( The Frisky ) -- I 'm sitting alone in my apartment on a rainy night . I 'm restless , mildly bored , and , yes , I 'll admit it , but please do n't tell anyone ... lonely . It 's days like this that I 'm sure that there 's no more love in store for me -- all of the epically momentous possibilities must have already passed me by . Somehow I blinked and missed them . It 's in moments like this that I allow myself the small indulgence of thinking about Sebastian . Our story had all of the makings of a great love story . Once upon a time we met one evening in a dark , crowded party . He told me I was beautiful . I was young enough for him to appear larger than life . We kissed on the sidewalk in the rain . I fell hard for him -- hard like scrape-me-off-the-floor-with-a-spatula hard . But we were wrong for each other in every way . We were young , immature , and troubled . It ended tragically -- Sebastian stood me up on a cold , snowy New Year 's Eve and the two of us never spoke again . I went on with my life . I wonder what Sebastian is doing right now . I wonder if I will ever love anyone that way again -- with an open heart . I decide to cruise the internet for inspiration -- narrowly avoiding the temptation to do a Google search of Sebastian 's name . The intention of my search ? To remind myself that love really exists . A tall , existential order for sure , yet a valid one . I practice it often . On the street , on the subway . Every time I encounter a seemingly happy couple I say to myself , `` See you bitter old hag , people fall in love all the time . '' I find the kind of cinematic headline I 'm looking for : `` Gulf War Pen Pals Get Married After Facebook Encounter 19 Years Later . '' Touché . As a teenager , Jamie Benefit decided to reach out to the troops during the Gulf War . She addressed a letter of support and encouragement to `` Any Soldier . '' Jamie 's anonymous letter found its way into the hands of 19-year-old soldier Jeremy Clayton . Jamie and Jeremy continued to write each other for the duration of the war , to exchange stories and keep their minds off of the scary worlds around them . After the war ended , the two lost touch . Jamie wrapped up her letters in a patriotic ribbon , put them away in a safe place , and moved on with her life . The Frisky : I was the other woman -- should I tell ? Nineteen years later , Jamie got curious one day ( maybe she was sitting alone in her apartment on a rainy evening ? ) and looked for Jeremy on Facebook and sent a simple message to a man with his name , asking , `` Were You In Desert Storm ? '' That was all Jeremy needed in order to know that he had to see Jamie again . The two met up in person a few months later . When Jeremy finally saw Jamie he says of the moment , `` It took my breath , I was actually shaking and I 'm a pretty strong man . I just said to myself , 'You have to do whatever you can to make sure you spend the rest of your life with this woman . ' '' A few months later they were married . The Frisky : How to handle an overly dependent BFF . Wow . Just like that huh ? War . Letters . Great distances . Great danger . Years apart . Reunion . Facebook . Marriage . I 'm sure someone in Hollywood will be calling any minute to option the rights to the film . Maybe they 'll call it `` Love in a Time of Bush . '' I should feel inspired that love happens -- exponentially and effortlessly -- yet I feel nothing but skepticism . Does this actually happen in real life ? Like , real real life ? The Frisky : Need to say goodbye to single life before I can find love ? Like Jamie and Jeremy , Sebastian and I lost touch after that fateful New Year 's Eve . When he sent me a message on Facebook 10 years later , I was unable to breathe . It said simply , `` I hope you 're still silly . '' When we met in person for coffee , I was so dizzy that I had to sit with my head between my legs while he sat silently across from me . His hand shook slightly as he grabbed mine and said , `` I 'm sorry , I 've been waiting 10 years to say that to you . '' Momentarily I was so giddy that I almost let myself get carried away . I looked at Sebastian for the first time in the bright , clear morning light and saw him exactly as he was . It happened so quickly that if I had blinked I would have missed it . He was just an older , more mature , version of the awful of the guy who broke my heart 10 years ago . There was no proposal . Just an awkward meeting of two grownups realizing that they were no longer young and silly . TM & © 2010 TMV , Inc. | All Rights Reserved .
Late on rainy , lonely nights , some people are tempted to Google an old love . One story about a soldier and teen had a happy Facebook ending . Inspired writer searches for and meets up with her old love . But finds he 's older , more mature , version of the awful of the guy who broke her heart .