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I was thirteen-years-old the day I met my husband, Brian. At the time I had a big crush on his best friend, Tim. I don't remember what I thought about my husband when we met or what we had to talk to about. The only thing I do recall is running back to give him a huge hug before I got on the bus to head home. He likes to say he loved me from the moment he saw me, but I like to say it was the hug that wove the foundation of our love story.

During that summer so long ago, we became the best of friends. I was still suffering from a crush on his friend, but Brian and I were drawn to one another. We were kindred spirits, I guess you could say. We hung out, shared the same music, wrote notes to each other, and our phone conversations were frequent and lasted through the night.

Things eventually went sour with Tim and me, as is often the case with relationships between thirteen-year-old kids. However, it was my relationship with Brian that thrived and flourished. Even when I switched school districts, Brian and I stayed in touch. For the next couple of years we continued our marathon phone calls, saw each other when we had the chance, and wrote dozens of letters to one another.

I was on the verge of turning sixteen when my friendship with Brian took a different, more romantic turn. It started with something he wrote to me on the back of his school picture. It simply said, "To the most beautiful friend. Love, Brian". I was so touched that I kissed him. A few weeks later we went on our first date and officially became high school sweethearts. We broke up for a short time when we were eighteen-years-old, but we were unable to stay away from one another very long.

We got married in spring of 1995, when we were barely nineteen-years-old. It wasn't easy marrying so young and I wouldn't recommend it to most people. Our relationship had a lot of turmoil during our early marriage, because young adults don't always have a healthy dose of emotional maturity. We were both trying to discover who we were individually, while also trying to figure out who we were as a couple. We faced issues we didn't know how to deal with. Infertility eventually entered the picture and caused a lot of sadness for me, which I didn't deal with in the healthiest of ways. Somehow we survived the worst of the worst and came out on the other side together and stronger than ever. Our relationship grew from the ashes and I believe we fell in love with one another all over again during that time.

Earlier this year we celebrated thirteen years of marriage. I consider myself blessed to be spending my life with my best friend and companion. When I hug my husband I feel as if I'm home. Brian's voice and his presence are comforting to me. And, I know without a doubt he loves me as much as I love him. He never lets a day go by without telling me or showing me in some way how important I am to him. He works hard, he's honorable, he has a big heart, and he's funny when he's letting loose. I admire so many things about my husband and I don't tell him often enough.

We can never be certain what the future holds for us, but I do hope I am blessed enough to become the mother his children. And, I hope God is willing to let us grow old with together. I knew this man when he was a boy at thirteen and I want to be holding his hand when we're eighty. Only then will this love story truly be completed.

Learn more about this author, Jennifer Pemberton.
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