who said "i love you" first?

[Calypso 464]

I have been waiting for him to say those words and he finally did a few days before my 22nd birthday.

FAE

[SunShineFL 0]

He said it first!

[GabiandVi 34]

In that moment, he either loves you back or he doesn't -- you only hear the black or white of a 'yes' or 'no,' not the gray of "Well, I like you a whole lot and I could see myself falling in love with you, but I'm just not quite there yet."

I always feel sick when I remember saying almost those exact words to a man who ended up becoming my first great love. It took me years to recover after we ended our engagement.

With my husband, I thought he was telling me over the phone that he loved me, but I realized later that it was my poor translation. "Je t'aime beaucoup," actually means I like you a lot, not I love you a lot. I should have known better as I was teaching French at the time. Anyway, I was so shocked by the statement coming relatively early in our relationship, and over the phone, that I don't think I responded at that time. Now I'm not sure who said it first. But I agree with the writer.