10 Years Ago, She Talked Him Out Of Suicide. Now, They're Married

10 Years Ago, She Talked Him Out Of Suicide. Now, They're Married

via

Seconds before Kevin Walsh was about to attempt suicide in 2007, he received an unexpected phone call from his first crush Blake Moore. That phone call saved his life. Now, a decade later, the two are married.

It all started when they met at a bible camp in Michigan at the age of 13, after Blake walked right up to Kevin and paid him a compliment he still remembers.

"The prettiest girl I'd ever seen walked right up to me and said, 'Black is a good color on you.' No idea why. We chatted and became friends, exchanged AIM screen names (it was the time) and stayed in touch for a while," Kevin wrote on a now-viral Quora thread about real-life moments that seem like something out of a movie.

Over the years, their communication became less and less frequent, but Kevin never stopped thinking about Blake. During his senior year of high school, he began experiencing depression and suicidal thoughts, and was planning to take his own life after graduation. He says he probably would have done so had it not been for the serendipitous phone call from Blake.

"Somewhere between 5 and 10 seconds before I would have committed suicide, my phone rang. I checked the caller ID ― I couldn't die not knowing," Kevin wrote on Quora. "It was a number I didn't recognize, so I picked up and it was her."

He continued: "I asked her what was up and she said she just felt like she had to call me. At that point it had been a year since we had spoken, and at that moment she just had to call. Long story short, she pried, I spilled the beans and she talked me out of it. I mean she literally said 'What? Don't do that.' And that was that."

Blake, however, remembers the story differently. She believes it was actually Kevin who called her, though he says that wouldn't have been possible because he had gotten a new phone and didn't have her number.

"Honestly, I think both our phones rang and we both picked up. I can't explain it. We didn't even know until after we got married that we remembered it differently," Kevin told HuffPost. "It definitely adds another layer of goosebumps to the whole thing."

Kevin remembers feeling confused when he heard from Blake in that crucial moment.

"At first it was just confusing. We hadn't talked in over a year, why was she calling now? Then I was glad she'd be the last person I talked to," he told HuffPost. "And then, well, it meant everything. Her words just woke me up."

The couple rekindled their friendship in the years that followed. After Blake ended a long-term relationship, Kevin eventually revealed he had feelings for her. He proposed during a trip to Switzerland in April 2016.

On September 17, 2016, the couple tied the knot in Marshall, Michigan.

"Blake surprised me by recording a song for our first dance, and I surprised her by writing a song and sneaking her off toward the end of the reception to play it for her on the guitar," Kevin told HuffPost.

And while this story has a happy ending, many others do not. Kevin hopes his story gets people talking about suicide, both those who are thinking of taking their own lives and the friends and family around them.

"Where I was incredibly lucky for Blake to have called me, many people aren't. So to anyone having thoughts of suicide, PLEASE talk to someone. Anyone," he said. "Give someone the chance to care about you. And if you're not in that place, please consider taking the time to learn the warning signs and to become prepared if you're ever on Blake's side of that phone call."

If you or someone you know needs help, call 1-800-273-8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. You can also text HELLO to 741-741 for free, 24-hour support from the Crisis Text Line. Outside of the U.S., please visit the International Association for Suicide Prevention for a database of resources.

Login to comment

tzwsvsowdbmspipereceivemessagechr98chr98chr9812

e,

Follow us on