Strangers

I was 16, scrolling on Facebook, when a message pops up from some boy I never met or saw before. I thought he was the cutest and was so nervous about if I should talk to him or not. I eventually responded to him and we talked for hours. He was one year older than me and lived in a totally different state. His personality was just like mine: He was funny, cute, and a great listener. We talked for a few months before I told my closest best friend about him. She thought I was crazy for talking to someone I never met before. The thought crossed my mind over and over that what if he was actually an old man or someone just being creepy. But then I would talk to him and I felt safe and at such a young age; I felt in love.

One day, he suggested that we Skype one another. I was so nervous to do that because I was scared he wasn't going to be how I pictured and he might not like me at all. But it was the total opposite of that. He was perfect to me! His personality is what got me so head over heels for him.

We talked for months at a time, just as friends. I kept everything to myself just because I was scared what other people would think, and I knew I couldn't tell my parents because they would have freaked out.

As time went by, the distance got harder. We both were dying to meet in person but were too young to try and drive out of town to meet up. So time just kept going by without us seeing each other. One month, we got into a small argument about not being able to see each other and I decided to just not talk anymore, so we ended our friendship.

Five months go by and I start getting likes on all of my pictures by him. I was so happy that he did that, so I liked all his pictures back. He sent me a message and we started having small talk. Small talk ended up being talking for months. This cycle happened with us a lot over the years. We would argue and end things and then one day randomly come back in each other's lives.

We started telling each other how we felt about one another at the age of 18 and 19. I knew he was the one for me, and I didn't want anyone else. We planned on meeting each other and making plans on what we would do. Everything started feeling so perfect.

Perfect until I saw a picture pop up on Instagram. It was him and another girl. The caption said, “Happy birthday to my beautiful girlfriend.” I was crushed. I didn't know what to do or how to react. So I deleted his number, deleted him off everything, and didn't speak to him at all. I just started college, so I decided I needed to move on with my life no matter how bad it hurt.

Life was great for me. I was in college, had a good job, great friends. I even met a guy who was so nice to me and all around a good person. My second year of college was over, and I headed back home for the summer. My summer was going so well and I was still involved with the guy I met at school.

The day after father's day was the day I got a Snapchat friend request from him. I was so confused, upset, and every other emotion you feel when someone hurts you. I wanted to know why he friended me so I accepted the request. An hour later, he sent me a chat: “Hey.” Just hey, like everything is normal and good. I wanted to go off on him and tell him to leave me alone but I couldn't do it. I was weak.

We talked, and talked, talked till 2 AM the next morning. He apologized over and over again and explained to me what happened. And I forgave him. He told me that he and that girl he was posting pictures with broke up a month ago. I was happy but also felt like a rebound to him. And I'm no one's rebound.

We became friends. We talked every day and basically caught up on each other's lives and how we had both been. After a few months go by, my feelings started coming back for him, and I knew they would never go away. I couldn't keep entertaining two guys at the same time because it's a lot of work. So one had to go.

It was a hard decision for me because they both meant a lot to me. But I knew who I wanted to be with and talk to every day and that was the internet guy. And when I told my friends, they thought I was crazy and basically making a terrible decision, but I didn't care.

Time goes by and he randomly asked me to meet him halfway that weekend. I was so nervous but so excited to finally meet the one I wanted to be with after all that time.

We met at a mall in a small town. I beat him there so I was hiding in the mall behind a fountain. We were on the phone together, and he was trying to figure out where I was. It was the cutest thing watching him look around like a lost puppy. Looking at him, I was thinking, Gosh, it's actually him. I finally walked from behind the fountain and he just stopped and stared at me. I smiled so hard at the thought that this is finally here. The day I have been waiting for.

We walk towards each other and just hug. We hug for the longest time until he grabbed my chin and kissed me. It felt so good. The entire time we were there, we couldn't stop smiling and laughing. It was like we'd known each other and been around each other for years.

We grab something to eat and head back to his place. I ended up staying the night with him. We didn't do anything besides kiss and cuddle and it felt so normal and comfortable. I was so happy.

Almost every weekend since that weekend, we have met up and hung out. We fell in love with each other.

As of today, we have been together for a year and two months. We have both met each other's parents, family, and friends. Our relationship is almost perfect. The only thing we deal with is distance. But after this year, we plan to move together and start our life.

We always get asked how we met, and I'm always so nervous to tell people that we met online six years ago. I wanted to share my relationship story with everyone because online dating does happen and I'm sure I'm not the only one who has gone through it.