Nathan and I met in late 2005 through work – we were public servants. In March 2006 the Commonwealth Games came to Melbourne and we went to a few events together. By the end of the Games we were pretty much a couple.
Come Easter time I was housesitting a lovely townhouse near the beach and enjoying some extra leave. It was Good Friday eve and Nathan was going to come over after work with a pizza. We had planned for a romantic evening, watching movies and easing into the long weekend together.
It was still early days in the relationship, when you want to put your best face on, so I was having a shower and washing my hair in preparation for his arrival.
I was halfway through rinsing out my shampoo when a massive migraine completely overtook me. I’ve always suffered from them but this one came out of nowhere.
I was suddenly so unwell that I stumbled out of the shower with my hair full of suds, threw up in the basin and dragged myself into this daggy bathrobe before downing some painkillers and collapsing into bed. It was very dramatic and intense.
These were the days before we were constantly on our phones and in my agony it didn’t even occur to me to get in touch and suggest maybe he shouldn’t bother coming over.
Next thing I know there’s a knock at the door and there’s Nathan, straight from work in his suit and tie, holding a pizza and looking so handsome.
I, on the other hand, must have looked an absolute fright; a total wreck of a woman with damp frizzy hair, pale as a ghost and babbling incoherently about this migraine.
Part of me expected him to run a mile or at least be very awkward and uncomfortable seeing me like this so soon in our relationship, but he was so lovely. He didn’t miss a beat, he just walked right in and helped me back to bed.
Lying there virtually delirious with pain I can remember seeing him walk past the doorway, still in his work clothes, with pink rubber gloves on, a rag in one hand and a bottle of Jif in the other. I thought, “Oh my God, he’s going to clean up my vomit”, but I was too woozy to protest. When he was finished, he laid down next to me and held me until I drifted off to sleep.
It was hours later when I woke up. With the worst of the migraine behind me, we sat in bed eating stone-cold pizza. While it definitely wasn’t the romantic evening we had planned, I couldn’t have been happier.
I remember the next morning not even feeling embarrassed. Nathan saw me at my absolute worst that night and he was so beautiful in the way he reacted and took care of me. I knew then he was the one for me.
We moved in together a few months later and married in 2009. At the heart of it, he’s my best friend. It doesn’t matter what we’re doing, where we are or what state I’m in, I know I can count on him. We’re just happy when we’re together.
