Mira
I sat in the living room, my hands clenched together, tapping my feet. It was a beautiful day, and our six-month anniversary. We had made it, we had got through the tough times and come out on the other side, neither of us abandoning the other in our search for financial relief. I kept calling it that, financial relief, but I knew that while it may have started that way, it definitely wasn’t that now. I hadn’t stuck around because of money, I had stayed because of Ryan. I’d wanted one more day, one more dinner, one more hot night, and by the time I’d even begun to come up for air the whole show was done and over with.
Now I could hear Evelyn talking in the other room, giving Ryan his final interview. We had to do them separately since we would be figuring out our future at the event in just a little while. It was killing me, sitting there, wondering how he felt, wondering if this would be the last day of my marriage or not. I questioned myself over and over on what I wanted out of Ryan, what I wanted out of life, and I think, deep down I already knew, but I was too afraid to be the first one to say it. I was too afraid to get my heart stomped on, and taking a chance was just not in my nature.
I wondered what Ryan was saying in the other room. I wondered if he was telling the camera how he felt, or if he had juggled the question like I had. I wondered what he had thought of when he first woke up that morning, and if he too was sad that all this was coming to an end. It had been a really big adventure, that was for sure, and no matter how it ended I wouldn’t have taken it back for anything. Not only did I win a lot of money, my mother got her life back. That alone was worth all this, divorce or not, heartbreak or not. I wouldn’t change a thing about the choices I had made along the way. Ryan was in my life for a reason, and though it may have just been for my mother, he had become one of the most important people I had ever met. I just hoped that everything turned out okay in the end.
When the doors opened, Ryan walked in, smiling over at me. I had gone first, so at that point we were packed up and chauffeured over to the same hotel where we had got married. When we got there, we were ushered into the same room, only instead of being staged for a wedding, there were a bunch of people seated, sectioned into rows facing a stage at the front of the room. I was nervous, more nervous than the first time I’d been there, and Ryan took my hand as we reached the steps, helping me up onto the platform. We walked across the stage and stood on either side of Evelyn. I kept my hands clasped firmly in front of me, hopefully controlling the shaking. I stared out into the crowd, terrified, just wanting to get through this and then move on, to whatever that would be. It was coming to a close, and that was probably a good thing. We couldn’t live in a fairy tale forever, after all.
“You made it,” Evelyn said, clapping her hands along with the crowd. “There have definitely been ups and downs, questions, hate, love, revenge, anger and surgeries. But, in the end, you are both still standing here today. The two of you showed us what a little faith and a little kindness can do. We never expected that when we brought you both on this show, you would make choices that altered not only your lives, but the lives of others, in an amazing way. We seriously could not have asked for two better people to start off this show with. Now, the rules, as stated, were that, if you both made it to the end of the show, you would receive the check and here you stand. So, it is my pleasure to award you as a couple, a check for one million dollars.”
I stepped over next to Ryan and held up one end of a very large cardboard check made out to the two of us. Flashbulbs went off and pictures were taken. My hands were shaking so hard I could barely grasp the cardboard. When they were done with the photos, I walked back over to the other side of Evelyn and stood in front of my mic.
“Ryan, what are your plans for the money?” Evelyn asked.
“Well, I guess they are the same as they were before, to expand my business, open up one or two more mechanic shops and really grow professionally,” he said, glancing over at me.
“Very nice,” Evelyn said, turning to me. “And Mira? How about you?”
“Well, things have definitely changed since I got here six months ago,” I smiled. “I no longer need the money for my mother’s ongoing care, because Ryan saved her life with the generous donation of a kidney.”
There was a long and audible ‘aww’ from the crowd.
“I guess I would like to go back to school,” I said. “As much as I love the idea of being an actress, I want to have something a bit more solid under my belt for the future. I would also like to make sure that my mom and I are both comfortable.”
“Wonderful,” Evelyn smiled. “Those are all very good dreams. Now, before we continue, let’s just take a look back at some of the highlights of our first season.”
The cameras cut out and a screen dropped from the ceiling. We both looked up and watched as a highlight reel played across the screen. It was our wedding, our first date, our fights, our make-ups, and of course, a zoomed in shot of me throwing an apple at Miles. After that, there was a scene that I didn’t even realize they had captured. I had bent down and kissed Ryan on the forehead after surgery. While I was prepared for footage to be shown and knew some of the events that would be too irresistible for Evelyn to leave out, the whole thing, especially the tender hospital scene had caught me off guard, and I could feel a lump in my throat, and strong tears pulling at my eyes. When the lights came back on I looked down at the floor, trying to gather my composure for a moment.
