Love is in the air!! We asked members of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us the moment they knew the person they were dating was "the one," and their responses totally stole my heart! Here are their sweet, sweet stories:
1. "This is going to sound cliché, but I knew on our first date that he was different from the rest. He was such a gentleman to me and was such a comforting and fun person to be with. We ended up at in supermarket parking lot at the end of our date until 3:30 a.m. because we did not want to leave each other. Four years later, and he still is my favorite person and my fiancé."
2. "I work with animals, so that means I work holidays, weekends, birthdays, etc. — it doesn’t matter. Well, I had to work New Year’s Eve from 6:00 p.m. until midnight. So, I popped sparkling cider with my coworker at midnight and headed home just expecting to go bed. Well, my partner surprised me at my house and gave me my New Year's kiss. In that moment, I knew I found my person."
—Anonymous
3. "A little more than a month into us dating, I went out of town for a weekend and ended up getting food poisoning right before I was supposed to make the three-hour drive back. I was able to hold it together for most of the drive, but with about an hour left I was feeling worse and worse, so I called my now-boyfriend. He stayed on the phone and chatted with me about anything and everything to distract me from my raging stomachache so I could drive. Then, about two minutes from my house, I finally had to pull over to throw up. I said something along the lines of, 'Hey, I'm probably gonna be sick soon, so if you hear me throwing up, please hang up, OK?' Since the relationship was so new, I wasn't ready for him to witness me projectile-vomiting (even if it was over the phone)."
"So, the time came and threw my ever-loving guts up. I just assumed he'd done what I'd asked and hung up, but the second I was able to come up for air, I heard him say, 'Drink some water!' Turned out he hadn't hung up. It was a little thing, but I honestly had never felt more comforted in my life. He wasn't put off at all, and I knew just from that instant that he someone I could always count on to be there for me."
—Anonymous
4. "I was working as a fill-in prep cook (normally I was front-of-house) and I was supposed to 'train' the new guy. I say 'train' because clearly he had years of cooking experience and I had none. He made me laugh the entire shift, and we had instant, flirtatious chemistry. Something told me he was special, and now, we are almost 13 years together/nine years married with a beautiful daughter."
5. "It was our third date when my now-husband told me that he had a cat. I think he was nervous and wasn’t sure if I thought it was a little weird he was a single guy with a cat. Little did he know that I was 1. delighted and 2. thought it was super sweet and responsible. We began dating more seriously and I got to know he and his cat, Coltrane, very well. Fast forward to our third year of dating, Coltrane began acting sick and he was diagnosed with cancer. My boyfriend made the excruciating decision to put Coltrane down, as he was in a lot of pain with no hope for recovery. When it came time to bring him into the clinic, I offered to allow them to have their last moments together since they were together long before I entered the picture. To my surprise, he said, 'No, we are a family and he and I want you here for this.'"
"Despite this being a very sad moment in our history, that was the moment I knew. We are married 10 years this year with two amazing kids. Rest in peace, Trane, we love you, buddy."
—Anonymous
6. "I was a nurse coming home from an exhausting 12-hour shift. He was an accountant coming off an equally long shift during busy season. It was late and it was snowing. As I drove down the hill behind our apartment to scour for scarce parking, I saw him backing into the very front spot that had recently been vacated by nothing short of a miracle. Once he parked, he looked forward and saw me coming down the hill. Without hesitation, he put his car in drive and went off to find a spot in the back lot, leaving me the coveted first spot. He waved and flashed a grin as he drove off. We’ve been together 13 years now, married for seven. His moments of grace have saved me several times over."
—Anonymous
7. "My partner recently helped while I was super overstimulated at a convention. I have autism, and being around loads of people is really tough. He knows how much I want to go back, but I didn't think I could make it through. As a completely random idea, he proposed us learning sign language and getting me noise cancelling headphones so we can still talk. I completely broke down. The thought of the total dedication of learning a new language just to make something I enjoy possible really showed that he will do anything to make sure I'm comfortable and we can still enjoy life. I want to spend the rest of my life with him and enjoy beautiful moments like this."
