"Can I take it off now?" It was the fifth time she'd asked that question since they got in the truck about eleven minutes ago. She had no idea where he was taking her, but the sounds outside the truck were familiar to her, and judging by them, the curves the truck took and how long they'd been on the road, they were near the park. She readjusted the blindfold he got her to wear, making sure it wasn't slipping off of her eyes. It wasn't that she was getting annoyed, it was just that she was curious.
"Not yet. Jus' wait. You'll see."
She could hear the excitement in his voice, and knew he had something planned. What, however, she didn't know, and that's why she was so curious. When Mickey had something planned for a surprise, you could bet you would be surprised. Though this kind of worried her, as she knew him well.
"Mickey, you didn't do something over the top again did you?" Minnie asked, not bothering to hide her concern.
She heard him chuckle. "Aw, you know me, Min."
She sighed. "I know... That's why I'm worried..." She remembered how every Christmas he went far out of his way to have the most decorated house on the block. Not for competition, but for personal preference. And, admittedly, to show off to her in the hopes she'd be thrilled and impressed. Only back in 2009 when Pluto ran away from home on Christmas Eve did Mickey finally stop putting up so many decorations. She loved the simple decorations his home had; a nice, old-fashioned style. Like something in a picture or a painting. Though during a few years since, he did put up a lot of decorations... Old habits died hard, she supposed. She just didn't want him to work harder then he needed to, or freeze his tail off in the frigid cold just to hang one more string of lights.
"Aw, gee, don't worry. You'll love it, I guarantee it."
"I just don't want you to break your neck doing anything big. I know it's our anniversary, but..." she tried to reason.
"Aw, I just wanna surprise ya, Minnie. Trust me, you'll love my surprise. 'Sides, it is our anniversary!"
Minnie smiled in her resolve, and leaned up to peck his cheek. "Alright, I trust you." Then she giggled. "But if you did anything extremely over the top, I'll twist your tail in a knot."
He wondered how she could be blindfolded and actually manage to kiss his cheek.
She obviously knew what he wondered, as she smiled cutely. "Just because I'm blindfolded doesn't mean I don't know where your cute face is." Being blindfolded, she didn't see how much her comment had made him blush.
It was only a few minutes after that that they pulled up to their destination.
"We're here!" he announced excitedly.
Minnie unbuckled her seat belt and heard him exit the truck. She felt his hand take hers, her cheeks turning pink, and scooted out from the center of the seat. Her pumps landing on the sidewalk, she felt him give her hand a gentle tug.
"Now follow me."
Doing as he said, she followed him. She knew they were in the park, but she wasn't sure what to expect. A romantic picnic, a boat ride? But this was Mickey. So the options were far greater. A romantic picnic on top of a large robot, a boat ride in a supersonic speed boat? She giggled. That's her Mickey. She knew she was still walking in the grass, and felt a cool breeze blow against her. She heard not a sound from anyone else, which she was grateful for. They were alone, just the two of them. But before her mind could wonder, he stopped suddenly.
"Alright, now you can take it off."
Minnie did as she was told and removed the blindfold. As she opened her eyes, she gasped. Before her was a picnic blanket underneath their favorite apple tree. "Oh, Mickey!" she cooed. Minnie felt her heart melt and swell as she turned to him, enveloping him in a big hug. She felt water in her eyes as she held him. "You're the greatest." She pulled back and kissed him square on his lips, their lips parting with a smack. "This is wonderful, Mickey. I love it!"
Mickey blushed. "Aw, gosh..." He returned her embrace, her happy to be held so tightly in bis arms. But then he pulled away with a twinkle in his eye. "But that's only part of the surprise. I needja t' wait right here for a bit."
"Huh?" She looked up at him clearly curious, and then confused as he held up a walkie-talkie.
"Jus' wait right here. Okay?" He kissed her nose, making her body, mostly her cheeks, heat up, and started sprinting away toward the park entrance. "Be back in a flash!"
Minnie stood there, more curious than ever now. Just what was he planning? She knew it was fruitless to try to figure it out. After all, it was Mickey. Sighing, she walked over and sat down on the blanket. Fall was clearly in the air. Now the 18th of November, the trees barely had any leaves left, with what few remained being brown, gold or red. A crisp chill had tinged the air, making evident winter's fast approach, yet it was actually rather warm on this day. As Minnie looked around, she saw leaves that lay upon the grass twitch in the calm, soft breeze, and saw a couple of leaves finally break free from the branches to make their decent toward the earth. She waited for about a minute before laying the radio next to her and lying down on her back. Thankfully, the sky was also clear, allowing her to view the clouds as they made their way past in the fall winds. She laid there for a few minutes, watching the clouds float by, before she turned her head, seeing a flower right on the edge of the blanket. Tilting her head in interest, she smiled as she reached over and picked it. Holding it in one hand, she gently pulled off a petal with her other.
