The shrill ring of a phone call woke me up at 8 AM. Grumbling, I rubbed my eyes, feeling a dull headache form at the back of my head. I cursed the caller who had woken me up from the best slumber I had in weeks. I frowned, blindly reaching for my phone on the side table.

"Hello?" I answered curtly, wincing at how horrible my voice sounded in the morning. Some were blessed with that hot, scorching deep voice when they woke up in the morning, and then there were people like me, who sounded hoarse and ugly.

"Oh...really...yes, yes I'll be there," I sat up straighter in my bed with a jolt, my voice taking an excited tone. It was Nita's husband on the other end, informing me about the baby they had last night. The frown left my face, giving way to a wide smile. A baby girl! They had called me at 11 AM to meet the baby and Nita. I jumped out of the bed after cutting the call, my hands frantic as I made my bed. I was still high from the excitement of the decision I had made at night, but I decided to not pay any attention to it for a while. The start of the day had been fabulous. I hoped the rest of the day would go by just the same.

I hadn't forgotten my decision of last night. And I planned to stick by it. And then there was the plan of proposing to Abeer. Now, in the clear daylight, the thought of a flash mob and proposal felt horribly cliche, and I visibly cringed as I thought of it. But then, Abeer liked cliche things. And this was about him. It was an apology of sorts from my side, and a promise of lifelong commitment to him. I shook my head, a silly smile on my face as I hurried to get ready. As I was about to leave the house, my mind went to the clothes and toys Abeer and I had shopped for the baby. I went back to get those precious little outfits and ran out of the door. Nita had been in a relationship with a German guy when she had gone to Germany for her masters, and had decided to marry him, much to the chagrin of her parents and relatives.

They had not talked to her since. In a way, their friends were their family.

I whistled as I got to the hospital, eager to see the new life. I had been wondering maniacally about her eye and hair color. Surely having a European father would have given her colorful eyes or hair, or perhaps both? After all, brown and black were ruthlessly common and boring for the Asians. The ping of the elevator brought me back to earth, and I dashed forward, my eyes glowing with happiness.

When I got to Nita's room, the sight I saw through glass door before me halted me in my tracks, my eyes fixated on the brown, curly head I had missed so much. But it wasn't him per say that had me rooted to the ground, it was the bundle of joy he was cuddling in his arms that had me arrested.

A beautiful, cherubic little girl, wrapped in a purple blanket was staring up at Abeer with wonder and glee, chortling as he tickled her chin and smiled that melting smile of his. And then he flicked her cute little nose with his nose. An unimaginable emotion gripped my heart as I stared at them, the picture wholesome in every sense of the word. I had seen the Taj Mahal, I had seen the snowy Himalayas in the middle of winter, I had seen nature at its best, but nothing, absolutely nothing compared to the moment playing before me - pure, pristine, exquisite. And the only moment rivaling this would be him holding our baby in his arms. Mine and his. Now, more than ever, I could do anything to make that happen, I won't ever be content with anything less or anything else.

I blinked back the tears that had pooled in my eyes as my legs sprung to action. The flash mob could wait. The platinum ring I had planned to buy for Abeer could wait. What couldn't wait was the proposal. An unknown urgency gripped my heart as I frantically looked everywhere, trying to find something... anything. My eyes widened with a idea as I saw a nurse take a plate full of bandages into a room. I hunted for the spare band-aid I kept in my purse (Indian moms always keep you prepared), tore the cover haphazardly and was trying to get it into a circle when I heard him walk towards me, calling my name.

"Aashi." I could hear the surprise in his whisper as I looked up from my handiwork into his hazel brown eyes. My breath caught in my throat, I struggled for words. But it had been two weeks since I had seen him, heard his voice, and it was all too overwhelming. Simply fifteen days, but they had been so heavy, I couldn't help the tears that fell down my cheeks.

