Life in PA school was a blur of lectures, studying, exams, and then doing it all over again. In a lecture hall 80 classmates with our “unassigned assigned seats,” Reid sat right in front of me. At first, he was just the well-dressed, wickedly smart guy with a quirky love for EMS – a good friend to banter with and someone who’d always make sure a piece of gum was waiting for me at my spot before the start of afternoon lecture. As clinical year began, things started to shift. During my toughest rotation in surgery, Reid became my steady support. I’m still not sure why I chose to confide in him, but something in me was simply drawn to him. From there, our relationship deepened. Neither of us will ever forget “the beach day”. What was meant to be a group hangout turned into just the two of us, sitting on the shoreline and sharing about our families, passions, and dreams. Reid shared with me his three greatest goals: to become a PA, a husband, and a father—and then quickly admitted he hoped I’d be part of that journey (bold, right?). I told him I wasn’t ready to date, but he promised he’d wait. Four (very long) days later, I said yes to our first date. Those first few months consisted of tons of beach sunsets, neighborhood walks, cooking new recipes, Netflix comedy specials, and Slurpee runs. My love for Reid grew slowly, and then all at once. I’d ask Reid “are you real?” quite frequently as I tried to wrap my brain around how this selfless, humble, driven, respectful, tenderhearted man was all mine. The small details of who I knew Reid to be through our friendly classmate banter have come to life through our relationship. The nieces and nephews I used to hear about, whose faces I knew from his laptop background, are now kids I adore who provide me with my weekly dose of giggles and chaos. The combat ring he wore in class and the VMI stories behind it, now come to life after visiting together the place that has shaped him deeply. Recipes we used to trade are now meals we cook side by side. Our separate holiday adventures we would once recap are now celebrations we share together. Hand in hand, we graduated, started our careers, and moved into our first apartment steps away from our first date beach spot. A promise ring he gave me 5 months into dating was upgraded into an engagement ring during a proposal taking place at our favorite sunset watching spot in the OBX on one of the windiest days of March. My favorite adventure is yet to come – I cannot wait to become his wife and spend the rest of my days with my best friend as my husband.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had 3 big goals in life: find a career in medicine, find the woman of my dreams, and someday raise a family with my best friend. I never expected that two of those dreams would come true during my 28 whirlwind months of PA school. You could say Amanda changed everything. I started EVMS with one mission: gain knowledge and experience before entering the medical workforce. Coming from a male-heavy military college, I knew PA school would be different with its 9:1 female-to-male ratio. Still, I wasn’t expecting to meet Amanda. I first met her at a class get-together at The Veil: a blue-eyed girl from VB just 4 days older than me. I may not have known it at the time, but I was drawn to her aura. I knew early on that she was someone I wanted to get to know better. Adjusting to school, I’d notice Amanda wherever I went on campus. Like so many, I was drawn to her genuine heart and spirit. I sought to develop a friendship first and luckily, she sat directly behind me in class. I used every break as an excuse to turn around and talk. Our conversations ranged from weekly meal prep to stories about my nieces and nephews and the kids she babysat. I quickly realized that not only had I developed a huge crush, but found someone that shared my same values, morals, and beliefs. I could see her as my best friend, my confidant, and maybe even the mother of my children. What do you do when you really want to ask someone out, but you know the timing isn’t right? The answer… gum. A piece of gum on her desk before class begins and smile can go a long way in my humble opinion. When didactic ended, I still hadn’t asked her out. Friends nudged me constantly, but I trusted my timing would be right. Then Amanda started texting me daily during her first rotation, confiding her frustrations and trusting me to listen. I was so happy to be able to be there for her when she needed it most. These conversations led to invites to tag along to beach days nearly every weekend. I would load up and speed to the beach just so I could plop my chair next to hers. I was infatuated with her blue eyes and smile that was always on display at her favorite place. Fast forward to July 1st and we again found ourselves at the beach, but this time just the two of us. I wish I could tell you exactly what was said, but before I knew it I had confessed how much I liked her and that I wanted something more than just a friendship. I could see on her face that she liked me too, and my confidence shot through the roof. She needed time to think, and I promised I’d wait. It only took four days. Thanks, Lexi! Amanda called with the best words ever, “I think we should give this a shot, let’s go on a date!” Our first was to Cova where deep conversations left me realizing that our connection was very real. A moonlit beach walk sealed the deal for me. I fell for Amanda hard and fast. It took a few more dates for her to get over some scaries, but I never doubted that she was my soulmate. Before I knew it, she was meeting my entire family who also fell as hard as I did. That Christmas, I knew that I would spend the rest of my life with her and I wanted to make a promise. That promise came in the form of a ring – promising that I would always choose her and that she had 2 more rings coming…shortly. PA school was over, and we started our careers. Each day our love for one another grew with more beach trips, recipe testing, disc golf games, and making memories with my nieces and nephews. Not long after, Amanda became my fiancée on quite possibly the windiest day that Jockey’s Ridge has ever seen, when I kept my promise with ring #2. Now, as I look forward to ring #3 and seeing my blue-eyed girl walk down the aisle, I think back to something I wrote Amanda early on: “Life is about choices. You are my easiest choice. I will choose you first thing in the morning and every night when I lay down my head.” That’s still true — and always will be.