One evening I was over at my best friend Erik’s house, playing on XBOX Live. He was in a party chat with a bunch of friends and I was listening to everyone talk over each other.
There was one voice that just stood out. The reason it stood out is because the guy who was talking was southern. I could hear his accent clearly and I loved it. (I’ve always had a thing for southern accents. They sound so gloriously sexy.)
I whispered to Erik that there was someone in the party chat who was from the south. Erik laughed and told me to hold on. Then, he started screaming really loud telling everyone to shut up because he had to say something. After everyone quieted down, he said really slowly, “Someone here is from the south. My friend Jackie heard them talk and she wants to know who it is!” Then I heard the guy talk! He said, “Um, is that me?” And I was SO HAPPY to hear him talk again! I yelled out “Yeah! That guy! WHO ARE YOU??”
Everyone told me his name was Ty, and I started talking to him right then and there. I randomly mentioned (TOTALLY FOOLING AROUND) that I wanted to lose my virginity to a southern man and everyone started laughing.
I guess me saying that made Ty curious and he started talking to me again. After talking to each other for like 30 minutes, we decided to exchange numbers. (Which is totally unsafe! I didn’t even KNOW him!) But I didn’t want to say my number out loud to everyone, so Erik got Ty’s number and then I got it from Erik.
That same night, (like 3 minutes after we got each others numbers), he started texting me. He asked me for a picture of myself and I got a picture of him.
We stopped talking after that. I had found out that Ty had a girlfriend, and he wasn’t flirting with me, but I figured it might happen, and I refused to be that gilr who took someone else’s guy.
I was currently in the middle of something with a guy who shortly after became my ex boyfriend. I didn’t feel it was fair for me to talk and even flirt with Ty if Taylor was currently the guy I wanted to be with.
Ty would text me like every other day and I would never reply.
I ended up going out with Taylor and dated him for 2 weeks or so. Even before we started dating Taylor would always act protective/POSSESSIVE of me, and whenever he found out that Ty had texted me, he would get into huge arguments with him. It was just a big mess.
After Taylor and I broke up, I started talking to my first love, Kyle. Kyle was from Alabama and I had already dated him once. I hadn’t lost my feelings for Kyle, and I was happy that we were giving it another shot.
Unfortunately, Kyle hadn’t changed much, and he was still a pot-head, smoker, and drinker who didn’t believe in God, so we broke up again.
After the break up, I randomly texted Ty. He replied and we started talking. It was the first time we had ever had an actual conversation. I learned that him and his girlfriend had broken up over a month ago because they fought a lot. I also learned that his name was Tyler and that he was 15. He lived in Kentucky and he was incredibly funny. He played football and went to a school with 7 buildings. He was Sophomore and had a half brother named Aaron. He had 2 dogs named Levi and Sargent.
I told him all about myself and my life. He knew about my family and he knew about my deep personal thoughts and feelings. He became my best friend and even trusted me enough to tell me about a huge secret he had never told anyone. He trusted me and cared about me.
We fell in love.
After some time, Tyler asked me to be his girlfriend. He had already been calling me his girlfriend several weeks before-hand anyway.
I said yes. The date was November 13th, 2010 and it happened at 10:48 PM with Nelly singing “Just A Dream” in the background.
I could stop smiling. My Prince Charming had made the move. I loved him so much.
My parents didn’t know Tyler and I were dating (it was a LDR) and so when I would hang up, I wasn’t able to say “I love you, too.” to him and it would really upset him.
A couple days before thanksgiving Tyler told me he wanted a break. I cried myself to sleep. I didn’t understand why and I felt so betrayed.
We were only in a break for like 3 days (THANK GOD!).
I was at Erik’s house on XBOX Live and Erik’s boyfriend HATED Tyler, so he would fight with me and Tyler. Aaron said “Hey Jackie, control your boyfriend.” Pretty much rubbing in the fact that we weren’t technically together. I yelled at him and said “I don’t control Tyler. I don’t tell him what to do. I don’t OWN him. He’s not my DOG and I don’t keep him on a leash. He can do whatever he wants.”
I guess Tyler was really taken aback by the fact that I had stood up for myself and for him and he told me that he wanted us to be together again. He said he would NEVER AGAIN go on a break because he didn’t want to ever risk losing me.
Everything between Tyler and I was perfectly messed up. My parents hated that I’d spend my days talking to him on the phone. Tyler would pick on me sometimes and try to see how mad he could get me. My parents would make me be on the phone less and less and Tyler and I were getting really frustrated about it.
Tyler’s parents never said anything about us. They didn’t really care. They knew he had a girlfriend named Jackie. That was it. He said that if they knew more about me, they’d start bugging him with all types of questions about me. It had never occurred to me that they didn’t know that I wasn’t in Kentucky..
I had made a painting for Tyler. It was Moose (from Nick Junior) wearing Tyler’s football jersey. It said THOMAS on the side (Tyler’s last name) and it was going to arrive at his house on March 3rd.
On March 1st, 2011, Tyler broke up with me. His dad had found out where I was from and prohibited Tyler from dating girls who weren’t from around where they lived.
I didn’t get to hear his voice. I didn’t get to hear him say “I love you baby.” I didn’t get to hear him laugh. I didn’t get to hear him tell me how much he loved me. I didn’t get a true goodbye. I didn’t want one.
On my 18th birthday. Tyler told me that he had kept the painting I had made him. It had been exactly one week since I had heard from him. He also told me that he loved me.
Tyler and I hardly talk now because he lost his phone and I don’t currently have one. When we do, it’s like we never broke up. We say “I love you baby.” like every 2 minutes. We tell each other how much we miss one another. We talk about being together again.
I’m not technically his girlfriend anymore. But when he tells me that he loves me and that no matter what, I’m always going to be his world, I cal tell that he means it. I can feel that he loves me. I love him with all the strength of my heart.
It’s so weird to go home and not have him call me. It’s so weird to not say goodnight to him anymore. It’s so weird to not call him every morning. It’s so weird to not hear his family in the background, or the train that passes by.
I feel lonely.
But when I call, or when he calls, everything is back to normal. Everything is back to how it should be. We’re in love.
Tyler and I do plan on getting back together. Not soon.. But our love hasn’t faded one tiny bit, so we’re positive that we will be together at the end of all of this.
I’ve never truly shared our story, and this story that I’m sharing doesn’t have the smiles, the tears, the true feelings of love that our story has. But it’s the basic stuff. I’m glad to share it with you all, though.
This one is for the love that doesn’t fade. The love that won’t give up. The love that tells distance to screw off. This is for true love.
James Zachary Tyler Thomas & Jacqueline Rincon.
11/13/2010 - 3/1/2011
You’re the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me.
You’re my everything.
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