The moment I knew: once her migraine had subsided, I told her I loved her

As Sam Heatley rubbed Olwen’s temples on a busy street, he realised looking after her was his sole priority

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In 2016 a breakup sent me spiralling into a period of deep introspection. I was 25 years old and knew it was time to “do the work”, as they say. I knuckled down and spent a long, lonely winter sorting myself out as best I could. By the spring my mood was thawing, and on the dancefloor at a Chicago house night at Melbourne Town Hall I clocked Olwen for the first time.

When we ran into each other and introduced ourselves at an after party, a frisson ran through me. That brief interaction with her left me so discombobulated I had to leave the party early. I was on the mend, but I definitely wasn’t ready for whatever that was.