Dream Chasing Crazy is a PG-rated romance short-story that follows two people from teenagers to death. This story dabbles into a comedic realm but will leave you in tears.
Entry 1:
My husband is dream-chasing crazy. He always has been. Even when we were teenagers he had a sparkle in his eye that couldn’t be contained. I guess I wasn’t the easiest girl to start a life with: I had every beat of life already planned. I used to keep a journal, almost like a checklist for our life seasons.
1. Graduate high school (hopefully he does)
2. We both go to college (the same one)
3. I publish my first book in college
4. We graduate with our degrees and begin our careers.
5. Two years into our respective careers, we get engaged.
6. The most beautiful wedding of all time happens (see Wedding Plan for the 147 steps for the big day)
7. Five years into our marriage we have a daughter (named Lucy Jane)
Okay, okay, okay… I’ll stop before we hit a decade of planning. I seriously had it all mapped out! I think he may have suspected it was my mom’s planning and not mine, but even as a sixteen-year-old, I’ve always known what I wanted.
And oddly enough, that was John! A guy who was kicked out of gym class for always singing. A guy who couldn’t hold a job in high school for more than a week. A guy who would probably live in his mom’s basement trying to achieve his dream if her house hadn’t foreclosed.
You see, John never really seemed to get the steps to achieving a dream. A dream isn’t an eyes-closed, hope for the best kind of destination. It takes pinpointed behaviours and short-term goals and a strategic plan to attain!
Oh but enough about all that… let’s get to the love story! I’ve been writing this story ever since I started dating him. I knew I’d marry him pretty early on. He fit the bill.
Hailey’s Diary, 1992
This is the story of John and Hailey (me). We met in middle school and avoided each other until the hormones kicked in. He was handsome, I was pretty. He was in Band and Drama and Art and I tutored English and Math. Turns out, now that we’re dating, I am his tutor too.
I saw him perform in a school play one time and he was really good! He invited me to go to the afterparty with him: something only for the cast. At that time we had only really smiled at each other in passing and said “hey” on occasion. But apparently he saw me in the crowd when he was performing and my beauty distracted him. I’m not sure why that would prompt him to ask me out but I was flattered at the time.
I said no, though. I mean, I did kind of have soft plans already.
“I’m heading to Mac’s Diner afterwards with some friends, sorry,” I had said.
“Hey, no worries!” His cute face shone a dumb grin. But such a handsome, dumb grin!
I guess he blew off the after-party because he showed up to Mac’s! I had been ditched by my friends and sat in the booth alone.
He sat down across from me. I’m sure I looked pale. I had two cheeseburgers in front of me with an extra-large chocolate milkshake. This boy was cute and cute boys didn’t like girls with a plate like that, did they?
“Hey Hailey!” he said. He sounded like a surfer. And his hair was like a surfer’s. (Looking back at it now, he was such a dweeb but my little heart just beat for that dweeb!)
I’m pretty sure I smiled at him but I may have just stared at him, horrified.
“Mind if I join?” he asked. Setting his tray down in front of mine. I remember being so relieved he had ordered the same as me, just with two extra-large fries!
“Fries?” he asked me with a grin.
That night was wonderful. After a few minutes of my being horrified, we started talking. And eating and eating! (Teenage metabolisms are so great.) Turns out, besides the obvious difference in interest and ambition, we actually had a lot in common!
It was pretty soon after that we were walking hand in hand down the halls all giddy like high school couples are at first. (But the cool thing about John and me is that the giddiness never faded.)