“Assistant?” Susan repeated softly, her lips curling up in satisfaction. “Since you’re so confident, I’ll be waiting for your good news. Just don’t disappoint me.”
“That’s a given.”
Freda wore a confident smile as the two women locked eyes and silently agreed to drop the topic. They both took symbolic sips of their coffee cups, some things could only happen in secret, out of sight.
…
After the commotion on Carl’s release day from the hospital, Nana’s life had indeed calmed down considerably. Even her social media accounts now had some of Carl’s fans following her, but there were always two different voices in the comments section. At first Nana was upset by this but eventually learned not to let it bother her.
Nowadays she focused on taking care of herself and building a relationship with Carl. She knew that if she wanted to marry him like she promised, they couldn’t just stay where they were forever. Sooner or later there would be problems.
After resting at home for half a month, Carl gradually began feeling better even though he still couldn’t return to filming his major scenes on set yet due to his health condition. However, he had rehearsed all his dialogue scenes with Nana countless times at home and even included some lines for her character too.
During this time Carl had been brewing up a plan.
“Nana, my medicine is running out again,” said Carl after being discharged from hospital as he needed medication regularly to stabilize his internal organs’ function.
Nana believed him without question, “Sure thing! I’ll go get them right away.”
It was four o’clock in the afternoon and doctors finished work at five o’clock sharp every day.
Watching Nana leave without any possibility of returning soon made Carl excitedly run into their closet where he’d already prepared everything beforehand and started setting it up according to plan.
Half an hour later while working on decorating their wall space, Carl called Nana again, “Hey, can you stop by Meet Sugar when you come back? Can you buy two mango puddings and one low-sugar black forest cake? I’m craving sweets right now.”
“Okay, but I’m currently picking up your medicine from the hospital so it might take me until around seven pm before getting back home since West District Cake Shop is quite far away… Is that okay?”
“I can wait! Take your time!” replied an ecstatically happy sounding Carl who wished nothing more than for Nana to come back late, preferably as late as possible!
Nana put down her phone and frowned at the screen. Why was Carl acting so strange today? Oh well, she thought, “I’ll just pick up his medication and some sweets first.”
By the time she got home it was already 8pm. Mr. Waters had finally convinced Mrs. Waters to let them stay alone for a while in order to help them bond.
“I’m back,” Nana called out as she opened the door, but there was no answer. The room was dimly lit and she instinctively turned left to see two candles on the table along with two glasses of red wine and a vase of gardenias.
Carl was busy in the kitchen when he heard her come in. He quickly turned off the stove and brought over his freshly cooked steak to place on the table before saying, “Nana, you’re back! Come wash your hands so we can eat.”
Nana didn’t understand what was going on but slowed down her steps as soon as she saw the flowers and candles on the table. She looked up at Carl asking him, “What’s all this for? What’s special about today?”
Carl smiled as he pulled out Nana’s chair for her before sitting down himself across from her saying, “You’ve been taking care of me since I came home from hospitalization even though you were pregnant yourself; I wanted to do something nice for you too.”
As he spoke, he handed over his plate of sliced steak while taking Nana’s whole piece instead.
Feeling touched by his gesture, Nana knew that Carl was a thoughtful man who cared deeply about others including herself… and maybe even more than just caring.
“It tastes great! You must have worked really hard making all this food,” said Nana after savoring each bite.
Carl shook his head modestly replying, “It wasn’t hard work at all if it meant cooking something delicious for you… I know how much hardship you’ve gone through lately but don’t worry, because I’ll always be here now.”
Before Nana could respond further, Carl stood up suddenly with a smile saying, “Wait right here!”
Nana watched as Carl ran into the study, not sure what was going on. A few minutes later, he emerged with a large bouquet of red roses and a ring box nestled in the center.
Nana froze. She didn’t know why, but her heart began to race uncontrollably like a drumbeat in her ears.
Carl approached her solemnly with the bouquet in hand and got down on one knee. He opened the ring box with one hand and looked up at Nana with a gentle smile.
“Nana, I know you may not be ready to fully accept me yet, but I truly want to take care of you for the rest of my life. Will you marry me? As far as our relationship goes, I can wait for you. Can you give me a chance to take care of you and our child?”
“Will you marry me?”
Perhaps it was the candlelight that cast an enchanting glow over everything or maybe it was just Carl’s sincerity shining through his eyes that made Nana realize this man truly loved her.
Without hesitation she nodded and replied just as seriously, “Yes, I will marry you.”
Carl’s face lit up upon hearing those words. He hadn’t expected such an immediate answer from Nana; it was quite unexpected! He quickly slipped the ring onto Nana’s finger while handing over the bouquet of roses before opening his arms wide for an embrace.
As he approached Nana though, he suddenly hesitated unsure how best to proceed until finally she laughed out loud at his awkwardness.
She put aside the flowers so she could wrap him tightly in her arms instead.