Jayden Jay Daniels is a hyperactive and free spirited girl who has known what she wanted her whole life. She wanted to make music and share it with the world and fall in love.
Right after she graduated from college in 2015 she moves out with her ch...
Thursday comes around and that means it is time for Kris and I's first date. I'm not going to lie, I was a little nervous. This was a long time coming and I know I shouldn't freak out. I know Kris and I know he loves me, I didn't have to impress him or act like someone I'm not so he likes me. We're just hanging out like we always do. But part of me is still as nervous as ever.
I sit in my room as I wait for it to be time for the date. Kris was out getting some last minute things and Anthony wanted to give me "the talk".
I change into my dress and jump onto my bed where Anthony was waiting for me.
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"Hmmm, how are you wearing your hair" Anthony asks as he looks at my dress.
"I'm not sure yet" I admit.
"Spin around for me" he insists. I do a little twirl on the bed and he nods his head. "Natural waves and pin it up" he says and I laugh.
"How did I ever live without you" I tease.
I fix my hair up and add some makeup and we were done with that. Now it was just the waiting game until Kris said everything was ready.
Eventually Kris comes home and I meet him in the living room. He hands me three roses and I smile at him. They were a deep red and and tied together with a silver bow.
"Thank you Kris, these are beautiful" I admit.
"Not as beautiful as you" he claims and I start to blush. I love the way he makes me feel, even if that was super cheesy.
I go to put the flowers in a vase but he grabs my hand. I look up to him as he pulls my hand back.
"Keep them, you're going to need them for the date" he claims and I smile big. Sounds cute, I'm in.
We get started on our date and head out to the pier first. He laces his fingers through mine as we walk peacefully throughout the dock.
"Do you like churros" he wonders.
"I looove churros" I insist.
"I hope you talk about me like that" he teases and I lightly push his arm.
We order two churros and he hands me one. But this one had three flowers attached that looked like my other ones. These ones had a gold ribbon on it but shined just as bright.
"What is this" I ask taking the churro and the flowers.
"For each part of the date I have set up a place where you will pick up roses until you have all 12" he explains.
"Aww Kris! That is so cute" I admit.
"I try" he shrugs.
We finish our churros sitting on the dock before heading into the city. We end up at the art museum and I felt on top of the world. We walked around and looked at all the beautiful paintings and sculptures and stuff like that.
We walk up to a gigantic painting and there was three roses with a silver ribbon sitting by it. Kris walks over and grabs them then hands them to me. I happily take them and put them with the others.
"So there's one more place to go" I piece together.
"Yup" he nods. "My lady" he smiles sticking his arm out. I wrap mine around his and he pulls me in close. He kisses my cheek and finally I feel like I was right where I needed to be.
We ended the night with a dinner up in the sears tower overlooking the city. It was a intimate little set up, a dozen roses sat in the middle of the table, a reminded of how the journey can come into perspective every once in a while.
"So, Miss Daniels, tell me about yourself" Kris says at the beginning of dinner.
"Well let me see. In 24 years old and I've lived in Chicago for just under four months. I moved here to try my hand in music in the big city. Florida was nice to me, that will always be home, but it didn't offer what this city does. I mean just look at it" I say smiling out the windows. "It represents strength and wonder and faith in this world. I couldn't imagine starting the rest of my life anywhere else. And there isn't a person I would rather have by my side through it all" I insist sending a smile across the table. A little blush arises on his face as he adverts his eyes.
"How did you becoming this wonderful and inspirational woman before me" he asks.
"Lot of ups and downs. It's learning not to get lost in the good and learning from the bad. You have appreciate both sides, there is no growth if you're up all the time" I explain.
"What is the best lesson life has taught you" he wonders.
"That there is nothing in life that is stronger than love" I say and he stops picking at his food.
"How did you learn that" he wonders.
"I was a sophomore in college. I was in my dorm room looking through sheet music. I was in a a Capella group at the university of Miami and had a hell of time there. But my friends all went out for drinks and I wasn't in the mood. Something didn't feel right.
So I stayed home and studied. Memorized lyrics and other things. Then my phone went off and I saw Anthony's mom Laurie was calling me. That was nothing unusual. My family and Anthony's family is close. She would call because Anthony would tell me things and I would tell her. It's always been like that.
But I picked up the phone and immediately I knew something was wrong. I can hear it in her voice, she was scared and she was crying and I couldn't understand why. Finally John took the phone and told me that Anthony was sick. He was rushed to the hospital after the team doctor noticed something wasn't right.
That night I drove home to be with Laurie and John. We sat in the living room and cried. The plane to Boston left in the morning and until then there wasn't anything we could do.
I'll never forget the first time I walked into that hospital. My heart broke seeing him in that bed. He didn't want us to cry for him, but I couldn't help it. Here I thought my best friend was living it up, making his way through the minors. But what he passed off was fatigue was cancer. It wasn't bad, but cancer is cancer. The doctors weren't treating it lightly and I wasn't either.
The first night I stayed over with him. We played uno for hours on end. Eventually I got tired and laid out in the chair by his bed. Like many times before we stayed up and asked stupid questions like who would win a fight between the rock and Arnold. I asked him if he was scared and he said he was, but at the same time he felt blessed. I asked him how in the world he felt blessed when he had just found out he had cancer.
Then he told me because he was so loved that he never doubted for a second he wasn't going to get through this. And he was right. He was so loved and it gave him strength. It gave me strength too, to see him smiling with his parents, with mine.
Love isn't some form of affection or proof of a relationship. It's hope for a brighter future, it's hope for other people, it's a light in the darkness. It's not something we show, but rather something we are. We are loved, and we love, and there isn't a damn thing in this whole world that is stronger than that" I insist.
"And there isn't a love stronger than my love for you" he says and I smile.
