I awake to the sound of my phone ringing obnoxiously. My eyes are still shut as I reach my arm out to the bedside table and retrieve the phone. I open my eyes slowly and answer the frantic call of Katy.
"Hello?" I groan.
"Hey, good morning." Katy cheerfully replies.
"Not to be rude or anything, but it's," I pull the phone back and glance at the time and then place it back to my ear, "six - thirteen in the morning."
"I know, I'm sorry. But I just wanted to say that I spoke with the people from Drag Town and the bus is going to pick us up at Selma's place at eight thirty, so be ready to head over."
"Okay, I will. Thanks." I say.
"No problem. See ya later!"
I hang up and set my phone back on the table and turn around in bed. Shawn's missing from the bed and in his place was a pillow. I get up from the bed and search for a note, but came up short. From the corner of my eye, I saw a figure running outside along the beach. I walk closer to the window and pull back the light curtain and see Shawn running and working out.
I head downstairs and find Chandler in the kitchen with a cup of black coffee. His eyes are wide as he stares at his hand that rested on the counter.
"Why do you look like that?" I ask him.
"I couldn't get any sleep last night." He says.
"Why? Something on your mind?" I grab his mug and bring it to my lips and take a sip. I make a sour face before handing him his mug back and walking over to the sink and spitting out the coffee. "Jeez, how can people drink this?"
"Can I tell you a secret?"
"Sure."
I sit down on the stool adjacent to him and hug my knee to my chest and rest my chin on top. "What's up?"
"Keep your voice down on this," he says in a hushed tone.
"I will."
"All this wedding talk has me thinking." My eyes go wide and I slowly inhale before putting my hand over my mouth. Chandler places a hand up to silence me. "I've been speaking with dad about this for about a week now. And, she and I have been together since my sophomore year of college, it's been two years since graduation, I think I'm ready to settle down with her."
"So have you got a ring?" I ask.
He reaches into his pocket and takes out a small white box and slides it over to me. I remove the lid and reveal the white diamond ring that used to belong to our paternal grandmother before she passed away. "He gave you the ring?"
"Grandpa gave it to him the minute he met Chloe for the first time. Dad's been waiting for this moment." Chandler says and he runs a hand through his curly brown hair.
"When did he give it to you?"
"Last night when Chloe went asleep."
"Chan," I smile. "This is.. this is big."
"I know. But I don't know if it's the right time."
"It's the right time. She is madly in love with you. Chandler, you have the ring. What are you waiting for?"
"That's the thing - I don't know what I'm waiting for." He shrugs.
"Don't be that person who waits for the universe to decide for them, please. Because then you're going to be getting a bunch of mixed signals and then you'll end up making a decision you regret. If you want to know, talk to mom. A mother always knows what's right for her son." I place the lid back on the box and slide it over to him. He smiles weakly and I head back up the stairs for a morning shower.
After my shower, I get dressed in new undergarments and change back into the shorts and hoodie I wore to bed. With Shawn out of the house and still working out outside, I head over to my mom's room and find her in the bathroom as she did her morning routine.
