Anonymous

I saw him across a crowded room. Well, I didn’t see him, I saw his friend. His friend was a tall gorgeous specimen. I thought back quickly to my college friend’s advice. She said, “Trip him!” So that’s what I did when I saw Mario again. Only this time I was sitting on a stage in the club when Mario walked by, I extended my long lean legs and tripped him. Too my surprise, it worked! A brief moment of embarrassment, a quick glance to apologize, a heartwarming smile to set my soul on fire, I was in! Mario, then did something that would change my life forever. He looked at the guy sitting next to me and asked, “Is she with you?” My relationship with Mario fizzled over that summer, but it put in progress the relationship that would last thus far.

The gentleman sitting next to me peeped my antics. He later told me he saw the whole thing—I tripped Mario. In fact, he told me that he thought I was just another club groupie. Over the next few weeks at college night in the club, I ran into this guy several times (the guy who sat next to me on the stage…Jared). He was serious young brother. He had wild hair, a distinct style of dress and dance yet he possessed a quiet elegance. I was comfortable around him. I could let down my 19-year-old guard. We eventually exchanged numbers. He wrote his on a MAC receipt. Over the next few weeks our friendship grew. He was the club driver, you know, that guy who takes everyone to the clubs; the responsible one you could trust. If he took you, he’d make sure to bring you back. Jared was a great guy.

We quickly became friends and over the years remained in touch, even after I return to college in another state. Jared was the kind of guy, I could talk to every couple of months, but the relationship was still the same. We’d talk about our relationships with other people; the high of a new “love” and the woes of a fading one. We could tell each other things we wouldn’t dare tell others. He was still just as important to me as I was to him. My family liked him. Moreover, Mom liked him. Jared was the only guy who could pick me up after 11pm and bring me home the next morning or afternoon. You see, when nothing is going on, you speak freely. So I would tell my mom about all the clubs we hit, the celebs we saw, the dj’s we knew and all about the breakfast spot where we all ended up before returning home. Mom was tickled by it.

It later became apparent that Jared wasn’t just a friend, he was my best friend. He treated me with so much respect that others thought we were dating, even though we were not. Every time we hung out, Jared paid for everything. It got to the point that I became spoiled. I was so spoiled I refused to go anywhere where Jared had a date. You see, I wasn’t going to sit in the back of the car for no one. Where ever Jared was, I was going to have his full attention. And well, that wouldn’t fly well with his girlfriend at the time. We were so young and naive; we didn’t know what was happening.

One winter day, Jared and I planned to meet in the Village to hang out. So much was going on in my life at the time; I was going to tell Jared that I needed a break and we should hang out later in the summer. However, I did go and we ended up at a little quaint restaurant with a jukebox. Loving Annie Lennox as I do, I played every one of her listed song…and commenced to singing each one to Jared. After “Would I lie to you?” was over, Jared asked were we dating? Just like that everything over our past 6 years of friendship came rushing back. The relationship had long been more than a friendship. Everything became an amber tint, and yes, I heard birds chirping. It was then, that I realized I was in love. It was then I realized what he already knew. All those years, I had been entertaining my soul mate. I, now, look back over 15 years of marriage, three kids, one year of dating, in addition to the 6 years of initial friendship, and know—he was right.

Note: The names have been changed to maintain the privacy of the individuals.