For the longest time, I’ve been waiting for my movie-quality romance. I have always loved the idea of love. As a little kid, I’d watch Singing in the Rain and dream of falling in love one day. Of course I’ve had my fair share of middle school relationships, but nothing more than that. All the best movies about love happen to teenagers, so why haven’t I gotten my chance yet? I should be singing silly songs at the top of my lungs, dancing barefoot in the park, and having “I love you more” fights by now. But no. Instead I’m stuck in a mundane schedule of school, work, and trying to maintain a social life.
My best friends, Stevie and Sutton, are at my house all the time, so today is nothing out of the ordinary. We’re all laying on my bed; Stevie’s on her phone, Sutton’s reading Alice in Wonderland, and I’m doing math homework. “Hey Tilly,” Stevie says. “Who’s Ross?”
“Ross who?” I reply.
“I dunno. He just messaged you on Facebook,” she tosses me my phone and I unlock it.
“Oh my god.”
“What is it?” Sutton asks.
“OH MY GOD!”
“Chill out! Who is he?”
My mind races and brings me back to the seventh grade. I’m walking in the halls with my headphones when a very tall, very handsome boy bumps into me. “Sorry about that,” he says before helping me pick up my books. “I’m Ross.” I smile and attempt to form a full sentence to introduce myself. I fail.
I tell Stevie and Sutton about the closest encounter I had with love at first sight. “Why is he just now messaging you?” Sutton asks, sounding appalled.
“I don’t know. Maybe he just got over a breakup or something.”
Ross and I message back and forth for hours. He tells me about his adventures at military school, and I tell him about my dreary days at public school. “We should hang out sometime,” I say.
“I’ll actually be home next weekend,” he tells me. I start screaming, and Stevie and Sutton tell me to shut up.
“He’s going to be home this weekend!” They start screaming along with me. “What do I wear?” We all rush to my closet to find the perfect out for my first date with my potential teenage love. By the time we finish my room is covered in just about everything I own, but my outfit is perfect. We pick out a flowy white skirt, pale pink blouse, and gold sandals. Ross and I settle on going to see Whiplash before having dinner. For the rest of the week, I spend most of my time either texting Ross or talking to him on the phone.
After school on Friday, Stevie and Sutton come over to help me get ready. “I’m gonna puke,” I tell them.
“Chill out,” Stevie says. “It’s just some guy you’ve known since middle school.”
“Just some guy?! Stevie. I have been infatuated with this ‘guy’ since I was twelve.” She laughs at me and finishes straightening my hair. Once my primping is over, I look in the mirror. I fluff my hair one last time, dab on some more lip gloss, and hug my best friends goodbye.
When the doorbell rings, I jump and race to the door. “Hey,” I smile. Ross hugs me and gives me kiss on the cheek.
“Shall we go?” he says.
“We shall.”
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The bell rings and I run out to my car, putting my coat on in the process. Tiny snowflakes land on my lashes and the tip of my nose. Christmas has always been my favorite holiday, but this year is extra special. Ross’s parents invited me out to dinner for Christmas Eve so that I can meet them. I didn’t know that it was possible to be so excited and terrified at the same time.
Ross picks me up, and we drive to his house. We pull into the driveway and Ross grabs my hand. “They’re gonna love you. Probably not as much as I do, but they’ll love you nonetheless,” he kisses me gently and goes to open the door for me. His mom opens the door with a smile on her face and her arms open. I smile back and mumble “Ross, does she want to hug me or you?” He ignores me and grabs my hand, leading me to the porch. He bends down to hug his mom while his dad walks outside. Angie looks at me and smiles. “You’re even more beautiful in person,” she says.
“As are you, Mrs. Borgsmiller,” I smile and hug her. I give her the flowers I brought for her, and we all go inside for dinner.
“So Matilda, I hear you’re working at the Goddard School,” Mr. Borgsmiller says. I tell him about my assistant teaching job and all of my students. “So I take it you want kids one day?” he inquires.
I choke a bit on my food before responding. “Yeah, I’d love kids one day, but I have a while before then.”
“What about a career?” he asks.
“I’m actually pursuing a career in midwifery.”
“What kind of schooling does that require?” He continues to interrogate me and I wrack my brain trying to come up with adequate answers.
When we finish eating, Ross takes me on a tour of the house. He leads me downstairs and says, “I’m so sorry about my dad. He just wants to make sure I’m with someone he approves of.”
“It’s totally fine. It’s not like I was having an internal panic attack or anything,” I joke.
He chuckles, tells me to shut up, and kisses me. “I love you, Matilda. More than anything in this world.” There it was. There was my movie moment.
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I stand here at the end of the aisle on my wedding day, and I think about Ross. All of our wonderful memories and intense feelings for eachother flow through my brain like a river through a canyon. The music begins and I walk towards my future- towards the love of my life, towards my wonderful parents-in-law, and towards my childhood dream. My father gives me away, my best friends smile at me tearfully, and I take the hand of my groom, Ross.