We first met in 8th grade and quickly became friends. By freshman year, that friendship turned into a short and sweet “middle school romance”—we even went to homecoming together. It was innocent, lighthearted, and exactly what you’d expect from two teenagers who had no idea what a real relationship really meant. After sophomore year, Mackenzie moved out of state, and life took us in different directions. We lost touch, but somehow the story didn’t feel finished. Seven years later, after Mackenzie moved back to Colorado, we reconnected on Facebook. One date was all it took to realize that what we had found again felt completely different—this time it was real, certain, and everything we didn’t know how to hold onto back then. Turns out, timing really is everything… and our story was just getting started. ♡