I recently had a good feeling inside about something special coming true.

Something that made me look forward to the new semester.

I liked someone and sensed the feeling that she might like me back.

However, that was never the case.

I got friend-zoned.

Getting friend-zoned to me, is when you have common interests and similar views on relationships with someone special. Then, you think how you want him/her to be more than just a friend.

Therefore, you see this person as a potential significant other.

However, they don’t return those feelings. They either deny your verbal plea or sense it from you in text messages and social media comments.

Which is what happened to me.

You could say that I did get my hopes up a little bit. However, she was clearly everything I wanted in a girlfriend.

I met this girl through a friend of mine. He was talking to her late last semester.

My friend told me that I should follow her on Instagram. He then told her to follow me back.

After approving each other’s follow requests, I was amazed and shocked by the photos on her profile. I was so jealous of my friend that he got a girl that met my standards. I was wishing that I was the one dating her, not him.

She was the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen. I’ve never seen someone glow as bright as the sun like her.

What made her stand out to me was her blue eyes, which sparkled like diamonds. They completed a face that makes a lasting imprint on your mind.

She mesmerizes me, even to this day.

You can truly say that her smiling Irish eyes stole my heart away.

I met her in person two weeks later. I was in the library and I saw her with my friend. I decided to go say hi and introduce myself to her.

I was blown away for how beautiful she was in-person. I can remember stuttering and talking fast during our first conversation. I did this to hold back the googly-eyed, love-struck tone from coming out.

I was so anxious that I began impersonating President Trump.

Throughout the rest of November, they saw and talked to each other.

Then, he dumped her abruptly.

A few days later, she opens up to me about the fall out with him. Which all started with a Snapchat of a flag I had in my room that I sent to her. She said “that’s cool” and then she began to talk about getting dumped.

Her opening up to me was surprising because I had only known her for a month. At the time, I would only talk to her in passing and the only conversation we had was the night I met her.

I’m guessing she opened up to me because I’m a nice, reassuring person. I don’t mind helping people and being a listening ear for those who need it.

In fact, I don’t regret being there for her at all.

Truly, I saw none of this coming. I was expecting the last two weeks of the semester to be a long race to the finish line.

I can recall her telling me things like, “I want a guy who will cherish, appreciate me” and who will, “not want to lose me.”

Every time she said those things, I was thinking, “girl, you’re talking to him right here.” I would have treated her like a queen, not a princess. I would have even kissed the floor she walked on.

She appreciated the help I gave her during those last two weeks of the fall semester.

I can remember telling her how she has the inner and outer beauty my Aunt Theresa preaches to me about.

She even told me that I was the only good thing that came out of her meeting my friend.

As her and I talked, we started to get to know each other. The conversations we had went from the get-to-know-you’s to random banter about school and life.

Her and I had a lot of things in common. We cheer for the same college football team, raised in nearly identical family backgrounds, and similar views on relationships.

During that week, we were talking and meeting at the library, where one night where I noticed her getting jealous at me when I was talking to another girl.

After that moment I thought, “holy crap, she might like me. There may be mutual interest!”

She would complement me on everything that I wore featuring the logo of our favorite college football team.

She laughed at my impression of President Trump. She loved it so much that it was on her Snapchat story twice.

She was giving me attention. Which doesn’t come my way very often. I felt from the attention I was receiving from her, she wanted to get to know me more and had mutual interest in a relationship with me.

Then Christmas break came, which made me think how timing screwed me over once again.

It always seems to be that I meet a girl that I’m highly interested in, who happens to come during the worst timing and circumstances.

She lives two hours away from my hometown, which meant I couldn’t hang out with her or try to start something over break. What made it non-feasible was how I still don’t have my driver’s license and no car.

There was one part of me that really wanted to take her to Longwood Gardens to see the Christmas lights to brighten her spirits.

I can even recall her saying to me, that she wished we had met earlier in the fall semester.

During the winter break, we talked here and there. We texted, Snapchatted and tweeted each other. We even talked about her Facebook post about being single, which I commented on.

I told her she was beautiful when she was feeling down about herself.

The language from her sounded like she wanted to start something after break.

She even got excited when her and I had a Snapchat streak. Too bad she couldn’t keep it up…

Feelings for her began to approach my way. They were both physical and emotional. I was truly attracted to her.

Then it came.

A text that sent a fiery essence throughout the inside of my chest.

By reading the words, “you do know that we are just friends right” drained the optimism I had for the new semester.

I truly believe from the messages I sent her, she sensed that I wanted to date her and be in a relationship with her.

After getting that text, I sought out help from a good female friend of mine.

She told me that girls are afraid of anything relating to relationships.

They’re afraid to become vulnerable to someone.

They’re afraid to give someone the chance to become their happiness.

They’re afraid to let people in because they’ll never know what he will turn into or expect from them.

Therefore, it’s easy and fun for a girl to be single, especially in college.

I’m truly guessing this is what she thought.

I'm also assuming she got afraid of dating me because I am still friends with the guy who dumped her.

I do hope that I am the one that will break down her walls and embrace her in my arms.

However, only the heavenly Father and Father Time know if she will come back around to me.

Over the last few years, I have thought about dating.

You would think that I would had come into college with some dating experience from high school.

Nope.

Those opportunities never came my direction.

Back then, I was focused on school and trying to learn how to self-advocate to teachers about my learning accommodations.

I had no time to balance a relationship alongside advocating for my needs and schoolwork.

In recent years, I would always see my cousins bring their girlfriends to my Aunt Theresa and Uncle Jim’s house on Thanksgiving. I would get jealous at them because I just want to be a part of the camaraderie them and their girlfriends bring to my Uncle Jim’s basement Irish pub.

I could see myself introducing her to my family and being a part of the camaraderie the Curry’s have.

I can’t wait for the year where I do bring a girl to Aunt Theresa and Uncle Jimmy’s house. I can’t wait to be part of the camaraderie the Curry’s have in ways that I’ve yet to experience.

Garth Brooks is right when he sang, “our lives are better left to chance. I could have miss the pain, but I had to miss the dance,” from his hit song “The Dance.”

She was my “dance.”

With that gut feeling I had, I took a shot at pursuing her as something more than a friend.

But it resulted in pain.

However, without the pain of being friend-zoned by her, I would have never gotten to know her and see why she opened up to me.

And to the girl who friend-zoned me.

Ma’am, if you’re reading this, I want you to know that you were talking to that guy all along.

You were talking to the guy who will cherish and appreciate you.

You were talking to the guy that will never want to lose you.

You were talking to the one who will be there for you, no matter how intense your schedule may be.

Overall, you were talking to the guy who would make you feel happier and special.

Hope you keep me in mind whenever you dwell on being single, especially wth Valentine's Day just around the corner.

I made myself vulnerable by writing this piece about you and I.

Now, it’s your turn.

To be vulnerable.

To let me into your heart.

To give me the chance to become your happiness.