(Thank you to my friend Amelia for this request. Enjoy!)

It Was Always You—Caleb Hearn

Nate had known from the very first moment their eyes met across a crowded room that it was always going to be you. The thought had followed him like a quiet shadow—through late nights and long drives, moments when doubt crept in, moments when hope surged. It was you in the neon-lit streets, your hand brushing his as laughter bubbled between you. It was you when life felt too dark, when the weight of the world pressed down and he thought he might break, and it was you, reaching out to pull him back to the surface.

Today, as he stood at the altar surrounded by friends and family, it felt like every piece of his life had led him here. The doors at the end of the aisle creaked open, and for a breathless moment, the room stilled. There you were—a vision of everything he had ever hoped for, the person who had shaped the contours of his heart. The sound of music floated soft and low, but the sound of your father’s voice, brushing quietly in his ear as he gave your hand to Nate, felt louder than anything.

Nate smiled then, a smile that started deep and rose until it lit every part of him. He felt like he had smiled every second of the day, unable to do anything else, because when he looked at you, words felt too small for how much he felt. Somehow “I love you” felt too simple, too quiet, too everyday for the magnitude of it.

Each step you took down the aisle felt like the years falling away—every glance exchanged across crowded spaces, every late-night conversation that felt like belonging, every whisper exchanged in moments when only the two of you existed. Every reason he fell in love came rushing back at once. And when you finally stood in front of him, hands resting in his, he felt like he could breathe for the first time in his life.

He didn’t need to say much when it came time for vows. The words came easily, rooted deep in his chest, rising from a place that had long been marked by your name.

“I’ve always known it was you,” he promised, voice shaking just slightly, brushing the words like a secret across the space between you. “Through every moment, every chance, every chapter… it was always you.”

And as the world watched, as friends and family rose to witness the promise he made, Nate felt certain. Certain that every path he had walked, every moment that shaped him, had led to this one. To you. To this moment, hand in hand.

To a lifetime built together.

Because for him, it had never been about finding someone to fill a space.

It had always been about finding the one person who felt like home.

It had always been about finding you.