It's happening

In a city of 8 million people, Cam and Chris were one of those lucky couples brought together by a once-in-a-lifetime moment of pure, honest-to-goodness destiny: a dating app. Who’s to say it wasn’t fate guiding their fingers as they swiped, or fate that took them from a quiet dive bar to an upscale rooftop bar on a Saturday night, the same rooftop bar where, six years later, Chris would propose to Cam, and they would begin the rest of their lives together? Okay, so maybe it was Chris who decided to take Cam bar hopping on their first date, and okay, maybe he did end up having to propose on a balcony just below the rooftop bar, and—fine, okay!—maybe it was a combination of the proximity of their Brooklyn apartments and an algorithm that led them to matching on the app. But who’s to say love doesn’t work in mysterious ways, even those ways that seem familiar to us in this modern age? What else but fate could have given Cam and Chris eight months of meeting each other's friends and finding the best food in Brooklyn before the pandemic ripped them from the city? What else but fate could have forced them to use their time long-distance exploring each other’s hometowns and planning for a new future? What else but fate could have given Chris a job offer in Salt Lake City just 7 days before they closed on a home in Virginia? Don’t even try to say that it wasn’t fate that brought Slinky, their lovable and feisty dachshund, from the streets of Mexico to their apartment in Utah. The one time fate was certainly not involved was March of 2024, when Cam accompanied Chris on a scouting trip to Brooklyn. Where fate is fickle, Chris intervened, planning the perfect surprise proposal for an extremely unsuspecting Cam, who wholeheartedly believed she was getting dressed up for a drink at their favorite rooftop bar before her lovely boyfriend took her to see The Lion King on Broadway. So when Chris told her he had to “grab something from their room” before leaving for the show, she was (understandably) audibly confused as he led her down the hallway to the wrong room, which, unbelievably, opened when he swiped his keycard. Cam will be the first to admit she blacked out as she followed Chris through a room full of flowers and champagne to a city-view balcony, where he got down on one knee. Neither of them remember what he said after “it’s been a long time coming,” but they both remember Cam sobbing, “YES!” A photographer appeared from her hiding place in the bathroom and started snapping photos. Still reeling from the feat of the surprise, Cam asked if they were going to be late to The Lion King. Chris very lovingly told her they were not seeing The Lion King at all, but would spend the afternoon taking pictures before the next surprise. Just as he had done when they first started dating, Chris took Cam to different spots all over Brooklyn, spots that, over the course of those first eight months, had become their shared favorites. He told her about all the twists and turns in his proposal planning journey, including the color-coordinated spreadsheets he’d created. Their afternoon of photoshoots and memory lane ended where it all began: at the dive bar where they had spent hours getting to know each other on their first date. When Chris opened the door, Cam was surprised to find their family and closest friends from all over the country there waiting for them. After the world's greatest proposal, fate continued to meddle in the love story of Cam and Chris, taking them back to the east coast to Charlotte, NC. Back in a new city with new people, Chris and Cam have been spending their time doing what they do best: building a new community, finding the best food in the city, spoiling Slinky (but not too much), and planning their future together—as much as fate will allow. Cam would also like to note that she still has not seen The Lion King on Broadway. Whoever’s listening—whether fate or Chris—she'd love it if someone made that happen.