Finding your soulmate isn’t easy, but when you know, you know. That’s how easy it was for Heidi Parker and Ed Savitt to know they had finally found the one. They just felt it. The two lovebirds thought they thought they knew everything about each other until one day, Parker’s mother found a photograph that made her realize that her college sweetheart is not who she thought he was.
She Wanted to Be a College Girl
Heidi Parker had just finished high school and like any girl her age, she was eager to explore a new and exciting phase in her life. So, she started applying at different colleges and eventually found one. Unfortunately, this meant she had to leave her hometown, her parents, and all of her friends.
But she was ready for a new beginning.
Moving Away Was a Radical Change
Parker’s decision was life-altering, but she was 100% ready… despite a few tears here and there. Unfortunately, she had no way of knowing what life had in store for her when she decided to attend the University of Newcastle in 2011. At that moment, she had no clue that her life was about to change in ways she had never imagined.
Life on Her Own Was a Major Adjustment
Parker was living 130 miles away from the only life she had ever known. And while she missed her family with every inch of her heart, she was actually excited to be on her own for the first time in her life. But then, the realities of being independent started to sink in, and at one point, she came dangerously close to being homeless.
She Wasn’t Happy Sharing an Apartment
Parker had initially decided to share an apartment with a group of friends, but she struggled with her accommodations. After all, merging so many lives together isn’t easy. Things didn’t exactly work out the way she planned, so she figured she needed to find another place to live and she needed to find it fast!
She Decided to Be a Loner
They say you’re better off alone than with bad company and that’s exactly how Parker felt. So, she decided to risk it and started hunting for an apartment near her college campus. But she was so busy worrying about her new digs that she didn’t realize someone was looking for for her.
What could they possibly want?
She Found a Studio Apartment
Parker eventually settled on a lovely studio apartment and started organizing her furniture and adding her own personal touch. But one day, a man reached out to her. It wasn’t someone she knew but he was going to become a central figure in her life.
A Stranger Was Looking For Her
Parker couldn’t have been happier at her new home, and never gave a second thought about her old apartment or about the guy who ended up moving into her old place. But he was having some issues and was certainly thinking about her. Eventually, he turned to the internet to find her.
Why was he so determined to find her?
He Teased Her With A Direct Message
One day, Parker received a message on Facebook from a man named Ed Savitt. He claimed he was living in her former apartment and was in quite a bind. Being the kind-hearted person she was, she wanted to help him out, but there was something about him that made her very suspicious.
Still, he did have something going for him, and she couldn’t ignore that…even if she tried.
He Was Too Cute to Turn Down
Something about him made her spider-senses tingle. She had no way of knowing if the strange man had any ulterior motives. But she had seen his Facebook profile photo and thought he was really attractive, so she agreed to pay him a visit at his place.
Still, Parker couldn’t help but wonder if she’d live to regret being so open-hearted and nice.
She Felt His Pick-Up Line Was Cheesy
Savitt claimed that he had no idea how to work a communal dryer, which she immediately assumed was some weird way to try and pick her up by pretending to ask for help. But every time she looked into his eyes, there was something about him that felt eerily familiar. Did she know him from somewhere?
There Was Something About Him
“He Facebooked me asking how the washing machine worked, and I let him know… basically because he was hot,” Parker said, according to The Sun. Apparently, he found her by sheer luck. “He didn’t know how to use the washing machine in the student flat,” she said.
“And he found a piece of post with my name on, realised I had lived there the year before and decided I could help.” Some people may have second guessed his intentions, but Parker was intrigued so she went with her gut.
She Helped Him Work the Dryer
In spite of her doubts, Parker showed Savitt how to use the dryer. She even stuck around until the cycle ended. But she got very concerned when she began to leave and he tried to stop her.
She knew he was interested in her, but perhaps, she should’ve been more careful when meeting up with a complete stranger. Just as she was about to leave, he asked her something that eased some of her doubts.
He Asked Her Out
Savitt asked her out on a coffee date and there was only one response Parker felt safe giving him—yes. She figured that even if he turned out to be a total bore, she’d at least get to wear a nice outfit and go on a date. But she didn’t know that her decision would be life altering.
The Date Went More Than Great
According to The Sun, Parker and Savitt had their first date at a Pizza Express in Newcastle, and as you can imagine, sparks flew almost instantly. “I thought he was gorgeous, I thought he was actually amazing. All I can remember thinking is, ‘Wow, he is hot.'” But was Parker getting ahead of herself? After all, she barely knew the guy.
What if he was hiding a major secret from her?
She Got to Know Him Better
During their date, Parker learned that Savitt was also going to the University of Newcastle to study psychology and business. But he had other ambitions too like opening up his own store one day. He seemed to have a good head on his shoulders and looks to match, so she let her guard down.
Clearly, there was something special about this man. She just couldn’t put her finger on it.
