorite breakfast of french toast waiting for them at the table. she turned to rob and wrapped her arms around his neck to kiss him lovingly. "any special occasion i forgot about?" she teased him, knowing that there wasn't any occasion and this was just part of the change she'd seen in him lately.
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Post by ROBERT A. PARKER on Jun 27, 2012 22:13:16 GMT -5
as soon as she wrapped her arms around his neck, rob wrapped his around her waist and kissed her back. when she asked if there was a special occasion she forgot about, he pretended to look thoughtful and said, "no. but now that you mention it, we could celebrate my birthday a few months early." obviously he was kidding. he smirked and said, "no, this is to remind you how much i love you... in a.... different kind of way than i normally remind you." he figured that was the best way to put it, for a lack of better words.
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Post by Madeline J. Claibourne on Jun 27, 2012 22:17:28 GMT -5
there weren't many things in the world that felt better to madeline than having rob's arms around her. they were strong and comforting, and she always felt safe when she was close to him. she laughed when he pretended to think for a minute before adding that he had done it to show her how much he loved her. or at least, in a different way than usual. "i didn't know i had to be reminded," she replied quickly, smiling and kissing him again. yes, things were pretty easy between her and rob. but she was quickly finding out that she didn't want it any other way. madeline could use a little predictability in her life, and for the last six years she had always known that rob would be there with her. 'thank you," she added.
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Post by ROBERT A. PARKER on Jun 27, 2012 22:27:32 GMT -5
for what it was worth, rob wouldn't trade his life for anyone else's. it was perfect. he had what every guy could only dream of having and he didn't take any of it for granted. he knew he'd gotten lucky when he was 16 and landed on broadway. he knew he'd gotten lucky again when he was 28 and met madeline. now he was sure he was going to get lucky again when he proposed to her. "no need to thank me," he said, letting go of her and went to pull her chair out so she could sit. "you do that every day just by loving me and believing in me. and i'll continue to do the same for you." then as a serious joke, he added, "i'll also try to not burn the loft down next time i do this." he gestured with his head over to the waste bin next to the sink so she could see what he meant.
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Post by Madeline J. Claibourne on Jun 27, 2012 22:33:17 GMT -5
madeline had lived a life that a lot of people dreamed about and planned for, but never actually got. but she knew it wasn't luck that got her to broadway or any of the success she'd gotten as a dancer. that had been a hell of a lot of hard work, and that was what she told her students. you didn't get what you wanted just because you were talented or it was somehow entitled to you. it was something you had to work for, and had to earn. but meeting rob, that was the first time madeline ever felt truly lucky. she hadn't been looking for someone like him to come into her life, but she had been lucky enough to find him when she did. he changed everything about her life, in ways she didn't expect but still wouldn't trade for anything. she was about to call him a sap for saying she thanked him every day by loving him when he went on and mentioned burning down the loft. she looked in the waste bin and chuckled, looking back at him. "maybe just stick to buying my love from now on," she joked.
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Post by ROBERT A. PARKER on Jun 27, 2012 22:44:03 GMT -5
playfully, he asked, "where's the fun in that?" rob pushed her in closer to the table and then took his seat adjacent from her. "besides, i need to get better at this cooking thing. apparently it's a skill i'm lacking, according to my mother." his mother, evelyn, was a smart woman. both of his parents really liked madeline and they'd been bugging him for years to put a ring on her finger and marry her. well their wish would be granted soon enough...so long as madeline said yes, anyways.
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Post by Madeline J. Claibourne on Jun 27, 2012 22:48:51 GMT -5
helping rob scoot her in closer to the table, madeline picked up her fork and took a bite while rob sat next to her and said that he wasn't that good of a cook, according to his mother. madeline liked rob's parents a lot, and they seemed to like her too. she was lucky in that her boyfriend's parents like her as well as her parents liking him. a boyfriend of hers was usually a pretty hard sell, especially to her father, but he approved of him and knew that he wasn't going to be going anywhere anytime soon. "well, it seems good enough to me," she said, smiling over at him as she ate her breakfast.
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Post by ROBERT A. PARKER on Jun 27, 2012 22:58:51 GMT -5
"ohh, you're just saying that," he teased. rob wasn't a bad cook, but he did need to improve his skills a little bit. especially if he was going to ask madeline to marry him, then he would have to pull his own weight in their potential marriage too. he couldn't be sure that madeline would say yes, though after six years, you'd think it would be impossible to say no. plus, they were both in their thirties. why waste any more time waiting? "do you think you could do me a favor, though? whip nate's ass into shape for me. his dancing is terrible, and he's going to need help if he wants to be on broadway." he chuckled, and a mental image of his brother's dancing popped into his head.
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