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They Bring Me to You

By Crystal   10/02/2008

My boyfriend and I went to high school together. I was IN LOVE with him when I first saw him my sophomore year and he was new, a freshman. I was on the dance team at school, and one of our good luck rituals was to pick the grass of the boy you like before big competitions. I would pick Stephen's grass every time, even my senior year when I had a boyfriend at another school.

I was always too afraid to say anything to him, or even talk to him. I think everyone else knew I had a crush on him BUT him. My best friend had a class with him that senior year, and I asked her to get his email address (this was in 2000). She did, and at the time I was still dating the other guy, so we only emailed or IMed very infrequently. By the time my boyfriend and I broke up, Stephen was dating a girl from my grade who had her locker right next to mine.

In 2001, I joined the military and went off to Texas, leaving my home state of Michigan behind. During this time, Stephen and I would talk sporadically, keeping in touch by email and IM. This continued on for years. He was with the girl in my grade for 7 years. I did not tell him about the grass or the crush until 5 years later when I thought I was completely over it.

In December of 2007, Stephen and his then-girlfriend broke up. We were talking a lot more then, and I was even counseling him on how to maybe repair the relationship. He decided not to.

He asked for my phone number a couple of days later, and we talked for the first time on the phone - 10 years after I had picked his grass. On January 5, 2008, I bought a plane ticket for February to see Stephen. The entire time, we talked on the phone, and counted down the days until we could finally hang out in person.

February 23 I arrived in Michigan. I went to the Target in my hometown and ran into his ex-girlfriend an hour before he was supposed to pick me up. I was jittery, for sure!

However, he came to the door, and I screamed and we hugged each other. We went out, and had a fabulous time, and have been inseparable ever since.

We've visited about four times a piece (8 times, sooo expensive!) to Michigan and Texas since February, and are so, so in love. He will be moving here November/Decemberish, and we're getting engaged, and probably married sometime next year.

People laugh at me for picking his grass, saving it for years and traveling around with it... but I say... look at us now!

:)

Crystal


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