“What an amazing first season,” Evelyn spoke loudly, and clapped along with the crowd. “Now, to the big question. What are you two planning to do with your relationship? Are you deciding to divorce, or stay together and see what happens?”
There was an immediate silence in the room that could have knocked me straight off my feet. You could have heard a pin drop in the large space, and the silence echoed through my ears and pushed down into my chest. I shuffled my feet, not knowing what to say or do. Maybe it was just best I let it go and move on, I didn’t want to be left with a broken heart. But before I could speak, though, Ryan stepped forward, grabbing the mic from the stand.
“That very question is something that has weighed heavily on me,” Ryan said, turning and very clearly addressing his comments to me. “When I first got here, the idea Evelyn was spinning, that I would actually fall for the girl on the show sounded absolutely wild, and ridiculous. Mira, I wasn’t expecting you to drive me absolutely batshit crazy with your chattiness.”
I swallowed hard and looked down at the floor, snapping my head back up with his next words.
“But, at the same time, I’ve learned to love it,” he smiled. “I have to be honest, I love everything about you, Mira. I love the way you smile, I love the way you crinkle your nose when you laugh too hard, I love the way you frown at me when I sat something silly or dumb. I love the way you care for others and how you are willing to lay your life down for your mother. You caught me off guard in this life. You challenged the way that I thought about things. You make me want to be better, to do better, and to treat others with the same sort of kindness you show to me. I want to make you happy, to wipe away any worry or sadness from your face. I know that I am taking a big leap here, and I know I’m not the best at communication, especially when it comes to emotions, but I can’t let you walk out of my life. Mira, I am madly in love with you, I have been probably from the first moment I laid eyes on you, and over the past six months that love has grown and strengthened into something I have never felt for anyone in my entire life. I don’t want a divorce, I want to stay married, and I want to grow old with you, Mira, if you’ll have me.”
Evelyn turned to me, her mouth hanging open, as she waited for my response. Tears had flooded my eyes and were running unchecked down my cheeks. I couldn’t imagine his answer being any better than it was. He loved me, he really loved me, and he didn’t want us to be apart. Those words were the best thing I had heard since the doctor had said, ‘we found you a kidney,’ to my mother.
“Mira?” Evelyn said, shaking me from my thoughts.
I laughed, covering my mouth and then slowly lowering my hand. “God, Ryan, I love you too. Madly, deeply, passionately, and with everything in my heart and soul. I’ve been in love with you since long long before you gave my mother a kidney. I think, I too, fell in love the moment your lips touched mine right here, right in the front of this room.”
Ryan dropped his hand to his side and walked up to me, meeting me in the center of the stage. He cupped the back of my neck and looked deeply into my eyes for just a moment before pressing his lips to mine. It was the best kiss I could have ever received, the likes of which I had feared may never happen again. He pulled me into him as the cameras zoomed in, catching that perfect first kiss of our true married life together. The crowd stood on their feet, clapping and cheering, causing me to giggle and smile into his lips. He pulled back and smiled at me, shaking his head.
“You could have told me that all along,” he whispered.
“Ditto,” I laughed. “But I know how you like a dramatic ending.”
“Oh yeah,” he scoffed, laughing deeply. “I just want to be with you, no matter what.”
“Me too,” I smiled, kissing him again and jumping at the sound of a cork popping behind us.
Looking over to the side of the stage, I laughed as Miles came up, holding my mother’s hand in one of his, and a bottle of overflowing champagne in the other. My mom carried the glasses and did a little dance as she walked to the both of us. She took Ryan’s face in her hands and pulled him down, planting a big kiss right there on his cheek. Miles poured me a glass of champagne and high fived me, giving me a wink. He turned to Ryan and nodded, opening his arms and giving him a big hug.
I couldn’t believe it, all the worrying, all the scary moments, all the times I just didn’t think I could take one more day, and here I was. I had the man I loved, already my husband, wanting to move forward in life with me, loving me for everything that I was, and embracing this new journey hand in hand. Just like we had made it through everything else over the last six months, we would go shoulder to shoulder into the next phase of our relationship. It was scary, but at the same time, I knew with my trusted partner by my side, we would work through any problems together.