A Hopeless Romantic. Agni x Reader

        For the third time in fifteen minutes, you looked up at the large grandfather clock and sighed. “Just for today, I wish time would go by just a little bit faster. I don't know how much longer I can wait.” As soon as you'd woken up this morning, Agni told you that had a surprise planned for you this evening. You had tried to figure out what this surprise was, but no matter how much you begged, he wouldn't so much as give you a hint. With well over an hour left before the surprise would be ready, you were growing impatient and jittery. “I'm going to go insane if I just sit here like this.” Hoping it would make time go by faster, you decided to busy yourself by doing a bit  of cleaning.

Now having something else to focus on, you found yourself glancing at the clock less and less. What honestly seemed like a short time later, you heard Agni call your name. “Everything is prepared. Are you ready.”

“I'm more than ready.” Dropping your dust rag where you stood, you rushed up to Agni and smiled. “I was ready as soon as you told me there was a surprise.”

“I see.” Returning your smile, Agni placed his hand over his heart and offered you a terribly sincere apology. “I am truly sorry that I made you wait so long, but the sun had to be gone for this surprise to work.”

Sure it couldn't be dark already, you looked out the nearest window to confirm what he'd said. Sure enough, there wasn't the slightest hint of sunlight left. “Oh, it is dark, isn't it? I didn't even notice.”

When you turned back to face Agni, he was holding a small piece of cloth in his hand. “This surprise will work best if you're blindfolded for the moment. Forgive me, but may I?” Though you were a little bit confused, you nodded. “Thank you.” Glad his odd request hadn't upset you, he carefully placed the fabric over your eyes and tightly knotted it in place. “You can't see anything, correct?”

Grinning in an adorably mischievous way, you shook your head and giggled. “Even if I could, I wouldn't tell you.”

“Fair enough.” Chuckling softly, he waved his hand over your face. Since you didn't respond in the slightest, he could only assume that you couldn't see him, or anything else. Pleased, Agni gently took hold of your hand and began leading you through the manner. “Hold tightly to me, I don't want you to get hurt.” Heeding his advice, you wrapped your free arm around his and kept close. After a moment or two, the earthy smells of grass, trees and flowers hit you, letting you know that you were now outside. There was however, another smell. What that smell was, you couldn't tell. “Just a minute more.” Soon after you were outside, Agni released your hand. “Please, keep your eyes closed. I'll let you know when you can open them.”

Though you desperately wanted to know what the surprise was, you nodded. “Alright, I promise I won't open them.”

“Thank you.” Stepping away from your side, Agni walked behind you and removed your blindfold. Once it was off, he laced his fingers with yours once more. “You may open your eyes now, if you wish.”

As eager and excited as you'd been just seconds earlier, you were now struggling to make yourself open your eyes. It was if the anticipation had immobilized you. Finally, you managed to lift your lids. What you saw made your heart skip a beat. The tall, canopy like trees were filled with hundreds of tiny lanterns, causing the entire garden to glow in a whimsical, almost ethereal way. On the ground, there were dozens and dozens of small tealights, lighting a path to the very center of the garden. There, at the very center of the garden, was a whimsical looking tent made of a soft, pure white linen. Completely shocked by what you saw, you found yourself at a loss for words. “T-this is beautiful.”

Relieved to hear that you liked what you saw thus far, Agni gave your hand a gentle squeeze. “You haven't even seen everything yet.” Leading you down the glowing path, he held back the fabric curtain of the tent and allowed you to pass through.

The inside of the tent was just as beautiful as the scenery that surrounded it. In the tent, there was a single table, set for two, draped in a light purple cloth. And though there were no candles anywhere in the tent, the bright glow from outside was more than enough to illuminate the tent. Everywhere you looked, you noticed another tiny detail that made your eyes widen. Unsure how to respond to such a grand surprise, you turned to Agni and blushed. “Y-you really didn't have to do all of this. It almost makes me feel guilty.”

“Please, don't.” Fretting slightly, he took your face in his hands and smiled. “I have good reason for doing this, I assure you. Now, if you wouldn't mind taking a seat, I have prepared something for you.” With a smile, he released your face and turned to grab something he had sitting in the corner.

Though you were curious, yet again, you sat down on one of the two chairs he'd placed in the tent. Mere seconds after you sat down, he placed a steaming bowl of curry on the table in front of you. The spicy, yet delicious scent flooded your senses as the steam twisted and twirled through the air. “That's what I smelled earlier! I knew I smelled something that wasn't normally outside. Now I know what it was.”

“You have keen senses.” Suddenly a bit flushed, Agni sat down across from you and cleared his throat. “I apologize if it is too spicy for you. I tend to have a heavy hand when it comes to the spices. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy it.”

Taking that as your cue to eat, you carefully lifted the spoon to your mouth. Though it was much spicier than most of what you ate, it was absolutely delicious. And for some reason, the spice didn't bother you. It was like another ingredient mellowed the heat somehow. Instantly in love with the dish he'd prepared, you looked up at him and grinned. “You apologize too much Agni. It's perfect. I don't think even Sebastian can make something this good.”

Flattered by your compliment, Agni's face grew a bit more red than before. “Thank you, but I'm sure you're exaggerating.” Going completely silent, seemingly for no reason at all, Agni lifted his spoon and began to eat.

Not at all used to him being quiet or withdrawn, you weren't sure what to say. Suddenly, you remembered his earlier words. “So, you said you had a reason for doing all of this. What's that reason?” Though you noticed almost immediately that your question made him awkward, you were too curious to back down now. “I'm guessing it has to be something pretty important for you to do all of this.”

“Ah, of course.” Placing his spoon on a silk napkin, he cleared his throat and awkwardly rose from his seat. After taking a deep breath in, he came to stand beside you. “If what I am about to ask is inappropriate, I give you full permission to reprimand me as you see fit.”

Actually a bit worried, you slowly nodded. “O-okay. I don't think I'll need to though.”

“I hope you won't.” Taking your hand in his Agni quickly attempted to find the best way to string his words together. “As I've mentioned before, being around you tends to fluster me, so I apologize if my words come out sounding like the ramblings of a madman.” Knowing he couldn't keep stalling, he took one more deep breath and let his words gush. “I have found, through our spending much of our time together, that I have feelings for you. If you do not return those feelings, then you can forget any of this ever happened. I would not want to compromise our friendship by having asked you this. If you do, however, return my feelings, I would like very much if you would be my, girlfriend.”

His words caused every last bit of your body to heat up with blush. Still, you couldn't both be awkward, so you tried to hide just how flattered and embarrassed you really were. “You did all of this, just to ask me to be your girlfriend?” Standing to your feet, you wrapped your arms around his waist and hugged him with all your might. “I hate to tell you this, but you're a hopeless romantic Agni.”

“You may be correct.” Nodding in agreement, he happily returned your hug and rested your cheek against his chest. “I don't mean to press you, but should I take this as a yes?”

Not needing even a single second to think about your answer, you rose to your tiptoes and pressed your palms to his cheeks. Unable to keep yourself from grinning, you tilted your chin up, just enough so that you could kiss him. Moving your hands from his cheeks, you draped your arms over his shoulders and leaned your body into his. Once you were absolutely positive that he had no doubt what your answer was going to be, you brought the kiss to an end. Still holding him close, you looked up at him, locking your smiling eyes on his and blushed. “Yes, you should.”