A baneful grin swept over A.j.’s face.

He bent over and breathed in heavy.

And then with all of his strength…

Blew out his birthday candles.

The small crowd of people clapped and cheered “Yay!” They said in a blissful unison. Sarah stood beside A.j., smiling sweetly, and some people threw confetti. Denise was close by, standing next to Brian. “Happy birthday!” They all wished him.

A.j. smiled and looked at Sarah. “Thank you!” He seemed to chuckle. When Sarah gave a confused look, he added, “For this party you and Nick made up!” He kissed her and everything felt so right again; it always did with her. He looked up and saw Nick in the crowd.

For some reason he got an awkward feeling. When he had exchanged glances with Nick, Nick stared for a moment and then looked away, as if he didn’t want to let him know he was watching. A.j. smiled crooked, as if to ask Nick what was up. Nick simply glanced up again at him, and then to A.j.’s biggest surprise, frowned at slithered through the people and out the room. That was weird. What was his problem?

A.j. shrugged the notion away. He was having too much of a good time. He talked some to his mom and then to some of the other guys, and when things seemed to settle down, he turned to Sarah. “Come outside with me,” he asked, a bit of nervous plea in his voice. “Please?”

“Of course,” she said, and followed him.

They went outside together, which was upon a grand balcony that over looked a beautiful white-sanded ocean. The sun had set not too long ago, and everything was so marvelous. They were alone. A.j.’s right hand was shoved into his jean pocket, and in it he fumbled with an engagement ring with his clammy fingers. ‘Don’t rush it,’ he tried to urge himself, but he wanted to ask her so much. Being with her was just…a relief. She had changed his life so much more for the good…why not just ask her now?

“What do you need?” Sarah asked.

He contemplated and hesitated. Then he started to laugh a little. Then almost immediately he grew serious. Then he seemed paralyzed.

Sarah arched an eyebrow. “Uh-huh…”

“Uh…yeah, well you know how I am with all this stuff.”

“All what stuff?” Sarah asked. Her phone went off. “Hold that thought,” she said as she dug through her purse. She pretended to stay calm as she answered it ruefully. There was only one person who called her on that phone.

“Hello?”

A.j. looked out onto the ocean as she took the call. He tossed ways of proposing to her around in his head.

“I need you,” Was Nick’s answer.

Sarah turned away from A.j.’s view in order to express grief. She tried to sound believable as she said, “Oh NO! That’s awful.”

A.j. faced his girlfriend with concern as Nick was telling Sarah directions of where he was at over the phone.

“I’ll be right there,” she answered, this time accurately. She hung up the phone and shoved it back into her purse. “I have to go, I’m sorry.”

“Again?” A.j. said. Why was it that he had the complicated life, but she was the one always on the run?

“My…aunt’s in the hospital. I have to go see her.”

A.j.’s eyes widened, and he said softly, “ok.”

As Sarah left with that, without an embrace, he looked across the water. He took his hand out of his pocket as he remembered how Sarah had mentioned before that, strange enough, both her parents were only children. He began to sore.

He took the ring out of his pocket, and held it in his palm delicately. He looked down at it, and his facial expression changed to something twisted, like he had a bug in his hand. Suddenly he whispered to himself, “What am I doing?”