On the eve of our one-year anniversary, he left for a class trip to Japan. The next morning, I walked downstairs sullenly, feeling bad for myself—why did my first serious boyfriend have to leave me alone on a “milestone” such as this? That’s when I saw the mountain of flowers and the card that detailed our past year together. That’s also when I knew my high school sweetheart was something more.

—Ariane

Postscript: Our relationship has lasted through high school and into college. I am hopeful for the future and many more anniversaries.

5

I knew I was in love when I walked my boyfriend out to his car. It was about 10 degrees, dead of winter and we were talking and kissing and I realized we were out there for almost two hours, shivering in the cold but it didn’t matter because we were together. The temperature, or the time of night (morning) didn’t even register whatsoever.

—Andrea

Postscript: We still manage to lose track of time when we are together.

3

We were kids, sitting at the end of the dock on an August night. We stared up at sky and watched a meteor shower with our knobby knees touching. A shooting star raced through the sky and he turned to me and asked me what I wanted more than anything in the world. The only thing I knew was that I wanted to spend every minute of every day with him for the rest of my life. But being a shy 12-year-old, I lied and said I wanted a boat. It’s been 10 years and now I know he wished the same thing on that star.

—Emily

Postscript: We are almost 21 now, and still together.

10

It was in junior year pre-calculus class. He was sick for two weeks, and I agreed to tutor him before the test. Turns out he’s a math genius…He aced the test and winked at me showing his score. He’s been my tutor ever since.

—Elizabeth

Postscript: We have been dating for almost 4 years now.

4

Our first kiss was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. The way he kissed me was completely different from any kiss I had ever had before.   I kept catching my mind thinking “‘wow.” I was surprised  how shockingly amazing one kiss could be. I knew that if I were never to kiss another man again, I would not be disappointed.

—Kathryn

Postscript: Since that kiss we’ve been together 9 months.

0

Morning coffee runs were our thing. We had different friends and were dating other people, but a few mornings a week he’d pick me up and we’d drink coffee and talk about books. I fell in love with his mind. One morning I got a text from my boyfriend and my heart sank when I saw it wasn’t from the friend; that’s when I knew I’d fallen for the rest of him too.

—Hayley

Postscript: We still are not together…and I am not with the other guy either…

2

Our first date was on St. Patrick’s’ Day. I was dressed to kill with a bright green sweater and starched white shirt, pressed khakis and Weejuns.  She had jeans and a leather jacket. She suggested a place to go for dinner.  Walking in, I noticed the very long bar was full of bikers with heavy boots, lots of ratty hair, wallet-chains  and many layers of smoke in the room. I felt sure I only had a few minutes to live. She introduced me to the guys lined up on the wall watching us play.  All were friends of hers, keeping an eye out for her safety.  I knew she had to be The One.

—Dan

Postscript: for our 25th anniversary, I recorded a 11-minute monologue about this event, remembering my feelings at the time. I presented it to her as a gift.  She was thrilled.

3