The dandelion Zoe plucked from the thousands around her was full and ready to be picked. She and Lucas had come to Fountain Park often during their three-year courtship just to hang out and talk and daydream. They never had an agenda and that was fine with both. The park was great for relaxing and getting back to nature.
“He loves me. He loves me not,” she said plucking two pedals from the dandelion. She paused to see what he would say, but he just stared up at the clouds that floated by.
“He loves me. He loves me not. He loves me…”
“Stop. Stop what you’re doing right there,” Lucas said. “That’s not really fair.”
“What? Did I upset you?”
“You know I love you,” said Lucas.
“Yes, but…”
“Just a minute,” Lucas said as he got up abruptly, brushed off his pants, and headed for the car fifty feet away. He popped open the trunk, dug around for a few seconds, and pulled out a cloth bag.
When he got back to their picnic area, Lucas said, “Give me that dandelion. It’s a weed.” He crunched it in his hand and tossed it.
Zoe’s jaw dropped.
“If you’re going to do that ‘he loves me, he loves me not’ thing, you’ve got to do it with this” and pulled out a rose from the bag.
“Ahh,” Zoe said as she put the rose to her nose. “That’s so sweet.”
“Well?”
Zoe shook her head. “Well, what?”
“He loves me, he loves me not?” asked Lucas.
“Oh, honey. I don’t want to do it anymore. You just proved it.”
“Zoe, just humor me. Go ahead: he loves me….see where it goes.”
“Okay, if you insist.”
She plucked off a pedal one by one and said, “He loves me, he loves me not. He loves…what? What? What’s this?”
Zoe opened the middle of the rose and pulled out a diamond ring. Her eyes widened as she examined it and then put it on her finger.
“Yes. Yes, I will, Lucas Raymond Manor! Yes of course I will.”
*******