Engagement Story- Another Telling

I knew I was ready to propose in December, and I wanted to do it in a traditional way. So I had to find a ring. I wanted it to be sort of a surprise, but that was hard. It meant I had to spend time away from Debra and that was the last thing I wanted. I couldn't find the right ring before Christmas. After Christmas, Debra pointed out a jewelry store near where she works and when I looked there they had the right ring. By that time I had looked at diamonds online enough that I knew what I wanted. The first stone they got I didn't like, but once I saw the second one I knew it was right.

Once I had the ring, I needed to set up the proposal. First I thought of restaurant at the top of the Hancock Building downtown that would be a beautiful, romantic place for a proposal. But it didn't seem to be the right place to propose to Debra. I decided on a place nearby that we had been to before. We both thought that the Melting Pot in Schaumburg was the most romantic dinner we had been to. No big crowds, just a nice cozy, comfortable place. So I called to make a reservation. They asked me if it was a special occasion and I told them I was going to propose.

I told Debra I would like to take her out for a nice dinner Saturday night. She was happy to hear we were going back to the Melting Pot. I didn't want to bring the ring in a jewelry box, that would be too obvious. So I got a little plastic heart it would fit in. She had told me before that different colors of roses have different meanings. So I looked up the meanings of the different kinds of roses and decided that red and white roses had the perfect symbolism for the day we agreed to get married. And promptly forgot why I picked those colors.

When Debra saw the flowers, she was incredibly happy. She even wanted to take pictures of the flowers. I was thinking, "if she gets this excited at the roses, what's going to happen when I show her the ring?" She didn't notice the plastic heart with the ring in my coat.

When we got to the restaurant, they put us in a nice corner booth that was raised a little and had curtains for a little privacy. The dinner was wonderful. After the main course I told the waiter that we would like a little time before dessert. Then I started to get nervous, my heart was beating fast. I stood up and got the ring out and Debra asked, "are you going to the bathroom?" Then I got on my knee and opened my heart. I asked, and gave her the ring. An eternity or two later she answered and made me the happiest man in the world.