I’ve spent most of my life hearing people tell me they love me. Friends, family, people I’ve dated—those three words always came my way, sometimes with deep meaning, sometimes casually. And while I’ve liked, maybe even adored, a lot of those people, I don’t remember ever saying “I love you” back to anyone by choice. It always felt like a heavy thing to say, something reserved for a love I hadn’t quite found.
But today, for the first time, I said it. I told him, “I love you.” In fact, I told him, “I really love you.” And his response? He said he knew. A few minutes later, he told me he loves me too.
My heart melted—not just because he said it back, though that did make my heart flutter a bit more. No, it melted because I meant it. I really, truly love him. It feels almost surreal typing this out, like my heart could explode just thinking about how deeply I care for him. I came close to losing him recently, and that near-miss made me realize just how much I love him.
I love him with everything in me. It’s that overwhelming, all-encompassing kind of love where I feel like I would do anything for him. I’ve never been the person to say things like that, but this time, it’s real. It’s not just words, it’s a feeling that’s consuming in the best way possible.
If you ever stumble upon this, just know—I meant it when I told you I love you. Every word. I don’t know what the future holds, and that’s okay. What I do know is that right now, I love you, and I’ll say it as many times as I can. There’s no other way for me to feel this, no other way I’d want it.
For the first time, I’m not afraid to say it. I love you.
