He Asked, I Said Yes!

For our 2 year anniversary, Alex had planned a surprise trip away. It was only a week before when he told me he had booked us an attic room in a gorgeous town house in York for the Bank Holiday weekend. So on the Saturday we packed up the car and set off in the sunshine to celebrate our 2 years together. When we arrived the attic room was far more beautiful than I could have imagined. 2 flights of stairs up led us to this little hygge haven of pale blues and crisp whites. The main room served as a bedsit with a big armchair in the corner, a double bed adorned with big, feather filled cushions, a set of drawers with a T.V on top, a bedside table completed with lamp and a dining table for 2. The kitchen was separated from the bedroom by a tall, mirrored screen and had everything we would need for our stay. Across from the main room was the bathroom, sky lit with bright white tiles, fresh towels and wooden floors which continued throughout. The whole idea behind this attic conversion was simply genius.

Once we had unpacked and freshened up we went off to explore the town. We had the whole of Sunday to shop so Saturday afternoon was more of a mooch. We went down by the River Ouse to have a mosey and saw an advertisement for River cruises. I love a river cruise and as a couple we have done Lake Windermere in the Lake District and the River Dee in Chester together. We spotted the offer for a Twilight Cruise which peaked our interest.

"Experience a romantic evening on the River Ouse. Enjoy a complimentary glass of Prosecco on board the Floodlit Evening cruise. Relax to Jazz music as you sail leisurely up and down stream".

Of course we had to partake! It was our anniversary afterall. So we set off to find some food and found a Street Food Cafe which also sold cocktails and since we were on our holidays we went in and I had 2 Kir Royales while Alex had a Craft Ale. We laughed and joked over a card game called, 'Exploding Kittens' which was not anywhere near as bad as it sounded. Once we had eaten we played another game and then we wandered back to our Attic Haven to get ready for our evening in York.

The Princess River Cruiser was adorned with lights and the Jazz music softly crooned to us as we waited to board on the jetty. We chose to sit right at the front of the boat and Alex went to get our complimentary drinks. I of course had the Prosecco and Alex opted for a more unconventional choice of a Hot Chocolate and a packet of biscuits. We set sail and it was the most divine evening. It was everything  I could have dreamed of. Slowly moving through the Ouse to the sounds of Miles Davis, the water twinkling by the city's lights. Alex asked me if I could be any happier in that moment and I said no, it wasn't possible.

We carried on holding hands as we drifted under bridges, the bubbles of the Prosecco and the magic of the evening going straight to me head. I voiced my hope that I wouldn't fall over board to which Alex said he would be sure to 'throw me a ring' if I did. Was something going on here? My cheeks felt flushed and very hot. Would he be asking a certain question on the boats upper deck? I pushed the thought out of my mind because if he didn't and I had read the entire situation wrong then there would be disappointment and the evening was far to perfect to let anything ruin it. Alex then asked if I would slow dance with him so we stood and gently swayed from side to side, his body warm as the nights cool air softly blew through my hair. The evening sky had turned a deep shade of Prussian blue and every light on the embankment cast a soft glow onto our boat. We kissed and swayed some more until Alex asked me to close my eyes. Surely not. Then he said, "You know how before you said that you couldn't be any happier right now..." My knees started to tremble, was it going to happen? I heard a rustle and the creak of a deck board. "...well, open your eyes". My eyes opened, teary from the evening's cold breeze, to Alex down on one knee with a sparkling diamond in his hands. "There are many ways I could say this but I will go with the simplest...Rachel, will you marry me?" I think my brain stopped working and a rather unattractive guffaw came out of my mouth. Yes, hell yes, of course I would, a thousand times yes...YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!! I managed to process what was happening and said, " of course I will, Alex I will marry you!" which was remarkably better than what was going on in my head. Alex stood up and put this gorgeous, glittering ring on my finger. I was a fiance to someone, my head felt like it might explode. All I remember happening after that was alot of tears from  me, Alex grinning from ear to ear and the fact that I couldn't take my eyes off this ring that changed everything! For the rest of the evening I floated on a cloud. Another passenger on the boat came over to congratulate us and have alook at my ring and then Alex suggested we went inside the boat, so I floated in surprised how light I felt with this giant rock on my finger! We got complimentary prosecco from the captain, had our photo taken, our engagement was announced over the speakers, everybody clapped and cheered for us- it was truly magical!

Once we got off the boat there was no where serving food, not that we cared, so we set off to Sainsbury's for a pizza. Our first meal as fiances! I phoned my mum, my sister, my best friend Sarah and Becki who both screamed down the phone. We then phoned Alex's granny who was suitably pleased and Alex's mum. We posted it on Facebook and watched animatedly as people sent us their congratulations and texts of shock- It was so much fun!

The following morning Alex made me breakfast in bed of pancakes, yoghurt, raspberries and a croissant. I phoned my friend Nicky and got so excited with her down the phone and then I phoned my grandma with a conversation that boggled my mind...

"Grandma, Alex proposed last night and I said yes!"
"What's the weather like in York?"
"Erm, good yeah...really sunny".

Turns out my grandma didn't have her hearing aid in and thought it very strange that I had phoned her at 7.30am on a Sunday while on holiday.

Needless to say the rest of the weekend was bliss! I drifted around on cloud nine. We celebrated our engagement at 'Ate O'Clock' where we had a deliscious meal and drinks followed by more complimentary fizz! I could get used to this. Even our journey home where we broke down on the motorway couldn't shake me off my cloud!

Blue Sky
Reading Bridal magazines daily!
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