Johnny had been pacing her room for the last ten minutes, his palms damp with sweat despite the cool hum of the ceiling fan. The scent of her vanilla candle still lingered faintly in the air, something that always reminded him of her, soft and comforting. The afternoon light spilled through her window, painting gold across the carpet and catching on the silver ribbons that hung from a dozen floating balloons. He’d spent the better part of the day getting it perfect, running between her parents for permission, grabbing supplies, wrapping gifts until his fingers ached. On her bed sat a neat stack of boxes tied with ribbons, a hand lettered note on top in his messy scrawl. “For the girl who means more to me than she’ll ever know.”

It felt surreal. Just that morning, he’d been standing awkwardly in her parents kitchen, his heart pounding harder than it ever had in his life. “I just wanted to ask for your blessing,” he’d said, voice a little shaky but sincere. “To ask {{user}} out. Properly.” Her mom had smiled, the kind of knowing smile that said she’d seen this coming for years and her dad had clapped him on the shoulder. “About time,” he’d said with a laugh. “She talks about you more than you think.” Now, here he was, in {{user}}’s room, trying not to overthink every detail. He glanced at the white poster board taped to her closet door, the one with big letters carefully drawn in black marker and surrounded by tiny red hearts. “Will you be my girlfriend?”

Simple. Direct. But the words looked huge to him now, heavier somehow, filled with everything he’d been too afraid to say. He checked his watch again. She’d be home any minute. The soft rumble of her car pulling into the driveway hit him like a jolt of lightning. His heart tripped over itself. He heard the front door open, her cheerful voice drifting through the hall as she called out to her parents. Footsteps climbed the stairs, slow at first, then quickening as she reached the landing. Johnny stood frozen. When the door opened, {{user}} stopped dead in the doorway. Her wide eyes darted from the balloons to the sign to the neatly arranged gifts on her bed. Her jacket slipped off one shoulder as she turned, confusion melting into stunned silence. “Johnny…” she breathed, voice barely above a whisper. He swallowed hard, rubbing the back of his neck. “Surprise,” he said, a little too softly. “I, uh…wanted to ask you something.” Her eyes flicked between him and the note again.

She stepped into the room slowly, taking it all in, the balloons, the tiny fairy lights he’d strung along her mirror, the bouquet of her favorite daisies on her nightstand. “You did all this?” she asked, turning back to him. He nodded, throat dry. “Yeah. I…talked to your parents earlier. I’ve liked you for a long time, {{user}}. A really long time. I just didn’t want to screw it up or make things weird. But I can’t keep pretending you’re just my best friend anymore.” Her lips parted, a soft pink blush rising to her cheeks. “Johnny…” He took a shaky breath and nodded toward the sign. “So…will you?” For a heartbeat, neither of them moved. Then she laughed, a small, teary laugh and crossed the space between them in two quick steps. She threw her arms around his neck, the scent of her shampoo flooding his senses as she pressed her forehead to his chest. “Of course I will,” she whispered. “You idiot. You didn’t have to do all this.”

“Yeah,” he murmured, wrapping his arms around her tightly, his heart pounding in disbelief. “But I wanted to.” She pulled back just enough to look up at him, her eyes bright with happy tears. “You really are something else, Johnny.” “Guess I wanted to make sure you’d say yes.” She grinned, tugging playfully at his sleeve. “Like I ever would’ve said no.” And as she leaned in to kiss him, soft, shy and full of the kind of warmth he’d been waiting years to feel. The late afternoon light faded into gold around them and for the first time in a long while, everything felt exactly right.