09.26.26

“Falling in love in a hopeless place,” Carleigh and Kory were set up as dates for Sigma Chi’s semi-formal. Both went into the night with zero expectations, not even sure they’d have fun with their date, let alone meet the love of their life. After meeting for the first time in the hallway between the chapter room and the party room of the mansion (how romantic), Carleigh and Kory both swear they knew in that moment that something real was unfolding. But all good things must come to an end. Going home for winter break the next day, they wouldn’t see each other for three weeks. When they returned to campus, their friends quickly noticed their painfully obvious attempts to cross paths with one another. On February 8th, 2023, they had their first date. Shaking from nerves and hoping they said all the right things, they enjoyed a bottle of 19 Crimes wine while baking carrot cake and talking until two in the morning. As fate would have it, the moment Kory grabbed the handle to leave, a loud boom of thunder rang out and a monsoon rolled in. They looked at each other, laughed, and curled up on the couch for the rest of the night watching Crazy, Stupid, Love. From that point forward, they have been completely inseparable.