Every now and then, you come across a person who is truly special. They might seem completely ordinary at first, somebody you've absently walked past for years at work or school without a moment of recognition or curiosity, but then BAM! One day you find yourself in the same proximity as them, wondering how it is that you've never spoken before, never even briefly encountered.

So how does it start? A conversation, sparked by some small encounter or a mutual friend. You like this new person, that’s how it starts.

For me it was the Christmas Concert at school. It has never served a particular purpose, but I feel like for the first time it was there for a reason.

You’re strolling around backstage, a little giddy and way too nervous for when you’re going onto the stage. You meet this person for the first time as they are casually, and way too contently, waiting for their turn (along with a shiny violin) to go onto stage.

So the person would mark you with an impression, and initially you may find that every now and then you're thinking about them during the day, in between your daily routines, and you find that you can't help but look out for them, just in case they're around. You want to see them again, and you're still considering the little things they did, and said when you had the amazing opportunity to meet them for the first time. They had a lot in common with you (definitely not the height), or so you can recall. And yet, you were so different in terms of character. They had a gentlemanly stance (stood very nicely, for those of you who don’t understand...) and they were most definitely the most polite person you think you have ever encountered. You doubt though, that they will be as perfect as you're imagining if you were to see them again.

Then it all progresses.

The next stage is a little more intense. You see them again (by chance). See, you find yourself fixated by the astounding qualities they possess. Their mesmerising intelligence, the way their words seem to come so easily to them in effortlessly charming and poetic sentences that you find yourself trailing from the end of. And you start to think that maybe it's their subtle smile when you accidentally do something stupid or make a crude joke out of nervousness and end up embarrassing yourself, like you always do. Or potentially even the fact they are always there to listen to you, regardless of how manic or how random you're being. It makes you feel particularly special, acknowledged by somebody who would genuinely try to understand even the most complex problems you have.

Then you realise you've made a friend. Not just a normal friend, but an epic friend.

The last stage, the best stage, is when it occurs to you that despite the many obstacles that seem to be presented (you’re an idiot and your friend has moved to an all boys school), you will always have that person to rely on (even though we don’t see each other very often). Through any circumstance, no matter how bad you feel, how many people are stood directly between you, it doesn't matter. You will always have your friend.

Every now and then, you come across a person who is truly special. I for one know how that feels.