Buying Cartier while crying on day zero of dating, and proposing on one knee.

"Do you understand what it means
to date me?"

When she, who would later become my wife, said that to me with a serious face at a shop in Sapporo, I was offended.

I had intended to hire a highly capable woman four years my senior as a sales assistant, but six months after hiring her, I ended up confessing my love to her, and the opening line was what she said to me in return.

[Related] Click here if you're wondering if it's an office romance

I was offended.

"Do you understand what it means
to date me?"

I was 28 at the time, and she was 32.

When someone says that, the two kanji characters that come to mind are these.

In other words, "marriage."

Of course I understand.

Starting a new relationship at 32 means, in short, a relationship with marriage in mind.

(...She's testing me, isn't she?)

So, I said without a moment's hesitation.

"Marriage, right? Sure. Let's do it.
Shall we leave here now and go to the ward office?"

...

I was a manager at the venture company (self-proclaimed) where I worked at the time, and I brought her on as a sales assistant. The Hokkaido branch had only five employees.

Over about six months, we spent a very intense amount of time together, and I had come to understand her personality—her way of working, her kindness, her perspective on things, and the humor that would occasionally pop out.

I didn't know about a romantic relationship.

None of that matters.

Marriage?

Sure, why not? Let's do it.

At 28, it was exactly what I was thinking of doing.

When I, at 28, said that immediately,
how did she, at 32, react?

“W-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w”

“Wh-wh-what?”

“Marriage, you know?”

I thought.

"Wait! M-marriage, you know?"

"Yeah, marriage, right? Sure."

"Wait, wait, marriage, you know?"

"Marriage, right? Sure, okay?"

"Wait, wait, but, marriage, you know?"

"Marriage, right? Sure, okay? Let's get married."

"Wait? Right now?"

"I'm fine with right now, but that's probably impossible, right?"

...That's impossible.

...

And so, we decided on a date for when to get married. You shouldn't be vague about these things. Only when things become concrete do they actually move forward.

A message to all couples living together across the country:

Decide on your marriage registration date already.

Before deciding on dinner menus or hotels for weekend trips,
the thing you should decide on is the marriage registration date.

“Is this really the right person to marry?”

Quiet. Just get married already.

Thinking about it is a waste of time. Just give up.

“B-but... such a big decision...”

Make the decision.

Think of those lovers who cannot convey their feelings
due to the anxiety of running out of time.

We decided to get married one year from that day.


However, when my wife consulted her mother, while I was busy picking my nose, the wedding date shrank to eight months away, then six months away, and in the end, it was decided for four months from that day.

According to my wife's mother,

“Do it quickly before they have a change of heart!”

apparently.

It sounds like "Finish them off before they can recover!"

We looked for an auspicious day, found a reason, and eventually decided to get married four months later. As for me, I didn't have any particular preferences, so I just went along with what was said. Deep down, I was half-grinning.

Let's turn back time to the beginning.

(...tick-tock...tick-tock)

...

......


.........

"Marriage, right? Sure, why not? Let's get married."

"Huh? Right now?"

"I'm fine with right now, but I guess that's impossible."

"That's impossible."

Deep down, I really thought I had won.
(No, it's not about winning or losing)

Even after being asked such a high-pressure question, my heart remained unmoved, like a pebble. Do you think you can take the lead in a conversation between a man and a woman with that!

Hahahahahaha!

Naive! You're so naive!

So, that being said,
in order to take back the lead even more...

No, that's a lie.

I knew she was actually anxious about marriage. So, I said it because I wanted her to feel secure.

“Then, let’s go get a spare key made now, and go buy an engagement ring.”

“What! Are you serious?”

“It’ll give us both peace of mind, and besides, these things are all about speed.”

The two of us headed straight to a locksmith. When I handed the key to the old man at the run-down shop in Sapporo and said, “Could you make a copy of this, please?” he replied, “Sure thing,” and started working on it.

The spare key was made in no time. Ta-da!

“First, the spare key is cleared.”

“...Cleared, indeed.”

“Alright, let’s go to the”,{Daimaru department store.”

“D-Daimaru...”

“Next is the engagement ring. We can get the wedding bands later, right?”

“...W-well, yeah.”

The Daimaru in Sapporo towers right next to Sapporo Station. You can probably imagine what kind of jewelry stores are inside.

“They don’t have Harry Winston, so you won’t be able to become Keiko Kitagawa, but they do have Tiffany and Cartier at the Sapporo Daimaru.”

“Ti-Tiffany... Cartier...”

“In Sapporo, these are the two, right?”

After making the spare key, we went to Tiffany and Cartier.

It's a common story: when a man and a woman go to buy a ring together, the shop staff there keep repeating "Madam," "Sir," and "Congratulations."

