For those of you wondering how I somehow scored someone so far out of my league, here’s the story: I first met Emma at a get-together with some mutual friends at her house in Starkville. The first time I saw her, she said “Hey! I’m Emma,” to which I responded, “Oh! Emma Carpenter!” I suppose I had heard her full name over the loud speaker or seen an instagram post with her in it, or maybe I had a keen sense that she’d be my wife one day. Who knows. Anywho, she became a familiar face to whom I’d speak in passing, always calling her “Ms. Carpenter.” (Far after we started dating, she revealed that she’d forgotten my last name, so every time I said “Ms. Carpenter,” she had a mini panic attack). The following semester, I was taking human physiology, and I noticed she was in the GroupMe for the notes. I messaged her to ask if she’d like to sit together to exchange notes throughout the class, and she said yes (this is where it starts getting good). After some time messaging about our winter breaks, I learn she has parted ways with her former suitor, and I figure if I’ve got a shot with her, I may as well take it. I ask her to go get breakfast with me one morning, and we go and have a wonderful time. I learned she was a really great girl and I’d like to pursue a relationship with her. We hang out a few more times, and she took me to Chadwick Lake to tell me she only sees me as a friend. For some odd reason, I still sat next to her in class and kept hanging out with her, playing tennis about once a week, just teasing myself with what could’ve been. We went separate ways for the summer and lost touch, except for one time I shared a fast Sudoku time, and I thought that was it to the story of Emma and I. I went back to Starkville in the fall of my junior year, and by some stroke of fate, tennis with Emma started back, and it also came with sweet treat runs and occasional dinners. I kept asking for a real date, and she kept telling me no, each time hurting just as badly as the first. I went to a Halloween party at her house, we went for a walk and she told me she really liked me. WHAT IN THE WORLD??? I tell her I really like her too, and our relationship progressed to where it is today. I asked her to marry me in the same spot she told me she only saw me as a friend. You might ask, what is the moral of the story? It’s nothing about persistence. It’s just that I’m so good Emma can’t resist me. -Seth