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He'd been acting . . . aloof.
Ember wasn't sure if that was the right word. But it was definitely strange.
She trusted him with every flame of her being. If he was any of her exes, he'd definitely be cheating. But he wasn't. This was Wade. And Wade was no cheater. Although, his behavior wasn't adding up. He was up to something.
But what?
For weeks – no, months – now, he would be working late. He'd had several business trips he'd been on where he'd be gone most of the day and come back in the dead of night. He always did his best to make it up to her. A special date night, a gift, quality time. There was never a moment she felt as though he didn't think she was one of the most special things to him. That's what made the behavior even more strange.
She fought her urges to be an untrusting partner. Many times she thought about calling his work to inquire about the late hours or the business trips. The thing was, she knew he was lying about it. She just couldn't put her finger on what it could possibly be. It killed her because in the very heart of her being, she trusted him. Whatever it was, she knew it wasn't anything that would betray her. Such certainty only deepened the mystery. What could possibly be so serious it needed to be kept secret, but also not upsetting? Her birthday wasn't for several more months. A couple holidays had passed, but whatever Wade was keeping secret remained a secret even then.
Finally, after around seven months of sneaking around and waiting and anticipating, she broke. She couldn't take the secrecy anymore and just had to know what it was he was hiding from her. She had practiced her speech over and over again. She waited until Wade came home from another one of his "late nights" at the office, perched in one of the dining room chairs.
"Oh, hey, Ember," Wade said with a smile as he set down his things. "Why are you still up at this hour?"
"We need to talk, Wade," Ember said, exhaling heavily with a puff of smoke.
Wade frowned and took the seat opposite her. "What's wrong?"
Ember clasped her hands together and took a deep breath. "Wade, I want you to know that I trust you. And because I trust you, I know that you've had a good reason for lying to me all these months. But I have to know what's going on. You can't keep me in the dark anymore."
Wade nodded slowly, almost disappointedly. "You found out about the flowers?" he asked dejectedly.
Ember blinked. "What?"
Wade's eyes widened. "I mean, what? I don't even remember what we were talking about."
Ember crossed her arms, her brow raised unconvincingly.
Wade exhaled defeatedly and stood. "I wasn't quite ready yet, but maybe I'll never be. Follow me."
Ember looked at Wade's outstretched hand and back up at him. Her body relaxed, knowing that her instincts to trust him had never failed her. She stood and grasped his hand. He pulled her close.
"Close your eyes," he told her, taking her shoulders.
Ember looked at him, brow furrowed.
"What?" Wade laughed. "You said you trusted me, didn't you?"
Ember smiled slightly and exhaled softly, closing her eyes and allowing Wade to guide her. They walked out of the house and down the street for roughly ten minutes before he turned her to the side and led her inside somewhere. She couldn't help but notice the sudden change in humidity, but despite dying to open her eyes, she waited for permission to do so.
Finally, Wade stopped her and released her. His body moved away from her.
"Okay," he said softly. "Open them."
Ember slowly opened her eyes. It was a dark room, illuminated only by her light. Slowly shadows came into view and she started to look around. She flinched when something started to move.
A Vivisteria flower bloomed open in her light in front of her and her breath caught in her throat. She hadn't seen one since the last time Wade took her down in a bubble to see them. As she moved closer, another flower next to it bloomed open. They grew from potting benches, and as Ember walked down the side, dozens more bloomed open in her light. She looked up and she realized they were in a greenhouse.
Wade had created a Vivisteria greenhouse.
"Wade," she breathed, "how did you do this?"
"It wasn't easy," his voice answered in the darkness. "I made some trips back to Element City to get some seeds from the Vivisteria plants that were in that flooded museum. But they're very hard to get started, so I ended up killing the first few plants I tried to grow. It took me a while to get the hang of it. But when I did, I wanted you to have a whole garden. I still have a potting bench to the left over here with some baby plants that haven't matured yet. That's why I haven't shown you."
Ember felt her throat swell with emotion. "Oh my flame," she sputtered, a tear welling up in her eye. It had been a while since she'd gotten this emotional. "This is the kindest thing anyone's ever done for me, Wade."
"You really like it?" Wade asked, a soft smile to his voice.
"Oh, Wade," Ember said, preparing to turn on her heel toward his voice, "I love it–"
The last word caught in her throat as her light fell upon Wade, who was no longer standing. Rather, he was waiting patiently on one knee, holding out his hand. He gently reached forward and grabbed one of hers, causing steam to form between them.
"Ember," he started softly, his breath getting shaky, "I am so deeply in love with you. You are my light, you are my beacon, and you are my warmth. You make every day and every experience worth living. I love your smile, I love the way your light dances on ceilings. You have the biggest heart and I have loved watching you grow into the person you are today. I would be honored if you became my wife, Ember. Will you marry me?"
Ember, having more tears streamed down her face than she ever had in her life, nodded for she could not speak. Wade, who had put every ounce of effort he could into not crying long enough to give his speech, finally allowed himself to cry and stood up, pulling her into an embrace. The two shared a long, passionate kiss as Vivisteria flowers bloomed around them in Ember's light. Finally, they parted.
"You really did all of this just to propose to me?" Ember said between sobs.
Wade smiled and gripped her tighter. "I wanted to have the perfect wedding flowers."