Ours is not your typical relationship story. There were no candle-lit dinners, or walks on the beach. If it were a movie, it wouldn't rend tears.

But it's real. It's ours. There will be no adaptations, rewrites or edits.

If given the chance to do it again, we wouldn't change a thing.

La'akea and I first met in our freshmen year of high school. We were very different people. He was a dorky kid with a conflicted demeanor and headphones permanently attached to his ears. His social skills were a bit lacking. He cared little for schoolwork, and completed as much.

I was rather dorky myself, but would have never admitted it. I was well-prepared. My book bag was obnoxiously large, with extra supplies for anyone in need, and most of my assignments were completed in advance.

In class that morning, neither of us could have predicted that we'd become friends. We interacted very little, until a mutual friend gave us reason to.

We soon had the same friends and ate lunch together every day. We got into the habit of chatting before class ... then during class ... then during breaks ... then after class.

When at home, we'd send instant messages to each other until the late evening. Our friendship continued to grow, until one day as school was ending, La'akea handed me an envelope. Curious, I couldn't wait to open it, and did so during the bus ride home.

In it, to my surprise, I found a short message and what seemed to be a poem. His letter expressed disappointment about not being available to chat the night before, and that he had written the poem while thinking of me.

Oblivious to the fact that he might like me as more than a friend, I showed the poem to a friend and later to my mother. Both commented that he seemed interested in me.

I quickly reacted by denying it.

How could he possibly like me? We were best friends!

I needed to investigate further. That afternoon, I relayed the opinions of my friend and mother to him, expecting a response similar to my own. His answer, oddly enough, was "Yeah. I think I do like you."

I was shocked, and somewhat disappointed about being wrong. But I was happy. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I liked him too, and thus began our official dating period.

We went to the junior prom together, and then to the senior prom. We attended our high school graduation together. Four years later, we attended our college graduation together. It has been a long journey, throughout which we've managed to hit very few potholes along the way. Eight years have passed, and we are very different people now.

I am slightly less prepared and La'akea is slightly more social. Growing together, we continue to complement each other. We're still inseparable, and it's perfectly clear to each of us that the other is completely interested.

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