"I was probably between five to 10 seconds away from taking my own life," said Kevin Walsh.
About 10 years ago, Walsh was a 17-year-old high school senior in Chicago. Struggling with "earth-shattering" depression, he resolved to take his life. The utter loneliness he felt led him to write a final note before taking his life.
Seconds away from doing the deed, his flip-phone vibrated with an unknown number.
"I thought, if there's a semblance of eternity, I cannot spend it wondering who was on the other end of that phone call," Kevin told PEOPLE.
"When I picked up and heard the voice, I knew it was her."
A few years earlier, Kevin met Blake at a Michigan Bible camp when she casually approached him saying "black is a good color on you."
Since their first meeting the two maintained an easy friendship, but on the day that Kevin was ready to take his life, it had been about a year since the two last spoke.
"Knowing his personality, he's very analytical, and I knew if he had ended up at that point, he had taken all the steps to get there and he wasn't doing it for attention," Blake said.
"Literally, all she said in that moment was, "˜What? Don't do that,'" Kevin told Yahoo News.
For several years after their second fateful connection, the two maintained their friendship. Despite dating other people, the two continued to talk in the years following that fateful phone call.
When Blake was heartbroken by the breakup of a serious relationship, Kevin was there to support her. Eventually, he confessed his love for her and proposed in April 2016.
The ring was a black diamond, an homage to the comment Blake made on the first day they met.
Ten years after a phone call that would bond the two friends and form the foundation of their affection for one another, the couple tied the knot on Sept. 17, 2016.
It wasn't until after they married that they realized Blake's memory of their fated phone call was slightly different.
She remembers Kevin calling HER. But, he had a new phone and didn't have her number. Since they hadn't spoken in a year, he hadn't given his new number to Blake.
"I think both of our recollections are true," Blake says. "A force must have intervened to connect us and make it happen."
Sometimes in our lives, there are magical moments that cannot be explained. Whoever made the call, it was that unexpected connection and perfect timing that saved Kevin's life and will remain with the couple forever.
"Talk to someone," Blake told People. "Saying things out loud gives it life, it lets you evaluate things in a different way than texting or writing. It applies a different layer of emotion."
"I think there is something to be said for speaking something outloud," Kevin adds. "To talk to somebody, and to give somebody the opportunity to care about you, is something that could save your life."
If you or someone you know require support right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255, or text "START" to 741-741.
[h/t People / Yahoo News]