"Madam," "Sir," and "Congratulations" are as close to the Three Sacred Treasures as you can get. By skillfully using these three killer words, both my wife and I felt our hearts floating on air.

"Wait, are we getting married?"

That's it.
It's very well done.

First, Tiffany.

She gazes intently at the rings.

She tries on many of them.

Apparently, something is different.

Cartier next.

She gazes intently at the rings.

She tries on many of them.

We seriously look together to determine which one suits her.

Th-this one is good.

Yeah, that one is good.

The shop assistant is smiling.

But I was shocked when I saw the price.

Wait, it's this expensive?

I didn't know the market price for an engagement ring.

I see, so it's not like 30,000 yen. It's not.

Wait, I'll choose again.

I chose again. In other words, I lowered the grade.

As expected, a crazy person is crazy.

I finally told the shop assistant my budget, and
I chose something I could be satisfied with within that range.

But, it's damn expensive.
It's the sparkle of a diamond.

We can engrave your names, what would you like to do?

Names? If we do that, is it impossible to pick it up today?

It will take a few days.

"Is that so? Hmm, what should we do?
Is a name really that important?"

"I don't need a name."

We agreed.

We don't need a name.

Anyway, I want the ring in my hands as soon as possible.

I think there are two things necessary for marriage.

"Vibe" and "momentum".

"Then, a name is unnecessary."

"Oh, u-um, yes.
Then, how would you like to pay?"

"Can I use a card?
Is it possible to pay in 100 installments?"

"100 installments is not possible."

"I figured."

My go-to 100-installment joke, which I use when buying expensive items with a card, exploded at Cartier.

I tried to swipe the card. But it didn't go through.

It was over the limit.

I'm not some kind of platinum member.

The store was closing soon.

"Then, I'll pay in cash."

My wife said, "Huh!?"

"I'll go withdraw some.
Will I make it in time?"

"Y-yes."

I flew to the ATM.

Deep down, this is what I was thinking.

I was expelled from university and worked desperately hard.
This was the money I had left, earned by working myself to the bone, believing that working for the sake of the world and others was the right thing to do.

[Related] If you're wondering about the university expulsion, click here

Clutching the Fukuzawa Yukichi bills that I had multiplied like shadow clones,
I returned to Cartier.

"A-are you sure about this?"

"I-it's fine, I have money I got from my grandmother for times like this (Heh heh)."

That was a lie.

My family wasn't that wealthy.

In fact, my family home was poor.

The electricity was often cut off.

As the eldest of four siblings, I had to endure a lot. While my friends played Pokémon on their Game Boys, I made my own original card games and played with them, going 'Heh heh'.

[Related] If you're wondering about me being poor, click here

This money was money I earned while crying until late at night. It was money I earned by solving problems for many people and being thanked for it.

Since I was expelled from university, it was money I earned by studying many times harder than others while they were out having fun. It was money I finally earned after collapsing following a presentation in front of a large crowd while my tonsils were swollen bright red.

Is she worth dedicating that to?

I don't know.

Things like that will be clear when I look back later.

What about my livelihood?

I don't know. It'll work out somehow.

I am living in the moment.

Whatever happens, happens. It will all work out.

...

And so, I finished the payment.

I got the engagement ring.

Ta-da!

I went home.

I tried the spare key I had just made. It opened.

"It opened," we both said with a smile.

We went to the living room and opened the Cartier box.
That solemn box. That quintessential box.

I popped it open and took out the ring.

It's cliché, but I knelt down and put the ring on her finger.

I didn't propose at Disneyland or a luxury resort hotel. It was just a normal living room.

Her left ring finger was trembling uncontrollably.

I will never forget that scene.

I thought to myself.

Well, I thought, that's fine. I told her too.

I told her too.

"If the electricity gets cut off around the month after next, I'll apologize."

Then she said.

"That's fine by me."

Yeah, I really did take a good person as my wife.

The electricity didn't get cut off, and neither did the two of us. Four months later, she became my wife, and we truly got married. We told our friends after the fact.

Everyone asked,

"Wait, what do you mean?"

But this is what I mean.

We didn't have a wedding ceremony because it was embarrassing, but we did take wedding photos. We searched for a super cheap photo studio together. We visited about six places and took them shyly.

"Is this the right way to wear a suit?" I asked many times, but I was told not to worry about such things, so I stayed quiet.

...

"Do you have any regrets about getting married so quickly?"

I get asked that sometimes.

I have no regrets.

Because every day is fun.

Even without looking back, I know the value of that moment.

The wedding photo we took at a super cheap photo studio is still the wallpaper on both of our smartphones.

In the photo, the ring I bought while crying in my heart shines modestly on my wife's ring finger.

[Related] Click here for the episode about greeting my mother-in-law