It happened on a random evening, more out of boredom than hope. I opened the app, scrolled, and there he was. Clean smile. Confident, but not trying too hard. His bio was short — something about loving what he does and keeping things simple. I swiped right! It wasn’t until the next day during my lunch, MATCH. I blinked. Wait… One mile? At lunch? We started chatting. Light, easy conversation. Then came the usual question: “So where do you work?” He said, “IS2.” I stared at my phone. No way. I wrote back: “Wait… I work at IS2.” We laughed, both surprised. How had we never seen each other? Somehow we’d worked in the same building without ever crossing paths. The next day, I was rushing between classes, flying up the staircase, when I looked up — and there he was. Coming down the steps. We locked eyes for a split second. That click of recognition. I smiled, gave a quick wave, and kept running, heart pounding. He smiled back — kind of surprised, kind of amused. One swipe. One school. We’d been in the same place all along — we just needed the right moment to connect. Now we laugh about how long it took for us to finally meet — working in the same place, walking the same halls, just a couple of doors down.

The scaries of summer ending and going back to work were creeping in during the last week of August. The summer blues had hit hard, and I was bracing for the routine to start again. Never did I imagine that week would change my life. Friday, August 29, 2025, was a beautiful day. The sun was out, and the air felt crisp, hinting at fall. That morning, everything went wrong—I was running late, and for once, Michael was actually on time. We were meeting his mom and great aunt for lunch at The Stone House in Clove Lakes—or so I thought. Michael asked me to hold his wallet and keys because he “had a hole in his pocket.” That hole turned out to be a ring box. As we walked, I asked where his family was. He just shrugged, “I don’t know.” Something felt off. We passed a woman quietly reading a book, unaware she was capturing every moment. Michael suddenly veered toward the closed bar and took my hand. We reached the gazebo, beautifully decorated with flowers and our pictures. My heart raced. I threw my bag on the bench, overwhelmed. Then I saw him—down on one knee. I couldn’t hold back my tears—I kissed him and said, “YES!” Everything I had ever dreamed of, he made happen—and more. That day started like any other. I thought I was just going to lunch. But instead, I got a moment that changed my life forever.