Dom,

When I first met you, I didn't realize that tiny crush that began to form would soon turn into something so much deeper, so much more. All the conversations we had until three a.m. in the lobby on your floor and the teasing from our friends created a bond that I have never experienced with anyone else in my life. October 4^th, 2017 is where it all began. It is now almost a year later, and it's weird to think that I haven't known you for my whole life.

Emma Piccinini

Through the nights where my insecurities have gotten the best of me, you stayed and pulled me closer to you. You never try to fix my problems, rather you sit and listen as I tell you how I am feeling or what is on my mind. You always make sure to reassure me of my worth on the days that I forget, but you never try to save me; you know that I am my own knight and shining armor. You help, and you listen and that is all I could ever ask for in a significant other. So, thank you.

Emma Piccinini

Before you, I was overly sensitive. I would take almost everything personally, even when the criticism I received was constructive. You taught me how to loosen up and let go of my anxieties about what people thought of me. You guided me away from perfectionism and led me to the comfort of being flawed. You taught me that it's okay to be a flawed person because anyone who pretends they're not is lying. You never pretend to be better than others, you live your own life disregarding the judgment that others may throw your way. That was something I immediately liked, and now have grown to love, about you.

Emma Piccinini

I honestly thought that I knew what love was before you. I was naïve in thinking that because you showed me what it truly means to be in love. You've shown me that love means knowing each other's weaknesses but respecting each other enough to never use them against one another. You've shown me that love isn't always passionate and reckless, but rather it can be comfortable and quiet. You've shown me that love is never one-sided, it is always reciprocated. It should be easy, but there is also effort that goes into it. You make loving you easy every single day, even throughout the arguments and the rough patches within our relationship.

Emma Piccinini

We are different in almost every conceivable way, but with you, I am the best version of myself. You have taught me how to be kinder to myself. You have taught me to be a tougher person. You have taught me what it means to love someone despite their downfalls. You have taught me to be fearless. But most of all, you have shown me what it is to be truly & utterly in love. You are not only my boyfriend, but you are also my best friend. Thank you for the best year of my life. There is absolutely no one like you in this world. Happy one year.

Love,

Emma