The way we met

Esther: “I had just arrived from Brisbane, and was coming to the Eastwood Hotel quite often with my friends to chill out after work. It was one cold chilly night in October and I was wanting the outdoor heater turned on. But it was broken and kept switching off. So we had to get the manager to come fix it. Greg (the manager) came to help and the first thing I noticed wa…s he wore this flamboyant pink shirt! We had to call him back like a thousand times because the heater kept switching off and I felt so bad. But he was so nice and happy, and not once did he frown. We introduced ourselves. I thought to myself he’s kind of cute, and he’s the hotel manager so we might be able to get free drinks (chuckle).”

Greg: “I noticed the way she looked at me, but I wasn’t sure if she was with someone already. I thought she was a beautiful human being. We met again about two weeks later when she came to the bar. I knew exactly who she was but I didn’t remember her name. I was hoping she wouldn’t bring that up but her first question was “What’s my name?”

Esther: “I went back to my friends offended cos he didn’t remember, but he chased after me. We chatted a while and he had to go back to work. He asked me to give him my number before I leave that night. I said okay. Later that night, when we were leaving, my friend asked me whether I was going to give him my number. I said if he really wants it, he’ll come and get it. So we left.”

Greg: “It was a busy shift that night, and the next time I glanced outside she had disappeared! The bartender told me they had left. I said “What?! Which exit?” I ran straight out, not really knowing where I was going.  As soon as I stepped outside, a car beeped and I saw Esther at the wheel. I thought she had come back for me, but it turned out her friend had left her scaft behind. As soon as the car stopped, I poked my head through the window.”

Esther: “Actually half his body was leaning over my friend who was sitting on the passenger’s side. He said “So are you …gonna give me your number or what?”

Greg: “I wasn’t going to end the night without getting her number. So it all started from there and from that point we spent nearly all our time together, texted each other non stop. We moved in together after 2 months. It was very fast paced, particularly as we were coming from completely different cultures different industries and lifestyles. But I felt it was just meant to be. Everything just fell into place at every single stage. It’s hard to believe but it felt we were meant to cross paths, we were meant to be together. The stars aligned and we just had to work at keeping it that way.”