Aria

Colombia is one of the last places on earth I thought I would ever travel to. I wanted to travel to Thailand to lounge on the beach, to Greece to spend my days exploring Greek mythology, to Italy to indulge in pasta. Never, not once, did I think I would be trekking through forty-seven kilometres of the coastal jungle in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains and fighting off copious amounts of mosquitos. Thank God I updated my vaccinations before departing from Canada. The last thing I need is some disease transmitted to me by these goddamned mosquitos. Seriously, they're driving me crazy. I think they're attracted to the build-up of sunscreen, sweat, and repellent.

However, the beauty of Colombia is just too much to keep my attention focused on the annoying mosquitos.

So far, Leo, Eliza, Mom, and I have done several different hikes with several different groups, adding up to the forty-seven kilometres. Yesterday, we started a three-day trek that's supposed to give us picturesque views of La Tagua, Mirador de Cerro Kennedy, and, finally, Panku Sacred Waterfall. So far, picturesque can't even justify what we've seen. Colombia, despite the mosquitos, is absolutely stunning. I'm glad Leo convinced me to come here. To be honest, I was already half sold on coming here when he pulled up the pictures online, but I was entirely devoted to this trip the moment he told me about how much his mom has always wanted to come here. How Eliza and Leon had dreamt of visiting this place for many, many years.

This trip has been amazing. I don't want it to end. I love being able to spend time with Leo, Eliza, and Mom, and the three of us keep teasing Leo about being the only man on this trip. Benn was originally supposed to come along, but after learning about all the scary things (spiders, snakes, et cetera), he chickened out and told us to enjoy ourselves. He also told me to make sure I find the right time to propose to Leo. As well as to keep it a secret from him in order to make sure it's a surprise. Suffice to say, Benn has told me a lot of things, despite his inexperience in the proposal section. As of right now, Mom and Dad, Eliza, Nathan, Benn, Colson, Scarlett, and my aunt and uncle are the only ones who know about my plan. It sounds like a long list of people, and I suppose it is, but they're all people that are very close to me and Leo. Nathan even gave me his wedding ring for Leo to wear and me his wife's ring; he said it was time to pass them down to the next generation. So, there are no issues there, with the people I care about knowing.

What I do have an issue with is the timing of proposing to Leo. There have been several good chances to do so, but I've been interrupted each time. I'm trying to believe that those times were interrupted for a valid reason. I'm trying so, so hard. The only thing is, I'm beginning to get a little frustrated with it all. We've been dating for five years now, living together and doing all the other things long-term couples do. We've even discussed the possibility of kids in the future, which we're both on board for.

So why can't I find the opportune moment to propose to him?

I pause at the top of the hill to catch my breath, gazing out at the view before me. We're almost at the waterfall, meaning the area surrounding me is dense with lush forest and uneven terrain. It's so dense, in fact, that the sun barely peeks through, easing the scorching summer sun.

Because I'm ahead of my group, I slide my backpack from my shoulders and place it next to my feet. I lean down and begin to rummage through it, looking for my water bottle as well as Leon's bucket list. I find the list first. The paper is worn and wrinkled, stained with splashes of ketchup and droplets of rain, but every checkmark and every word is still visible. After we finished the list, Leo tucked it away at Tenille's house for safekeeping and because keeping it in Whistler just seemed like the right thing to do. However, when Leo finished school and moved to Calgary to be with me, we went on a trip to Whistler to say hi to everyone and I took it. I took it because there was one thing on that list we were not able to check off: Leon's goal to marry Eliza. I still don't know how Leo is going to react when he sees that I've crossed that sentence out with a red marker and replaced it with Marry Leo, but I'm hoping he sees my point in all this. Our marriage (if he says yes and if I ever find the right time to ask him), is to make up for what was lost. I know it's not the same as Leon and Eliza getting married, but at least, to some degree, the bucket list will be complete.

After a sip of my water and several seconds of staring at the list, I begin to thumb the ring in my pocket. Carrying a ring in my pocket probably isn't the smartest thing I've done, considering how easily I could lose it while, but having it close to me gives me comfort. It anchors me in ways I never thought it could. It anchors me because, no matter how it happens, it's going to happen. And, not to sound cocky or anything, I already know Leo will say yes when I ask. He moved to Calgary to be with me; he uprooted his entire life in New Brunswick and Halifax to be with me. Anyone who is crazy enough to move from the East Coast to the Prarie Provinces definitely loves you enough to marry you. Sometimes, I don't understand how he managed to change from being next to the ocean to being surrounded by fields of wheat and no mountains whatsoever.

