1.
“She was literally the girl next door and looking back, I think I’ve always been a little bit in love with her. But one summer we were both back home for break and staying with our families again and I remember kissing her goodnight on her doorstep (very high school of us) and it felt like all of the puzzle pieces of my life were finally together. It just fit. We just fit.” — Jacob, 25
2.
“If you asked her she’d probably talk about the vacation we took with her family one winter because it was pretty picture perfect. But really it was one morning when we both woke up after a night of drinking too much, not feeling super great, and ended up just being lazy, hungover assholes together. I realized that even when I felt like shit, I wanted her around. Because being around her even when things aren’t awesome is still pretty awesome.” — Kyle, 27
3.
“I got into a pretty serious car accident and ended up having to have surgery to fix a broken femur. While realistically I knew it wasn’t a super dangerous surgery I had to make sure my boyfriend knew how much I cared about him before it happened. I knew I wanted him by my side, no matter what, for the rest of my life right then.” — Tyler, 29
4.
“I was finishing up my final year of grad school and was working on my dissertation. It had been a really stressful month getting ready to leave my program and wanting to do my best on everything, and admittedly I hadn’t been around very much. One night while I was working late I heard a knock on my door. I wasn’t expecting anything and my girlfriend and I had sent our goodnight texts and whatever, so I wasn’t sure who or what it was. It was a Postmates delivery of food and coffee for the next morning from my girlfriend. In that moment I knew that she both respected my drive enough to not feel threatened, but also wanted to be able to be there for me. I knew right then and there that I loved her.” — David, 26
5.
“We’d been dating about a year and out of nowhere I said, ‘My mom is going to love you.’ And I knew I wasn’t just saying it because it’s something girls like to hear, I said it because I knew it would be true and that that fact was really exciting to me. Knowing my family was going to value her as much as I do really meant she was the one for me.” — Marshall, 29
6.
“We’d had a pretty explosive fight that left both of us feeling really shitty. The next day she called and asked to come over and I was bracing myself for us to continue fighting. But she came over, wrapped her arms around me, and said she was sorry and didn’t want to talk about it until we were both ready. It meant a lot that she was more worried about making sure we were okay than she was about being right or being a winner. That’s when I knew I’d found one of the good ones.” — Cole, 24
7.
“My boyfriend’s family still struggles with our relationship sometimes. For a long time it was kind of a ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ sort of thing. But then one day, instead of just calling me his friend or just my name with no label, he introduced me to his VERY religious aunt as ‘my boyfriend.’ That’s how I knew that we were built to last — and I’ve never been prouder to call him mine.” — Samuel, 28
8.
“My girlfriend is ferociously stubborn and kind of hard to read. I knew she wanted to say ‘I love you’ but wasn’t saying it due to her own insecurities or society telling her to wait or whatever. We ended up kind of getting into a fight because she was so adamant about NOT saying it. When she finally caved it was almost 2 in the morning and she looked ridiculous and sort of just shouted, ‘Fine I fucking love you. Happy?’ It was so undeniably her and so stupid I burst out laughing and realized I would never be happier with any other girl. She may be a pain in the ass, but she’s my pain in the ass.” — Brendan, 26
9.
“I knew right when I dropped her off after our first date. I know it’s cliché but it’s true. They always say when you meet the right person you just know. And I definitely just knew.” — Dillon, 24
10.
“We took a spontaneous road trip together and ended staying in the sketchiest motel and basically just eating vending machine food for almost an entire day before making it to our *real* destination. Through it all she was laughing and had me laughing the whole time. The fact that she was so down to go on an adventure, and then not get freaked out when it didn’t EXACTLY go according to plan, and then make the best out of what could’ve been a disastrous situation absolutely made me fall for her.” — Josh, 27
11.
“I never thought I would settle down and was pretty sure I’d just date casually for most of my life. But then I met this girl who didn’t need me and made sure I knew she didn’t need me. I had never so desperately had to or wanted to chase a woman in my life. And when I caught her, I never wanted to let her go.” — Mark, 30
12.
“My girlfriend and I ended up accepting internships for the summer that put us on opposite ends of the country. Because hers was so low in pay and mine was unpaid we knew that meant 3 and half months of not seeing each other. Rather than take the summer apart and meet back up in September we decided to make a go of it. And then, come that fall, it was like no time had passed at all. Seeing her face again and hearing her say, ‘It’s almost like we never left,’ was one of the happiest moment of my life. That’s when I knew I absolutely was without question in love with her.” — Nicolas, 22
13.
“After the first time we had sex she high-fived me and said, ‘Give me ten minutes and then we gotta do that again.’ It was so hot and I’ve never loved a woman more.” — Connor, 25
14.
“My wife and I started dating when I was in my previous marriage. While I wouldn’t necessarily recommend infidelity to finding the love of your life, when I met her I knew I would regret it if I never got to know her. She showed me that I could live a life of actual happiness and excitement, not just one where I was only comfortable. I’ll never forget the first time she said, ‘I’m just happy I get to be with you.’ Still makes me melt to this day.” — Ted, 30
15.
“On our first date, yes our FIRST date, my brother called me to tell me my dad had a heart attack. He ended up being okay but my (now) boyfriend stayed with me almost the whole night so I didn’t have to be alone while I waited for updates about my dad. The fact that he was so caring and empathetic and nurturing to almost a complete stranger made me totally fall in love with him.” — Micah, 26
16.
“My girlfriend and I ran a marathon together last year. After we both finished and were relaxing at home with friends, I noticed she was messing around with her phone. When I asked what she was up to she showed me three other races she’d found for us to do together. Realizing I had a partner who not only challenged me but wanted me along for the adventure was so inspiring and made me absolutely sure she was the right person for me to be with.” Evan, 25 
