BECAUSE OF YOU

Angela Wakefield, 39, from Malvern, was completely taken aback by her boyfriend's very generous offer...

- ELLIE FAWCETT AND HANNAH CROCKER

Wincing as I pushed with all my might, the leg press came back down W with a clunk.

Taking a rest in between sets at the gym, my legs felt shaky.

But then someone appeared in front of me.

'Angie?' the man said. "Wow, how are you?'

'Steve?' I said in shock.

Steve and I had gone to school together, but I hadn't seen him since we were 16-20 years later, he was nothing like I remembered.

We got chatting, and there was a spark between us-but saying our goodbyes, I carried on with my workout.

Back at home though, I was swiping through Tinder and I came across Steve!

I swiped right, not thinking much of it and then later, got a message from him.

It was fate.

We started chatting, and soon exchanged numbers round for a drink.

We chatted nonstop and just clicked. But there was something I had to tell Steve.

'I've got lupus,' I confessed to him.

What's that?' he asked me.

I'd been diagnosed with the autoimmune condition when I was 19. My symptoms had been terrifying-I struggled to breathe, I had blood in my urine, mouth, nose and ears, and patches of my hair and my toenails began to fall off.

By the time I got the diagnosis, doctors were concerned that my kidneys were failing, too.

It was a horrific experience and difficult to process.

I had chemo for six months to treat my kidneys which was luckily successful, and restored my kidney function back to 50%-and I was also prescribed tablets that I'd have to take for the rest of my life.

But since then, my health had been stable.

In 2009 I gave birth to my beautiful son, Micah, and I had a successful career in finance.

I was doing well, and things like going to the gym regularly helped to keep me healthy and strong, too-meeting Steve again there was just the cherry on the cake.

Thankfully, my diagnosis didn't fare him.