Levi and I married each other in June of 2012 after only six months of
head-over-heels, foolish-about-each-other love. Our story, like every love
story, has its own unique and sweet moments and timings. We continue to marvel
at the way God orchestrated our lives to bring us together, and though it
included pain and trials for both of us, we wouldn't change anything about it.
Everything that happened and every way that we grew led us to this moment.
Levi had called me. The phone was in my hands. Now I just had to think of something to say...
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Chapter 10: That Voice
One hand gripping the wheel of my car that I was driving along the semi-dark highway and the other shaking slightly as I held the phone up to my ear, I said my first word to Levi.
"Hello?"
"Hey there," he said brightly. "This is Levi."
There was a slight flopping feeling in my chest. Pretty sure my heart was doing some skipping.
"Hi!" I exclaimed. "Can I ask for a huge favor?"
"Oh, sure, no problem," he said, sounding a little bit startled.
"Ok, so I know this is the first time we've ever talked," I began, picking up speed as I went, "but I'm driving on the highway right now and I got into a car accident here earlier in the year and I just don't feel safe talking on the phone while I'm driving here. Can I call you back?"
"That's fine," he said.
"I promise I will," I assured him. "Ten minutes. Tops."
We said goodbye and it took every bit of willpower I possessed to keep myself going the speed limit. All I wanted to do was pull into my driveway, toss my purse onto the table as I walked into my house, plop down on the couch, and talk to Levi as long as he'd tolerate it.
Exactly 7 minutes later I was doing just that. It might have been 2 minutes faster than normal, but who's to know for sure?
I slid open my phone and called the Minnesota number back. My heart took a few more skipping steps as it rang.
"Hey, there," said Levi's voice.
And there it was. We were talking. The thing I'd wanted so badly just a day before was currently taking place.
I found myself nervous. Like, really nervous. I already liked this guy on paper, but what if it was too awkward to talk to him? What if he had weird breathing habits or used too many filler words (such as "um," "like," or "so")? What if wasn't actually as eloquent as he seemed to be in his letters? What if he thought I was silly or shallow or boring?
Thankfully, with years of training as a teacher I could converse in a stressful and unknown situation while sounding confident and knowledgeable.
In that first conversation I learned that Levi was easy to talk to, used no filler words, and breathed normally. He wasn't overly verbose, but he sounded more than a little intelligent when speaking freely. And he sounded like he was smiling, which was a good clue that he was happy to be talking to me.
Speaking of overly verbose, though, I might have been a little too talkative during that first conversation. I found myself even more attracted to him once I'd heard his voice, and suddenly my words were spilling out faster than I could think of them.
I know he and I talked about things. I mean, we would have to, right? But I can't remember everything that we talked about in that first conversation. I seem to remember me rambling on and on about poetry and Levi listening attentively, but I really couldn't say what was said.
His voice was wonderful. It was quiet, calm, and deliberate. It wasn't labored or slow, and it wasn't formal. His drawl was soft, without a hint of twang. It was a voice I already longed to hear again, and I wasn't even done having the first conversation with him!
Levi would tell me later that he'd been psyching himself up all day to call me (it was a Saturday), and finally worked up the nerve. Those same fears I had about talking to him? He had them, too. And he was more than happy to let me ramble on in that first conversation because it meant that he could slowly relax and get to know my voice, which, incidentally, he found very sweet.
We reached a stopping point in our conversation, and decided to set another time to call. Now here was the tricky part. I wanted to talk to him again right away (he wanted the same thing), but I felt that I should at least try to be conservative about things. So we decided to talk again in two days. That was about as conservative as I could get. Also, it's about as conservative as things would get in our relationship.
As I slid my phone shut, a huge smile on my face and a warm feeling in my arms and shoulders (that's what happens when I get really excited), I glanced at the phone. Oh my word! We'd talked for an hour and a half! And that was only our first conversation!
I was officially dying for more.
After a late supper that night I was relaxing in front of some Firely (more nerd evidence) when I casually checked my e-mail. I sat up straight, dropping my tortilla chip on the carpet. An e-mail! From Levi! Already?
I opened it and read, "Hey there! So, I just got off of the phone with you and I really enjoyed it. I'll be honest, I was pretty nervous before I called. But now the ice is broken. :) I'm really looking forward to talking to you again. You sound like a sweet girl in your e-mails, and now I know you sound sweet on the phone too. :)"
Be still, my heart!
But it wouldn't be still. It was only going to keep beating faster and faster as the days wore on, the letters kept coming, and the calls lasted for hours . . .
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In the next chapter, we'll see how much you can handle as the phone calls and letters continue to pour in!
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