Over the past couple of months, he's been acting a little weird, showing more nervousness around me than usual. Personally, I think it's because he wants to propose but just doesn't know how to. Leo, despite his best efforts to combat it with deep breathing exercises and counselling, still struggles with his anxiety on a day-to-day basis. Which is why I want to take the initiativep; I want to take some of the pressure off of him and be the one to propose. Screw the typical tradition of the man proposing to the woman. It's time we women took charge and created lives for ourselves, be it with or without the love of our lives.

"Christ," I hear from behind me. "Do you ever slow down? You're in the off-season, not training for the Olympics again."

I turn around, sticking the rings and the list back in the pocket of my shorts. Leo is standing in front of me, the remainder of the group not too far behind. The tanned skin of his shoulders and forehead glisten with a layer of sweat, sunscreen, and mosquito repellent. I allow my gaze to travel down his body, taking in the corded muscles of his biceps and legs, fantasizing about how much he's changed since the day I almost hit him with my rental car. He's filled out, no longer looking like the scrawny-but-sexy teenager he was. His hair has also gotten lighter over the years, changing from a perfectly toned and highlighted dirty blond to a lighter, almost honey-like colour. His hair almost matches Eliza's perfectly. What's the same, though, are his eyes. They're still that stunning blue, a patch of brown in one of them. The same eyes I get to look into every morning when I wake up.

The corner of my mouth curves upward as I glance around the wide-open space. "There's too much to see and we have so little time. It's stunning here."

Leo walks up beside me and sets his backpack down, wrapping an arm around my waist. He presses a kiss to my cheek. "I know," he murmurs. "I can see why my parents wanted to come here. It's breathtaking."

I nod in agreement, glancing over my shoulder at my mom and Eliza. The two of them have gotten so close over the time Leo and I have been together that it's nearly impossible to separate them. Even when they're on opposite sides of Canada, they always find a way to communicate. Mom was the one who comforted Eliza when Leo and I gave her the ticket to Colombia and she started crying. Eliza was the one who taught Mom how to change her own oil for her car. They're as close as Mom and Aunty Emyln are.

A pang of...To be honest, I can't really tell what emotion I'm feeling for Eliza at the moment. It's almost bittersweet. She's on the trip she's always wanted to go on. But she's doing it without Leon, the one person whom she had planned to go with. "I wish your dad was here," I admit. There hasn't been a single day where I don't wish I could have met Leo's dad. Or where I haven't questioned what he was like despite all the wonderful stories I've heard. I wonder how Leon and my dad would have gotten along. If the dynamics of everything would have changed. If I would have ever met Leo in the first place.

Life has a funny way of making things happen.

Leo's arm tightens around my waist. "Me too," he replies softly. "Me too."

I draw my bottom lip between my teeth, wondering if now would be a good time to propose. If proposing during this trip was even a good idea to begin with. It already holds enough sentimental value, regarding Eliza always wanting to come here, as well as the bucket list. I'm scared that my actions could potentially overdo it or subtract from the importance. Although, when I told Eliza I was going to propose to Leo, she seemed okay with it.

"Dad would have loved this view," Leo continues on. "He would have loved to be here with Mom and the rest of us. He would have loved your family, too."

"How can you be so sure?" I ask.

He glances at me, a small smile on his lips. "Because I just know," he replies. "From the stories I've heard, the pictures I've seen, I know my dad was a family man. I know he welcomed people with open arms, too. Overall, he was a good person. He had his flaws, but he also had a heart of gold."

I lean my head against Leo's bicep, breathing in his familiar scent, even though it is tainted by sweat and mosquito repellent. The voices are beginning to get louder, Mom, Eliza, and the tour guide leading the pack. If I'm going to do this, I realize, I need to do it now. Before everyone sees it happen and takes thousands of pictures. There are a couple of other Canadian tourists on this trip and they've been sneaking pictures of Leo and I, probably posting them to their Instagram accounts and claiming they've become friends with us. I suppress an eye roll. I'm excellent at putting up with fans, but sometimes, especially when I'm on vacation with the people I love, I'm ready to snap.

Pulling away from Leo's grip, I turn to face him, my hand instantly slipping into my pocket. "Leo?" I ask softly, thumbing the bucket list.

"Yeah?" he replies.