"He loves me..." She pulled off another. "He loves me... a lot." She giggled. "He loves me... even more." She pulled off another. "I love him." She thought about her companion, her heart starting to beat faster as she thought about his loving eyes, his warm smile, his strong arms, his adorable ears and tail. She giggled again. "I love him... a lot." Two to go. "I love him... even more." Last one. "I'll love him... forever." With a sigh, she laid the stem in the grass, and as she did, the radio crackled to life.
"Minnie, come in. Ya still there?"
She knew that voice anywhere, and quickly picked up the walkie-talkie. "Yes, Mickey, I'm still here."
"Great! Now I needja to close yer eyes again."
Minnie quirked a brow. "Again? Mickey Mouse, just what are you up to?"
"Jus' trust me," he said over the radio. "Close yer eyes again, and don't open 'em till I tell ya."
She sighed. "Ohh... Alright." She waited, but nothing happened. And he didn't say anything over the radio. She listened close. Apart from the sound of a plane overhead she heard nothing else. She waited a little longer. Still nothing. A couple more minutes passed with not even a radio crackle. However, she was starting to get annoyed with the plane. It sounded like it was just flying around in circles, never going anywhere. Though she tried to keep her eyes closed, she wanted to look around to see if she saw her partner anywhere, and see what the heck that pilot was up to.
"Minnie?"
Minnie held up the radio. "Yeah, Mickey?"
"Open yer eyes and look up!"
What? She did as instructed, and when her eyes met the sky, her heart exploded in her chest as she gasped, her eyes going wide.
Happy anniversary Minnie! was written in the sky, with Mickey flying the plane that had spelled it out.
"Happy anniversary, Minnie!" he said over the radio. "This isn't too over the top, is it?" She heard the excitement in his voice.
Minnie sat in awe, tears of happiness now flowing down her cheeks as she smiled a big, quivering smile. Ironically, the plane he was in was one she'd recognize anywhere. It was the same one he'd made all that time ago at the farm. The first plane she ever rode in and the first time he ever took her up in a plane. Her heart fluttered so much she thought it would beat out of her chest. "Oh, Mickey..." She wiped her eyes as she sniffed. She held up the radio, looking back up to the sky. "Mickey..."
"Do ya like it?" he asked.
She laughed. "Mickey, I love it! I could kill you for doing something this extreme, but... I also can't describe how happy it makes me."
"So ya like it?"
"Mickey Mouse, you are the greatest, most wonderful guy in the world!" she laughed over the radio, wiping her eyes once more.
"Say ya love me."
She chuckled. "What?"
She heard him chuckle. "Ha ha, say ya love me."
She smiled. "I love you. I love you, Mickey Mouse!" she hollered into the radio. She watched as he did a loop in the air.
"She loves me!" she heard him laugh over the radio.
Minnie laughed, watching the display. She held up the radio again. "I'm soooo gonna hug you to death when you get back down here." She broke into a run, making her way to the park entrance.
He saw her running, and held up his radio. "Where ya goin'?"
She smiled as she held up the radio. "To where we took our first flight together. Meet me there."
Inside the cockpit, Mickey smiled. "Gotcha. I'll meetcha there."
Minnie ran for their black '73 Dodge Ram Adventurer, thankful that he hadn't taken it. She jumped in, fired it up and took off down the road to the old farm. It wasn't that far, only about 11 miles from the park, and Minnie knew exactly where that old airfield was.
A cloud of dust followed the old truck as it drove down the dirt road. Overhead the truck was passed by an old handmade plane. Driving down the road made so many memories come flooding back to Minnie, each one flashing in her mind as she drove.
The time Mickey sprained his ankle and she wouldn't let him go to the school dance because she knew he was in pain. Minnie offered to spend the evening at his house, but he insisted on taking her dancing. So he surprised her by setting up a record player in the barn and lighting a few candles. She was shocked he did all this by the time she arrived, considering she lived just down the road at her parents farm. It only took her five minutes to walk from her farm house to his, yet even with a sprained ankle, he was quick enough to set up everything. Naturally she scolded him for not taking it easy like the doctor and she had told him to, yet she couldn't stay mad at him considering all the trouble he went through. So that night, while everyone else was at the gymnasium dancing, Minnie and Mickey spent the evening in the barn, dancing and laughing and enjoying some leftover pizza.
She thought about the time they were snowed in during a big snowstorm, and each had bundled up and trekked out in the foot-high snow, meeting each other halfway toward the others house just to see if each was alright and if either needed anything. The power had went out later, and much to Minnie's delight, Mickey's parents had invited her and her folks over for dinner, so they wouldn't be in a dark house. Minnie and Mickey sat on Mickey's bed upstairs with a candle on the night stand telling ghost stories and playing a few board games. Of course, Minnie's dad advised her to leave the door open, which embarrassed her then.
