I met her in High School.  I was one of those nerdy jocks...  She was a golden goddess.  I immediately fell in love with her athletic body and her fiery independence.  We started dating... we went to Ann Arbor, East Lansing, and LaFayette... Things were going so well!  

I asked her to marry me in 99.  This is where our relationship took a turn for the worse.  She said she wasn't ready... that she enjoyed her independence too much... she wanted the freedom to date who ever she wanted wherever she wanted.  I was hurt, but what could I do? I loved her.  Our friendship with benefits continued on, though a strange thing began to happen... throughout the aughts she began to let herself go... losing that golden aura that made her so attractive in the first place...

At the same time my career was going great, I had recently started my own business and I was raking in the money.  Soon I was getting asked by girls all over the country to get married... and some of them were pretty attractive.  However, I am nothing if not a loyal traditionalist, and I still had hopes that my first true love would come around.

It wasn't until I came with expensive diamond in hand, to beg her to marry me one last time, that a strange thing happened... I saw her for who she truly is; a spoiled brat who uses her independence to feed her delusions of grandeur... I began to notice how we don't really fit together... she only went to undergrad, I have a doctorate, she is a very private and religious person, and I am mostly outgoing in public and an avowed agnostic.   From a relationship standpoint, I was bringing most of the money, most of the friends, and my house was much nicer.  Maybe I wasn't the one who should be begging to get married... With this in mind I put the ring back in my pocket, looked her straight in the eyes, and said "You know how I feel about you and that you will always have a special place in my heart, but we are adults now and as adults we have to make commitments.  I'm only going to offer this one more time, either you marry me now or forever hold your peace.  But keep in mind, you will NEVER find someone who will love you like I will"  She hesitated for a second.  That was enough for me.  I turned and walked away, only a single tear in my eye.  I haven't looked back since.