Chapter Text
Once Newt had boarded the ship he was swift as he climbed the stairs leading up to the deck. The other times he had been leaving New York after a stay with the Goldstein sisters - specifically his girlfriend he would just head straight to his cabin. Now however he found his feet climbing the stairs almost on their own accord and reached the deck in time to see the ship starting to slide away from the harbor.
After a bit of dodging excited kids and waving people he found himself near the stern of the ship in time to see Tina and Queenie meters below him.
He settled his beloved case in front of his feet as he saw the sisters wave at him, awkwardly lifting a hand to wave back while a strong emotion filled him. He hated this. He hated leaving Tina behind and it never got easier either.
"MARRY ME?!" he had cupped his hands before his mouth and shouted before he even registered doing so. Probably looking as surprised as Queenie did down below. Tina however didn't seem to quite have caught it, but the blonde was jumping and clapping her hands in reaction before she stopped to hopefully tell Tina what he had said.
Newt gripped the railing with both his hands, still shell-shocked at what he had just gotten himself to do and in the manner of doing so too. He had been in New York for a good three weeks and now he decided was a good time to ask? As he was leaving on a crowded ship with the highly possibility of Tina not even hearing him. It was typical him. Perhaps this way if she heard him and said no he wouldn't have to sit around to deal with the rejection in front of her.
"YES!" he almost missed it,
"I WILL MARRY YOU!" Tina's voice shouted, becoming smaller and smaller on the dock.
He couldn't keep a face splitting smile from spreading, relief flooding through him and the urge to hold her became almost overwhelming and then with a sigh he realized the downside of proposing like this. He could avoid the awkwardness of a rejection, but enjoying her accepting he wasn't able to appreciate. All he could do was smile and wave, watching as his now fiance clutched at her chest while her sister hugged her and had them rock back and forth on their feet until they were out of sight.
"That boy," Queenie had her arm linked with Tina's with her other hand clutching at her sister's forearm as they walked down the streets of New York towards MACUSA,
"Waits until he's on the damned ship to propose. It is pretty original though, I will give him that," she was still smiling from ear to ear. Mirroring the brunette's wide grin. Her eyes raw from almost crying. It wasn't the way she had thought she might be proposed to one day and it certainly had it's downsides since she wasn't able to hold and kiss her fiance. She wanted him so badly right now and it kind of put a dagger in the happiness. Or it would have been hadn't it been for Queenie's absolute joy.
"You know. He has been thinking about it for days now. He was going back and forth the last week I almost called him out of it," Queenie explained, sighing at the glare Tina sent her. The one she always did especially for her when she got caught wanting or tried to read Newt's mind because they both knew he didn't really like it when she did.
"Relax. Don't I get any credit for not doing anything?" she asked, coming to a pause outside MACUSA,
"Back to reality though. Can you do that?" the blonde winked.
"Better than you can," Tina smirked and held the door for her sister.
It took five hours and a lunch break before Tina pulled Queenie to the side in a hallway,
"I am going to London. Like... In a few days. How long did it take the ship to reach England? Four days? Five? Doesn't matter. I will be there when he gets there. I have to," the brunette said excitedly. Rarely ever being this bubbly over something,
"I have worked so much Mr. Graves basically begs me to take a break these days. He would love to get me out of the country for a few weeks."
Queenie grinned and nodded eagerly,
"Considering you didn't even take a single week off while Newt was here yeah. I don't blame him," the blonde sassed,
"So I take it reality can bite it then?"
Tina shrugged, knowing Queenie was just joking around. They all knew how seriously Tina took her job and how much she loved it. There were a reason why she rarely took holidays afterall. She truly enjoyed her job and the money she earned was something they dearly needed anyway. Love had always been a second though. If even that. It was something she and Newt had in common. They were quite different from one another, but they were both passionate about their jobs and respected one another for it. It was really one of the main reasons why Newt never asked her to come along with him. Didn't expect her to take a break from her job and she hadn't thought so much of it despite wanting to come with him whenever he left.
Now though during her lunch time she had come to realize that whenever Newt did come to New York it was most of the time a break from his job. The first time back he gave her the first copy of his book and that followed with some signings in the city and so on. The same trip he also visited Frank in Arizona. Other than that he had been here on holidays.
"I owe him," Tina said quietly and looked at Queenie, leaning against the wall of the hallway and sighed,
"I can use the Floo Network. I will be there before he is."
And that's how it started. The very same day Tina went to talk to Mr. Graves about her plans and they came to an agreement. She would work another three days and on the third day use the Floo Network to travel to London. She packed and got ready on the second day. Spent the days pretty much the same way she always did, but with a light skip in her step that had the usually oh so serious auror in quite a happy mood. She was actually engaged. It still felt unreal since there were no ring and no fiance to talk to. Only Queenie knew about it and she wanted it to stay like that for the time being. Needing to talk to Newt about it before making anything official. In case Newt was regretting the impromptu proposal... which had Tina worry for a little bit.
On the third day it was time to go...