I reached out to Gates , apologizing for my side of the fallout between us and hoping we could find closure . I didn ’ t expect our friendship to rebloom , but Gates surprised me by being very appreciative of the gesture and wanting to pick up our friendship back up . Our friendship did more than just rebloom ; it reached new depths with the newfound gratitude we had to have each other in our lives again .
Not too long after we reconnected , we finally explored the romantic interests we had buried so long ago , only to find our feelings were mutual . We experienced growth with each other and in our faith over the next few years , and by graduation we had committed seriously to each other . We moved to Colorado to start our careers ( and finally not be long-distance !). After a few more years , Gates popped the question one warm evening under the twinkling lights of a gazebo in the park , and of course I said yes ! We ’ ve since moved back to Quincy and got married in town , and are enjoying the happily ever after !
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