We First Met

It was my senior year of high school. I was needing an after school job, and did not want to work at a restaurant anymore. I got a phone call from a family friend from church (who was also my computer teacher) about a job opportunity answering phones, filing, and other clerical stuff. I called them immediately and went in for an interview. Little did I know, my interviewer would soon be my mother-in-law. I got the job and began the next day. After not working there very long, we encountered a computer problem. She had her son on the phone and wanted me to talk with him to fix it. I remember talking with him on the phone and thinking he sounded cute. Such a high school girl, I know. So a month or so went by  with several jokes from my co-worker, Pam, about how we should date, yada yada yada. But I knew he was way older and that my parents would not be okay.

Which made me even more interested.

One normal afternoon, while filing some bills at the wall of cabinets, I turned around to see my employers walk in with their son. Him. The man I would one day marry. My future babies' father. Sigh.
He walked in wearing the old Knoxville Sports t-shirt and his signature black Nike baseball cap. I was done.

More and more months went by with more and more of his visits to the office. We got to know a lot about each other on those boring afternoons. Including the fact that he was in a serious four-year relationship.

Which, again, made me even more interested.

We talked daily about our relationships, likes, dislikes, blah blah blah. We flirted and joked on each other. He made me so nervous. And all of a sudden, I noticed myself begin to care what I looked like a little more. There were two occasions, one where we both went for the computer mouse and the same time and one where he walked by and pinched my arm (or something like that) that I thought I was going to drop dead right then and there. I was so smitten.

That winter, I turned 18. I remember being at the office, across from Mrs. Warren. She was on the phone with Jamie and reminded him to wish "the now legal" Britney a happy birthday. I thought that was pretty cool. After Christmas break, it rained for a week straight and school was cancelled. So I worked full time that week. You know, to make more money [big grin].

The weekend before, I had been on a "date" and had come home to Dad's house. I was sitting on the side of my bed, sniffling, and being super bummed because of how the night had gone when my phone received a text message. I looked and it said "how did your date go?" I recognized the number from work. I wiped those tears REAL FAST. We texted each other for hours when I complained about my thumbs hurting. He texted "phones work when you dial on them too, you know" and I replied "so dial."

He did.

So, needless to say, that full week at work was a little awkward/emotionally charged. I knew he was single. He knew I was single. I knew he was interested. He knew I was interested. But we tried to carry on like normal. I'm fairly certain that Pam knew what was up.

One night I was leaving to go home. It was pouring down rain. I headed out the door. He grabbed my arm and we smooched.

Cue the theme music.