I've lived in the country my whole life. I love going to bed and not being able to hear the hum of cars driving past my house.

I love looking up and seeing a sky full of stars with no light pollution. I love corn season because the fields in front of my house provide a shield of privacy, as no one can see our house from the road when the corn is fully grown. I've loved growing up way out in the middle of nowhere with only my family, the rabbits, and the deer to keep me company. But I also love the big cities. I love the lights and all of the people. I didn't love country music, I liked rock, classical, alternative, and opera. I prefer ballet flats and Keds over cowboy boots.

And it's because of this that I would never have imagined falling for a country boy.

If you had asked me at the beginning of my senior year what my "type" was, I would have said the creative, artsy type. Guys who wore skinny jeans and had hair long enough to pull back into a man bun; someone who wrote their own music, loved all different kinds of music and loved performing. But much to my dismay, a camo-wearing, truck-driving boy walked into my life and changed everything I thought I had ever wanted. And boy does it make life interesting!

I've experienced so many different situations this year that I thought I would never happen to me. I went hunting for the first time. Like, actual hunting. The kind where you sit in a blind in dead silence waiting for a buck worth shooting. I learned how to shoot a gun for the first time, both a .22 rifle and a .22 handgun, when guns had always scared the crap out of me.

I've learned to love certain country songs when I couldn't even tolerate it before. I've learned more than I ever thought I'd know about fixing a car, because he's fixed mine several times, and even taught me how to jump start it when my battery died. We've gone on dates where all we do is park by the river, sit in the bed of his truck, and talk about life. He bought me my first camo sweatshirt for Christmas and I wear it with pride knowing that, with this, I've entered my boy's world. I've even gotten used to the tinted windows in the truck and just how noisy it is when you ride in it.

He's so respectful to my parents. He asks me to text him when I'm home so he knows I'm safe. When we're together, I don't open a door because he gets all of them for me (including the car door). He's taught me what a true gentleman acts like and how I deserve to be treated. I have never doubted how he feels about me. He's honest, kind, and compassionate. He's taught me that unconditional love does exist.

Dating this boy has been an adventure for me; one that I've enjoyed every single minute of.