The bell wasn't the only ring at this Wilmington woman's last chemo treatment

When Angelica May finished the last of 16 chemotherapy treatments at Novant Health Zimmer Cancer, she was ecstatic.

May, 27, was diagnosed with breast cancer last summer, and months of chemotherapy had taken their toll. As soon as her infusion had finished, May — surrounded by her family, friends, and her care team — rang the bell marking the end of a months-long journey.

“I was excited,” she said. “I had so many emotions running through my head. I felt like I ran a marathon. I was so ready to ring that bell.”

But as she was marking the end of one chapter, another was about to begin. May’s longtime boyfriend, Imeek Watkins, surprised her with a proposal.

The moment, captured on TikTok, went viral, and as a result, May and Watkins have gained an almost celebrity status, with national news agencies and talk show hosts reaching out to share their story. But as they look forward to this next chapter, they can’t forget the journey that brought them to that moment.

The first chapter

May and Watkins began their story about a decade ago in the halls of Laney High School. At the time, she was 17 years old and he was 15.

“We were just babies,” Watkins said with a smile.

Both were members of the school’s track and field team, and while May knew Watkins had a crush on her, she didn’t take him seriously at first.

“I was older than him, and I was just like, no,” she recalled, giggling. “But he kept trying.”

The two followed each other’s social media accounts. One day, after completing her exams, May left school and posted a photo. Watkins commented on the photo, saying “Text me” and left his number. May decided to respond and see where things went. Texts turned into phone calls, and the phone calls led to dating.

“And we’ve been together ever since,” she said.

After graduation, the two attended college and settled down in Wilmington. Until she began treatments last year, May was working as a preschool teacher and Watkins was playing professional arena football for the Bay Area Panthers in California.

“Around the time that we got the news, the season was beginning to start, so I kind of had to put everything to the side,” Watkins said. “I told all my coaches and everything, so we had support.”

Because May was unable to work while receiving treatment, Watkins took two jobs to support them. He currently works at Planet Fitness and at the Lids store at Independence Mall.

The diagnosis

May discovered a lump after a doing a random breast self-exam in late July. Like many women, she reached out to her mother for advice, and her mother urged her to see a doctor soon due to a history of breast cancer on her father’s side of the family.

May got an appointment quickly, and while her doctor thought the lump was just a cyst, she considered May’s family history and ordered more testing. When two mammograms proved inconclusive, May underwent a biopsy and learned she had cancer. Upon hearing the news, she admits she “lost it.”

“I thought it was the end of the world,” she said. “I thought that was it for me.”

While May had heard about cancer, she admits her knowledge of available treatments and survival rates were limited.

Watkins was at work when she broke the news to him, and while it was shocking, he remained strong and positive to support her.

“We talked, we prayed,” Watkins said. “We come from a Christian family, so we knew everything happens for a reason. This is just her testimony.”

Getting treatment

After learning of her diagnosis, May sought treatment at Novant Health Zimmer Cancer Institute. Dr. Lindsey Prochaska was May’s oncologist recommended a course of treatment that included chemotherapy and immunotherapy.

Prochaska said while many don’t think about 20- or 30-year-olds having cancer, it’s something doctors are seeing every day.

“I can say that we used to never see it,” Prochaska said. “But in recent years, there has been a rapid rise in younger patients without a good understanding why.”

Prochaska explained the type of cancer May had — triple-negative — was aggressive and accounts for only about 10 to 15 percent of all breast cancers. Because of the cancer’s aggressive nature, she prescribed a treatment that included a combination of four chemotherapy drugs, including one called Red Devil, and an immunotherapy drug called Keytruda.

While May was ready to fight the disease, she admits the chemotherapy treatments were brutal, and there were days she didn’t want to go receive the treatment. She recalled that she would usually begin to feel the effects of the treatment soon after the infusion and would remain sick for three days.

For that reason, she explained completing chemo is something to celebrate.

“I think I was so emotional because a lot of people don’t realize chemo is really hard,” she said. “It’s easier said than done, and to go through that — and to get through that — that’s really huge.”

Pulling off the proposal

Because of all they had been through in the last decade, Watkins wanted to make May’s bell ceremony even more special, and he began working with a few people to pull off their big day. He admits he didn’t bring too many people in on his plan because he worried someone would tip May off.

“It was definitely hard keeping it a surprise,” he said.

“I’m very nosy,” she said, giggling.

He noted in addition to being “nosy,” she is his best friend, and he wanted to tell her several times but held off to ensure it would be the moment he hoped for.

Just before it happened, one of the nurses asked May if she “was ready.”

“In my head, I’m like, ‘Yes! I am ready to get out of here,’ and I was already looking for him,” May recalled.

Then she opened the door and saw Watkins standing at the end of a red carpet surrounded by their families, and she knew.

“I just broke down because I knew, he’s about to ask, he’s about to ask,” she said.

Watkins admits to becoming emotional during the moment, too. Though she couldn’t be there in person, Watkins included his niece in his plan, allowing her to tell May through Facetime, that Watkins wanted to marry her.

All the planning proved to be worth it when Watkins saw the surprise and elation on May’s face. He notes seeing her so happy made him emotional.

“It was like, ‘Yes, I did it, I did it,” he said. “Then I knew all I had to do was say my part and get it over with.”

The next hurdle

While May and Watkins are eager to start planning their future together, they still have another hurdle to clear. May will undergo a double-mastectomy on May 6, followed by a course of immunotherapy.

The couple is focusing on the present, which for now, means fielding inquiries from national media outlets. Their special moment was captured on video and shared on TikTok, and it has now gone viral with about 1.5 million views. They have received invitations to go on nationally syndicated talk and news programs.

Watkins also has considered returning to play arena football, but for now, he's remaining focused on May.

"I've got to make sure she's OK before I do anything," he said.

Before May's surgery, the two will get to enjoy a bit of time away. They are excited about an upcoming trip to Texas to visit family, and they plan to start planning their wedding when they return. They plan to get married next year.

“We’re aiming for summertime — June,” she said.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington, NC, woman gets surprise proposal after last chemo treatment