A fictional piece from my creative writing class. We were meant to write a short story that was around a thousand words long, based on a picture of our choosing from the textbook. I think this turned out pretty well, even though I don't normally write short stories. Feel free to comment on it below.
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Alfonso can't quite wrap his mind around it all. The young Italian man stares past his exquisite bride, Carina, unable to comprehend the full significance of the moment. It's March 23, and the young man knows this day will be preserved for infinity in the realm of his most prized memories.

The elegant cobblestones under his feet seem to disappear as the groom's mind wanders. He registers ever so faintly the words of the priest, pronouncing him and the radiant Carina to be husband and wife. A part of him strays away from the joy, down a lane of nostalgia. Alfonso doesn't deserve this beautiful woman in the form of a best friend or a wife, yet she  stands before him in an elegant gown with a colorful bouquet clasped tightly in her grip.

Alfonso can still see Carina on the day he met her, an unfortunate occasion in early 2010, which he wished for years to forget. He was suffering through his sophomore year in a rundown high school, whose halls he was unaccustomed to. He was the new kid, and had been so for nearly five months. It was the first day of second semester, and he wished for nothing more than for someone knew to move in and take over his position as lowest on the social hierarchical chain.

Alfonso found that he'd acquired a class in a completely foreign room this semester. As he kept walking across the dreary grey tiles, his gaze never left the number printed next to his first-period course. He had no idea where room 213 was, and was too prideful to ask. Stubborn as he was, Alfonso was trying to create a map of the hallways in his head, hoping memory would serve to provide some form of guidance.

He ran into her head-on in the middle of that cursed hallway, his nose glued so tightly to the schedule in his hand that looking up seemed to be a foreign concept. Somehow the two of them remained on their feet, and Alfonso found himself staring down at an olive-skinned girl who wasn't, in reality, that much shorter than he was at the time.

"You're lost." Her words proved that she saw through the facade, the carefully composed expression that he was trying to keep in place. All he could do was nod, watching curiously as his schedule was taken from him.

"Oh," she said with a warm smile, "I had this class last year. I'll show you where it is. The name's Carina, by the way."

The boy envied her confidence, the way embarrassment had proven to be a nonissue for her. He, on the other hand, wished the light blue walls would close in, swallowing him in the azure depths and concealing him from this mortification. Taken aback to say the least, all Alfonso could do was mumble something that sort of resembled his name.

  Years went by, and before either of them knew what had hit them they were seniors. Somehow, between the occasional study session and trip to meet for coffee, they'd decided to date one another. Graduation approached, and the dual decision was made. They were going to the same college, where she dreamed of a future in nursing school and he wanted nothing more than to major in business.

The four years flew by, and the two kept dating through the ups and downs of it all. By the time Carina's twenty-third birthday rolled around, Alfonso had figured out the one thing he wanted in life more than his business career. He was hopelessly and irrevocably in love with Carina, and wanted her to know it.

The night of her birthday found them both seated in their favorite dimly-lit restaurant, the small golden ring burning a hole in Alfonso's pocket. He'd been so nervous that he'd asked a friend to help pick out the ring, then when that friend failed to be an expert, he'd demanded advice from his younger sister.

Finally satisfied with the ring, the man only hoped his proposal wouldn't be met with a poor reception. As hard as he tried, the soon-to-be groom couldn't wait for the waitress to come back with the drinks. He found himself with one knee planted shakily on the ddark, ruby-red restaurant carpet, fighting the urge to run a hand through his hair in anxiety.

"Carina," he declared, the ring appearing like an act of magic from his pocket, "I've loved you since we first started talking. First, you were little more than a new friend in a new town, then you became so much more. I think we've known each other long enough to feel comfortable telling each other what we want. I've figured out what it is that I want, and I think it's time I let you know. I want to marry you, Carina, so will you do me the honor of saying yes? Will you marry me?"

Alfonso didn't think he would ever forget her expression, how the joy seemed to consume her as she whispered that single word in reply.

"Yes." Carina told him, "Yes, I'll marry you!"

He slipped the intricate ring onto her finger, the sapphire at its center seeming to augment her beauty in a way that made Alfonso smile with insurmountable joy and relief.

That night has served as the best night of his life for six months now, but today he's replacing it with a memory that will be even more cherished.

Each event of the past has brought Alfonso here, to this moment in time. The sky overhead reflects his mood, manifesting in a clear shade of crystalline blue which seems to promote nothing but optimism and joy.

Alfonso takes in his bride yet again, already imagining the way in which they'll dance the afternoon away at the reception. He's looking forward to it with undefeatable glee, taking this dance much more seriously than any of the ones he attended in high school.

As Alfonso looks into Carina's gaze and takes in her smile, he knows this is just one in a series of lifelong memories that the two are prepared to make together.