I've been meaning to write this for some time now. What is "this", you ask?
My and Caleb's story.
A story about true, enduring love that is so crazy and nonsensical, some have deemed it a fairytale.
How we met, our first date (Yes, the story of our first date *IS* so epic that it gets an entire post all to itself), how we fell in love, how we got engaged, etc... You're gonna hear it all. The two year anniversary of the weekend we started falling in love is next month, so I wanted to start this now in case it takes me a month to finish.
PART I: BEFORE THE BEGINNING
Our story begins (sort of) in 2009. No, we didn't meet until 2011. So how can a story start two years before it began? I'll explain.
I'd like to demonstrate how fate (or God, whichever you believe in more) had a HUGE hand in bringing Caleb and I together.
I was just out of high school and working for a company called Western Wats. Without getting boring, I will just tell you that I was semi-promoted to a different position in a different building where I met Amber Biggs. I really enjoyed her company and we became friends.
After a while, she introduced me to a company called Primerica. I did not do well with this company. I did, however, come away kind of starting to date a guy from that company named Seth. While Seth and I were "dating", I met his roommate, Chad. When Seth and I fizzled out, Chad asked me to go on a blind date with one of his friends. This friend just happened to be a kid who was one of Caleb's best friends for YEARS.
However, this is not the part of the story where I meet Caleb.
I went on this blind (and thankfully GROUP) date, where I met a friend of Chad's. TJ was his name, and his date bailed at the last minute, but he came anyway. A few weeks later, TJ had my number and he and I became a couple.
Jump forward only a few months later and we're in 2010. I had been graduated for a while and DESPERATELY needed to move out. I had been talking to TJ about this for a few weeks, so when one of his friends texted him about a room for rent in a house in Sandy, he let me know. If Katrina had never sent that text to TJ, I would never have moved to that area specifically. Fast forward several months and I was officially a resident of The House on Loma Way.
If I hadn't moved to Sandy, I wouldn't have joined the singles ward up there, causing me to never meet John and Adam, who would subsequently have never invited me to a movie night where their roommate/my future husband and I would set eyes on each other for the first time.
Ladies and gentleman... If you don't believe in destiny, I hope I can convince you to. It is CRAZY to me that a decision I made in 2009 relating only to where I would work, would create a domino effect of everything that needed to happen in order for me to meet my husband. If my friend Brent hadn't introduced me to this job, I would have worked at some other insignificant job. I would never have taken the position they offered me that led me to meet Amber. I could have not chosen to move in with complete strangers. But the crazy thing is that I DID make those decisions! Not knowing that they were all leading me to the most amazing person I've ever met.
And I am POSITIVE that they did not happen by accident.
Now, THIS is the part of the story where I meet Caleb. :)
Caleb was about to leave for basic training and I heard someone ask him about a girl during this movie night event. I thought this guy was cute, but I didn't even remotely see things going anywhere.
This particular night, I wanted to watch Psych REALLY badly. (This part will be important in my next post, I promise.) Even though everyone was trying to decide what movie to watch, every time a suggestion came up, I would insert my two cents.
"Hey, should we watch this one?"
"Guys, let's watch Psych!"
"Maybe. What do we think of either of these movies?"
"No, no. We should watch Psych!"
"Hey, do you have that one movie that just came out?"
"It's not out on DVD yet. LET'S WATCH PSYCH!"
Eventually no one could make up their minds, so we watched Psych. And everyone loved it. People should really learn to listen to me the first time. :)
ANYWAY, as the night went on, Caleb and I didn't interact one-on-one very much. We mutually participated in the group discussion, but nothing really significant. As it grew later, our friends left one by one until I was the only remaining guest. And I have no explanation as to why, but I was dawdling.
HARDCORE DAWDLING.
Mostly just chatting with John, Adam, and Caleb, but I was putting on my shoes and gathering my things much slower than was necessary. It was getting pretty late, though. Maybe it was because he was tired and wanted me out, or maybe it was because he could tell I was getting more intrigued with this Caleb kid. I'm not sure why John said what he did next, but I'm happy he did.
"Hey, Caleb, why don't you walk Sairah out to her car?"
So he did.
Anticlimactic alert: Nothing happened. Ok, a hug happened. But nothing else happened. He didn't ask for my number or to see me again... nothing. I assumed it was because he was serious with this girl I had heard someone asking about earlier. So I was bummed, but I let it go. He was leaving for basic training anyway. I had already sworn to not ever get involved with military guys, so I just moved on.
John texts me inviting me to a going away party for this Caleb guy. He was just a week away from leaving for basic training. It was a barbeque. I wasn't about to say no to free barbeque, despite the fact that I didn't know this kid very well. So I show up and, to my surprise, Caleb is FAR more attentive this time. I noticed (after testing my theory a few times) that he was actually TRYING to be in the same room I was and interact with me. I figured that this hussy he was dating before was out of the picture.
I was WRONG.
She shows up and wants to talk, so he disappears for like a year.
Just kidding. Maybe only an hour and a half.
Anyway, I got a chance to start chatting with his younger brother, Casey. We got along really well and ended up chatting until I decided that it was time for me to go. I decided I was going to go find Caleb to say goodbye. Luckily, I didn't have to interrupt anything awkward because he was coming up the stairs right then. When I told him I was leaving, he seemed genuinely put out. But again, didn't ask for my number, didn't ask to see me again... nothing. So I went home expecting to never see this kid again.
Luckily, I was wrong about that too. :)
TO BE CONTINUED...
