On the calendar, there is Valentine’s Day, reserved to give free rein to romance. However, there are people who do not need a specific date to show their love. Nor do they do it with grand gestures, but with simple details that confirm how much they love their partner.
Being in love is one of the most beautiful things in life, and at Bright Side, we want to pay tribute to love by telling you several short stories of romantics who showed us how it’s done with simple, but important actions.
- Back before we were married, my wife (then-girlfriend) lived 45 minutes away. one time, I had a cold, so we called off our date early, and she left and went home. She asked if I had any stuff for it, and I didn’t as I was getting settled as an independent adult for the first time. This woman drove all the way back, after having already made the round trip once, to get me Nyquil, Gatorade, and chicken soup, without me asking. She just showed back up with supplies. 10/10 wonderful woman © cat_daddylambo / Reddit
- My then-boyfriend drove 45 minutes to my house, late at night, to basically push my head into the floor because I had a migraine and the external pressure of him leaning on my head was a massive relief. Nothing else was working. He sat like that, on the floor with me, for a couple of hours and then drove back home in the middle of the night. It was a weird request, and he didn’t even blink, he just helped.
© Zerly / Reddit - When I was 15, my mom and I were losing our house. We sold a lot of our furniture, so it was pretty empty and close to Christmas. My mom decided to not put up a tree because, well, honestly, we couldn’t afford it. I remember during this time I was seeing a neurologist for random seizures I was having, and my mom and I had just gotten back from the appointment. There were Christmas lights on the roof turned on that weren’t there before. I was freaking out, but my mom was like, go on! I go in and there’s a Christmas tree with lights and 2 presents. And a note on the ceiling fan. My ex (then-boyfriend) installed the lights and tree while my mom and I were away at the appointment. He wrote — it’s not Christmas without a tree, so ta — da!! My heart swelled. © gigglybubbles / Reddit
- In my first year of medical school, I was struggling to take care of myself, pay for my dog’s surgery, and afford healthy food that I needed time to prepare, on top of my bills. One day, after my partner left after a visit, I noticed a bunch of healthy snacks in my pantry. The next time there were more snacks and some Mio packs. After the third time, I called him crying because he had filled an entire drawer with my favorite protein bars. Even now, when he comes over to stay for a day or 2, he’ll buy and prepare chicken and veggies and quinoa the way I like it while I’m away at school. I usually don’t see it until he’s gone. He’s helped me so much with getting through this. © TheineandTheobromine / Reddit
- For my 24th birthday, she got me a small Play-Doh tub, and where it says “ages 2+” she added a line to the + to make it a 4. That’s it. That’s all she gave me for my birthday, and I had never expressed any interest in Play-Doh. I LOVED IT! I’ve never been big on material goods, but I love jokes, especially dumb ones. In giving me nothing but a single dumb joke for my birthday, she showed me that she knew me and my quirks and accepted me as I am and was willing to ignore tradition and social pressures in favor of what actually makes me happy. I know it seems small, but it meant a lot to me.© Brainsonastick / Reddit
- My husband not once, but twice, got in touch with my boss and arranged time off for me, then surprised me with tickets for a trip accompanied by an email from my boss that said, basically, “Handled, have fun!” Husband also arranged child and dog care. All I had to do was pack a bag and enjoy. As someone who does all the arrangements, all the time for all things, this was mad crazy romance points. © Flahdagal / Reddit
- Pretty low-key, but I feel it’s romantic enough. On one of the first dates with an ex, we were talking about our physical preferences, short hair or long hair, redhead or blonde, yada yada, that kind of stuff. I didn’t know what to say, so I just said I like girls that wear glasses. The moment I said that she grabbed her purse, took out her glasses, and put them on, up to that moment I had no idea she needed glasses since she never wore them on our dates. From then on, she always wore them around me. © Lossu / Reddit
- Shortly after we started dating, I got a surprise opportunity for an internship in another city that was a 5-hour drive away. I felt a little bad for springing this on him so suddenly, so soon into our relationship. We were really looking forward to getting to know each other more that summer, and it’d be understandable if he would rather not commit to a long-distance relationship so soon. But when I told him, every ounce of his response conveyed how supportive and excited he was for me. He immediately looked up ways to visit me (neither of us had a car) and ended up buying a train pass. He would ride his bike for 45 min every Saturday morning at 6 am to catch the train to see me for the weekend. It was up a big hill (I’ve done that ride a few times, and it’s not easy) and he did that every weekend from Sept when it was pretty warm until my internship ended in December when it was snowing all the time. To split travel time, we also met up a few times in the big city in between, so he met my parents since they live there (they love him), and we explored all over the city and built so many great memories. I married him last year, and it’s been pretty awesome. © coffeeteamix / Reddit
- When my husband and I got together, he did plenty of romantic things. About 3 months into our relationship, I noticed he was buying me flowers. A LOT. And specifically, sunflowers, which were my favorite flowers. At my job at the time, I had Tuesdays off every week. Every Tuesday, he would bring me a different bouquet of flowers. Mainly sunflowers, but he would switch it up.
He explained to me that he noticed a necklace hanging in my car that my father bought me when I was 18. It was a sunflower lock necklace that opened on the inside and said “You are my sunshine.” I remember him asking me about the necklace, and I explained to him that my father gifted it to me and I hadn’t removed it since. I didn’t think anything of it, but that’s how he figured out that sunflowers were my favorite.
Why did he buy them for me only on my off days? He said he noticed with the first bouquet he bought me, that I spent a lot of time trimming the leaves and stems and arranging them in a vase, basically putting a lot of care & time into them, and he wanted me to have time to set up my flowers without rushing, so he felt off days were the best time to do so. I cried for 2 days. When I get angry at him, I think about that exact conversation with him and remember how genuine and kind he is and how thankful I am to have somebody like that in my life. © Unknown user / Reddit
- My family wasn’t very financially stable when I was a teenager. My boyfriend at the time would sneak some of the food from his family’s home and bring it to me. What made it more romantic was the fact that his parents were extremely strict. But he still risked it to feed me. Never been so grateful. © Just_Red_00 / Reddit
- I had a really terrible prom back in high school. No date, my “friends” ditched me, cried the whole way home, etc. My boyfriend learned about this after we got together a couple of years later and threw me a prom re-do at his apartment. He decorated, moved all his furniture out of the living room to make a dance floor, bought my favorite food for dinner, came to my door with a corsage, everything. We’ve been married for 14 years now. © Suspicious-Elk-3631 / Reddit
- My wife knows that I have a certain level of discomfort with physical affection based on my childhood. And it’s not just that she knows of this discomfort, it’s that she’s taken the time to realize that I actually like physical affection when I get past the initial few seconds. So this woman will consistently, and with great patience, come and give me a hug, and she’ll just keep hugging me until I ease up and hug her back. Or she’ll rest her hand on my leg, slowly rest her hand in mine, etc. all of these little things she does that represent a culmination of trial and error effort she’s put into understanding and overcoming my “things.” I am a better man because of my wife. © ksozay / Reddit
- I’d had such a horrible day that I broke down crying when talking about it with my new girlfriend. She held me against her chest and started crying with me. It was then that we declared our love. It might seem kind of weird, but was perfect for me. We’re now married. © jeff_the_nurse / Reddit
What irresistibly romantic gestures has someone ever done for you? What was that one time when you did something unforgettable for someone else?
Please note: This article was updated in August 2022 to correct source material and factual inaccuracies.