Tina,
There’s something I’ve been wanting to put into words, and I’m not sure I’ll say it perfectly, but I want you to hear it anyway.
I really, really like what’s been growing between us.
Not in a rushed way, not in a dramatic way just, in a real way.
It feels like every day I notice something new about you that I appreciate, or something small you say that stays with me longer than I expect it to.
It’s funny, you’ve been in my life for a while now, and it was always easy with you. But lately it’s different. I catch myself thinking about you at random times, replaying moments, smiling at something you said.
There’s this warmth that settles in when you pop into my mind, and I don’t try to push it away. It just feels good. I don’t think it’s any one thing about you, it’s the whole picture.
The way you laugh.
The way you get shy in moments you never used to.
The way talking to you feels exciting and comfortable at the same time.
The way you open up in layers, and somehow every layer feels even more genuine and thoughtful and beautiful than the last.
You’ve become someone I feel connected to in a way that’s hard to describe.
Someone I look forward to.
Someone who feels familiar and new at the same time.
I love the way our conversations stretch into the late hours without either of us even trying. I love how easy it is to be myself with you. I love how you make me feel understood, not because you try to, but because you just, do.
And I’ll be honest it’s been a long time since someone has affected me like this.
I don’t need anything from you.
I’m not writing this because I expect anything to change.
I just wanted you to know the truth of where my heart is at.
You matter to me.
More than I realized at first.
More than I expected.
And more than I’ve said out loud.
And whatever comes next, whatever this becomes or doesn’t become, I’m really glad it’s you I get to share all these moments with.
— Ned
7:09 AM