I’ve replayed that moment in my head so many times that it’s become a strange blend of nightmare, comedy, and romantic drama. But the first time it happened—when it was real and raw—I genuinely thought my life had just shattered.

The sun was setting in Lavender Park, casting gold across the pond and turning the sky soft pink like a watercolor painting. I remember thinking it was a perfect day—a perfect day that life decided to ruin.

It all began with a missed text.

1. The Day Everything Was Supposed To Be Normal

I was on my way home from the bookstore, juggling a paper cup of iced coffee and a new fantasy novel, when my phone buzzed. It was a message from my best friend, Mia:

Mia: Hey, aren’t you supposed to be with Liam right now?

A frown pulled at my forehead. I hadn’t made plans with Liam today—at least, I didn’t think I had. My boyfriend wasn’t exactly predictable, but he usually gave some hint.

Me: Not that I know of. Why?

Mia: Because I literally just saw him walking toward Lavender Park with some girl.

My feet froze mid-step.

Lavender Park was our place. I knew he went there sometimes, but going with another girl? My heart plummeted into my stomach.

Me: What girl??

Mia took a minute to respond. A very long minute.

Mia: I don’t know, I only saw the back of her head. Long dark hair. White dress. Cute, I guess. I wasn’t spying or anything—but it definitely looked like they were meeting.

Long dark hair.
White dress.
Cute.

I had long dark hair.
I was wearing a white dress.
I was cute, according to him.

My coffee suddenly tasted bitter.

Maybe it meant nothing. Maybe she was a coworker, or a college friend visiting, or someone lost asking for directions. I tried to calm my racing heart, but my feet had already chosen for me—I was speed-walking toward the park before I even typed back.

Me: I’m going there now.

Mia: Want me to come??

Me: Not yet. I’ll let you know.

I shoved my phone in my bag and half-jogged the rest of the way.

I should’ve known then that this was a bad idea. But love makes you stupid.

Really, spectacularly stupid.

2. The Moment Everything Broke

The park was still lively when I got there. Kids ran around the duck pond, teenagers shared earbuds on benches, couples strolled hand in hand. My chest tightened watching them.

Would I still have that with Liam by the end of today?

I scanned the walking paths, my pulse pounding in my ears.

Then I saw him.

Liam. My Liam.

Standing in the rose garden clearing.
With another girl.

She had long dark hair.
She was wearing a white dress.
She was cute.

My stomach dropped so hard I nearly doubled over.

I took a few steps closer, hiding behind an oak tree. My breath hitched.

Liam reached into his pocket.
He pulled out a small velvet box.
He got down on one knee.

My vision blurred.
My ears rang.
My whole world crumbled.

No. No, no, no.

He was proposing.
To someone else.

I didn’t hear what he said—only the blood roaring in my ears like a storm. My heart felt like it had been ripped straight out of my chest.

The girl gasped.
She put her hands over her mouth.

I tasted tears.

This couldn’t be real.
This couldn’t—

He turned slightly, and I caught a full glimpse of the ring box.
A diamond glinted in the golden light.

I staggered backward, a choked sob escaping before I could stop it.

The girl heard it. Her head snapped toward me.

Liam followed her gaze.

I froze.

His eyes widened when he saw me—hair messy from running, breathing uneven, mascara smudged, heart shattered.

He shot to his feet so fast the girl stumbled backward.

“Baby?” he called out.

I shook my head in disbelief.

He took a step toward me.

I took a step back.

“Don’t,” I whispered, voice cracking. “Just… don’t.”

He blinked, confused, then looked between me and the other girl like he was trying to solve a puzzle.

Then his expression lit with realization.

“Oh my god.”

He laughed.

He actually laughed.

My jaw dropped.

“Relax, babe,” he said, holding the ring up casually. “I’m practicing for tomorrow. You suck at surprises.”

The world froze.

Practicing.

For tomorrow.

Surprise.

Proposal.

To… me?

My brain short-circuited.

Meanwhile, the other girl waved awkwardly. “Hi. I’m Justine. I work with him. I’m the fake-bride for rehearsal purposes.”

I stared.

Rehearsal.
Proposal.
Fake bride.

My emotions had whiplash so severe it could’ve killed me.

