Is it forever

Anna's head was swirling. Had she misinterpreted what he meant? Was it just more crazy talk? Last night he had been in love. His kiss had been tender. He had held her as if he loved her.

Today, she smiled thinking of him. It had been so long since a man had made her smile. But she couldn't yet trust. He had been happy with the small kiss. She had been happy too.

Her past boyfriend if you could have called him that had been nothing but lies. He had played all the right music. According to Diana Ross. "She was the boss, her house was his house." But in reality, she had not been the boss, and he did not feel at home with her.

She had walked up on him kissing another woman. Anna had called the other woman a slut, but she was not the one to blame.

And now years later she felt shy and uncertain. It was hard for her to trust. This new man (Andrew) seemed to be a man, instead of a boy. There were no player songs of love. There just seemed to be honesty.

Anna was thinking of inviting Andrew for dinner. Her condo was not too messy, but still, he seemed like the kind of man she should clean up for. He deserved that kind of respect. She sang under her breath as she cleaned.

He called the next day. She could not sense his mood. He was inviting her to a dance contest. She was not going to compete, he was going to compete. He would meet her there.

Andrew was there when she arrived. The messy young man had cleaned up nicely. She looked around the room. It seemed to be an Italian crowd. She felt excited and sad at the same time. He came over and gave her a kiss on the cheek and lead her over to a front table.

He called a sharp-looking lady to their table. Anna this is Annette, my dance partner. They both said hello. Anna felt uncertain. Andrew had to go, so Anna ordered a drink and set down to watch.

She looked around, on the judges' table was what looked like a marigold. The whole room was decorated with paintings of marigolds. Then she found out why. On the menu was a story. The owner had proposed to his wife with a marigold. So now it was a custom in this room for people to propose to each other with a marigold. Hence the Marigold room. And if you won the dance contest you won 200 dollars and a marigold plant. She wondered if the winners would propose. Andrew might be the winner. Anna blushed, they hadn't known each other long enough for him to propose.

The couples had started dancing. Anna was impressed. Andrew was a pretty good dancer. She wished she was dancing with him. Annette just floated through the air. Anna was not sure she would have been quite as good. When the music started there had been eight couples, now there were only three, and Andrew and Annette were one of them. Anna felt proud, in fact, she was having fun. She drank her drink, when she looked up there were only two couples left. A few minutes later the music had stopped and Annette and Andrew were taking a bow. They had won. The room applauded. Each partner got 200. Anna was surprised. Annette was given a marigold plant which she gave to her boyfriend. She did not propose to him, but he proposed to her. He got down on one knee. She gave him a big kiss and said yes.

Andrew grabbed Anna's hand and led her to the dance floor. Andrew learned that Anna was a very good dancer. He got her back to her apartment at about eleven pm. She thought about inviting him in. But he gave her a kiss and mumbled something about having an early morning. She was so excited that she couldn't find her keys. He waited until she was in the apartment and then left. Anna wondered if Andrew would ever give her a marigold.

Anna was glad that she had tomorrow off. She felt like spoiling herself. She woke up early and went to the YMCA. She took the pump class and then sat in the sauna. She washed her hair, she felt beautiful. She wished she would see Andrew tonight. She had brought body cream with her. She was spoiling herself. She had a body spray as well. She felt great. She didn't want to spend any money but she went out for breakfast anyway. She was feeling like nothing could go wrong.

Andrew did not call over the weekend. Anna spent Sunday drinking coffee and attending church on Zoom. She also checked her store on the internet. Nothing to post and nothing sold. She had deposited 200 before her date the other night. The question was whether she should invest it on merchandise or spend it on bills. Monday she spent the morning grocery shopping. At noon she went to the YMCA again, for another pump class. And another afternoon of spa treatment. She was beginning to wonder about Andrew. She was surprised when she got home because there he stood . She smiled, she smelt good. She felt awake from working out and excited at his presence. She had a clean house and a full refrigerator. She was well prepared for the surprise. But Andrew wanted to go out to eat. He had been working all weekend and had slept late today. They went to eat in the local gardens. He was a gentleman he made her feel so special. Was he going to give her a marigold?

Over the next year, they went to the marigold room three or four times but he never won and she never got a marigold. Then one day he thought they should enter as a team. She didn't know if it was the affection they had for each other that was reflected in their dancing that caused them to win. But that night they won. She hugged him in delight as she was handed 200 dollars.

And then Andrew grabbed a Marigold and went down on one knee. Annie took the Marigold and kissed him. They would soon be getting married. This was the most perfect gift. In her mind, this bond would last forever. They had been blessed by the Marigold.