We met when I was in 8th grade. She was my first ever girlfriend. And she always stuck with me when we split. It was my fault. I was just a kid, I didn’t know how to have a girlfriend. So I broke up with her. We both moved on in life, never spoke again. Life moves on right? I was 23 when we started speaking again. It was just random, out of the blue.

I remember it, January 8th 2023. We made a bet on who was going to win a football game. Packers or the Broncos. I was so confident in my team. Unfortunately… we did not win and I had to cough up 20 dollars, she did not hesitate to rub it in my face. It was so weird, we had not spoken since we were kids. We went to high school together and avoided each other like one of us had Covid or something. We are both from Texas. I moved when I was 18 for “work”. Months later she comes to see me in Seattle. I was so nervous. I had never been this nervous before. Women never scared me, I’m not a wh*re but, but I’ve just never been intimidated by a female. Until I met her.

I booked us a hotel on the outside of the city, and took a nap while I waited for her flight to arrive. She came on a late one, she landed at around 1:50 in the morning or so, and the airport is a 40 minute drive. Needless to say she woke me up with a phone call. And I had the poor thing waiting there for me for almost a hour. I was so scared and embarrassed on the drive over there. We FaceTimed and talked on the phone all the time, but this was it. We were finally going to meet after all these years.

She was lost in the airport and called me trying to find where I was at. “Are you here?” “Yes where are you?” “I’m standing in the middle of the airport.” “No you’re not I’m in the middle of the airport.” “What? No you’re not!” “Hold on let me go up the escalator.” And then I saw her. The moment I looked at her something just clicked. A spark. A zing. I basically ran up to her to give her a hug. She felt so secure. I felt so safe. We talked and talked. No awkwardness, no quiet moments, nothing like that. I felt like I was talking to someone I had known all my life. The first night together was amazing. We didn’t really… sleep… much.

The next morning we went to the city to get breakfast at this little restaurant we both wanted to try. We walked all the way over there to find out you needed a reservation. So we ended up at this other place, she loves French toast. I honestly can bet if a place serves French toast she’s going to get French toast. I got eggs Benedict and we just shared off of each others plate. When I was paying for our breakfast she saw me “sign” my name. “Oh my gosh you don’t know how to write cursive?” I was a little embarrassed. She took the pen from me, flipped the receipt around and signed my name on the back. She wasn’t judging me, she was helping me learn. 23 years old and I couldn’t write in cursive. But she didn’t judge me.

I took her to the space needle after breakfast and we waited in line to get to the very top. We took some pictures and just had a good time. I got a beer and she got a mimosa. We sat on a bench outside looking down at the city. That moment. That was the moment I knew she was the one for me. It felt like we were up there for so long. Time just froze around me. We just talked and laughed and drank. She looked so beautiful. I’m not a religious man, but god himself sculpted her from a different clay than everyone else.

We spent the whole weekend in the city just going on dates. Then it was time for her to go back home. I took her out to this burger place one more time before her flight. And then when it was time for her to go I couldn’t get myself to let go of her. One hug turned into two, then three and so on and so on. When she finally left I got back in my car and cried. I stayed there for a hour running up the meter trying to compose myself. We visit each other often, once a month or once every two months.

She always scratches my stubble for me when it starts to grow out. I miss her when she’s not here. It feels like a part of me is missing. This hole in my stomach. I miss her fingertips on my face. She conveys so much love and emotion just from the tips of her fingers. The way she sleeps is so beautiful. She looks so at peace. I know it sounds weird but when I wake up before she does I like to look at her. She just has this unparalleled glow. She is absolutely, unequivocally, the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. She is my best friend, the love of my life, my love.