[SpringsSong]

He had told her to meet him here after she had gotten off of work that day, and she had not thought twice about saying "yes" when he had asked.

It had only been two weeks since he had gotten back from his mission--he had spent the past two years in the Sa'fir Coast.  They had written to each other weekly--and she had gotten his last letter right before they left to go get him from the airport.  The letter was in her hands now, because there was something that had been bothering her.

Eámanë,

By this time next week, I'll be able to see you again--I'll have been released, and I'll be able to be with you.  I've missed you, Eámanë--I'm sure that Lindariel is excited to see me, too.  I mean, I'm excited to see everyone from the ward, but... I think you're the one I'm the most excited to see, with the rest of my family coming in a close second.

I want to take you out to dinner after I get back.  We have so much that we need to catch up on--I know we've been writing to each other every week, but I'm sure that not everything can be covered in a letter.  As I'm writing this, it's hitting me that I will be seeing you in exactly five days.  In four days, I'll be released... and then, I'll be coming home to you.

I've been thinking about the future, Eámanë--our future.  I think that there is something to be had here--and I want to see if it's just my imagination or if it can work.  I love you, my darling; and I want to make you mine forever, if you'll have me.

Until next week,
Your love, Líndal

Was he basically proposing to me? Eámanë asked herself as she leaned against a tree, waiting for Líndal to appear.

[SpringsSong]

Do I have the ring with me...?

To say that Líndal was nervous to meet with Eámanë would be an understatement.  He wasn't just nervous; he was to the point of a mental breakdown.  He had only been home for two weeks, but he still felt as strongly for Eámanë as he had come to feel through all of their letters over the course of his two-year mission in Sa'fir.  In his last letter, he had basically proposed to her--but since she had only gotten the letter the day he got home, he didn't have time to get the ring and be at her apartment to propose to her when she had read the letter.

And now, he was planning to propose to her... after only being together for two weeks.

What if she says no?  What if she doesn't want to marry me?  She's said that she loves me, but... what... what if she says no? he asked himself, and soon, the woman's silhouette came into view.

She was wearing jeans and one of her short-sleeved shirts, and she had her phone out.  She was leaning up against a tree, looking up occasionally from her phone, and then, looking back at it.  Her hair, which was short, fell into her face, and she would push it back behind her ear every few moments.  Líndal couldn't help but smile as he carefully walked closer to her.

Hopefully... she wouldn't mind being mine, he thought quietly, clearing his throat to get her attention.

[SpringsSong]

When Líndal cleared his throat, Eámanë couldn't help but smile as she put her phone away, taking in his appearance.  In the two years he had been gone, he had grown another three inches--making him taller than her by a fair margin now--and he seemed much more mature than when he left.  Eámanë couldn't help but smile at him; even though he had been back  for two weeks, and even though they had gone on several dates since he had been back, she was still decidedly glad to see him.

"Hey, Líndal," she said, smiling as she put her phone away.  "How's the summer break treating you so far?"

"It's treating me all right so far," he said.  "I got my acceptance letter to University the other day.  Looks like we'll be classmates after all."

"That's awesome!" Eámanë said, tucking her hair behind her ear.  "So, you've signed up for your classes, then?"

"Not yet.  But I have them picked out," Líndal said, smiling.  "I have to set up a video meet with my counsellor in order to get my registration code."

"I see," Eámanë said, chuckling slightly.  As she did this, she pulled out the letter, looking at it curiously.

Almost instantly, Líndal's mind went into a tizzy.  She has the letter with her!  She's probably going to ask me about what I wrote... he said to himself, his heart rate accellerating a fair amount.  However, he did the one thing that Eámanë had taught him to do--threw up a mental shield so that his thoughts would not reach her.

[SpringsSong]

"So... I had a question about what you wrote at the end of your letter," Eámanë said, and Líndal's heart dropped slightly.  That was exactly what he was afraid of hearing; he didn't want to have to answer to what it meant before he had told her how he felt about her; how he felt that they had a future together--and a promising one at that!

"Um... what about it?" he asked, clearly nervous.  Eámanë could see that he was nervous, so she offered a slight chuckle before she spoke again.

"The last part--where you mentioned our future," she said, putting extra emphasis on our.  "Where you said, and I quote, 'I love you, my darling; and I want to make you mine forever, if you'll have me.'  Now, I have my suspicions as to what you were getting at, but would you... elaborate on that, please?" she asked, crossing her arms and putting up a mental shield of her own.

"Elaborate on it... how?" he asked, fumbling with the tiny ring box behind his back.

"What did you mean by it, Líndal?" she asked, her eyes stern and unyielding.  Líndal felt his heart seize up at this, and then, he cleared his throat.

"Well... you're probably aware that I'm looking to marry," he said.

"Yes.  Remember your letter before you'd even been out for six months?" she asked.  "You yourself said that your father has you pegged to be married before the next year starts.  You've got... seven months.  Well, six and a half."

"What if I were to tell you... that I think I've found her?" Líndal asked, and Eámanë felt her heart skip a few beats.

"What?"

[SpringsSong]

"Yeah," Líndal said, nodding slightly as he said this.  "I... I actually found her while I was on my mission, and I found her through writing letters to her every other week.  I know that she and I have only been dating since I returned two weeks ago, but... I've never been so certain about something in my whole life."

"What are you saying...?" Eámanë asked, staring at Líndal in shock.  The man smiled as he took one of Eámanë's hands gently, pressing it against his lips.

"Well, considering you're the only one who wrote to me that often over my mission, and considering we've been dating for a couple of weeks--" Líndal said.

"Yes, only a couple of weeks," Eámanë said, clearing her throat slightly.  "Sure, we've spent more hours together in the days since you've been home than I've spent with any other man, but... why?  Why me?" she asked, and Líndal smiled as he brought her into a hug and kissed her lips gently.

"Because," he said quietly, "you are perfect for me, Eámanë.  When we went to the Nu'san Temple the other day... I got my answer."

"Your... answer?" Eámanë asked, and Líndal smiled as he went down on one knee.

"Yes.  I got my answer... about whether or not I should do what I am about to do now," he  said, and Eámanë gasped.

"Líndal--!"

[SpringsSong]

"I understand if you feel like things are moving a little fast, Eámanë," Líndal said.  "But, when you think about it, we've been together for almost a year and a half or so--even though we couldn't actually be together, because I was on my mission."

"But..." Eámanë began to say, placing a hand over her mouth.  "Why... what did I ever do to end up being noticed by you?"

"You were yourself," Líndal said.  "And in being yourself, you were perfect for me.  You didn't try to change to get my attention.  You made an effort to keep in touch with me over my mission, whereas most of my... ah... 'admirers' quickly forgot that I existed once I went to Sa'fir."

"Oh, Líndal..." Eámanë said, and Líndal smiled as he opened up the little box that he had in his hand.

"Eámanë... I know that this is the right choice," he said.  "And... I love you.  Will you... will you marry me?" he asked.

If Eámanë had not thrown up her mental shield before Líndal had asked her this question, then he would have been assaulted by a torrent of thoughts that was jumbled and confused at best.  Eámanë could not believe that this was happening to her; this was one of those moments where she had dreamed of it but had decided that it could never happen to her.

Finally, she spoke.

"Yes... yes, I will marry you, Líndal," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.