Favorite Otps/Pairings: Evan Speck & Mariana Adams Foster
(Good Trouble)
“I remember everything. It all came back to me, at once. Everything we've been through and all of my, my feelings. Mariana...I love you."
Summary: An aquarium after hours, twinkling holiday lights, and a private penguin meet-and-greet turn into the most unexpected Christmas surprise of all
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(Not my photo, credit to whoever made it!)
I should’ve known something was up the moment Evan refused to tell me where we were going.
“Just wear something warm.” He said, trying (and failing) to sound casual. His hand rested on my knee as we drove, thumb tracing slow, absentminded circles, the way he always did when he was nervous.
“Evan…” I laughed, squinting at him. You’re being weird.”
“I’m not.” He replied immediately. Too immediately. “I’m being… festive.”
That made me laugh harder. Evan Speck, being festive, was usually limited to a single strand of while lights on his balcony and precisely one mug of peppermint tea in December.
When we finally pulled into the aquarium parking lot, I gasped.
“No way…” I breathed. “Evan! No way!”
He grinned that soft, proud smile he only ever wore when he managed to surprise me. The aquarium was already one of my favorite places, but penguins? Penguins were everything to me. I loved them since I was a kid, the way they waddled, the way they leaned into each other, the way they looked like they were always dressed for a formal event. Evan knew this. He remembered everything about me like it mattered.
Inside, the air was cool and smelled faintly like saltwater. Holiday decorations were scattered throughout. Twinkling lights reflected off glass tanks, and somewhere a child laughed excitedly. Evan guided me past the public exhibits and toward a door marked Authorized Personnel Only. I stopped walking.
“Evan?” I whispered. “Why are we going back there?”
He squeezed my hand. “Because this is your early Christmas present.”
The staff member inside greeted us warmly, handing us boots and thick jackets. My heart was already racing. And then… Penguins. Right there. So close I could hear them. A small group waddled across the icy ground, flippers out, chirping softly to one another. One tilted its head at me, like it was curious. I pressed my hands to my mouth.
“Oh my God!” I whispered, eyes burning. “Evan…”
“You get a private meet-and-greet, just you and them.” He said quietly.
I crouched slowly, laughing through tears as one penguin shuffled closer.
“Hi,” I whispered, like it could understand me.
“You’re perfect.”
Evan watched me, not the penguins, with that familiar look of awe and affection. Like he couldn’t quite believe I was real. One of the keepers smiled knowingly.
“They seem to like you.”
I reached out carefully, gently touching the penguin’s back under supervision. It was warm, alive, and real. And then Evan cleared his throat.
“Uh… hey, babe?”
I turned, still smiling, only to see him kneeling. My breath left my body.
“Evan-”
Before I could say anything else, one of the penguins waddled over, wearing a tiny harness, and the keeper gently guided it forward. Attached to the harness was a small velvet box. I stared. My brain short-circuited. Evan laughed nervously.
“Okay, so this was maybe overkill, but you love penguins, and I love you, and this felt… right.”
He took the box, opening it to reveal a delicate ring… simple, elegant, us.
“Y/N,” He said softly. “You are my favorite person. You make my life warmer, brighter, and better. I want every Christmas, every ordinary Tuesday, and every hard day with you.”
Tears streamed down my face.
“So,” He swallowed. “Will you marry me?”
I didn’t even hesitate.
“Yes!” I laughed, sobbing. “Yes, Evan. Of course, yes!”
He stood and pulled me into his arms, kissing me like the world had narrowed down to just us and the soft sounds of penguins chirping nearby. He slid the ring onto my finger, his hands shaking slightly. I pulled back just long enough to laugh breathlessly.
“You proposed with a penguin.”
He shrugged, smiling. “I know you.”
I leaned into him, forehead resting against his chest. “I love you.”
He kissed my hair. “I love you more.”
We stayed with the penguins for a bit longer, and it was perfect. But as we left the aquarium later, my hand tucked into his, ring catching the light, I felt warm in a way no jacket ever could. This was my forever. And somehow, it started with a penguin.
