It was a typical November night in California. It was the kind of night where you wear a jacket just because. The night darkened early but the moon illuminated the road as I drove to church in my bright red PT Cruiser. I hadn’t seen my friends in a while so I was excited to catch up with them. It seemed like a typical church event, “Red Eye” they called it. We played games, indulged large amounts of junk food, and got away from the busyness of school, sports, and work. Little did I know that this would be the night where I met the girl of my dreams.

The game of the night was Sardines: one person hid and everyone else tried to find that one person. Once you found the person hiding, you stayed in their hiding spot until everyone else discovered where you were. It was the first round and I was motivated to win. The first girl to hide wasn’t new to me. I had seen her many times around church and quickly learned her name but never had a proper introduction. She was so beautiful, but I could never find the courage to say two words to her. I had mixed emotions of anxiety and eagerness to find this girl first and finally have the opportunity to interact with her. Luckily I was no novice at Sardines. I found her sitting in one of my normal spots, the playground storage area.

I climbed the fence to the storage area and there she was. She was sitting with her long legs scrunched up to her chest, trying not to be seen. It was obvious she had just come from practice. Her hair was up in a ponytail on top of her head, she had no make up on, and was wearing an old t-shirt, shorts, and a pair of running shoes. Despite her post practice appearance, I saw a girl of true beauty. Immediately, she started the conversation with a simple hello and we talked until the last person found us. From the moment she said hello, I knew she was the one for me.

Our relationship continued to grow until I finally had the nerve to ask her out on a date. I am still in shock to this day that she accepted my offer. We went to dinner and the movies, a classic first date, and it ended with a good night kiss. The moment her lips touched mine, I felt something I had never known before, true love. It took me a while to convince her, but soon enough the feeling was mutual. We promised each other that our relationship would withstand the unknown future. We promised each other that there would be no one else. We promised each other that one day we would be husband and wife. I am usually cautious when it comes to a promise that is hard to keep, but I had a sincere trust that these promises would be kept.

Her big day came too fast. It was the day I had been dreading for the past year, the day she moved away for college. Tears streamed down our faces as we promised to call one another every night and try our best to visit when we could. I gave her one last kiss and watched as she got in her car and drove away to her new future. The phone calls began to decrease as the weeks went by and the pain in my heart began to deepen. Her consistent excuses made it clear that she valued her future more than our past. Six months ago we stopped talking completely but the image of our time together is still burned into my mind. I guess some things weren’t meant to be.