meet us in the mountains...

It all began because Grace walked into her high school youth group and began to notice a guy she found super cool. This was in 2021, and she never thought that anything would ever come of it. However, the crush on this cute guy named Charlie didn't seem to go away. Grace ended up mentioning her crush to her friends Becca and Leah, with them SWEARING they would never say anything. Some time passed and prom rolled around. Charlie was in need of a prom date. His plans had fallen through and he was at the point of getting girls that he was friends with to be his fake girlfriend. However, Laurie, Charlie's mom, really wanted Charlie to be able to go with a good girl. In a random conversation, Becca ended up mentioning how Laurie really needed to get to know Grace, and that she was amazing. Laurie found Grace one day after church and talked with her for a little while. After this, Laurie knew that Charlie had to take Grace to prom. She mentioned it to Charlie, and he was reluctant at first, because he didn't know Grace. However, one day during 9-square (a classic youth group game) he turned to Grace and asked if she was going to the bonfire. After Grace said no, being confused as to what bonfire Charlie was talking about, the night went on like normal. Then, that night Charlie got Grace's phone number from Becca and began to text with Grace. From there, there was no stopping their relationship!

Grace and Charlie have known that they wanted to get married since the beginning of their relationship. They knew it was right and good between them, and were forced to patiently wait to get through college to make it official. However, this didn't stop them from talking about one day marrying each other whenever they got the chance. It was a common conversation between them for years, always with the intention of proposing a year before they graduated college. Hence, when Charlie began to be a teensy bit suspicious in the last months of 2024 and early months of 2025, Grace's radar immediately went off. Laurie had made Grace and Charlie three "date-boxes" that had scratch-off tickets inside them with fun activities and destinations. Charlie and Grace completed the first two date boxes, going on a spontaneous trip through Asheville and having a fun day in Greenville, SC. Then, they came to that last date box. They had planned on having a mini spring-break "trip" to the mountains before they went home, wanting to do something fun for the break. That Saturday morning, Charlie came to pick Grace up and they went to get coffee (Grace's radar was going off the entire time). They brought the date-box into Recess Coffee and Baked Goods and scratched it off. Pretty Place Chapel in SC! So, they got in the car and headed down to our neighboring state. Once they got there, Charlie and Grace walked into the Chapel. And immediately noticed that EVERYONE was completely silent. But, they kept walking, and ended up sitting up front on the rock wall by the edge of the overlook. As they sat there, Charlie pulled out his phone and asked Grace if she knew that the new Claire Seever's song had dropped. For those who don't know, Grace had had the opportunity to play flute on a local singer-songwriters song in November of the past year. She wasn't expecting the song to be out yet. Back to the story, he began playing a song on full volume. In a silent chapel. Grace was so confused, and kept trying to turn down the volume. But Charlie made sure the song played loudly, so that Grace could clearly hear the lyrics. She heard herself playing the flute and then began to hear the first lyrics... "I've come to know you, for a little while now..." Grace immediately knew the song was for her, and the proposal was happening now. They listened to the entire song, and then slowly Charlie began leading Grace to the middle of the chapel. He looked at her, and then got down on one knee. With the many people in the chapel, he told Grace that he loved her and asked her to marry him. Grace said yes and he put the beautiful ring on her finger. They hugged for a moment, and then Grace saw Charlie's family running down to celebrate them. She immediately started crying, and was so filled with joy in that moment. The chapel was applauding, and it was the sweetest moment of their lives.