Jamaal and I first crossed paths because he went to grammar school with my cousin. One day, I was flipping through her yearbook and saw his photo. I remember thinking, “Okay, he’s cute!” Naturally, I told my cousin, and she didn’t hesitate, she went to school and told him the very next day. What I didn’t know at the time? He had already been checking me out on MySpace. (Yes, MySpace, feel old yet?) We exchanged numbers, and just like that, the spark was lit. We were only 14 and 15. I was finishing seventh grade, and he was about to graduate eighth. But we were already plotting ways to hang out, and before long, we were official. He even wrote in my 8th grade graduation book, and I still remember what it said. We used to hop on the bus after school just to see each other. We were young, curious, and figuring out what love could be. There were a lot of firsts, even the big one. After dating for 2–3 years, like most high school couples, we broke up, life happened. We dated other people, chased different dreams, and checked in every few years, sometimes with a text, sometimes with a memory. Fast forward 8 years. By then, I was building my brand, Ciara Jibri, and I reached out to Jamaal for help. I’d always been a fan of his work back in the day, I even kept his art in my locker that he drew and bragged about how talented he was. We started working together, and next thing you know, we were dating. Funny enough, we got back together on the exact same day we did as teens, April 2nd. Cosmic, right? A couple months later, I got offered my dream job as a flight attendant with Emirates Airlines, which meant packing up and moving to Dubai. I suggested we try long distance, but Jamaal said, “That’s not going to work.” And honestly, I felt that. I loved the idea of seeing the world, but something in me was already rooted here. On the day I was supposed to leave, I had my bags packed and…I stayed. Not just for Jamaal but yeah, he was a big reason. Eight months later, we moved in together. In 2019, we became parents to the most beautiful little human. Since then, life has been full of work, travel, learning, creating, and growing together. We built a creative agency from the ground up. We became partners in business and in everything else that matters. Today, we’re still building, still laughing, still learning, and still finding each other. Thanks for being part of our story.