Joey Fatone walked through the jewelry store with his brother Steve. He was there buying an engagement ring for his girlfriend Maitlyn. They had bee dating for three years and he felt it was the right time to get married. Joey turned to Steve.
"Man, do you think I'm doing the right thing?" Joey asked
"Yes! How many times do I need to tell you that you and Maitlyn are perfect for each other and deserve to be married?" Steve replied
"I know. I know. I'm just nervous. This is a really big step you know." Joey said
"Yes, I know. But I don't know anyone more ready for it than you guys." Steve said
"Thanks man." Joey said
They walked over to the display case with all the rings. A sales person came over with a bright smile on her face.
"Can I help you?" she asked
"Yeah. I'm here to buy an engagement ring for my girlfriend." Joey replied
"Well, you've come to the right place. I'm Carrie." she said
"I'm Joey and this is my brother Steve." he said
"Hi. How are you doing?" she asked
"I'm a little nervous." Joey admitted
"You have no reason to be nervous. I'll help you pick out the right ring." Carrie said
"Okay. I'm going to trust you." Joey said
"And you can." she said
They looked at various rings for about an hour before Joey found the right one. It was a white gold band with a nice sized princess cut diamond in the center. He held it in between his fingers and the diamond sparkled when the light hit it.
"This is it." he said happily.
"Good choice." Carrie said. Steve nodded in approval.
He paid for the ring and had it wrapped. He and Steve left the store and went to grab lunch.
"Man, I didn't know that buying a ring was so much work." Steve said
"It's not just about buying a ring. It's buying the ring. The ring is a big part in the whole thing." Joey said
"I thought it was about whether or not you loved each other." Steve said
"It is but if you have this amazing proposal and then have a shitty ring it totally messes things up." Joey explained
"If you say so man." Steve replied
"Trust me." Joey said
After they ate, they got into Joey's car and began to drive.
"So, how are you going to do this?" Steve asked
"I'm not sure. I'll just do it when it feel right." Joey replied
"That works I guess." Steve replied
Joey drove to Steve's house and they hung out and watched sports for awhile. Joey looked at the clock and saw that Maitlyn should be arriving home soon. He stood up.
"I think I should get going. Maitlyn should be getting home soon." Joey said
"Alright. Good luck man. I'll talk to you tonight." Steve said
"Thanks bro." Joey said
The brothers hugged and Joey walked out to his car. He got in a played with the ring box for a few minutes. It was a really big step he was about to take. He knew he was making the right decision but it still felt crazy. He drove home in a semi-fog. He got home and before he could unlock the door, it opened.
"Hey. I heard your car pull up." Maitlyn said kissing him.
"Hey baby. How was work?" he asked
"Good. Jo Jo was back in for her shot today." she replied
Maitlyn was a veternarian. Jo Jo was one of her regular patients. She was a cocker spaniel with some neurotic tendencies. The shot was a tranquilizer to calm the dog's nerves. Maitlyn loved Jo Jo.
"Oh, your favorite patient." Joey replied
"Yeah. She's doing a lot better than she has been. I've been lowering her dosage of medication and she hasn't had any negative effects." she said
"That's good." he said
"So, what did you do today?" she asked
"Hung out with my brother. Nothing special." he lied
"That's cool. How's Steve?" she asked
"He's good. Still being Steve." he laughed
"He'll never change." she said shaking her head.
"Never." he agreed
They sat and watched television for awhile before Maitlyn went to go make dinner. While she was in the kitchen, Joey decided to propose after they ate. He carefully thought of what he would say. Nothing seemed to sound right no matter what he tried. He started talking out loud to himself to see if the words sounded any better.
"Maitlyn, we've been together for a long time and in that time we've been through a lot...no, that sounds boring." he mumbled
"What sounds boring?" she asked, walking into the living room.
"Nothing. How's dinner coming?" he asked
"Almost ready." she said
"Great." he replied
As promised, dinner was ready a few minutes later. Joey scarfed his food down to try and hurry up. He just wanted to propose and get it over with so he could relax. After dinner, they went back into the living room and sat on the couch. Just as Joey was getting ready to start, the phone rang. He cursed under his breath as Maitlyn picked up the phone.
"Hello? Hi Mrs. Powers, no you're not interrupting anything. What's wrong with ChiChi? He's hacking like he has a hairball but nothing is coming up? Well, he may be beginning to get a cold or something. My suggestion is to bring him in to my office. I'm not on call tonight but Dr. Phillips is and he'll take good care of ChiChi. Okay? Great. Really, it's no worry Mrs. Powers. See you next week for his checkup. Bye." Maitlyn hung up.
"What's wrong?" Joey asked
"ChiChi the chihuaha might have a cold." she replied
"Ah." he nodded
"Yeah. Being a vet is a never-ending job." she said
"Tell me about it. Mait, I have a question to ask you." he said seriously.
"Sure Joe, what is it?" she asked
"Well, I-" Just as he was about to start the phone rang again.
"I'll get it." Maitlyn said
"Hello? Oh hi Steve. Sure, he's right here." she said handing Joey the phone.
"Yeah?" Joey asked
"Did you ask her yet?" Steve questioned
"No, I was about to." Joey said
"Oh, well then. I'll talk to you later." Steve said
"Thanks." Joey replied
"What was that about?" Maitlyn asked
"Nothing. Mait, I love you." Joey said
"I love you too. What does that have to do with your brother calling?" she asked
"It doesn't. It has to do with what I need to ask you." he said
"Okay." she replied
"I love you. And we've been through a lot since we've been together. You stood by me no matter what, even before we were dating. You're my best friend. I can't picture my life without you in it and I don't want to try. I never want to live a day without you in my life. You're my world. And I wanted to ask you..." He was preparing to drop to one knee and the phone rang again.
"Damnit!" he exclaimed as Maitlyn answered the phone.
"Hello? Hi Mom. I don't know how to fix your cable box Mom. Why don't you ask Eric? Well, did you try his cell phone? I can't talk right now Mom. I'll call you back later okay? Bye." Maitlyn hung up and turned to Joey.
"Sorry." she said
"Will you marry me?" Joey blurted out.
"What?" she replied
"Will you marry me? I'm asking you now before we get interrupted yet again." he said
"Oh my God..." she replied
Joey got down on one knee and held out the open ring box to her.
"Well?" he asked
"Of course I will!" she exclaimed
He slipped the ring on her finger and they kissed.