The Proposal

"What would you say if I asked you to marry me today?"

He asked me this as we drove home from one of the most romantic weddings I had ever attended.

"Well, I guess I’d have to say yes.  I’ve invested too much time in this.", I said sarcastically.

We discussed our future like it was a far away place.  Eventually the conversation turned to something a little more light and insignificant and we carried on with the day.

A few hours later we got home and changed so that we could go hiking.  A couple of weeks prior, Chris asked me if I would like to go hiking on Mt. Bonnell and watch the sunset.  Naturally, I agreed, eager for a romantic evening with him on the one condition that we could find a quiet nook and make out.  He thought this was funny and agreed.

We arrived at Mt. Bonnell well before sunset and walked to the entrance.  There were 100 steps we would have to climb up to get to the top to experience the amazing view.  We hiked up the steps slowly and casually enjoying the afternoon.  As soon as we got to the top Chris said, "Let’s do it again!"  I laughed thinking this was cute and I said "Okay, let’s run up it this time!"  We both enjoyed the challenge and made our way back down and ran our way back up.

We walked around for an hour trying to find a quiet spot so we could be alone and watch the sunset.  We finally found a spot and sat down for another 45 minutes.  The sun was still high in the sky and I began to wonder what time he looked up for the sun to set.  I modestly mentioned this to him and he said, "Oh shoot! Crap!  You’re right.  I think I looked the time up for the east coast."  We both laughed, wondering what to do with ourselves for the next hour.  We ultimately decided to leave our spot, go get some water at the store, and make our way back before the sun was gone.

Mt. Bonnell is known as one of "the" romantic spots in Austin and there were a good amount of other couples wanting to watch the sunset themselves.  After giving up our first spot, it was difficult to find another.  We had to settle on watching the sunset with a silly teenage couple right next to us.  I was a little aggravated with this couple because they were drinking and smoking and really ruining the romantic mood I had imagined.  Chris just kept telling me to calm down and enjoy the view of the river and horizon.  I had no idea how hard he was trying to set the mood. =)

Finally, the sun had set and I was hungry.  I asked him if we could leave and get some sushi.  He seemed disappointed and asked if we could stay a bit longer because he was really enjoying the view.  Clueless, I said okay and made myself comfortable again.  Then he whispered "Let’s see if we can outlast this couple next to us.  Let’s stay longer so we can be alone."  I laughed and thought this was cute.  A little strange, but cute, and so we sat some more.

Finally, Chris decided that the couple was never going to leave and he asked me if I wanted to see if we could find another nook to be alone, so we jumped up and started looking.

We found a beautiful little ledge hidden by trees and overlooking the water.  It was perfect.  We both sat in silence just enjoying the moment.

Eventually he cleared his throat and said, "Do you know the story of Mt. Bonnell?"

I replied, "No…tell it to me!"

He questioned my response and said, "Are you sure?  The look on your face tells me you know the story."  (I really  had no idea though)

I said, "No.  Really.  Tell me!"

He said, "If you walk up the 100 steps with someone once, you're supposed to fall in love".

At this point, he looked away and couldn’t face me, and when he looked back at me his eyes were filled with tears.

"And if you walked up it twice, you're supposed to get engaged.  And the reason why I asked you what you would say today, if I asked you to marry me, is because that’s what I’m doing."

He choked the words out and I couldn’t contain myself.  I began to cry as he got down on one knee and said "Denicia Garcia, will you marry me?"

"YES!  Of course!"  I cried as I looked down at the little box in his hand.

He stood up and said, "Here.  Take it!"  And he threw the box at me.

I laughed and said "No!  You have to put in on my finger!"

We both laughed and cried and kissed and then he just held me.  We sat for a while, happy, in the moment.

And this is how it has become that Christopher Ryan Karcher, and myself, Denicia Garcia, are going to be married and live happily ever after.