"Omg you guys would be THE cutest couple!”
How many times have you heard that phrase as a young, single, gal?
Well for me, it was during the summer of 2012 and I was busy doing what I loved most -- folding panties and giving bra fittings from 9 to 5. Totally kidding.
But I was home from college working at Victoria's Secret the summer before my last year at college. I had become really close with one of my bosses, Jill.
I always looked forward to the shifts we worked together and after the store closed each night we chatted about our day, laughed while we cleaned and even ordered pizza during those long semi-annual sale hours.
She had always talked about her younger brother, Joey, and how we would make the perfect couple because we're both tall (OMG already day-dreaming about all the heels I can wear #TallGirlProblems). After one particularly long shift, we got to chatting about how I was leaving for my internship in NYC that winter and she insisted I meet her brother before heading off to the city.
“OK, I'm totally going to fix you up with my brother, I'll give him your number," she said. Cool. What did I have to lose? I figured he would send me some lame Facebook message within the next week or so.
Plot twist: I got a phone call that very same night from what I believed was Joey's number.
"NO WAY, that was fast. Is this kid desperate?"
The call was followed by a text: “Hey! So sorry, Jill just texted me that number and I was worried something was wrong so I called right away!”
Oh, what a sweet brother. He cares so much about his sister that he calls a random number because well, maybe she was being held hostage. Turns out, that was Joey's tactic to break the ice and get me to start texting him -- creative.
Fast forward about a week and we finally planned a date. I suggested lunch, because no one wants to be stuck with awkward silence on a Friday night, right? I made my parents run errands while he picked me up so I didn't have to introduce this potentially horrific blind date to my dad.
When he arrived, I opened the door and I swear my heart melted. We shook hands and he told me I looked beautiful. I'm sure I was blushing and I frantically layered on one more layer of lipstick while I told myself to play it cool in the bathroom.
That day, it was 90 degrees outside with 100 percent humidity. I wore a blue and white dress and I had so much hairspray in I was certain I would catch on fire if anyone around me decided to light up.
So we left my house and before hopping into his car, he opened the car door for me. Cheers went off inside my head, chivalry wasn't dead.
Then, he so casually said "my air conditioning is broken." Every girls worst nightmare. “Care if we ride with the windows down?”
“Um, sure.” (Actually, NO. Does it look like I'm one of those carefree chicks who's hair still looks flawless after a windy car ride?)
While driving, he asked me about work and my family. Simple questions but hard to answer with the noise of the highway ringing in my ears, the wind blowing my hair everywhere and having to wipe sweat from my forehead.
We went to Brio for lunch and I honestly can't remember what I ordered because I was smiling and laughing more than I had in years. There was something about Joey that made me feel so comfortable, so at ease, even though we had met just an hour before.
I regret only planning lunch that day. Maybe it was his adorable laugh, maybe it was his sweet, calming demeanor, maybe it was his ability to carry on a conversation about literally anything, or maybe it was his height? Whatever it was, all I knew was that I didn't want our date to end.
We started dating before I left for my internship and got to know each other over FaceTime in my dinky Midtown Manhattan apartment. He drove 12 hours to Times Square just to visit me for two days, and ordered me surprise lunches to my office with notes about how he missed me.
I was totally smitten.
Since then, we've been through more than most couples. Different cities, lots (and I mean LOTS) of moving, crashing a 20-foot U-haul, unexpected medical surprises, family drama, heartbreak and mini day-to-day catastrophes my friends like to call total "Kate and Joey adventures."
But I wouldn't want to do it with anyone else. Joey and I have spent some of the best years of my life together with countless memories I will always cherish.
Joey always tells me he hit the jackpot, but I just laugh. When I look into his eyes, I know I'm the luckiest girl around to have found my best friend, partner in crime and love of my life, all by chance.
It's definitely tough to feel vulnerable and to do something out of your comfort zone, but I'm sure glad I did. Always believe that something wonderful is about to happen and don't settle for anything less than you deserve.
That dream guy? He's out there, I promise.
So, about that blind date your girlfriend is pushing for. Take a leap of faith, you just might find what you're looking for.
