Depending on who you ask, our story starts from two different points in time Erika's perspective: I first met Lester or I guess his profile online through Hinge in May of 2021. At the time I only talked to guys who messaged me first. I remember viewing his profile and thinking that he would be an interesting guy to get to know and plus he was good looking so I decided to message him first. Sadly, I received no response and was a little upset but I moved on. Then in August of that year one of my closest friends happened to match with him and they were planning their first date together. I remember seeing his picture again and telling her that was the guy that never responded to me. At the time my friend happened to be interested in someone else so she told Lester that she just wanted to be friends. She suggested that we should go as a group and hang out with Lester since he was interested in meeting new people. Lester agreed and so the first time I met him in person was at Dave and Busters. We had a great time playing DDR and shooting zombies together. After our hangout I wanted to do another one but everyone was busy. Fortunately, I still was connected to him via Hinge. So one day I decided to take a leap of faith and message him again. I still remember messaging my friends telling that even though it may not work out I still wanted to try. Never would I have known that we would be where we are today.

The first time I met Erika was through a mutual friend hangout at Dave and Busters. I remember walking to the entrance in the parking lot while she was parking her car. She probably didn’t notice me, but I felt an instant connection the moment I saw her. Having played DDR throughout college, I was impressed by how well Erika played. We also played a zombie game, and her adorable fearfulness grabbed my attention with how cute she was. During this time, I was flying back and forth between Orlando and Denver, and though I was on dating apps like Hinge, I wasn't very active. After that initial meet, I realized that we had connected online a while back, and I had totally missed it! My frequent travel and lack of activity on the apps made it hard to keep up. Looking back, I'm so grateful for that group hangout because it gave me the chance to meet Erika in person. Our personalities are perfectly compatible - we’re both homebodies who still love to go out and have fun. We share a passion for hiking and savoring delicious meals, and we both deeply value the love and bonds we share with our families. These shared interests and values have brought us closer together, weaving a bond that grows stronger every day. Having Erika in my life fills me with joy and anticipation for our future together. Our engagement at Lake Louise in Banff was a moment that will forever be etched in my heart. I was so nervous to propose that I may have stumbled over a few words, but the overwhelming love and happiness we felt in that beautiful setting made everything perfect. I can't wait to spend the rest of our lives together, creating more wonderful memories and cherishing each other every step of the way.