It is the one moment every man wants to get right -- and which London floor-fitter Lefkos Hajji could hardly have got more wrong.

The luckless 28 year-old's dreams of giving his sweetheart, Leanne, 26, the ultimate proposal have literally vanished into thin air.

Hajji, of Hackney, east London, had concealed a $12,000 engagement ring inside a helium balloon. The idea was that she would pop the balloon as he popped the question..

But as he left the shop, a gust of wind pulled the balloon from his hand and he watched the ring -- and quite possibly the affections of his girlfriend -- sailing away over the rooftops.

"I couldn't believe it," he told The Sun newspaper.

"I just watched as it went further and further into the air.

"I felt like such a plonker. It cost a fortune and I knew my girlfriend would kill me."

Hajji spent two hours in his car trying to chase and find the balloon, without success.

"I had to tell her the story -- she went absolutely mad. Now she is refusing to speak to me until I get her a new ring."

这个28岁的小伙子是个倒霉鬼。本来他打算向他的26岁的女朋友Leanne求婚，但是这个梦想却“随风而去”了。

Hajji住在伦敦东城区的Hackney。他把一枚价值12000美元的订婚戒指藏在一个氦气球里面了。他本来想，等向女朋友求婚的时候，让她戳破气球后，戒指再“现身”。

但是，正要离开商店的时候，一阵大风吹来，气球飞走了，他望着戒指——还有他对女友的无限深情——飘到了房顶上。

“不可思议，”他对《太阳报》说。

“气球越飞越远，我就在那儿看着。”

“我觉得自己就是一个蠢蛋。这枚戒指花了我一大笔钱。我女友会杀了我。”

Hajji开着车找了两个小时，无功而返。

“我把事情的经过告诉了她——她崩溃了。现在她还不理我，我还得再买个新戒指。”