They Didn’t Do Anything Apart
Parker and Savitt started dating and soon enough they were going to college costume parties together, hung out with their friends, and attending sports games. The couple seemed to be joined by the hip, and they truly enjoyed sharing their inner most intimate secrets as well as their fears and past failures. But there was still one big secret looming over the couple’s heads that hadn’t been revealed yet.
They Followed Their Dreams in London
Once they graduated college, the lovely couple moved to London to pursue their dreams. Parker landed a PR job while Savitt opened up the coffee shop he always talked about owning. But they didn’t move in together, at least not right away.
They wanted to wait for a bit until they felt the time was right.
They Decided to Move in Together
Although it took them a while, the lovebirds eventually decided to move in together and were pretty confident that this was the start of something big. But there was something about their first encounter that they didn’t remember, and it had nothing to do with how they initially thought they met. Apparently, these two weren’t strangers after all.
They Arranged for Their Moms to Meet
They got along so great together that they figured that it was time for their families met. So, they picked their mothers’ favorite restaurant and made a reservation. And when Kay Parker and Fiona Savitt met, it was like they’d been friends their whole lives.
But their interaction was cut short by a an unbelievable discovery that would change everyone’s lives.
The Coupled Announced Their Engagement
Halfway through their mothers trading stories, Parker and Savitt announced that they were engaged. The women were very happy for their children, but as they continued exchanging details about their lives, the moms realized that they had something in common. It was the mother of all coincidences, and yet, it was just as real as the love between Parker and Savitt.
The Two Families Had a Similar Trip History
While taking a trip down memory lane, Parker and Savitt’s mothers realized that the two of them had gone on a vacation to Turkey and sailed boats. Only they didn’t realize they had gone at the very same time. But after their dinner, the feeling Parker’s mother got when she first met her daughter’s fiance resurfaced.
Something about him seemed oddly familiar, and finally, she started connecting the dots.
She Stumbled on a Deep Dark Secret
A few weeks later, Parker’s mother was in her basement looking through a box of old photographs from the Turkish sailing trip her family had taken and it revealed something about her future son-in-law that left her utterly speechless. They say reality is stranger than fiction, and boy, was that the case for these two lovebirds!
Parker’s Mother Learned the Truth About Savitt
Parker’s mother found a photo of her daughter with a boy she had met in 1997 during the family’s trip to Turkey. There was something about the boy she couldn’t put her finger on and then it dawned on her. “When my mum found the first photo of us she sent it to me and I was stunned.
I actually had to lie down!” Parker told The Independent.
The Mystery Boy Wasn’t a Mystery Any Longer
Parker’s mother shared the photo of the mystery blonde boy her daughter was in love with during their trip to Turkey in the summer of 1997. Moments later, Savitt screamed when she realized the little boy in the photos was her own son. So, she looked at their her family albums and found other photos of her son with his first girlfriend.
But how would the couple react to the news?
Parker Had No Memory of Meeting Savitt
Parker’s mother texted the photo to her daughter and then called her. When Parker saw the photo, she couldn’t believe it either. She had no memory of her two-week vacation to the Turkish city of Gumbet or the boy she met there.
But when she told Savitt, there was only one logical course of action.
They Were in Love
“She sent me a picture in the post of him and it was my Ed” she said. As you can imagine, she couldn’t believe it, and neither did both of their families. “I was astonished when I saw the picture.
I just yelled, ‘Mum – you know who that is!” Of course, everyone was flabbergasted at the bizarre turn of event. How could two people fall in love in a random location and find their way to one another years down the line? This couldn’t be just a random coincidence, right?
They Officially Sealed the Deal
In 2017, Parker and Savitt decided to tie the knot, which wasn’t surprising after learning they had met 18 years earlier, and had felt so strongly about each other since day one. It seemed like they were destined to end up together. So, when they sent out their wedding invitations, they added the photos of their original childhood encounter instead of a modern photo.
Their Wedding Was Like a Fairy Tale
The couple would have gotten married either way, but their mothers’ discovery made the walk down the aisle a million times more romantic. And the only thing that made their wedding more special was getting hitched in a 12th-century manor house called Haddon Hall, which had as much history as they did.
Their Parents Revisited the Past Together
“People keep telling us that it must be fate and that it’s like the plot of a movie!” said Parker. But the couple weren’t the only ones who were united by love. While they’ve gone off to enjoy their lives together, their in-laws have spent a lot of quality time with one another and have even gone on vacations to Turkey again.
“It was not just Heidi and Ed who met on that holiday, but all of us.”
They Always Knew They Were Meant For Each Other
Parker and Savitt didn’t remember the first time they met, but they knew on some level that they were going to end up with each other the moment they started dating. And their mother’s discovery of the photos only served as evidence that these two soulmates had finally been reunited. Parker said, “We had been together for four years when we found out so it’s mad to think we might never have known,” to which Savvit added, “I’m not one to believe in miracles, but the story changed my life.”