The Year Agos: Major Crushing

As I walked around the corner from my meeting, I squealed with delight over my best friend sitting in the office. This was her first visit to my new Tulsa home, and it could not have happened at a better time. I gushed on and on about how great Tulsa was, but,  most importantly, how cute this new boy was. I couldn't wait for her to meet him.

Driving to his house where we would meet him for dinner, I carefully gave Kaylee strict instructions.

"Watch him. Tell me what you think. Does he like me? Is he just being nice? Is he interested?"

I was very concerned, and this was a job only a best friend could complete. 

Dinner with him and his roommate went well, and then began the long drive out to the party. Adam had invited both Kaylee and I to this party where we were pretty sure we would not know anyone. (Looking back makes this even funnier because the girl throwing the party is now in my wedding and I am in hers. I love her dearly and am so thankful she is one of my closest friends.) 

Kaylee, being the amazing best friend that she is, took the backseat with Adam's unknown friend so I could have the front seat with my new crush. And thus began one of the funniest car rides of my life. Adam played some of his favorite band (OneRepublic) for me while I listened, ooohed, and ahhhed over how great they were. We giggled about various things and generally both felt extremely nervous.

Kaylee, on the other hand, listened to a long debriefing over weather balloons and breaking the sound barrier. She definitely won the best friend award for the night, taking one for the team.

After the party (which went well), Kaylee and I compared notes on whether or not he might actually be interested. We still couldn't figure it out, and I was going insane! 

Saturday was a new day with new invitations and communications to analyze. If I had known where this was all leading, I might have stepped back to take a breath and chill out. But, alas, I freaked out as was normal for those days.

We all went to a basketball game on Saturday night. On the way there, my friend Kim informed us about several things Adam-related. Most importantly, that he LOVED karaoke. I could handle that. 

The rest of the weekend pretty much flew by in a giddy blur. I was definitely crushing on this Delta guy I had met the week before. Where it would lead? I had no idea. Was I scared? Absolutely. But that didn't stop me from jumping in with both feet. Probably because the Lord had a much bigger plan than I did. He could see the next year, today, while I was stuck seeing the year ago. And isn't that almost always the case? 

The Year Agos: Getting Giddy

When the phone rang with the unknown number, I somehow already knew who it was. But I ignored it because I was a guest in someone's home. This incredibly sweet woman had taken me under her wing, and we watched the Bachelor every Monday night. That night, I had stayed later than planned and was surprised by the phone call. 

The moment I left the house, I listened to the message from the mystery caller. And my heart stopped.

It was a boy!!

A boy called me. Even though it's what I suspected when the phone rang, the reassurance of the male voice coming from the other end of the line was enough to make my heart do weird things inside my chest.

"Hi. This is Adam Parkhurst from church. I got your number from Kelsey. I was just calling to see if you wanted to come watch "How I Met Your Mother" and the Thunder game with me, Spencer, and Kelsey. We're hanging out at my house. Call me back if you get this."

For the 20 seconds I was hearing his voice, I don't know if I could breathe. A boy called me!! 

So I promptly called my best friend... who didn't answer. I left a frantic, probably mostly unintelligible, message about how some boy from church had called me and I didn't know what to do. And then immediately called my other best friend. Who said... "Call him back." Oh. Right. I had to react somehow. Cue the vastly increased heart rate.

I dialed the number and waited for whatever would follow. And you know what? I don't remember if he answered or I left a message. I remember exactly where I was driving and what I said. (Because I had written the script in my mind before even dialing the number.) But the neurons in my brain were firing so quickly and erratically that I have no idea whether I actually talked to him or not. 

I remember saying I would love to hang out with them another time when my schedule permitted. And I remember going home and convincing myself that this kind man was just being nice to the new girl. I went to sleep that night reassuring myself that he was just a nice guy with no intentions.

Skip to Wednesday.

I didn't know where church was or which class to attend. I texted Kelsey, but she had other duties at church that night. I only had one other number of anyone who went to the same church. While hesitating for many minutes, holding the phone in my hand with the already written text, I finally sent it.  I let Adam know I didn't know where church was or where to go. So we started to set up a game-plan via text.

As I was texting him back, he called me, wanting to see if I had eaten dinner yet. I conveniently had not so we made plans to meet at Wendy's. 

Pep-talks from both best friends ensued and I made my way to an unknown place of town with knots in my stomach. I didn't know if I would even recognize him! 

But as I walked into the Wendy's, I saw him still in his work clothes, with a red sweater layered over a dress shirt. And oh. my. word. He was so attractive. My only thought as I walked into the restaurant? "I'm in trouble."

We talked all throughout dinner and then went to church. We ended up not sitting by each other, but that in no way meant we stopped looking at each other. Our eyes met across the circle many times throughout class that night, and every time they did I got a little more excited. He began class that night with a short thought and a prayer, and I thought I was going to fall out of my seat. He was so attractive! 

After church, a bunch of people went to Buffalo Wild Wings and we accompanied them. When it came time for me to leave, I very conveniently failed to mention I owned a GPS device and let Adam tell me how to get home. I left with instructions to call him if I got lost and text him when I got home.

I did get lost. I did call. I did text when I got home.

And I did get extremely giddy. This cute boy paid attention to me! But nothing could happen, right? I was just the new girl in town. He was just being nice. 

But it sure was fun to get giddy. 

The Year Agos: At First Glance

A year ago today, I had trouble finding the house. I was using my GPS, but it sometimes takes me to wrong locations. I stepped out of the car and began walking to the house when I heard someone call my name from down the street. Luckily, she had been there before and knew which house it was.

The email said to bring dinner with you so I stopped at Sonic before arriving. I clutched my Sonic bag as I walked into the unknown house with what seemed like a crowd of people staring at me. There wasn't a place at the table and I didn't know if it was okay to eat in the living room. Heck. I didn't even know who owned the house! So I quietly took my Sonic bag to the kitchen where I ate at the counter.

On the drive over, I had given myself a pep talk. 

"Be yourself. You have nothing to lose here. You'll make friends."

As I stood in the kitchen eating my Sonic and drinking my limeade, people I knew finally arrived. Familiar faces in a see of unfamiliarity. We sat by the fireplace before the devo started, talking and laughing as friends are known to do. 

They were explaining to me who everyone was and giving small backstories on each person when Kelsey said, "See that guy? He went to OC. Guess what club he was in." I barely recognized the guy from a party I had been to a couple days earlier at Kelsey's house. I remembered him being super nice and friendly to everyone.

So I guessed a couple clubs before Kelsey finally had to tell me...

Delta. 

The club known on campus for... well let's just say they weren't necessarily known for their saintly attributes. They were also the club that caused the most headaches in all my Spring Sing years.

There was no way this nice boy sitting across the room from me was in Delta. I had to talk to him. 

So I called him over. 

And I don't really remember the rest of the night after that.

I know we talked about music we liked. And I know this Delta guy and his roommate made fun of the way I said "limeade." I know I left my Sonic toy as a gift for the men who lived at this house. And I know as I was leaving the house I was on the phone with my best friend. I was saying goodbye to two of the guys who lived at the house (one being the Delta boy), and I hear this from the other end of the line...

"Who are you hitting on??"

I don't remember what I said. I don't remember what caused her to say that in the first place. I do remember leaving a little more hopeful that night. Maybe I would fit in here in Tulsa. Maybe I would make friends and find my niche. But thoughts of dating anyone were still pretty far from my mind. 

That is, until a phone call I received the next night...