It all started on Tuesday night. Matt and I, along with his cousin “Peanut” got together to see “Return Of The King” at the 12:01 premiere showing. We had a great night, but a late one, and so Peanut stayed over. Matt and I had requested to have Wednesday off because of the late night, and so we planned on using the day off to finish our Christmas shopping, stopping first at North Star Mall and ending the day at Ingram Park Mall, before going to my friend Jennifer’s for dinner. Peanut decided to join us, and we drove in two cars out to the mall.
We arrived at North Star Mall around noon, and decided to get lunch first. Matt told me to go ahead and get my lunch, and he would wait for Peanut, who had forgotten something in his car. I went to La Madeleine, my favorite. I was extra hungry, so I got my usual chicken salad sandwich and mango tea, but also a potato galette (which was burnt anyway, yuck!) I sat down with my lunch and Matt and Peanut joined me at the table before they went to get their lunches. With only a few bites out of my sandwich, Matt informs me that we will not be Christmas shopping together today, or going to Ingram Mall, and he’s already called Jenn to tell her we’re not coming to dinner. He has a romantic day planned, but I will be alone most of the day, and he hands me an envelope:
Isabella Coker
Clue 1
I’m beyond confused at this point, and I look around, wondering where the camera crew might be. “We’re not shopping? I don’t get it!” and so I open the envelope. Inside are two pages of crisp white stationary with a beautiful blue embossed flower at the top. Page one is a list of six rules, instructing me on the importance of time and location. Page two is my first clue. Now I get it, I’m going on a scavenger hunt! Along with my clue, I read that I have a 2-hour appointment starting at 12:30. Reading the clue, I gather that I’m going to a salon. A salon? For 2 hours? Matt hands me his watch, and with only 15 minutes to spare, I realize I need to finish my lunch, except I’m far too excited and nervous to eat now! Could this be it? Is this THE DAY? No, it couldn’t be, and I’m determined not to think about it. I take one last bite of my sandwich, kiss Matt good-bye and off I go.
I arrive at Visible Changes salon a few minutes early for my appointment. I’m told that I’ll be getting my hair cut and colored with Melissa and Timothy. After choosing my cut and color, I show them the clues (they too were in the dark) and we start giggling about what is going on, what I’ll find at the end and how exciting this is! My appointment should be over by about 2:30, but we’re running a little behind, and I’m getting antsy. After all, the rules clearly state that I’m not to be more than 20 minutes off or it will cause problems later on. I’ve never been great with punctuality, and the butterflies are gathering in my stomach.
Timothy and Melissa were very helpful, and very quick, and around 2:35, Timothy takes off the stylist’s cape and I’m done. Melissa hands me my next envelope, containing a gift card for Visible Changes and Clue number two. Just to warn them, I called Matt to let him know I was running a little late, as I was instructed to do in the rules. I paid for my great new cut and color, some new shampoo and conditioner, and with only minutes to get to my next destination, I’m off, with everyone wishing me Good Luck and a Merry Christmas.
Reading Clue #2, I gather that I’m going to the Great American Cookie Company, but that was halfway across the mall, and it was crowded with holiday shoppers! How would I ever get there fast enough? Already it was 2:40, I was running behind, and I was only on the second clue! Oh No! Stopping briefly to think, I plot my shortcut to the Cookie Company. Instead of weaving in and out of crazed crowds, I’ll cut through the parking lot to Saks Fifth Avenue and then just back track a bit to my next destination! My confidence is renewed – temporarily – until I open the doors and step outside. I found myself facing a fairly decent incline AND a full parking lot. In my wheelchair, and with a bag of hair products on my lap, this wouldn’t be easy, but I couldn’t let it slow me down. It would take me twice as long to go back in through the mall now, so I flipped my sunglasses down, tossed my great new hair behind me, and off I went. “This hill isn’t as steep as it really looks,” I thought, and I was safely inside Saks in record time. Gathering my bags again and making my way through the lines for Santa, I turn the corner and there it is – The Great American Cookie Company! I’d made it from the salon in less than 4 minutes!
My clue tells me to ask for the order in my name, and get anything else I might need. I was parched and still hungry after having a rushed lunch, but while those Cheesecake Chocolate Swirl brownies looked tempting, I asked for my order and was back on my way. ‘The Great American Eating Card’ boasts the box, and as I open it up, I can’t help but smile. A large chocolate chip cookie lay inside, with the words “Clue 3” written in frosting. The inside of the box tells me I am off to Express, with about 45 minutes to shop. “Shop? With what money?” I wonder. Oh well, I’m running late and so I carefully headed over to Express, balancing a bag, my purse and a cookie box on my lap.
