Chapter One: How did it start?

Girl meets boy

I still remember the first time I saw him. It was the second semester, freshman year of college. His hair was way too long. His hat was backwards. He was playing guitar. I know it's cliché to fall for the boy in college with the acoustic guitar...but what can I say? I requested a song. He shut me down. Years later we would look back on that day and I would tease him for being so rude to me. He would say he remembers it all quite differently. I wonder what he thinks now.

Just friends

He believes we met on Valentine's Day, but I know it happened earlier. Still, it's more charming to claim we met on a day celebrating love than an ordinary day in a messy dorm room. My mind was elsewhere this particular Valentine's Day, as I had received a necklace, a chocolate-covered strawberry, and a Celine Dion card from a "secret admirer" that morning. I was in the school cafeteria, proudly wearing the pink heart-shaped necklace from my admirer, trying to figure out who it was. Contrary to what you might think, it wasn't the boy with the backward hat and the guitar. It turned out to be a foreign exchange student from Korea. (But that's a tale for another time.) Anyway, while I was scanning the room for my admirer, the boy with the guitar was excitedly telling the whole table about his girlfriend back home. His enthusiasm was so captivating that I paused my search to listen to his heartfelt words. I've always loved a good love story. I remember leaving the meal with my roommate, and we couldn't stop talking about how adorable it was that he was so devoted to his girlfriend. We said we hoped to be invited to his wedding. Spoiler alert: we were.

First Date

He and the girlfriend he planned to marry didn't last. It turned out he had feelings for someone else, and she felt the same way about him. They spent late nights talking on the phone, developing inside jokes that became a language only they understood. He asked her on a date, and she agreed. They went to Applebee's. She was nervous, and he was sweet.

First Kiss

I practically pleaded for that kiss. I vividly recall snuggling with him on his dorm bed, my heart racing as I schemed. How could I get him to finally kiss me? I shifted and moved our lips close, but not quite touching. I mentioned that I could actually see the movie perfectly reflected in his glasses. He got the hint. I got my kiss. My cheeks flushed bright red, and the butterflies in my stomach wouldn't settle. We made it official. I had a boyfriend!

"I'm going to marry him."

This is what I told my mother and sister three months into dating him. We were sitting at a diner eating pancakes. I was smitten. He was perfect. They rolled their eyes.

Our First Fight

It was winter. My lips were chapped. I wanted chapstick! He didn't want to wait in line. We left the store, no chapstick in hand...He bought me 4 cherry chapsticks later that night. Forgiven.

Four years later

The years passed like a blur. We laughed together. Cried together. Grew together. Graduated college together. Found our first jobs together. Dreamed together. Started a life together.

The Proposal

How could I say no? It was everything I wanted. A flash mob full of my closest friends and family. A beautiful ring. A Taylor Swift song. A boy who loved me. How could I say no?

October 9th 2015

I have nothing bad to say about that day. In fact, it still remains one of the best

days of my life. My dress was perfect. The DJ was fantastic. The vows were beautiful. The cupcakes were delicious. The boy and the girl were happy. Happy and young. Happy and young and excited. Happy and young and excited and naive.

Next Chapter...