How is it that no matter how hard you try not to fall in love, it always seems to find the ones that want it least of all? I was the girl who never wanted to be in love. I fought it with everything I had, yet it found me. It came up from behind and attacked me in a surprise assault that I couldn’t win. I wanted to ignore it, I wanted to push away the feelings, but he wouldn’t let me.



It began on June 5, 2009. I was out on the streets of Los Angeles with my two best friends, and we were shopping for new shoes. My friend Nyssa had short black hair that was flippy, and covered one eye. She wore a Breaking Benjamin t-shirt and a pair of black skinny jeans. My other friend, Annabelle, had long red hair that was slightly frizzy because of how much she had dyed it. She was wearing a blue plaid button up t-shirt and bright blue skinny jeans. She had snake bites and a labret. I had short black hair with a white stripe that fell over my right eye, and a lip ring that was also on my right side. I was wearing a ShaneDawson t-shirt and a pair of ripped up gray skinny jeans. We walked past a small bookstore that caught my eye. I decided to go inside and even though Annabelle wasn’t much of a reader she came in with Nyssa and I.



I heard the sound of a bell tinkling as I opened the door. I heard the voice of a boy shouting at us that he would be out front in a minute. I ignored him and started to wander around the small bookstore. I was searching for something, though I was unsure of what I was searching for. I knew that there had to be a reason why I was so drawn to this place, though I had never been here before. Just as I was thinking this I heard the sound of somebody’s phone going off. The ring tone was “I wish she knew voodoo like I do” by Get Scared. It was one of my favorite songs. I looked over at the front desk, where the sound was coming from, and saw that a boy was standing there now. He was looking for his phone, which was still going off.

“Girl I’ve got you under a spell and I don’t think I’ll be letting you out!” It sang.

“I like your ring tone.” I shouted.



He spun around, and I got a good look at him for the first time. He had short black hair like mine, but he had blue high lights and gauges in his ears. He was wearing an A Day To Remember t-shirt and tight black skinny jeans. His eyes were a light blue and he smiled at me as soon as he looked into my eyes. I felt my heart jump and I was frozen in place.

“Thanks.” He replied.

“Hi, I’m Annabelle, and these are my friends Nyssa and Lydia.” Annabelle said pointing at us as she said our names.

“I’m Nick. Is there anything I can help you lovely ladies with?” He asked, never taking his eyes off of me.

“We’re just looking.” Nyssa giggled, noticing that Nick had his full attention on me.



I was still unable to speak, think, or breathe. What was wrong with me? It was just another guy, and I had mostly guy friends. So what was the problem? I was entranced by his incredibly blue eyes, that was the problem. His eyes looked like they went on forever and would eventually lead into his mind, which I was sure was filled with good music and quotes from the books he worked around everyday. He blinked quickly and looked down, and I could breathe again. I knew now why I was so drawn to this place, and I knew I had to leave. I couldn’t fall for this guy at first sight, or at all. I had vowed long ago that I wouldn’t let that happen.

“Hey, I think we should go…” I managed to whisper before I dashed out the door with my friends.





Two weeks later I couldn’t get him off of my mind. I could still hear his voice in my head, echoing, and I knew I had to see him again. So I went to the bookstore, alone this time. I heard the bell ring as I opened the door again. I saw him sitting at the desk with a book in front of him. He hadn’t even looked up from his book to see who had come in. I took a deep breath and tried to calm my nerves.

“Good book?” I asked as coolly as possible.



He jumped when he heard my voice, and he looked up at me in awe. He was startled and he obviously hadn’t expected me to return after the way I had run from the store two weeks ago.

“Yeah… I didn’t expect to see you around here again.” He blurted.

“I know, but the truth is I really wanted to see you.” I replied.

“Really?” He asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah.”

“Well the feeling is mutual Lydia.”



Hearing him say my name sent shockwaves through my body. I couldn’t believe he even remembered what my name was. I let out a small sigh of happiness. I was looking into his eyes as I had the first time I had met him. The feeling of love was bubbling over, but I didn’t believe in love. It couldn’t be love because love doesn’t exist except for in books and movies. I wasn’t falling for anyone, especially not someone I had just met.

“Well maybe we should hang out and get to know each other.” I suggested.

“That sounds good, I get off work in about an hour, so meet me here.” He said.



I nodded, excited for later. I waved to him as I walked out of the store and back to my small apartment.







When I got to the bookstore Nick was waiting for me. He smiled when he saw me and gave me a hug. I hugged him back tightly, and then we began walking to the beach. The sun was setting on the ocean as we walked together. We sat down in the sand and stared out at the sea.

“So, are you from around here?” He asked.

“No, I’m going to college here. I’m from Florida.” I said.

“Why did you decide to move to Cali?” He inquired.

“I don’t know.” I replied honestly.

“Oh.” He said.

“Do you like it here?” I asked him.

“Well to be perfectly honest I was getting tired of looking at the sunset, and I was thinking about moving somewhere that I could see the sun rise instead. But now that I met you, I’ve fallen in love with it all over again.” He replied with a very serious look in his eyes.



He looked at me with love in his eyes, and I knew then that love was real, and that Nick and I had fallen in love at first sight. He leaned in to kiss me and as our lips met I felt as if my heart would explode into a thousand pieces. When he pulled away I smiled and wrapped my arms around his neck so I could kiss him again.

“Lydia, there’s something I have to say, you don’t have to say it back or anything because I know it’s way too early for this, but I wanted to say-” He rambled on after I had stopped kissing him, but I cut him off.

“I love you too.” I laughed.



We both laid on the beach, laughing , kissing, and looking up at the night sky. I knew that this was perfect and that I wanted this to last forever. He started talking to me about Greek mythology and compared me to Aphrodite. I blushed, and he teased me about it. He held my hand and he asked me to be his. I accepted immediately, and sealed the deal with a long kiss. I held him and we talked about life and the past, and what we thought the future could hold. He walked me home and kissed me in front of my door.



I spent almost every day with him the rest of the summer, and I remember how it felt when I graduated college and he asked me to marry him in front of everyone. I remember how it felt when we kissed on our wedding day, and I remember how it felt on our honey moon. Looking into Nick’s eyes now I feel the same way I did the very first day at the bookstore.