Express was a madhouse. Two big sales and Christmas only a week away, but I managed to find a sales girl and asked if there was an envelope waiting in my name. At first, she didn’t know what I was talking about, and looked at me as if I had a turkey on my head. But a moment later, (you could practically see the light bulb go off over her head), she remembered seeing it on the other counter. She handed me my fourth clue, and I find a quiet place to set my bags down and read it. Inside there is a gift card for $120! Much more than I would ever spend on myself, and instructions to buy myself a nice outfit. Back up in the food court when it all began, Matt told me that whatever I bought, I was to wear that evening, and handed me another envelope that went along with Clue Four. Opening the second envelope, I discover $60 in cash. My clue told me I had about an hour to find an outfit and shoes, and then I had a 30-minute appointment at Sephora at 4:30pm.
Why is it, that when I can’t afford to shop, I find plenty of things to buy, but when handed a gift card and told to shop ‘til I drop, I can’t find anything! I found myself gravitating towards my usual black pants and tees, but I knew I needed something nice. I asked a few associates for help, and they were more than happy to oblige. I find a few pairs of pants to try, and a number of tops and sweaters and I head into the fitting room. First pair of pants looked terrible. A heavy fabric and a deep charcoal gray, they seemed to make my lower half look twice as large as usual, and along with the other surprise I’d gotten that morning (ugh), I was not in the best of moods for trying on clothes. My excitement started to wane.
I pulled on the second pair of pants, “Our Best Seller!” the salesgirl exclaimed. At $58.00 a pair, I couldn’t possibly imagine myself buying them. They fit well, they looked nice, and darn it if they weren’t almost comfortable (hey, I never said beauty wasn’t painful!) Okay. Pants – check. Now, to find a nice shirt. The fitting room lights were blaring and cruel, and with every top and sweater I tried, I felt worse and worse. “So this is why I hate shopping!” I thought. Discouraged, I pulled my favorite black v-neck tee back on, left my shoes and my shopping bag in the room, and was back on the sales floor to find something suitable. Time was running out, it was almost 4:00, and all I had was another pair of black pants.
Wandering barefooted and aimless around the store, I found a cute skirt to try, but I already had bottoms and at $88, I couldn’t possibly afford that too. For what seemed like ages, I checked every rack at least twice. When I found something that might work, it wasn’t my size, and so it was off to the next shelf. The salesgirl helped me find, finally, a long sleeved, black button down blouse, and promises me that if I just layer it, nobody would know if the buttons burst. She pushes me in the direction of their Cashmere sweaters. Yum, cashmere. It felt dreamy, so I found a lovely cardigan and hot pink too! A splash of color for my otherwise all black outfit! I headed back into the fitting room and immediately cringed at the bright sweater on the hanger in front of me. The lights in the store weren’t nearly as bright as they were in here. I couldn’t wear hot pink, could I? I’d just left a salon with a bright shade of burgundy on my head, I couldn’t wear PINK! But I had to find something, and fast, so I tried it on.
Would you believe it? It looked great! And it felt even better. Nothing like a new haircut and cashmere to make a girl smile! I gathered my things and hopped in the long line. My total came to $140. Not bad, not bad. I’d forgotten that my $88 cashmere sweater was 40% off, but I was still over. Was this what the cash was for? I borrowed the phone to call Matt and double check, and everything was okay. Next stop, Sephora!
I had made it out of Express by 4:15, a whopping fifteen minutes before my appointment. Luckily, Sephora was just across the way and it was relatively quiet inside, so in I went. The nice gentleman at the door greeted me warmly, and I told him I had an appointment at 4:30, presumably to get my makeup done. He knew who I was right away, and as he led me to the counter, he asked how my day had been so far. “Great!” I told him, “but I think you know more than I do!” and he winked at me and said that I was probably right. Hmm, what could that mean? The girl who would be doing my makeup had just stepped out, so I had a few minutes to rest, so I organized my things and started going through my clues again. I read Clue Four once more.
“I didn’t know what to choose.
Now you go and pick your own shoes…”
SHOES! Oh no, I forgot to buy shoes! I panicked and asked if I could leave my bags at the counter and be right back. Thankfully, Steve Madden was just next-door. I rushed in, terrified that I’d never find something I could afford fast enough! It was 4:24! But there they were, an adorable pair of black satiny heels, and they were on sale too! I flagged the salesman and asked for a size 8. It seemed to take forever, but he brought them out. They were too small! “8.5 please?” Those felt a little better, but still snug in the toes. Oh well, I didn’t have time to try the 9’s, and so I went to the counter. With tax, it came to about $43. I only had thirty in cash, but I was desperate, so I paid for the rest myself, and with a sigh of relief, went back to Sephora.