I swallow thickly, replaying the past few years in my mind. We've had our ups and downs during our relationship, but each time we've come out stronger than before. We've become compliant with and understanding of each other. We've made changes in our lives to make space for the other. "I, um..." I pause, taking a deep breath. I also reprimand myself. Why the hell am I chickening out like this? I'm Aria Madden, for God's sake! I can do this!

Leo cocks an eyebrow, a hint of amusement on his face. "Yeah?"

I take another deep breath and pull out the bucket list. His eyes widen slightly as I unfold it. "Do you remember that day at the diner when I proposed we complete this bucket list together?"

He nods, a sombre look of confusion on his face.

"Well," I continue. "As you know, there was one thing on that list we couldn't complete. Not to its full extent, at least. Your dad always wanted to marry your mom. I could never figure out at what age he wrote this, but judging by the backwards y at the end of Marry, I'm guessing it was a fairly young age. I wish your parents could have gotten married, Leo. I wish they could have had a happy ending like the one we got after everything we went through. Just like I wish we could have found a way to check one more thing off of the list. But we both know that's impossible, sadly. Which is why..." I flip the list around and point out the uneven, thick red line I drew across the words. "I crossed it off and made my own mark on the bucket list." Leo takes the list from me, staring at it. While his attention is focused on the list, I remove the rings from my pocket. "Which is why, in honour of your parents, I want to ask you something."

Leo glances up, his mouth dropping open when he sees both wedding rings in my hand. "That's my grandpa's," he says in awe, his eyes filling with emotion. "And that was my grandma's."

I nod, a smile on my lips. "Nathan gave them to me. He said it was time to pass them down to the next generation. I - "

"Yes," Leo blurts, cutting me off.

"What?" I ask, a crease forming between my brows.

"I'll marry you," he replies.

I stare at him, not in shock, but because I didn't even get to ask the question. Deciding to tease him, I cock my head to the side and give him a look. "What makes you think I was going to ask you to marry me?"

He shoots me a deadpan look, clearly unimpressed with my comment, and holds out his left hand. "Put the ring on my finger, Aria. And let me put that ring on your finger."

Laughing, I drop the sparkly diamond ring into his hand. I'm practically shaking with excitement and happiness as I slide the gold band onto his ring finger. I'm almost jumping up and down when he does the same to my ring finger.

"We're actually doing this!" I exclaim.

"We are," Leo smiles, pulling me in for a heated kiss. It becomes so heated, so intense, that we stumble a little, turning our bodies to face the striking forest view before us.

"Aria Sangster," I say as we stare out into the green, green forest, my nerves giddy and drunk with love and the future and everything that has to do with happiness. "It sounds perfect."

"As perfect as it sounds," Leo says, kissing my cheek. "I want your last name. I want to be Leo Madden. If you're okay with it, that is."

I blink in surprise, testing the name on my tongue. "Are you sure?" I ask. "Because I'm perfectly fine with taking Sangster." As soon as the words leave my mouth, though, I want to retract them. I've been a Madden my whole life. I've built my career around the name Madden and continued on my father's legacy with it. As much as I love the name Sangster, I don't think I'm ready to let go of Madden yet. Ever, really.

He nods without hesitation. "Dad wanted Mom's last name, so I think it's only fair that we continue to honour their relationship by me taking your last name. Besides, I think it's entirely unfair that women are expected to just give up their last names after years of having them. We've already broken the traditional set of marriage rules, so let's continue on with it, shall we?"

I stare at him, wondering how I got so lucky. "If that's what you want to do, then we'll do it."

"Aria and Leo Madden," he smiles, his breath hot on my lips.

"Leo and Aria Madden," I repeat, reaching up to bop him on the nose.

"We're going to get in a lot of shit for this on social media," he jokes.

I scoff. "Come on, now, we're better than the trolls on social media. We can fucking do this."

He presses another kiss to my lips. "I know," he murmurs. "I know."

I slide my hand up to Leo's face and press my forehead against his, running the palm of my hand over the stubble on his jaw. I don't know what forces caused us to meet that day back in Whistler, but I thank them every day for bringing him into my life. For giving us a chance at a relationship and letting it work. Before I met Leo, I never needed a man in my life. I'm a strong, independent woman who can kick ass. But with Leo, I'm so much more than that. Just like he's so much more when I'm with him. We fuel each other, we bring out the best in each other.

And it's because of that that I have no doubt in my mind that these upcoming years are going to be the best years of our lives.

Because we're in them together, for better or worse, we're together.