For extra dazzle dazzle, the crush mentioned in this story and the guy who gave out hugs are the same person. IYKYK. If not, here read this ➡️ The Girl Who Asked for Hugs.
You know how some people say they remember the exact moment they fell in love?
I’m not saying I fell in love in this moment – but I did fall in deep, delusional crush.
I don’t remember all the details, but I remember enough.
I was walking somewhere on campus with my sister, and this guy was in front of us.
And listen – I don’t mean to objectify men (hello, double standards), but… his butt was phenomenal.
Big. Cuddly. Majestic.
He had a little green Converse keychain hanging from his backpack, and for whatever reason, my brain chose that exact moment to store his existence into my mental “boys to like” folder.
Fast forward a bit, I think I was walking to class as the end of lunch bell rang (but also I’m hazy on the timeline), and a friend said hey, so-and-so thinks you’re cute and wants to talk to you.
When I saw who so-and-so was, I was like “ooooooo” in my head (that was totally in Eskeleto’s voice from Nacho Libre, **cue in scene where he see’s Nacho’s outfit design)
Swoon.
Was it fate? A prank? Divine intervention? I didn’t care.
Next thing I know, we’re walking outside and this sexy dude introduces himself with full confidence, and says something like:
“Hey, so-and-so gave me your number. Is it okay if I call you sometime?” or something like that.
Now… I don’t know what he saw in me. I was in my oversized hoodie era. My eyebrows were giving “just discovered tweezers, no supervision.” But there he was. And from that moment on, I was hooked.
***
And Then Came the Waiting…
He said he’d call me.
And so I waited.
And waited.
And waited.
I don’t know what I expected – that he’d call me that same night and we’d fall into a three-hour rom-com phone call? That I’d hear his voice and suddenly be his girlfriend just because he liked my hoodie vibes?
All I know is that one night after dinner (when I tragically wasn’t glued to my phone), I came back to see a missed call… and a voicemail.
He called me.
He really called.
Cue full-blown panic, butterflies, and running to the other room like I was on a reality show reveal. I called him back right away. RIGHT. AWAY.
No answer.
And that… was the beginning of the end.
I should have known better than to eat dinner with the fam. Should have just said, “Sorry fam, I’m abstaining from this meal because a boy might call” and missed dinner altogether. As if that was an option. Meanwhile, my mom was plating the food like, “You’ll eat and you’ll like it.”
***
I Think I Might’ve Been Ghosted Before Ghosting Was Even a Thing
Maybe he thought I ignored his call and was punishing me.
Maybe he got nervous.
Maybe he forgot who I was two minutes later.
Maybe my weird hoodie and strong eyebrow game were too powerful.
Whatever the reason, I never heard back.
I think I left a voicemail too (which is so painfully earnest of me), but it didn’t matter.
Radio silence.
And despite the fact that our entire relationship was just a missed call and a moment in front of the gym… I developed the deepest, longest-running crush of my high school years on this boy.
Just because he said I was cute one time.
That was all it took.
***
Hi, I’m Loops, and I’ve Always Been This Way
If you’ve ever had someone give you a sliver of attention and suddenly you’re mentally naming your future kids together – same.
From the linebacker with the perfect butt to present-day baristas who just read my name off a cup – I am who I am.
Would I handle it differently today? Probably.
But do I still look back and laugh at how hard I fell from just one flirty interaction?
Absolutely.
😬