Our first date came about with answering a few questions about likes and dislikes. What was settled on was a Thursday, American bar food with access to games, and a common interest in darts. Now this was to be the first time we would meet in person. We greeted each other and exchanged the normal pleasantries. It was shortly after that we turned to darts where conversation continued. The first game I was on fire and did not hold back in beating Brianne. This is where it was obvious that Brianne really was as competitive as she said she was. Thus, after an appropriate amount of trash talking and scornful looks after good throws, a competitive couple started to blossom. The second game was evenly matched and I could see a wry smile after each of her good throws and a scowl on each of my good throws. This second game came down to bulls eyes in which Brianne was the victor. Even though I did not see her celebration dance I could see the delight in her eyes and smile. The third game Brianne really hit her stride and after she clinched her second win in darts I knew she was on cloud nine. I decided to take this opportunity when a normal date should end to ask her if she would like to go listen to music at a near by bar. She agreed to this but you need to know that this was after 8:30 which is typically Brianne's bedtime. We stayed up till after midnight at which we both realized how tired we would be. She requested an uber and as we waited for it to arrive, I made my move. I went in for a good night kiss and she pulled away. She then slipped into her uber and pulled away. I looked after her wondering what I did wrong. On my walk home I got a text. It simply read "I dont know why I pulled away from kissing you." That put the smile back on my face and little did I know where one missed kiss would lead to...

The perfect proposal for us is one of simplicity, tradition, and private. I had a couple ideas of how I was going to do this and like usual, there are always moving parts that keep the situation fluid, yet we think it worked out well. In the early morning on a work day, we were both getting ready and before Brianne knew what she was walking into she came out of the bedroom to see me on one knee in the family room holding a small box open. Of course she was surprised and let out a short scream of happiness. While simultaneously running into the hallway covering her cheeks with both hands just like in the movie Home Alone. That was not what I expected at all. Still kneeling, smiling, and being surprised from her reaction, Brianne then walked back into the family room and ever so slightly reached for the box but then stopped. Brianne said to me "Do you have something to ask me?" At that I recovered and remembered what I had to do. I then asked "Brianne will you (short pause for dramatic effect) marry me?" At that she said YES.