I had been anticipating this day ever since it was planned. 

I woke up at 7:00 that morning. I didn’t have to leave my house until 10:00, but I wanted to make sure everything was perfect, so I spent 3 hours preparing. After taking a steaming hot shower, and using my favourite LUSH shampoo and body wash, I got dressed. Or attempted to at least. It took me several tries to find an outfit I liked. The time I spent getting ready was lengthened also by my unruly hair. Trying to manage my curls was like untying double-knotted shoelaces. Finally, I was satisfied. Smelling fresh and looking good, I put my backpack on and stepped out of the house, starting my hour and a half long journey. It was a perfect day outside, and I thought it was a sign from God that the events that followed were going to be equally perfect.. The day barely started and I was already the happiest I had been in a long time. After a 20 minute long bus ride that felt like it lasted hours, I arrived at the McKnight/Westwinds C-Train station.

1 step closer.

I stepped onto the train platform and started my least favourite task-waiting. After a grueling 6 minutes, my train arrived. At the stop after mine, a man, seemingly homeless, walked into the train. Being the nearest to him, naturally, he started talking to me. Although I’m a very shy person, I am always open to having friendly interactions on transit: however, this man made me extremely uncomfortable with his invasion of my personal space and his preaching about samurais, ninjas, and robots. I spent 26 minutes “learning” about how, “Samurais were the greatest warriors but the robots killed them all.” Relieved when I arrived at City Hall station, I dashed out of the train and across the street to the other train platform.

1 step closer.

Luckily, I didn’t have to wait more than 2 minutes for my next train, and the ride was quite peaceful. “Please remember to to take all your baggage and newspaper when leaving the train,” said the lovely automated voice when I arrived at Somerset/Bridlewood station. Although Bridlewood was where I was headed and the station I was at was named after it, I still had to take one last bus ride to get to my destination. But at least I was…

1 step closer.

I walked to the bus stop and sat, waiting patiently. It was a warm day and the sun was shining, yet there was also a cool breeze. The balance was perfect. I was so entranced that I ended up losing track of time and when the bus arrived it seemed like it had only been a minute or two, but after checking the time, I discovered 15 minutes had passed.

I got on the bus and watched my map waiting patiently to see when I was supposed to get off. My bus was getting very close to where I needed to be, so I pressed the STOP button and stood up. I got off and walked toward our meeting place.

I got my phone out and called her. She picked up and for the next 10 minutes we were both trying to find the other, describing where we are and how to come to where we are. Eventually we found each other, and started to walk to the benches. We sat down, smiling and laughing and stared the other. I was so lost in the moment that I forgot what I was about to say. “So how was your ride here?” she asked, as if she could sense my anxiety.

“Fine, it was a bit long, and I saw some crazy people, but it was worth it because I get to see you.” I replied, while scratching my neck, trying to hide my face.

“What kind of ‘crazy people’ did you see?”

“Just some guy talking about ninjas, robots, and samurais.” I replied, while simultaneously assuming I was being judged.

We kept on talking for a bit while sitting on the bench enjoying the view. After about half an hour just sitting and talking, we decided to change locations and go for a walk. She showed me around her community, and told me stories about when she was younger.

We found a really nice spot by a park and I pulled out a blanket for us to sit on. We sat and talked for a bit again, and took some pictures together. We once again decided to get up and start walking.

We walked to Tim Horton’s and bought some Timbits. We walked to a school’s field and sat down once again on the blanket I brought. I was shaking because of how nervous I was but in one single moment, she changed all that. She could see that I was feeling anxious and told me to close my eyes. I closed my eyes and she kissed me. In that moment I lost all fear and was completely stunned. Now that I’m thinking about it, I was probably smiling like an idiot the whole time, but I didn’t care if I looked funny. I was completely in love, and when I looked her in the eyes, I knew she was too. It was almost for me to leave and go to my friend’s house for a party, so we walked to the bus stop together. Before I left, I asked her out, and she said yes. I was completely euphoric when I was on the way to my friend’s house, and was rendered unable to stop smiling.

I was the happiest I had been in a very long time.

I was in love.

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