And then—

And then I did the only reasonable thing.

I burst into tears.

Not quiet tears.
Not pretty tears.

Full-on, hysterical, snotty, mortifying sobbing.

“Oh god,” Liam said, rushing over and pulling me into his arms. “No, no, sweetheart, don’t cry. It was supposed to be a cute surprise—why are you crying like that?”

I smacked his shoulder between sobs.

“You—” smack “—proposed—” smack “—to another girl!” smack.

Justine winced sympathetically. “To be fair, I thought this might happen.”

Liam groaned. “We practiced twice already! I thought the park would be safe.”

I shoved him lightly. “You didn’t think to consider the possibility your girlfriend might walk into a public park?!”

He hesitated.

“…No?”

Justine muttered, “Men,” and wandered off toward a bench.

Liam cupped my face gently. “Baby, listen to me. I’m proposing to you. Tomorrow. I wanted it to be perfect. I wanted it to be cinematic and smooth and romantic and—well, not this.” He waved a hand at my blotchy face.

I hiccupped.

“You scared me,” I whispered.

His expression softened. “I know. And I’m so, so sorry.”

He kissed my forehead.

My heart was still recovering from its near-death experience.

I clung to him.

There, in the rose garden, I felt my world stitch itself back together.

But the story doesn’t end there.

In fact, that was just the beginning.

3. The Aftermath of Emotional Chaos

To understand what happened next, you have to understand something fundamental about me:

When emotions overwhelm me, I become stupid.

When I’m really overwhelmed, I become a menace.

So you can imagine the kind of unhinged gremlin energy I had after witnessing my own fake betrayal.

Liam walked me to a bench, handed me tissues, and told me everything.

How he’d been planning the proposal for months.
How he’d recruited half his office to help.
How Justine volunteered to be the “dummy fiancée” because, and I quote, “you’re both disasters who need rehearsals.”

He even pulled out this little printed schedule he’d made titled:

Mission: Propose Without Being Awkward as Hell

I laughed so hard I snorted.

He blushed. “I tend to panic when I’m nervous, and I didn’t want to mess up asking you.”

“And you thought proposing to someone else would help?”

“…In hindsight, we should’ve practiced at a private location.”

Justine raised her hand from the bench. “I said that!”

We both ignored her.

I leaned into his shoulder, finally steady. “So tomorrow, huh?”

He froze.

“…Yes?”

“And I’m supposed to act surprised?”

He stared at me in horror.

“You will act surprised,” he said firmly, as if he could command the universe.

“Sure,” I said.

“You will.”

“Mmhmm.”

“I mean it.”

“I’ll… try?”

He groaned and dropped his face into his hands.

Justine snorted again.

We stayed like that for a while. The sky darkened, the streetlamps flickered on, and finally, after all the chaos, we went home.

We didn’t talk about tomorrow.

Not really.

But I could feel it hanging between us.

4. The Longest Night of My Life

I didn’t sleep.

Not even a little.

My mind replayed everything at high speed:

him kneeling
the ring box
the girl in the white dress
the stupidest misunderstanding in the history of love
and the fact that tomorrow—he planned to ask me to marry him

I kept checking my hands like an idiot, imagining a ring there.

At 3 a.m., I texted Mia:

Me: So uh. Funny story. He wasn’t cheating.

She responded instantly, because of course she did.

Mia: WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN FUNNY STORY

Me: He was rehearsing a proposal.

Mia: TO WHO??

Me: Me lol

Mia: OH MY GOD SEND DETAILS RIGHT NOW

So I did.

All of them.

By the time I finished, she’d called me.

“Babe,” she said, “I love you, but that is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Agree.”

“And the funniest.”

“Unfortunately also agree.”

“And you better act surprised tomorrow or I’ll disown you.”

I groaned.

“I don’t know if I can! What if I slip?”

“Practice!” she yelled. “Pretend you’re in a drama class! Open your mouth dramatically! Clap your hands! Gasp like a Victorian woman!”

I groaned harder.

She forced me through a full hour of “surprised acting rehearsal.”

By 5 a.m., I was emotionally drained and physically exhausted.

But I was ready.

Or so I thought.

5. The Proposal Day

The next day felt unreal.

