Published on June 28th, 2005.
Viewed 957 times.
Story rank of 88.
In my family, the night before Christmas is a chill night…time for wrapping gifts, watching holiday movies, and going to bed early so “Santa” can make his way to the tree.
In my family, the night before Christmas is a chill night…time for wrapping gifts, watching holiday movies, and going to bed early so “Santa” can make his way to the tree.
On Christmas Eve, 2004, I had an experience that would be embedded in my mind forever. At ten o’clock in the evening, we had dinner reservations at the Rio Hotel. On our way there, I admit, I was acting a little stubborn, or maybe a lot stubborn about leaving that night. Kareem had even asked if I still wanted to go, and instead of giving a polite “yes,” I blurted out a whiny “no.” Before we parked, I tried to adjust my attitude by realizing that change can be good and fun when it’s spontaneous. I thought, well if he can have positive and exciting feelings about this excursion, then I should sure better try.
So we went to the 51st floor, Voodoo Lounge and Café. Mark, Therese’s fiancé and one of the head managers of the hotel, had set up our reservation two days beforehand. We asked for Ryan, and a table for two by the window, but unfortunately the kitchen had closed early that night. He said they closed at 9:30pm because of the holidays. Then, we asked if they would at least let us have a quick dessert, since we came all that way, had prior reservations, and because we were from out of town. Nothing…not even a sweet tart or delicacy. Kareem walked around the place to try to find someone else that might be able to pull some strings. Even the dessert chef refused us.
Nevertheless, we did not let that ruin our evening. Upstairs, I heard the live band playing 70s music and I suggested that we go up there.
“No, let’s stay down here for a little bit,” Kareem said. The café area was dimly lit, and some people were still finishing up their coffees and desserts.
“Really? Why?” I asked.
“We can go outside on the patio?” He said.
“What! It’s freezing out there, nooo way! Let’s just go ups—
“No, it’ll be fine, I saw those heaters outside…the metal palm trees with the fire coming out at the top. We can stand under them.”
“Oh ya! I love those, you sure they’re out there? How do you know? I said.
“Because I saw them out there when I was walking around.”
“Okay, let’s go,” I agreed. We walked around the bar to exit out onto the patio. As soon as we stepped out and I felt that chilly evening breeze, I eagerly looked for the palm fire heaters, but saw none.
“Uhh…there are no heaters! You said there were heaters!”
“Baby, I thought I saw them out here. It’s not that bad though; let’s stay out here for a little bit. I wanna take pictures,” Kareem said.
I stood still for a second and realized that it wasn’t as cold and windy as when we visited two days ago. But then again, I wasn’t wearing my black faux fur coat last time either. Besides, ever since I gave Kareem that digital camera for his birthday, he’s been nonstop freezing every intimate moment on that flash toy.
The outside of the restaurant had three tiers to the patio, and also a D.J. playing different music than from the inside of the place. It was amazing! The view was so open, the lights were so bright, and it was just us…and a couple of random people standing at different ends of the patio. We asked a group of older women to take a couple pictures of us, and the beam of fluorescent light shooting up from the Luxor pyramid was at our backdrop. We thanked them, and remained standing close together, cheek to cheek, staring at the plethora of burnt sienna, red, green, and white Las Vegas strip lights.
After a couple of minutes, Kareem seemed to be getting cold, because his hands were trembling.
“Look at my hands,” he said. “Are your hands cold?”
“Wow. They’re shaking. Where are the leather gloves I bought you? Put them on.” I said.
“Ya,” He reached into his coat pockets.
“See, my hands aren’t cold because the inside of my jacket is fur, and if I connect my sleeves like this, it forms a nice, warm, fuzzy arm and hand warmer,” I proudly raised my innovation of a uni-arm coat to show him.
At that time, he pulled out his ipod, and while patting himself on the back for coming romantically prepared, he inserted one headphone in his left ear, and placed the other one in my right ear. As we zoned-out the club music and tuned-in Kauai’s “Evelyn and Kareem” soundtrack, we held each other even closer and slow danced. “He is,” by Brandy was the first song he picked to play off our album. This song has great lyrics that summed up the gist of my feelings for Kareem (“Prince Charming, my angel, my king and my friend…my lover, my one….he is he is…the beat in my heart…the kiss on my lips” and all that good stuff).
During the ending notes of my magical song, he interrupted by grabbing my hands and reciting his love for me, and then the fairytale reality began:
“If you had to choose one star, which star would you choose?” He asked.
“The moon!” I laughed.
“No, really. Which star would it be.”
As I looked to the bottom rightside of the moon to choose my star, and Kareem looked up with me, that moment became even more magical than ever, as we both saw a shooting star.
“Oh my gosh. Was that real?” I said.
“Ya, that was a shooting star!” He said.
“WOW! I have never seen a shooting star in my whole life.”
“Me neither!”
“I can’t believe it! That was really a shooting star! And we saw it together!”
“That was amazing!”
“No one’s gonna believe us!” I said.
“I know.” He said
We looked at each other with wide eyes of disbelief. And then Kareem knelt down. He held my hands tightly.
“Evelyn, you know I love you.” He said.
“I love you too!”
“I know in my heart that I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
I started to get glossy-eyed. Then, a black velvet box came out from his other pocket. He opened it. My heart was pumping faster and then I just started to ball.
“Will you marry me?” He said.
“ohohoohoof course. Yes!” I pulled him up and grabbed his neck and cried even harder.
We hugged and hugged and just kept on hugging. Then, he switched the track on the ipod to our favorite love song, “Ribbon in the Sky,” by Stevie! I kept crying, we kept hugging, and we added a little dancing groove to the cry-hug theme of excitement.
I guess between all the sobbing he didn’t quite hear my response. “You still have to answer the question.”
“I said Yes! You didn’t hear me? I said ‘of course and yes!’ YES, of course!” I said.
“Aren’t you gonna even look at the ring?”
“I don’t care about that!”
“I know, but still look.”
And so I did. The shining stones looked so pretty and perfect. I couldn’t believe this was all happening.
“It’s so beautiful! Wow baby, I love it. It’s perfect!” I said. And it was…just so perfect, because it wasn’t gaudy and in-your-face-clunk-here’s-a-rock, but it wasn’t petite either. As he explained the technical details of what kind of clarity it was, the weight, the appraisal value, and the fact that it was platinum, I was looking at him with the eyes of ‘I don’t care about that baby,’ and the smile of ‘thanks for that information Mr. Jewelry Man.” All I knew is that my man was filled with spontaneity, which is one of the many reasons I fell in love with him. The ring had such precise taste, and I knew he spent a long while and a lot of money picking out the style to match both our likings. And it was….it was perfect.
We called a few people that night. Mama, Zoe, C.J., my Daddy (who cried because he was not present to share this experience personally), and of course we drove straight home to tell my Mom and Errol. The most important part to me was that Kareem had asked my parents for their blessing long before that night occurred. That is how I wanted it to happen! As for everyone else, we spoke to them on Christmas morning and throughout the day. They all knew about ‘the plan,’ but they didn’t know the exact day or how it was all going to happen. I can definitely say this was the best secret ever kept from Evelyn Rice.
Every moment from there on grew with excitement, and the dream state became more and more real…I was engaged. We were engaged! I had a fiancé! Kareem is my fiancé! I am his fiancé! We are really going to get Married!! Whoa!
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