Amber did my makeup, and although we only knew what I would be wearing and not what might be happening, she did a great job playing up my eyes and giving me a romantic, natural evening look. At 5:05, she finishes, and I no longer recognize myself. That morning I felt frumpy and drab, but the girl staring back at me was fresh-faced and fabulous. I was handed Clue number 5, and a gift card to Sephora for $20. No time to shop now! I had an appointment at 5:30 at another salon.
Another salon? What now?
Nobody seemed to know where Changes Natural was, so carrying my big bag from Express, a Cookie-in-a-Box, a bag full of hair products and now a shoe box, I stumbled to the mall directory. Great. They’re on the second floor. Now I have to find an elevator too, and its 5:15. Rushing through the mall, I’m stopped by a girl I bumped into at both Express and Sephora. She just had to know where I’d gotten my hair done at, it looked great and she simply loved it. I thanked her for the compliment and gave her the information she needed, and was back to the task at hand. I found an elevator inside Mervyns, but the saleswoman there tells me I can’t get to the salon from their second floor. Back out into the mall I go, and back into Saks Fifth, up the elevator and to the salon, where I have thirty minutes for a manicure. I select a pretty shade of pale pink and sat back to enjoy my manicure. Matt told me at lunchtime there were six clues, and I sat and stared at the envelope while I waited for my polish to dry. Country music and Christmas songs mixed together from the radio in the salon to the radio in the mall, and as I took my first real break of the day, I realized how exhausted I was, and just how much I missed Matt after the long, hectic day. What a whirlwind day it was, I loved every second of it, but I just longed to see his face.
At long last, my nails were dry, I opened my last clue, and had just moments to go change into my outfit and meet Matt at the Cheesecake Factory. Back downstairs I went to Express to change, praying that my pants would cover the black anklets I’d used to try on my shoes, as I’d forgotten to buy nylons – whoops! The staff at the Cheesecake Factory was friendly, and took me right to the table where he was waiting. Boy, when he wants to dress up, he can really knock a girls socks off. Dressed to the nines in his black pants, dress shirt and shoes and a new tie, he looked amazing, and I only hoped that I looked just as good. We laughed and talked about what a crazy day it had been, and then enjoyed a wonderful dinner and dessert.
I tried not to think about it. Really I did, but throughout dinner, I kept wondering if THIS was it. When the check came, our plates were cleared and we walked to the car, I told myself that no, this was not it, but it had been a wonderful day anyway and to not let the non-proposal get me down. As we drove home, Matt told me that after Peanut dropped him back at the mall, he had to come back to our place, as he’d forgotten something, so he’d have to buzz us in. Looking back, I realize how little sense that actually made, but oh well; I was caught in the moment. Peanut buzzed us into the apartment; we parked and started unloading the car. Gentleman at heart, Matt carried all of my bags, but stopped me on the way in for a kiss.
After a long, exhausting day, we’re finally at our door. Matt opens the door just a crack and calls out “Peanut?” but there’s no answer. Opening the door all the way, I see that the apartment is glimmering with candlelight. A bouquet of the biggest, most beautiful roses I’ve ever seen stand on the counter, and a path of rose petals lead into the bedroom. I’m stunned, and all I can say is “What IS all of this? What’s going on?” and Matt tells me that maybe I should follow the path; there might be another clue.
Trying carefully to not crush the beautiful rose petals, I make my way into the bedroom, only to find more candles and rose petals. A blanket of petals covered our bed, and nestled between them was another envelope. I was scared to open it. Time seemed to stand still, and my hands trembled as I opened the clue.
Clue 7
Here is one last clue to you, from me.
Turn around I am on one knee!
I must have read that last line 3 times before I could actually turn around. My eyes were starting to tear up and I slowly turned towards Matt.
There he was, on one knee, ring box in hand. He gazed into my eyes and whispered “Isabella, will you marry me?” Turn on the waterworks! “Oh my God, YES!” I exclaimed and wrapped my arms around him, hugging and kissing him, and soaking his shirt with tears. I’d never been so happy. He slipped the beautiful ring on my finger – a perfect fit. After more tears, more hugs and more kisses, Matt got up to open a bottle of our favorite wine, and gave me the go-ahead to call my family. It was a perfect end to a perfect day.
