Chapter 4. The Strange Proposal 3

Then, Carson pleaded, “Young Lady, we appreciate your level of understanding. Could you just do us the last favor? What would a young man tell a lady on her engagement and she would be glad to accept the proposal.”

“I will do this because of you and not your overbearing friend,” Mirabel faced Carson and announced.

“It is all right. Thank you for that,” Carson appreciated her.

Then, she cast an annoying look on Alfred, and began, “You can say something like, 'I have found the reason to smile for the rest of my life. Will you be part of my endless smile and be my wife?'”

“That sounds good,” Alfred said and cheered up.

Then, he repeated her words. Although he could say it correctly, at first, he faked ignorance and missed some words, “I have found another excuse to laugh …”

“Excuse to laugh, indeed. Cut,” she glared at him and teased.

Carson could not help laughing happily. Nevertheless, Alfred stopped and looked at her like a silly pupil.

“Go on,” Mirabel ordered him.

“Thank you, Headmistress,” Alfred teased her back and continued, “…. An excuse to laugh for the rest of my life. Kindly come to my endless life and be my relative?”

Now, Carson looked at the pretentious Alfred and laughed his heart out. Then Mirabel, who was eager to redeem her, company image, stood her ground, “You have to get it right before you leave. Otherwise, you will ruin your date again.”

Nevertheless, Alfred, who wished to spend the whole day with her kept mixing things up, and she flared up, “If you miss it again, you will pay for my time,” she blurted out.

The happy Alfred smiled, and promised her, “I will get it right if we are practical. Can I have a bouquet?”

“You may be right. Let's see how it goes when you are practical,” Mirabel said and got up from her seat.

At that point, the initial tension was less and they were freer with one another and related like old friends. She picked up a bouquet from the shelf and returned to him.

“Here we are,” she said.

He collected it happily, got up from his seat, and asked her, “How should I hold it? The flowers or the wrapped stem?”

“What? No wonder you ruined your engagement,” she remarked.

“You see what I mean. So, what do I do?”

“Hold the wrapped stem, and say your lines," she advised and focused on him expectantly.

“I got it," he answered and began, "I have found the reason to smile …”

“Hold it," Carson interrupted him, faced Mirabel, and asked her, “What will the girl say if she accepts his proposal, and what will he do after the acceptance?”

“Oh! I haven't thought of that. But I think she knows what to do. After her acceptance, he would give her a passionate kiss.”

“That is a good idea. You must be a good teacher. Can you pretend to be the girl so that we will get it right once and for all?” Alfred suggested.

At An Event Organized By The Two

They succeeded in luring Mirabel to the event and she was happy for the privilege to redeem her company's image publicly.

To give her organization enough credit, the MC turned to Alfred, and asked him, “Sir, I hope you are prepared?”

“Certainly,” he responded with his foreign ascent and the crowd cheered.

“That is good. You have taken the time to get a beautiful bouquet. Am I right?”

“Yes, you are right.”

“Thank you, but where did you get it from?”

“Mira Love Garden.”

“Good. Do you have a ring?”

“Yes. I have.”

“Where did you get it from?”

“Mira Love Garden.”

“I like that. What about the woman, where did you get her from?”

“Mira Love Garden.”

Now, everyone was laughing raucously, and Mirabel laughed along with them. Her clients, who were at the table with her, cheered her up with compliments, “Mira Love Garden is the best.”

“Truly the best,” the MC agreed with them, and declared, “Be attentive, and watch the right way to propose to a lady. Courtesy of Mira Love Garden's Tutorial. You have the floor, Sir.”

“Thank you, MC,” Alfred appreciated him and stepped forward immediately.

He knelt on one knee, and the audience looked on keenly. Apart from the soft music in the background, the hall was quiet. Now, Carson was beneath the stage with his phone and recording every bit of the proposal. He would not mind losing the whole video of the event, but would not joke with that segment.

Then Alfred locked eyes with Mirabel and said his lines, which were different from Mirabel's tutorial, but expressed his deep love for her.

“I have waited for this day, Mirabel. With you, my life and days will become complete and bright. In your hands, I would love to lay and wake up for the rest of my life if you accept to be my wife.”

Now, her family members were astonished and the King inquired, “Could they be acting?”

“I wish they are not,” the Queen responded at once and fixed her eyes on Mirabel while waiting for her response.

Meanwhile, the Prince had the same view as his mother, and spoke, “If they are not, that would make my day.”

The King who knew little about her, looked on. At that stage, there was a pin-drop silence in the hall, and the DJ, who was also interested in the performance, had stopped the music completely and awaited her response.

Nevertheless, Mirabel was touched by his lines, and it put her in a mood that aided her performance to appear real. Then, she stretched out her left hand to him, and responded, “Alfred. I can't think of anything else more than to spend the rest of my life with you. I will be your wife.”

At that point, the audience was jubilant, and her friends clapped happily. Alfred brought out the ring box from his pocket and opened it. He took out a diamond ring which reflected both rainbow colors and white light and the audience screamed in ecstasy, “Wow!”

“What is going on? Is this real or acting?” Diane asked her friend.

“They are only acting. Otherwise, how would a handsome guy like him stoop for a nobody.”

“It has to be because that gentleman is mine already.”

“Ha! So soon?”

“Of course. If I delay further, other girls would go for him.”

“You are right. I wish you luck.”

“Thank you.”

Now, Alfred slipped the ring into her ring finger and handed the bouquet to her. She collected it and helped him to get up. Nevertheless, she was happy that it was over and flaunted her ring and bouquet just to show her beauty and attract more buyers, but Alfred shocked her.

He pulled her closer, bent his head to her size, and said, “Thank you for accepting to be my wife. I love you, Mirabel.”

Instantly, he held her nape and covered her lips with his. To avoid ruining her tutorial, or looking like Mickey and Minnie Mouse, she complied.

“Wow! They are not acting," Grandma Phoebe said.

“In that case, I have a bother in-law,” the Prince said while clapping.

“Grandpa, you have a son-in-law too,” Princess Aurora remarked.

Incidentally, the baffled King was not willing to give her out soon, especially now that he was closer to her.

“They are just acting, my dear,” he informed the Princess.

The puzzled Princess gave his father and grandmother a searching look, and they calmed her down, “We will talk more about it.”

Meanwhile, Alfred would not mind kissing her forever but Carson intervened and reminded him, “You are still on the stage, Alfred”

He stopped kissing her at once but held her closer and she did not resist. Thereafter, he turned to the audience, and the MC perceived that he wished to say something and handed the Mic to him.

He collected it and announced, “Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the happiest day of our lives. I will inform you of our wedding date soon.”

The audience clapped more while Mirabel, who believed that he was acting off the script, was flaunting her ring and bouquet happily.

“Congratulations to you,” the audience complimented them.