Most of us don't end up with our high school sweethearts. Life is just too long, with too many twists and turns, for most of us to stick with our first love.
But for 18-year-olds Chase Smith and Sadie Mills, time is not a luxury they can enjoy. The newlyweds are deeply in love — but their marriage was a bittersweet event.
Chase, a high school senior, has Ewing's sarcoma, a rare type of cancer.
Back in April, doctors gave him a grim prognosis: the cancer had spread, and he only had three to five months to live.
Chase and his girlfriend of six months, Sadie Mills, decided to tie the knot. They had a beautiful ceremony on the driveway of Mill's parents' house — the same place where they shared their first kiss months earlier.
He's been battling cancer since he was 12 — a full third of his life — but he never let it define him. His girlfriend, now wife, Sadie Mills, said she was excited to get married to her sweetheart.
In a fifteen-minute video posted to YouTube, the joyousness of the day is readily apparent. The sadness underlying the whole event is there, but it's in the background.
Chase confidently walked down the "aisle" (actually just the front yard) with his best man to wait for his bride. Marriage had always been part of their plan, but Chase's prognosis accelerated things.
While he'd mostly kept it together during the run-up to the big moment, he was overcome with emotion at seeing his bride-to-be walking down the aisle towards him.
Chase and Sadie posed for a few pics, then gathered with friends and family for speeches and dancing under a big tent. It was a truly poignant wedding ceremony.
It's a heartbreaking, bittersweet story. But even though Chase's life will be tragically cut short, he'll spend the rest of it with the person he loves.
Let us know your thoughts on this story in the comments section below.