"Aashi?" His brows furrowed with concern as he took a step ahead, his arms outstretched to take me in his arms and comfort me. But he halted midway, realization crossed his face and he forced his arms back to his sides. I gulped, a pang hitting my chest. And then I looked straight in his eyes, determination in my every move. He had bags under his eyes. He looked tired, his curls flopping on the sides, unruly as always. But I wasn't concerned with all that. I looked down at the band-aid, and when I had it looped in a circle, I looked up again, and dropped on my knees in front of him, the makeshift ring outstretched towards him.

"Will you marry me, Abeer Sen?"

It may seem stupid to the people around. It would never make it to the 101 best proposals ever. I might even berate myself for the impulsive proposal some time later. But the raw, unadulterated love that filled my heart in that moment when I saw him with the baby would make it the best proposal ever for me. And for him, I hope.

I looked at his face to see him bewildered at the turn of the events, his eyes fixated on the band-aid ring as he processed what had just happened. It would take days for me to process the happenings. But for the time being, I would devote this time to Abeer, and well, convincing him to marry me.

I took a deep breath and let the words flow in their own accord. "Abeer, you know that I love you. But what you don't know is that I want to spend the rest of my life with you. You bring me joy, and I don't think I can live without joy in my life," I whispered the last words as my tongue felt heavy, emotions boiling up my throat. "I... I don't think I can wake up everyday to an empty house and an even emptier heart." His face had started to transform, his eyes glimmering with tears and happiness. I sniffed, shifting on my knees. "I haven't been able to tell my parents about us," his eyes dimmed at my words and I hurried to explain further. "But I will, with you by my side. Tomorrow," I said softly, letting the words sink in.

And then he smiled a smile that lightened his entire being; a smile I had never seen on his face. Pure, simple love and joy reflected on his face as he dropped down in front of me and let me slide the makeshift ring on his fingers.

"I love you," he murmured against my cheek and dropped a soft kiss under my ear. We laughed and cried together as we tried to find the finger it fit best (it wasn't the largest circle per say) and simply stared at each other with heat, with passion, and most importantly, love that I was sure wouldn't dim for aeons to come.

I don't remember who embraced whom first but a nurse with spectacles sitting on her nose coughed particularly loudly in an effort to transfer us back from our reverie. Abeer pulled me up and into his arms, he opened the door and we stumbled forward in Nita's room, laughing with glee and contentment. The crowd that had gathered around to see our silly little stunt parted, smiles on each of their faces. Nita and her husband, Ben looked at us with puzzled expressions as we entered with what I was sure were the silliest grins ever they had beheld.

"You got hurt?" Ben asked Abeer as his eyes fell on the band-aid wrapped around his pinkie.

"Then why would they be laughing like complete idiots?" Nita quipped as her husband shrugged, communicating his confusion.

"No, I got engaged," he spoke loudly as he beamed at me, his devilishly rakish grin at full display. A delicious shiver ran down my spine as I smiled back an equally broad smile. Ben glanced outside the room, perhaps wondering what disease hit us out there.

"She proposed," Abeer explained, pointing a finger at me.

"With a bandage?" Nita questioned, raising her eyebrows.

"Yes," Abeer spoke again, unmistakable pride in his voice.

We took a moment to calm ourselves as I sheepishly explained the happenings in the corridor. I was pretty sure the plan sounded smarter in my brain, but words made it sound the silliest thing ever. Abeer was in seventh heaven, gazing at his band-aid wrapped finger with a mixture of happiness and bewilderment. He didn't pay any attention to my narration. As to Nita and Ben, they both shook their heads and laughed out loud at the eccentricity of the entire episode, and congratulated us.

"I wasted my money on that expensive ring which I put in a equally expensive glass of champagne. If only I knew that a band-aid worked wonders too, imagine the fortune it would have saved me," Nita exclaimed, pretending regret. Ben stuck out his tongue at her and we laughed again.

And then we laughed a little more.

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