Although it was eight years ago, I still remember meeting Hannah for the first time. We were Sophomore’s in high school and were taking Spanish for the first time. If you knew our high school, Spanish class was one of those classes where you expected not to learn a thing but were still expected to take quizzes and tests for a grade <insert eye roll>!

Anyway, as soon as I walked into class, I glanced around the room and didn’t automatically spot anyone I was excited to sit next to for the whole semester. Little did I know the teacher was going to make us sit in alphabetical order anyway. Luckily enough, because both of our last names were toward the beginning of the alphabet, Hannah and I ended up sitting right next to each other. Although we’d gone to school with one another for a few years, we hung out with different cliques and had never officially met.

Both of us being the shy, introverted people that we were (and still are), we didn’t really speak for the first week or so, but once we did start talking, we never stopped! One of the first things that brought us together was our love for movies. We loved all kinds, but mostly romantic comedies, of course. Before we knew it, we were planning a movie night so we could hang out outside of Spanish class for once. We decided to meet on a Friday night, because we weren’t the kind of kids that looked forward to the next big weekend party with all of the “cool kids.”

We went to this new Greek place in our small southern town to order take out, an essential for any C&H movie night, and settled in at my Dad’s house for a night of movie watching and girl talk.

Once Hannah had left, I remember this calming feeling come over me. I had finally found a friend that was just like me. I prayed that she felt the same way and that we’d have many more movie nights just like that one.

Spoiler alert: we did. Just about every Friday night for the rest of high school!

Where did the name Cinematic Adventure come from, you ask? One of our movie nights consisted of watching part of Dane Cook’s comedy tour. One of his skits refers to going to the movies as a cinematic adventure, which we loved! Especially since we had created so many traditions that made our movie nights fun and unique. From then on, out Friday night hang outs became coined “Cinematic Adventures.”

Although we don’t get to have them as often now, as our lives are much busier, we still try to plan a night where we leave our laptops closed and settle in on the couch with our favorite takeout food and set out on a new cinematic adventure. Here’s to many, many more, Han!

-Chelsea