The air carried the faint scent of burning wood and damp earth as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows over the quiet town. The world outside was changing, shifting into something unrecognizable with each passing day. War loomed like a specter over everything, yet tonight, standing in the doorway of your family’s modest home, it was not the war that had your heart pounding. It was him.

König.

Tall, broad-shouldered, yet with an ever-present hesitancy in his movements. His nervous energy was betrayed only by the way he wrung his cap in his hands, fingers pulling at the fabric like it might keep him grounded. König's eyes, that striking shade of blue-gray, flickered with something between fear and determination as they met yours.

It had been a long walk from his family’s workshop to your home, but König barely felt the distance.

You had known each other for years, danced around words left unspoken, stolen glances exchanged under the watchful eyes of the world. But tonight, there was no room for hesitation.

“I…” His voice was low, nearly swallowed by the evening breeze. He cleared his throat, straightened his shoulders. “I’ve come to ask you something.”

For the first time, the quiet boy you had fallen for met your gaze without wavering. Hope and fear warred in his pale blue eyes.

“I enlisted.” His voice was quiet but steady, words falling heavy between you. “But I don’t want to leave without knowing.”

A pause. A deep inhale.

“When the war is over, will you marry me, {{user}}?”