—Anonymous
8. "I knew I'd be happy for the rest of my life after a couple years of dating because I realized I never feel bored when I'm with him. He makes my life an adventure, even grocery shopping and cleaning. We spend so much time together, but we still end up talking for hours every night. Our conversations are never-ending. I am more comfortable around him than I am my own family. He understands me better than they do, and sometimes better than I do. He reads my mind. Many years later, after that initial awkward first date, we're partners in everything we do and I know that we can conquer anything together. He pushes me to dream big and supports me through my whole process (even when I'm an anxious ball of stress). I'm so thankful to marry him next year!"
—Anonymous
9. "I’ve been going through a really tough time recently with my mental health and then my mum being diagnosed with motor neuron disease. It’s really affected how I feel about intimacy, so that side of things doesn’t happen very often now. I get really worried that my partner will be annoyed about it and get frustrated. The other day, she said: ‘It honestly doesn’t bother me. All that matters to me is that we spend time together and have cuddles,’ then she kissed me on the forehead. Due to my mental health and OCD, I struggle to maintain relationships because I have intrusive thoughts questioning things all the time. It’s things like this that help me know I can never let this one go. I proposed on New Year’s Day and she said yes."
—Anonymous
10. "We were up late talking and he was telling me about his dreams and ambitions for his life and they were pretty much identical to my own. It was the first time where I thought 'he IS my other half.' We've been inseparable ever since."
—Anonymous
11. "After one date, he went to Thailand for a month. While he was there, we sent messages back and forth over Facebook (it was 2013) and I asked him about his family. Instead of just sharing who they were, he detailed why they were the way they were and what he loved and admired about each of them. Reading those messages, I knew that if he was always going to have that level of depth and compassion for how he saw the world, I could make a life with him. Glad I was right!"
—Anonymous
12. "We met at work. He had just started that Monday, and Friday was the Halloween party. I organized the whole thing and he was the only person to offer to help me clean up at the end. I found out the next week (on our first date) that he’d missed his last train home just to help me! Five years later, our son was born this past October."
13. "On our first date, we got super drunk (as we were both nervous), and he threw up on my shoes. A few months later, I found a video diary entry I made when I got home that night after our first date. I have no recollection of making the video, but it was just a video of me smiling and looking the happiest I’ve ever seen myself, and it ended with me saying, ‘Mark my words: Vomit or no vomit, I will marry this man.' Two years later, we just bought our dream home and are planning our September wedding."
14. "We worked together for almost a year. He's seven years younger than me (he was 23 at the time), and he pursued me for months. I wasn't sure we would be able to date, as he was so young and lived a different lifestyle compared to me. I was a parent of a young teenager and he was wild with parties and drinking. I ended up really unwell with a serious illness and I wasn't able to move out of bed for days. He called me and asked if he could come make dinner for my son and me. I agreed, and on his way over, he bought one of everything from a service station that he thought might help me — mineral water, Panadol, throat lozenges, and even heartburn lozenges. I though this was so very sweet! He came and cooked us all dinner and I knew then I'd give him a chance. We are now married and have two beautiful kids together. He's definitely a keeper."
15. "I struggle a lot with insecurity and self-esteem. In addition, my anxiety coupled with my childhood experiences make me tend to think that anything that goes wrong is somehow my fault. I've been working through this in therapy, but I do often need outside validation, which means I'm not always an easy person to love. The man who is now my husband has never made me feel like I'm a burden. I can tell he really listens to me and strives to give me the emotional support I need."
"Once, something had gone wrong and I was going into my overthinking spiral. My husband, without me saying a word, looked me in the eyes and said, 'This isn't your fault. I know your brain is telling you it is, but I want you to know that it's not your fault. I love you, and I'm not mad at you.' I knew he was the right person for me. He has taken the time to understand how my 'messed-up' brain works, and he tries his best to help me fight against my negative thoughts. I love him more than anything."
