Harry Potter Train Platform Marriage Proposal Nearly Thwarted

A Texas man flew his girlfriend all the way to goddamn England to propose marriage at a specific train station that appears in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Only he arrived and discovered that the goddamn trains weren’t running, and so he had to improvise. (His backup plan involved taking the bus.)

That’s according to local outlet ThisIsLondon.co.uk (h/t the Daily Mail). Samuel Goetsch lured Stephanie Dodd all the way to the U.K., supposedly for a visit with his father but really so he could pop the question at the Surbiton station in suburban London. Not an especially picturesque spot from the looks of Google, but apparently it’s the setting for a pivotal moment in the Harry Potter movies. (“The scene in the movie is all about new beginnings,” his father explained.) Point to you, Samuel. But then, upon arriving across the pond, Goetsch discovered that the trains weren’t running that weekend, we apologize for any inconvenience, tough shit, old chap.

So he had to convince Stephanie, the love of his life, to get on the damn bus:

“Stephanie had no idea so my son had to do some quick thinking working up a reason to get her to the station.

“He had to pretend he had some business in Surbiton and convince her to go with him.”

Once they finally made it to Surbiton, Goetsch proposed, she said yes and all was well. Good luck, you crazy kids, and never depend on public transportation if you can help it.