California, here we come—right back where Adam Brody and Leighton Meester's relationship started from.
While the couple tend to keep details of their marriage private, The O.C. actor recently recounted the story of how he met the Gossip Girl actress.
As Brody explained to Penn Badgley, Meester's former co-star on The CW drama, on the April 12 episode of Stitcher Studios' Podcrushed, he first encountered her at Canter's Deli in Los Angeles, where she was dining with Gossip Girl creator Josh Schwartz—who also created The O.C.—and her castmates.
"That's when I saw her," the Shazam! star recalled, "and yeah I was smitten instantly."
However, Brody and Meester's romance didn't blossom.
"I was, you know, smitten for a long time," the Jennifer's Body alum, who co-starred with Meester in the 2011 movie The Oranges, continued. "I didn't get to know her for many years after, even though we even worked together briefly. She's so lovely, and she's so sweet. She's so nice. She's so good. And yet—and this is to her credit—she remained elusive to me for so long and aloof."
Still, Brody, 43, said Meester, 37, has since told him the crush was mutual.
"I couldn't get a total read because, even though she professes to have been interested in me and all those things, not only did she not pursue that—I mean, she was perfectly willing to let that never happen," he shared. "Yeah, she was perfectly willing to let that message in the bottle return to sea at several points."
The reason Meester didn't make a move? "She says, 'Oh, it's because I knew if we did, it would be a thing,'" Brody said. "'You know, it's too powerful.'"
However, Badgley wasn't convinced, telling him with a laugh, "That's a line." And Brody agreed, adding, "That's what I said."
Fast-forward to today and Brody and Meester have been married for almost a decade and share two children: daughter Arlo, 7, and a 2-year-old son.
To look back at their love story, keep scrolling.