In The End, I Lost It All

~~~~~~~~~~~Chapter 11: (Avril's POV)

(Jake's POV)

I woke up EARLY this morning and quietly shook Elissia awake and asked her to tell Avril I went out for a quick errand, and I'll be back a.s.a.p. I then make my way over to CC's and Tam's place so I can ask Tam to tag along with me and help me pick out an engagement ring for Avril. When I get to the front door, I am greeted by Tam. She smiles kindly at me, beckoning me to come in. I follow behind her and we both head to the living room and sit on the couch.

"What brings you here, Jake?" she asks me, smiling while stirring her coffee around, sipping it slowly. "I came here to ask you for a small favor," I begin as she looks at me and nods her head for me to continue; "I was wondering if you could help me pick out an engagement ring for Avril. I plan to propose to her tonight." She squeals quietly, hugging me and nodding her head, as if to tell me she'll help me out. I genuinely thank her, and she says back, "Oh, it's nothing, just knowing that you and Avril are the perfect couple and you will two will be tying the knot is enough for her to help out." I laugh a little, and grab my car keys while she heads to her bedroom to grab her handbag and tell CC she's heading out for a quick errand and that she'll be back as soon as possible. I see CC kiss her goodbye and wave to me, giving me two thumbs up, hoping it all goes well. I nod my head, thanking him and head out to my car, with Tam on my heels. She gets in the passenger side and me in the driver's side.

We head down to the nearest jewelry store, which happens to be a Jared's. We pull into the parking lot, and make our way in. Once inside, a kind employee (who happens to be the manager) walks over asking how she can help me. I tell her I am looking to buy an engagement ring for my girlfriend. She congratulates me and asks if I am looking for anything in particular. I shake my head no, and ask to look around. She nods her head kindly and says that her name is Candace, and to call her if I find anything that strikes my fancy.

About half an hour later, Tam calls me over to a beautiful ring that is just as unique as my girlfriend is, and I immediately ask to see it up close in person. It has a black gold band and pink diamond in the center with small diamonds surrounding it on both sides. I thank Tam continuously and tell Candace that this is the ring I plan to give to my beautiful and sweet Avril. The manager rings it up, and I pay for it, but not before I ask the manager if there is any way I can have something engraved into the inside of the ring, so she nods and enquires about what I wanted engraved. I tell her I want these words etched, "I love you more than I could ever scream (which are lyrics of ours)."

She smiles and takes the ring to the back of the store to hand it to another employee to have it engraved. She comes back out and says it will be about an hour, so Tam and I tell her we'll come back then to retrieve the ring. I then pay for the ring completely and Tam and I head out to get some lunch at a nearby Chili's restaurant. Once we sit down, we order drinks and I order a small beer, and Tam says she'll only have water as she can't drink beer in her condition. I inquisitively look at her, and she signals with her hands that she's expecting, which shocks me beyond words. She smiles gently, and pleads with me not to tell CC, since she's just recently found out. I nod my head, and congratulate her, then changing the subject and talking about how I plan to propose to Avril. I tell her that since it's her birthday tomorrow, I'll take her out to dinner, just the two of us, and we'll order dessert. Then after we finish eating dessert, I'll get down on one knee and pop the question then and there. Tam smiles and nods her head in approval.

Soon our food arrives, and we quickly eat (I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich w/ avocado, cucumber, and tomato, while she ordered a garden salad, with fresh veggies, grilled chicken, and fresh fruit as well.) We quickly eat our meal and then head back to jewelry store, to see the ring is ready and inside its box. Candace hands it over and congratulates me once more, before we both head out and back to the car. I drop Tam off at home and she waves at me as I wave back; heading back onto the highway and heading home to my girlfriend and kids. I quickly make a quick pit stop at the nearest Kroger to get the staples; eggs, milk, and whole wheat bread (so I can also corroborate my story about running the quick stop to the grocery store, so Avril doesn't suspect anything else happened). I quickly pay for everything and head home, making it in excellent time. I notice it's a little too quiet when I open the front door, so I head up into the bedroom and set the ring box into my blazer jacket pocket for tomorrow night. Then I head back downstairs and look around the whole house looking for my family.