Her Version

     I met Francis on Monday, June 24, 2013--which might be the only thing we can agree on about this story haha! We may have crossed paths in prior years, but never actually met, to my recollection. I had just joined ConocoPhillips as a full-time hire, and Francis had signed up to be my buddy.

     The morning had been long--orientation, meeting a whole bunch of people, etc. I finally had a chance to relax in my office, and then a young man strolls by my office, only to double back a few seconds later. He asked if I was Delisa. I thought, "Isn't that what the sign outside of my door says?" but I simply said, "Yes." It was then that I realized that this guy was my buddy--who had emailed me weeks ago and I didn't respond to until the night before!

     I thought to myself, "Male buddy. This can't be good." I tried to distance myself from Francis, but we naturally gravitated towards each other. We had a lot in common, had similar interests, shared mutual friends, and often found ourselves in the same place. Our platonic relationship was strengthened by our professional relationship; he was my Reservoir Engineer and I was his Production Engineer.

     I didn't realize that Francis liked me (lol) until months later. I was leaving from the office for vacation in India and then for Christmas in Nigeria; he offered to walk me to my car because it was my last day in the office that year. He then alluded to his feelings ... and was kindly shut down (lmao). He texted me the whole time I was in India and we had plans to connect in Naija during Christmas--which as fate had it, never happened.

     After the Christmas holiday, all had returned to work from their vacations. A coworker was getting married, but I was not planning on going. Francis put me on the spot and asked me IN FRONT of him and another friend if I'd be his date. I reluctantly accepted lol. The wedding was cool, but I was sure to leave early to avoid an awkward moment with Francis. 

     After months of running from Francis, we finally had a chance to some time spend one-on-one. I was supposed to be going to South by Southwest in Austin with some friends, but my ride cancelled and Francis offered to drive because he was meeting his friends there too. On the way, we missed our route (which I still think Francis did on purpose haha), so we had a lot of time to talk. Coming home was dreadful and quite awkward--I was on edge because I could no longer avoid the relationship conversation. I tried to go to sleep, but Francis kept talking to me. I knew he was a great guy, but didn't want to date anyone I worked with. We ultimately decided to give it a try...

     We began to actually date and really enjoyed each other's company. He was kind, caring, compassionate, and loving...plus he had a great work ethic, but still knew how to have fun. We were a perfect match!