The first time I fell in love, it was like someone flipped a switch inside me. Suddenly, the world wasn’t just black and white—it was bursting with colors I hadn’t noticed before. I started paying attention to little things: the way sunlight filtered through leaves, the sound of rain against the window, even the way my favorite songs seemed to take on new meanings. It wasn’t just about her; it was about how she made me see everything differently. I became more patient, more curious, and weirdly, more vulnerable. Before, I’d brush off sentimental stuff, but afterwards? I’d catch myself smiling at old couples holding hands or getting oddly invested in romance subplots in shows I used to mock.
That relationship didn’t last, but the change did. It’s like first love sanded down my edges—not to make me softer, but to make me more aware. I started writing terrible poetry, took up photography to capture 'moments,' and even cried at a movie for the first time. It’s embarrassing to admit, but it also felt… freeing. Now, years later, I still catch traces of that version of me—the one who learned to care deeply, maybe too deeply, about fleeting beauty.