the story of us, part 3...

Read Part 1 here

Read Part 2 here

(church camp 1998)

Life has a funny way of moving on.  I went back home and all too quickly it was September.  I threw myself into my first year of college, my job at Bank of America and tried to forget about my summer “crush”.  I had a boyfriend, after all. 

One day, a few months later, I came home from school and my mom said, “Stephanie, some guy named Chris Johnson called. “  My heart quickened as she handed me his phone number. 

I took the Post It note from my mom and went to my room.  I sat and stared at it for a while.  He called?  Why did he call?  How did he get my phone number?  Should I call him back?  I ultimately decided that I wouldn’t call him back.  I reminded myself again that I had a boyfriend.  How would he feel if he knew I was calling some other guy?  Despite this decision I couldn’t bring myself to throw away Chris’ phone number. 

(the day Chris and I picked up my engagement ring)

Well, Chris was nothing if not persistent.  He called my house almost every day and started building quite the relationship with my mom.  Nearly every day she would say, “Stephanie, that Chris Johnson guy keeps calling.  You should call him back.”  I remember going to my room and dialing his phone number.  I let the phone ring once, hung up and explained to my mom that I had called but he wasn’t home. 

Meanwhile, things with my boyfriend had become increasingly difficult.  We had contrasting beliefs, which would often lead to arguments.  We fought constantly and I was growing increasingly frustrated with the way that he treated me.  I continued to overlook the fact that he was extremely controlling and tried to convince myself that despite our problems, he would be the guy who I would marry.  After all, I’d known him since I was a kid and he loved me.

(seven days before our wedding)

One day in October, I was running late for one of my afternoon classes.  I was frantically gathering my stuff together when the phone rang.  Distracted by my tardiness, I absentmindedly answered the phone, not bothering to check the caller ID. 

Me: “hello?”

Chris: “Hi, is Stephanie there?”

Me: “yeah, this is her…” I said, preoccupied with packing up my backpack.

Chris: “Hi, this is Chris Johnson.”

At that moment everything stopped…  I stopped packing my backpack, my heart stopped and I’m pretty sure I stopped breathing. 

 

(taken at a friend's wedding, 1998)

Needless to say, I never made it to class that day.  Chris and I talked for hours.  It was one of those conversations that you might have on a first date.  We shared where we grew up, how many siblings we had, what sports we played in high school.   He told me about how he had grown up in church, how his mom worked for a law firm and his dad worked for Chevron.  It was easily one of the most effortless conversations I had ever had.

Chris asked me if I was seeing anyone and I confessed that I had a boyfriend.  I explained that we had dated for a year and a half, broke up, had gotten back together and that we had now been dating again for over a year.  To my own surprise I revealed to Chris all of the problems that my boyfriend and I had been having.  Chris gently told me that I really should be with someone who has the same beliefs as me.  I acknowledged that he was right.  While Chris will now admit that this was a total “line” to get me to break-up with my boyfriend, that one sentence would continue to eat away at me long after our conversation had ended.

Check back soon for part 4!