Traveling for work on the Metro North train from NYC to Westchester, Nikki decided to grab a coffee to go with her bagel. In less romantic terms, she downloaded the popular dating app her friends had been raving about: Coffee Meets Bagel. By the time Nikki arrived in Westchester, she altogether forgot about the coffee and dove into client meetings in White Plains. Several weeks later, while sitting in her Manhattan studio on a Friday night, Nikki opened the app to find a message dated weeks earlier. It caught her attention. After Nikki replied (diving straight into her line up of questions, including “What makes you unique?” and “How do you feel about intersectional feminism?” You know, all the questions Ben, a gym rat, loves to explore), Ben explained that he was at his parent’s home and had gotten out of shoulder surgery hours prior that day. In true Nikki fashion, she requested a photo with his shoulder and a phone call later that night to verify his true identity. Nikki and Ben went on to spend two weeks straight talking on the phone as he recovered from his shoulder surgery. The ice machine for his shoulder, always sounding in the background, became a melodic humming, almost like a private pianist playing the same 3 notes on repeat, for their discussions. And of course, Ben requesting tuna sandwiches from his dad and answering his mom’s questions set the most romantic setting. Since that first conversation, Ben and Nikki haven’t missed a beat, talking daily.

A few weeks later — after many of Nikki’s loved ones warned her she was possibly being catfished and to temper her excitement— Ben took a train to Grand Central, arm in sling and all! He took off the sling and let his arm hang limp, and gave her a hug with his other arm. The rest lives in a story that traverses trains to and from the city; in fact, Nikki captured much of their love story through her poetry. Ultimately, Ben & Nikki — two people afraid to let love in and afraid to lose love surrendered to the truth: chasing love is wild and freeing; it’s an intimate growth opportunity.