Liam insisted we “spontaneously” go to Lavender Park.

He was sweating.

A lot.

Like, waterfalls-of-nervousness sweating.

It was adorable.

We walked past the pond, the benches, the lamp posts, and finally reached the rose garden.

The exact spot where my emotional meltdown happened.

He cleared his throat.

“I uh… I had something I wanted to say.”

I prepared my best surprised face.

But something felt… off.

He wasn’t reaching for the ring.

He wasn’t even nervous.

He looked… sad.

My heart skipped a beat.

“Baby,” he said quietly, “I thought about last night a lot. And I realized something.”

I swallowed.

He looked into my eyes with a seriousness I’d never seen before.

“I scared you.”

I shook my head. “Liam—”

“No. I scared you in the worst possible way. And that’s not something I ever want to do again.”

My eyes softened. “I know you didn’t mean to.”

He took my hands.

“But I need to know something before I ask you anything.”

I blinked.

He stepped back, taking a deep breath.

“Do you trust me?”

I exhaled shakily.

“Yes,” I whispered.

He closed his eyes in relief.

Then he knelt.

This time there was no confusion.
No other girl.
No fake practice.

Just him.

Just me.

Just love.

He opened the ring box.

My heart exploded.

“Okay,” he said, voice trembling, “now act surprised.”

I gasped dramatically.

Like Mia taught me.

Hands flying to my mouth.
Eyes widening.
Shoulders tensing.

“Oh my GOD,” I squeaked like a cartoon.

He burst out laughing.

“Marry me?” he asked, eyes shining.

“Yes,” I breathed.

He slipped the ring onto my finger.

It fit perfectly.

We kissed.

People around us clapped.

Someone took photos.

Someone else cried.

Justine popped out from behind a pillar holding a thumbs-up.

It was perfect.

Absolutely perfect.

6. Happily Ever After? Almost.

You’d think that would be the end of the story, right?

Cute couple, funny misunderstanding, successful proposal.

But no.

Life with Liam was never that simple.

We celebrated with dinner, called our families, posted tasteful (but slightly bragging) photos online.

And then—

At around 10 p.m.—

My phone buzzed.

It was Mia.

Mia: Babe.

Me: Yes?

Mia: You know that video I took yesterday? The one of him practicing with the fake girl?

Me: …Yes?

Mia: I accidentally posted it on my story.

Me: WHAT

Mia: AND IT KIND OF WENT VIRAL.

Me: MIA WHAT DO YOU MEAN VIRAL

Mia: CHECK TWITTER.

I did.

There it was.

A video titled:

“Girl catches her boyfriend proposing to someone else… but plot twist?? 😂😂”

Millions of views.
Thousands of comments.
People choosing teams.
Memes.
Fan edits.

I stared at the screen, horrified.

Liam looked over my shoulder.

His jaw dropped.

“Baby,” he said slowly.

“…Yeah?”

“We’re internet famous.”

“Oh god.”

But he smiled, wrapped an arm around me, and kissed the top of my head.

“At least you said yes before the fame hit.”

I groaned.

He laughed.

I leaned into him.

The world felt lighter.

Even with the chaos.

Especially with the chaos.

Because at the end of the day—

I chose him.
He chose me.

And no misunderstanding, no viral video, and no fake rehearsal bride would ever change that.

7. Epilogue: The Park, Two Years Later

Lavender Park still looks the same.

The pond is still full of ducks.
The rose garden still smells sweet.
The benches still wobble if you sit too close to the left side.

What’s different is me.

Because today, I’m here again.

White dress.
Bouquet in hand.
Friends and family gathered.

Waiting for Liam.

I hear footsteps.

He appears, looking nervous and excited and handsome.

He steps close.

“You ready?” he whispers.

I nod.

We walk down the aisle.

Right to the rose garden.

The same exact spot.

Where he practiced.
Where I cried.
Where he proposed.

Where our story really began.

And when we say our vows, I can’t help but laugh a little.

Because the officiant says—

“Do you promise to communicate clearly, avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, and never again practice a proposal on another woman in a public park?”

Liam groans.

Everyone laughs.

I do too.

Because it’s us.

Chaotic.
Ridiculous.
Deeply in love.

And absolutely perfect.

The End