𝐱𝐱𝐯𝐢.

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@havesomefaith posted a photo.

9m

• • • •

They were about a month and a half behind schedule, but Chris and Faith had finally made it to California and were looking forward to spending the weekend at a Disneyland hotel and resort. They'd both been to the theme park a handful of times in the past, but had never gone together, and since the trial had delayed Chris's birthday celebration, they were overjoyed to finally be able to decompress, enjoy one of their favorite franchises, and most of all, each other.

Once they'd checked into their hotel and changed into some Disney themed apparel, Faith began filling her fanny pack with the essentials while Chris perused the brochure. "What do you want to do first, babe?"

"Maybe we can hit the downtown district?" He suggested, stifling a yawn. "I feel like since we're going to be walking a lot today, we should get some food first."

"I agree," She responded, slipping her sunglasses atop her forehead. "Those pretzels on the plane did nothing for me."

"Me neither. To be honest, I wouldn't say no to a burger and fries right now."

She chuckled. "How did I know you were gonna mention your favorite meal?"

Chris squeezed her hip as he moved past her to get to one of his suitcases. "My favorite meal is between your thighs, baby. Anything else is second rate."

Cheeks hot, Faith chucked a small pillow at his head. "You're a hot mess, you know that?"

He looked over at her and winked as if to say, I know. "And you love it."

The ability Chris had to make her smile was something Faith never intended to take for granted. "Yeah, yeah. You got me."

Moments like these were ones Faith had vowed to cherish. While she knew healing and recovery weren't linear, it felt like things were beginning to get back to normal now that the trial had ended. A new NBA season was a few short months away; she missed working dearly, especially when it meant hanging with Cass and Mina at the office. Beyond that, she and Chris's relationship had grown even stronger, and they'd had some light discussions about their future, including the idea of marriage.

Faith had never been the type of girl who'd dreamt of getting married since she was a kid, but settling down at a certain point was definitely the goal. When she was a teenager, she'd written down a whole list of goals that she wanted to achieve by 30, which seemed like a lifetime away back then. Now that she was two years away from that milestone, all the goals on that sheet of paper felt incredibly juvenile—but the final item on the list, get married, was still very much obtainable.

For now though, Faith was determined to not dwell so much on the future and focus on the present. And right about now, there were funnel cakes and ice cream sundaes calling her name.

• • • •

Chris had been trying to think of a clever way to propose pretty much the second he and Faith landed in Los Angeles.

If there was anything the last few weeks had taught him, it was that life was too short. Tomorrow wasn't promised. They'd discussed marriage here and there; it was something they both wanted—not that his desire to have a family of his own was a secret, but the last thing you needed was to be on two different pages on that subject.

Chris had no doubt in his mind about Faith being "The One". Sometimes he wondered if maybe he was doing it too soon. But what was the saying? When you know, you know? If you wanted to spend the rest of your life with someone, you wanted the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.

Okay, that last part was borrowed from When Harry Met Sally, but it didn't make it any less of a reality for him. They loved each other, and had been through hell and back together...at this point, what else mattered?

After their second go round at Autopia, Chris bought some bottled water at a concession stand before joining Faith at a nearby bench in the shade. "You wanna go again, or are you tired of me beating you?"

"Shut up," She replied with a chuckle, adjusting her Star Wars hat. "You and your competitive streak..."

"Hey, when I get into it, I get into it, y'know?" He tipped his head back as he took a few refreshing gulps of water. "I'll go easy on you next time."

"Oh, please, don't even." She scoffed playfully. "I'll beat you next time. I just gotta distract you, make you get your race car off track."

"And just how do you plan on doing that?" He asked, raising his eyebrows.

She leaned in close and whispered, "Simple. I'll just flash my titties. You'll crash in seconds."

Chris's burst of laughter was so loud that a few passersby turned to stare. It wasn't long enough for anyone to recognize him, thank goodness. "Jesus Christ, babe. This is a family establishment."

She took the opportunity that he had his Celtics hat off to muss up his hair. "Yeah, yeah. I bet the cameras wouldn't even catch me."

"I can only imagine the look on the security team's face if they see it on the monitors."

Faith giggled. "Everybody'd be getting a show."

"Hell no, then. I don't need everybody else seeing your titties. I like burying my face in 'em too much to share."

Her laughing made him do the same, and suddenly it was just the two of them, sitting on a bench at Disneyland, her face hidden behind his shoulder, stupidly happy and madly in love. Chris didn't want to be anywhere else for all the money in the world.

Maybe he didn't need to figure out a clever way to propose. Maybe he just needed the ring and the gorgeous woman sitting next to him.

• • • •

Faith was hungry and a little tired by the time she and Chris were leaving the park, but she was also extremely happy. Though they were going back tomorrow, today had been perfect in her mind. Taking pictures with the Princesses was her favorite part, especially with her and Chris equally gushing over Ariel. The Little Mermaid had made fans of them for a lifetime, and even though it may have been a little silly to get so excited as adults, Faith's inner child was on top of the moon.

They walked side by side down a stone pathway that led to the parking area, the slow setting sun illuminating everything lying ahead of them. "Galaxy's Edge tomorrow?"

"Definitely," He answered. "I wanna do it earlier in the day if we can, you know there's gonna be a huge line."

"Yeah, let's do it." The Star Wars exhibit was the newest attraction at the park, and Faith had only heard rave reviews about it, so she couldn't wait to see what it was like for herself. "Oh, can we get a picture in front of the sign at the entrance? I forgot when we first got here."

"Sure, baby."

A few strides later and they'd made it to the exit, then looped back around to the front. Streams of people passed as Faith set her backpack and gift bag down at her feet to stand beside the welcome sign. "Is this a good spot?"

"Looks good to me," Chris dug in the pocket of his jeans for his phone, but Faith got hers out quicker.

"Chris, I love you, but we are not taking selfies with that ancient relic."

"It's not that old!" He quickly defended his continued use of the iPhone 6s, despite it having come out over five years ago.

"I'm getting you a new phone for Christmas, my love. You deserve better." She angled her phone high enough to get both of them in the frame, grinning ear to ear as she snapped a few in a row. After checking to make sure they weren't blurry, she put her phone back in her pocket. "Great. Anything else before we head out?"

When Chris didn't say anything, Faith turned her head to ask why, only to see that he was down on one knee.

Over the years, Faith had seen a million shows or movies with moments like this. The high pitched squeals, a hand over the mouth, maybe even jumping up and down in excitement. On screen, it almost always seemed fake or contrived. Over the top.

Tonight, though...here, in this moment...the one thing she copied from the movies was a rush of tears filling her eyes. And suddenly, nothing that they'd seen or done at the park today compared to the sight in front of her now.

• • • •

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@chrisevans posted a photo.

3m

[COMMENTS]

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you guys deserved some fluff after these last few chapters, so i hope this satisfied you <3

thank you for 73k :)