Minnie looked out the window and saw the river; Cornerstone river. The truck drove over the old wooden bridge that ran over the water, the boards creaking as they thumped beneath the tires. Minnie smiled fondly. It was here that she and Mickey grew up together. Here that they played and just had fun and enjoyed being together. She passed the old boat dock and the shed that sat upon it. It was there on that river that she took her first boat ride, on that old steamboat, where Mickey was a deckhand. She thought about the summers past when they went swimming in the river and played in the sprinklers in their yards. The springs when they'd lay cuddled up in the hayloft of the barn as she tickled his nose with the stem of a flower she had just picked, and felt the spring breeze as it blew through the loft. The old barn soon came into view, and she watched as the plane circled overhead. The truck rolled to a stop on the dusty airfield, dust and a few leaves settling down behind it as it stopped, and the trucks lone occupant jumped out, radio in hand.
Suddenly, the radio came to life with the sound of her lover's voice on the other end. "How'dja like a ride up here?"
Minnie smiled, moving a hand to shield her eyes from the sunlight. "I'd love it."
He chuckled. "Ya won't bail out again."
She chuckled, knowing what he meant. "No, not this time. Back then, I wasn't really sure what love was, what it felt like. But now, I do know. And now... there's no place I'd rather be... than here with you."
He laughed as he circled above. "Hang tight, I'm comin' down!"
She watched as he flew overhead, nearing the airfield. Her heart thudded with anticipation as he neared the field. She could hardly wait to get him in her arms and squeeze him. He flew in close and brought the plane down with ease, a cloud of dust erupting behind it as its wheels touched down on the runway. She heard the sputtering of the engine as it neared her and slowly rolled to a stop, the old propeller slowing down as he hopped out of the cockpit, taking off his goggles as he started walking toward her.
He barely had time to get it off before she broke into a sprint, closing the distance between them as she flung herself at him, squeezing him tightly in her arms. "I told you I was gonna hug you when you got back down here," she breathed, not bothering to hold back the tears of happiness that were already streaking down her cheeks.
He returned her embrace, letting his goggles drop to the ground at his feet. A breeze blew, blowing the scarf he wore in the wind as their tails moved with it, their ears twitching in the breeze. The young mice held each other for a few seconds before Minnie pulled back and leaned up to press her lips to his, kissing him deeply. Her tail twitched happily as one leg rose behind her, her brain fizzing out from the taste of his lips and power of his kiss. He was also experiencing a similar effect, as his brain had turned to mush and all thoughts of reality left his subconscious. After several seconds, each pulled apart, brown irises meeting brown irises.
"Happy anniversary, Minnie," Mickey said with a soft smile, moving one hand up to cup her soft, warm cheek, using a thumb to wipe away a stray tear.
She lifted a hand to hold his hand to her face, savoring the warmth it contained as she gazed up into the eyes she adored since she first saw them. "Happy anniversary, Mickey," Minnie replied with a loving smile. She hugged him once more, not wanting to ever let go of him. "Gosh, I love you so much. You don't know how happy I am right now."
"So yer not upset I mighta went over the top?" he said.
She pulled back, her smile never-fading. "How could I be upset with you? What you did was a wonderful surprise, and I couldn't be mad at you if I wanted to." She hugged him again. "You're the best, Mickey Mouse."
He returned her embrace. "Aw, gee..." After several seconds, he pulled back a bit. "So, ya ready fer that flight?"
She looked up at him, eyes beaming with excitement. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."
He picked up his goggles and took her hand as he helped her up into the plane, then climbed inside the cockpit in front of her. After she put on the spare pair of goggles in the passenger seat, he fired up the plane. "Ya ready?"
Minnie leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his chest as she leaned to the side and kissed his cheek. "As long as I'm with you, I'm ready for anything."
He laughed. "Then let's get flyin'!" She leaned back in her seat as he fired up the engine, black smoke coming from the exhaust as the engine rumbled to life. The plane started rolling forward as Mickey turned it down the runway. As the plane picked up speed he pulled back on the stick, the front end lifting off as the plane started soaring up into the sky.
As the ground below grew farther away, Minnie leaned forward once more, her arms going around her companion's chest. "Happy anniversary, Mickey," she whispered in one of his big ears. She nuzzled the bottom of his ear with her nose. "Mmm, love you."
Mickey's brain turned fuzzy as her nose tickled his ear, his eyes momentarily rolling back in his head before he could focus again. "Happy anniversary, Mins," he replied, turning back to see her out of the corner of his eyes.
She hugged him, planting a soft, loving kiss on his ear before she nuzzled her cheek against his. She couldn't be any happier, nor could he. They were together, just the two of them. Two hearts beating to the same rhythm.
The rhythm of love.
The End.
