Meanwhile in Daytona Beach, she was content with riding solo for a while; however, life has a funny way of sinking the ship we know of as “our plans”. You see, Donnie hadn’t been to church in a while, but this one particular Sunday, he decide to go with a mutual friend named Roberto . It just so happened that Rachel was was singing in the choir on this day. Now, Donnie knew he had to meet Rachel after seeing her perform. There was just something about her that told his heart to take action. So, Roberto introduced them to each other.
Truth be told, Rachel didn’t remember Donnie much after the first encounter, and the next few months turned out to be rather uneventful. It wasn’t until Roberto came to her dorm a little intoxicated when things got interesting. After arriving, he called Donnie to come pick him up and proceeded to pass out before he arrived. So, when Donnie arrived, Rachel, Amanda (roommate and close friend), and him start talking. Talking eventually led to a stress ball war. Balls were flying left and right; but, In a critical moment, as one hurdled itself towards Rachel, Donnie stepped in front of it. Oddly enough, that’s all it took for Rachel to fall for him. It was almost as if a Knight stepped in front of a sword in a effort to save her life. Except this sword was a stress ball.
Rachel & Donnie, honestly, there’s no other way to describe you than ADORABLE. You guys complete each other in the simplest of ways. The way you look at each other will inspire hope in the generation to follow that struggle to find the definition of love. May you’re pure hearts and authentic love guide you through the happiest of times, and the pettiest of fights. May you continue to settle for less perfect, and allow yourselves to expose weakness. You’re legacy is just beginning, and I am so honored you allowed me to document the start.
We started off the session with a bit of wine. They had the cutest couples glasses.
The way she makes him laugh.
They way he looks at her.
So Loverly.
The way they look at each other says more than I could even attempt to put to words.
Okay, so it turns out they are fans of grape juice and not so much dry wine, but watching them drink it was the highlight of my day.
“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” – Lao Tzu
“You don’t love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or for their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear.” – Oscar Wilde
Their love is glowing in the dark
Donnie has this way of really bringing out Rachel’s personality. He makes her laugh like no one else. He makes her smile like no one else. If expressions could scream soul mates, this would be it:
Rachel, “There’s a hope thats waiting for you in the dark. You should know you’re beautiful just the way you are. And you don’t have to change a thing the world can change it’s heart. No scars to your beautiful, you’re a star, and you’re beautiful.”
And so I asked, “Have you seen the movie Dirty Dancing?” This was our remake!
I don’t think Donnie was prepared when Rachel decided to go for the birds.
Sometimes, all you need is a person that shows you its okay to let your guard down, be yourself, and love with no regrets.
Amanda told me that Rachel always does this trust fall thing, and Donnie is always like, “why?”
As the sun gently dipped below the horizon, a little bit of magic happened.
I’m ending with these two photos, because the thing that defined this session the most, was simply the way the looked at each other.
