You know you love them when their pain becomes your pain. When you can’t stomach the thought of them crying — even if you weren’t the person who caused the reaction. When you would do anything within your power to make them feel better again. When you would swap their emotions with yours if you could, just so they could feel at peace.

You know you love them when you would drop anything to help them. It’s not that you would ditch your friends to spend an extra day with them, but if they called you with an actual emergency, you would come running. You would tell your friends you have to go. You would tell your boss you have to leave. You would do whatever it took to get to them, to make sure that they were okay.

You know you love them when they inspire you to become a better person. Not because they are unhappy with the way you are now or because they are urging you to change. Because you believe that they deserve the best. You want to give them the best possible life. You want to be the best possible partner. You want to do everything you can to make them proud of choosing you.

You know you love them when you allow them to see every little piece of you, even the parts that you usually keep hidden from the world. When you give them details from your most embarrassing secrets. When you admit things to them that you never thought you’d say aloud. When you truly let your guard down, because you trust them with your whole heart. You have faith that they aren’t going to take advantage of it.

You know you love them when you move past the puppy love stage and stop being blind to their flaws. When you hear how loud they chew and see how messy they leave the bathroom. When you realize that loving them isn’t always going to be easy, because relationships are hard. When you realize that they are imperfect, but you love them the same anyway.

You know you love them when you can imagine spending the rest of your life alongside them — in a realistic way. You aren’t imagining some picture perfect fairytale that will never come true. You are imagining grocery shopping together on weekends. You are imagining splitting holiday time between your side of the family and their side. You are picturing a happy life with occasional rough patches that you know you will get through, because you’re both willing to put in the effort.

You know you love them when they are the only person you want to be with. When no one else even comes close to them. Even if you could have your pick from anyone in the entire world, you would still choose them. There is no doubt in your mind that they are the one meant for you. They are the one you want to spend the rest of your life alongside.