Bert: I don't know if I believe in love at first sight, but I can tell you that I have loved Clarissa from the first day we spent together. The words, "I love you," were on the tip of my tongue, ready to escape at any moment. Clarissa: Right before I met Bert, I was struggling in life. But when I walked into the coffee shop that day with Hannah (my maid of honor), his dark silhouette, mysteriously journaling, caught my eye. After Hannah and I ordered, he turned to us with a big smile and immediately began to speak; he and Hannah had been coworkers, and she introduced us to each other. Bert: I did that horribly awkward thing, when you call someone's name from a distance, and they don't hear you. So, you steel yourself, count to three, and try again. Clarissa: Hannah asked me when we left, "Was there something there? I felt something between the two of you." I blushed and didn't know what to say. Bert: The first day we spent together- Clarissa: September 12th! Bert: I was already in love. The thing about Clarissa is that she is so unapologetically herself. All my friends have said the same meeting her over the years. She shines wherever she is. We spoke of music, ghosts, spirituality, astrology, the best silly voices we had stored in us, Clarissa: ...food... Bert: ...all on the first night we spent together. Clarissa: We literally had so much in common. We talked for hours, just laughing, playing music, and having the best time together. He showed me the music he wrote. Bert: She responded like a hype man. Clarissa: I loved how he listened to me yap about my niche topics of astrology and the haunted house I grew up in. I even found out we were both pescatarians, which deepened my love. And prompted me to order sushi (our favorite food). He showed me his favorite things, like My Hero Academia and Buzzfeed Unsolved, and I fell in love with what he loved as well. Bert: Clarissa taught me that love is natural. To love her felt like breathing. Like when I was aware of her, it was a transcendent peace that calmed me down. But also, when the love wasn't at the forefront of my mind, it sustained me all the same. Loving Clarissa felt like the natural state for my body. Clarissa: I had no idea he liked me. I felt things for him, but I had also seen how he talked to friends, and he was sweet to everyone. It wasn't until we sat on the couch together that he offered me a choice: sit next to him or on the other side, whichever I preferred. And I was like, "Oh, this decision could give me all the answers I need." I sat with him. Bert: And I held her hand. Clarissa: I zoned out with an inner panic, and I announced out loud, "I... am... okay with this." Bert: I remember being like, "That's good." Clarissa: We held hands like we held each other's hands for centuries. I was in love. Bert: I leaned in for a kiss... Clarissa: AYO! Bert: And she panic-reached for my hair and said, "I love your curls!" Clarissa: Do they need to know all of this? Bert: Probably not. Bert: I know each and every milestone we have. I remember telling her I love her one month in, parked in my sister's driveway because I knew if I didn't purposefully do it, then it was going to just slip out. I can tell you that not even one year in, I knew her ring size, and knew that I was going to propose to her in Paris. Now we get to celebrate with you on our fifth anniversary together, which will start a whole new chapter. Clarissa: Bert is the love of my life, my soulmate, my best friend. I love how we are the same person (COPY AND PASTE). I honestly didn't think I'd ever be married. But with him, I can be myself no matter how crazy, and he loves me exactly for who I am. Bert: Clarissa is the light by which I see, and I believe the love we've experienced is the love that is found at the heart of being human. Which is why, when I proposed to her, I said only two things: "I see you in everything, and I'll find you in every life."