16. "I knew after our first date. Our first date lasted 12 hours (5:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.). We spent half the night just sitting and talking to one another, and the time flew past us. Next thing we knew, the sun was about ready to rise. Never was conversation with someone so easy and engrossing. Clearly a special connection."
—Anonymous
17. "We started out as friends. I had broken up with my husband and was starting life over again. He was a friend from work who had a crush on me, but I wasn't ready to date again, so he became my movie buddy instead. We had just put Jurassic Park on one night at 1:30 a.m. when he noticed water coming in under my apartment door. The intense cold had caused a water main to break, and the whole ground level of my building was filling up with water! He helped me evacuate and gather my pets and a few personal belongings. We were up to our knees and the water was still rising. The police and fire department managed to evacuate the building and take care of the injured, and he stayed with me the whole night as we sheltered in a warming station."
"My apartment was gutted and I lost everything. He stayed with me through the whole ordeal and gave me money to help me get back on my feet. The next day, he helped me salvage what few belongings I had left. He was optimistic and cheerful the whole time, and comforted me when I was losing my mind over it all. I knew then that there was something special about him. He was in it for the long haul, he was the one for me, and he had supported me through the worst personal disaster I'd ever faced without a second's hesitation. He’d seen me at my very worst, my most vulnerable, and simply took it in stride, and his strength was so comforting, I felt so safe with him. I realized then how much he loved me. Shortly after I got moved into a new unit, he asked me to go to Jamaica with him, and I did. That was 10 years ago this year, we've been together ever since, and we're as solid as ever! He's definitely the one for me!"
18. "My girlfriend (now wife) and I met when I was grieving the loss of my best friend and was overall not doing too well. I remember her going out of her way to buy me flowers and make me homemade meals, and I really enjoyed her company. After our first date and how much we clicked, I knew she was the one. It was 'love at first sight' because I knew after we first met that she was the one for me. She drove 70 miles to come see me for our first date and almost every day thereafter. We got engaged only six months after meeting for the first time, and now we're happily married."
—Anonymous
19. "I knew my husband was the one when, early on in our relationship, I was driving his car as the DD and I got into an accident that ended up totaling his car. I was definitely at fault. He was a full-time dental student and money was seriously tight for him. He never once made me feel bad about it. Not one comment, not even in the weeks following when he was dealing with insurance or when he was looking for a used car. All he cared about was that I was OK. He just viewed his car as 'just stuff,' so without saying anything, I knew he was kind, caring, and non-materialistic."
20. "I met my wife at my first job right out of high school. We were really good friends, but at the time I wanted more and she did not, which resulted in a falling out. After so many years of dating random girls, I found myself missing hanging out with her, even though we were never anything another than friends. I reached out and we started hanging out with each other after a few years with no contact. We quickly realized we were developing feelings for each other. I fell in love hard, and after a year of dating, we got engaged and moved in together, then got married three years after that. She just recently had surgery, and to say that I’ve been worried sick is an understatement. I realized that if anything were to happen to her, I would be hopelessly lost, as cliché as it sounds."
"My life has taken me through so many twists and turns, but I realized everything had to happen exactly the way it did for us to meet. Even though some of those twists and turns have been extremely difficult, I'm glad they took me where they did. I knew she was the one back when I was 18, and 14 years later, I'm so grateful for my wife and lover and best friend."
21. Finally: "I knew the minute I got in his car and saw his face for the first time in over 10 years. We met when we were 10, and then 'dated' in middle school, and even though I moved schools, I never forgot him. No one measured up, and it took me 10 years to get the courage to reach out. We've been together for over a year and are planning a future together, but I knew that exact minute because, for the first time in my life, I didn't feel like I had to apologize for being myself. We've been through hell together and we both know that our friendship is first, and if we part ways one day, it'll be with a smile. If we go our separate ways, though, I do know I won't date again. He'll always have my heart."
How did you know your partner was "the one"? Tell us your story in the comments. ❤️
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.