I wear a gorgeous ring on my left ring finger. It symbolizes commitment, love, loyalty, trust, and most importantly, a promise.

And no, it's not an engagement ring.

A committed romantic relationship is one of the rarest and difficult forms of a relationship you could be in while in college. A lot of people in college participate in the hook-up culture or focus on temporary relationships to pass the time.

My relationship is a fairy-tale, love at first sight scenario, and no one took it seriously at first. People believed we would have our fun and then the relationship would run its course. You're in college; you can't possibly be ready to settle down with one person, right? Wrong.

Due to the fact that we are not married, or in fact, engaged, I have faced many forms of disrespect when it comes to women interacting a certain way around my man.

Let's get one thing straight: you will never find a place in my boyfriend's heart.

He gifted me with my promise ring on our one-year anniversary on top of the Ferris wheel at the state fair. Almost two years later, it sits on my left ring finger, day after day. Exactly how he wants it.

He gave me this ring because it wasn't the right time for a proposal. We weren't ready to get married since we're still in college, and we want to be able to have a real plan set for our marriage. I've been dreaming about my wedding day forever, and it's not something either of us wants to rush and half-ass.

However, he made it clear that this ring symbolizes the same thing as an engagement ring. The only difference is that an engagement ring requires a date for a wedding.

Say what you want to say, but I look at my boyfriend with the same commitment and love that a wife looks at her husband with. I never thought I could be so comfortable and in love with another person until I met him. And while I love Disney princess movies, I never thought I would actually find a real Prince Charming.

We talk about our future almost daily. We dream of the day we'll be married. We knew from the very beginning that we were made for each other, and that love and commitment is what led my boyfriend to give me my promise ring.

No, I haven't started planning a wedding, but he is the one I'm going to spend forever with. Our relationship is set in stone.

I wear my promise ring to show everyone that I am taken, and happily so at that. My boyfriend gave it to me because he is ready to share his life with me. We just aren't at a point of being able to afford a wedding and do all the things we want to in our first year of marriage.

He is committed to me and I am committed to him. He made me a promise that he fully intends to keep.

So don't hold your breath honey. Just because the date isn't set yet for him to be legally and officially mine, that doesn't mean it's not right around the corner.