On June 26, 2011, I married my best friend. We were both 18, high school sweethearts. But his high school was in Pennsylvania and mine was in Tennessee. We met online.

Mac, my now-husband, and I first began talking through email after meeting on a chat site in the summer of 2009. We Skyped first because I wanted to make sure he was actually a 16-year-old guy and not a 60-year-old pedophile. And we kept Skypeing after our parents went to bed (we kept our relationship a secret).

In the beginning, the emails were innocent and we talked like best friends. The exchanges were more of discussing how our days went and giving details about our interests. Sometimes weeks went by without talking to each other, but when we did email again, it was like we'd never stopped. We started to get to know each other better during the winter break because school was out and we had more time on our hands, and I gave him my number to text so we could talk more frequently.

After nights of using Skype and texting each other, I started to feel love for this stranger. I was so confused because I wanted to meet him and be with him, but at the same time I knew my family would not be comfortable with the fact that I was talking to a guy I'd never met in person. Plus, I wasn't sure if he felt the same way about me. So one night I sent a brief email to Mac that just said, "I'm sorry if this is weird, but I love you." He emailed me back saying he loved me, too. We knew we had to meet.

After months of coming up with a plan to meet for the first time without our parents knowing, it finally happened. While Mac's parents were on a trip to Chicago, he took a flight from Pittsburgh to Nashville just so I could get back on a plane with him back to Pittsburgh. His parents thought he was coming to Nashville for a Future Business Leaders of America convention. I told my parents I was on a camping trip with a girlfriend and her family. Although I had graduated high school by this time, I was only 17, and I knew my mom and dad would never let me get on a plane to visit a guy I had never met. They had never even let me be in my room with a boy alone. I felt horrible for trying to deceive my parents.

But the week with Mac was the best week of my life. We watched movies, fell asleep next to each other, and talked about everything. The day I flew back to Nashville, I knew I never wanted to be without him.

We spent the summer of 2010 secretly visiting each other, but we quickly got caught by his parents. My now in-laws found out because of the credit card charge for the extra plane ticket that belonged to me. His parents were pissed and of course did not like me.

The stupid teenagers we were, we still hid it from my parents. When his mom would call to speak to my mom, I would pretend to be her. After Mac had an argument with his dad while I was at their house, Mac and I did something crazier — we ran away.

We stayed in a hotel in Kentucky for two days until cops found us and picked us up because of a cell phone ping. We weren't arrested, but we still had to sit in the lobby with a cop who babysat us until our parents came and picked us up.

On the way home, my parents were upset but were also amazingly open. My dad asked me if I loved Mac, and I said yes. Because I was happy, they forgave me and accepted Mac into my life.

It was not easy though. Mac still had one more year of high school left and even though my parents were accepting, his still were not. I'm sure it had something to do with the fact that their only child who never got in trouble in his life fell for a girl online, lied about it, ran away, and now wanted to move to Tennessee. But he still visited me every chance he could. In November of 2010, he proposed to me with a beautiful engagement ring on one of his visits.

The next visit I took to see Mac, we told his parents. They were silent about it on the visit, and for the rest of the months we planned our wedding, they continued to make it clear I was unwelcome in their family.

In May of 2011, one month before our wedding, I found out I was a few weeks pregnant. The pregnancy — and maybe also the realization that we were actually going through with the wedding — changed my relationship with Mac's parents. That month, he moved to Tennessee and turned 18 a few days later.

Now we have been married for four years. Mac and I have had two daughters (one who was, sadly, stillborn) and we graduated college together this past May. Now we are starting our careers. I love his family and he loves mine. Our marriage hasn't been easy, but I never once regretted marrying Mac at such a young age. I can honestly say I am growing up with my best friend.

Courtesy of Hayley Greenhouse

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