It was January 2009. Jess came to Springfield, MA to watch her sister and cousin compete in JROTC Drill Team. It was that day she met Ced. It was his freshman year and he was competing too. They didn’t speak to each other but Jess cheered them all on. Ced smiled when the rest of the team sang “Make a Man Out of You” on the bus ride home. Jess thought he had a really nice smile. Jump to August in Stamford, CT; Jess has joined JROTC. It’s the first Drill Team meeting of the year and Ced was there too. Jess thought he looked very cool standing against the door frame, quiet and observant. The team was joking with him for switching from unarmed to facsimile and he smiled again - Jess really liked his smile. Over the years, they’d see each other at practice, volunteering or in the JROTC room before class. Once they were on the same field trip to Hershey Park for Math Day, where they ended the day at the arcade together playing basketball. She’ll say it was a close match, he’ll say she tried her best. January 28, 2012: It’s Ced’s senior year and this was the last drill competition he’ll ever be in, back in Springfield, MA. Every one of their teams place that day; Ced brought his Color Guard team the gold. Jess was so proud of him. The bus ride home would be the last one they’d ever have together - Ced was going off to college, Jess still had another year here. They shared earphones as they listened to music from Jess’ iPod and she finally asked if he wanted to be with her. He said yes. The years that followed included lots of laughs, lots of late nights studying together, lots of neck rubs after long shifts at the hospital, lots of boxes from moving all the time, lots of tears after heartbreaking loss, lots of video calls from long distance, lots of cuddles with new puppies, and most importantly, lots of love. They were celebrating together on March 19, 2021 when Jess got her dream job. He finally asked if she wanted to be with him, forever. She said yes.