First time I laid eyes on him: I didn't realize I was looking upon gold. It was the high school basketball tournament my freshman year at Cibola. Yuma Catholic was playing against some team in the raider gym. Zoe and I went over to the YC side to see our friends Amanda Quintana and Julia White. Amanda, my friend from church who I didn't get to see very often since we weren't in the same ward, pointed out her black boyfriend playing in the game. My first thought was, "ew you're dating a black guy?!" but of course I didn't voice that.
July 28, 2013: He followed me on twitter. I still remember freaking out, texting my friend Kimberly how a YC football player followed me on twitter. I went out on a whim and anonymously messaged him on ask.fm saying, "Thanks for following me cutie :)" and he replied, "No problem you should DM me if you're down!" I played hard to get for about 2 days, then finally gave in. He then asked for my number and I made him wait to get that too. Within a few days, we were texting and he was jealous (as I found out later) of the guy I had a fling with at school, Josh. Sometime end of July, early October, I ran into him in person for the first time since the tournament. I was on my way to the gym but I dropped Parley off at YC for Team Heat basketball practice. As I was walking into the gym hallway entrance, Donovan was walking out limping. He had sprained his ankle in football practice, and he recalls being in crutches. To avoid an awkward moment, I wasn't gonna say anything, but he said hi to me first. It was a quick exchange and a "hey I don't know you but I do!" moment.
October 12, 2013: We went on a "date" technically. My parents were in San Diego for their anniversary trip, I had just dropped Parley off at Yuma High for a basketball game, and I was meeting up with Donovan at the Starbucks in the mall by Big Swirl. He did pay for me, which I guess makes it a date. He also used his mom's cute pink debit card. And had to drive his mom's minivan which he was so embarrassed of. Haha. I got a cotton candy frappucino. I don't remember, but I assume he got his usual of white chocolate mocha with 3 shots of peppermint. Oh yeah, I'm good. Anywho, we finished out drinks in about 15 minutes but we sat there for about 2 hours. The barista, an old man, was sweeping and remarked that we must really like each other if we're still here and haven't ordered a second drink yet. We laughed and smile, and Donovan was like yup! That made me happy inside, first time I had heard him say something like that...That night we had a deep conversation about relationships. I was scared of getting attached and hurt; and he made it clear that he wanted to earn my trust and that he would be patient so he could treat me how I deserved. I knew then he was special and not like other guys - for real.
October 16, 2013: I was taking Parley to YC for another basketball practice. I remember I was driving my old GMC suburban and that now I was the one driving the embarrassing car. Donovan had just gotten out of basketball practice when I got there, and I saw him in the dirt parking lot with his best friend, Troy Mitchell. I met Troy and talked for a little bit. I also followed Troy on twitter and had talked to him a bit over twitter. After Troy left I talked to Donovan, which turned into an affectionate hug, which climaxed to our first kiss. I was supposed to go to my city tennis practice after dropping Parley off, but I never made it that night. Donovan and I decided to go to McDonald's in Walmart for ice cream. However when we got there, I realized I forgot my wallet and he didn't have his. We said bye, and he kissed me again, and we both went home. I called Kim right away and told her the great news.