Here’s to Happily Ever After

Brandon: When I moved to Alaska in pursuit of my degree in Emergency Management while working for the University Fire Department, I moved into the dorms. I knew I was a fairly introverted individual, and that I’d probably struggle moving away from my friends and family so I told myself I had to find a way to meet new people. My dormitory roommate and I both went to the fire academy and enjoyed talking with people, so one day we ended up tying our door open and creating a game to say hi to anyone who walked by. Long story short, we ended up meeting everyone and became good friends with almost our entire floor. Tori was my next door neighbor, but at this point we were just friends like everyone else. We also had an economics class together, which we would often sit together in and go over assignments later in the dorm lounge. Obviously she was the most beautiful girl on campus but I didn’t say anything at the time. More than beautiful though she was an honest and happy person who always brought laughter to any group she was a part of. She never gets rid of the smile she wears and that was what I found truly amazing. Over the following 3 years at UAF, us and the rest of the floor played soccer, Frisbee, cards and hiked together, even after some of us had moved to other places on and off campus.

Tori: After both of us had moved off campus and began taking classes more specific to our degree programs, we were still friends but saw each other less frequently. We’d still catch up whenever we ran into each other on campus, especially since I was working at the Wood Center, which is kind of like the campus hub. I had moved into a dry cabin just outside of Fairbanks, and sometimes found myself to be pretty stressed and needing to get outside. I’d take the dog and meet up with Brandon for a jog along the Chena River and Alaska Land, and I remember being so amazed at how regardless of if we were chatting as we walked or I was actually working to keep pace with him (this guy can run!), I always felt really comfortable and appreciated being able to simply talk to a friend about life in the most honest words possible and to receive feedback that wasn't self serving. As time went on we began hanging out more, a pad thai lunch here, a trip to REI there, or visiting him on his lunch break while he was working at the state fair grounds. Right before he went on a trip to Iceland I went and spent the day with him and I think he figured out that I was interested in dating. That is how it started.

Tori: We'd moved to Kodiak together with our three dogs in the Fall of 2018. The following May we had invited a bunch of friends and family to visit during a local festival, and between that and having four other roommates, we had a very crowded house. One morning we took everyone out for a hike, which turned out to be quite wet and stressful followed by lunch back at the house where I had underestimated how much food we would need. I was flustered, and Brandon asked if I wanted to pop out for a "quick trip to the store", or rather just go sit at a nearby lookout and destress for a couple minutes. We ended up going back to the trails and walking around a bit. After a short vent from both of us and a surprise phone call with my Nana, our moods lightened and we enjoyed how it had finally stopped raining and the sun found its way through the clouds. Brandon asked me "On a scale of 1 to 10, how are you feeling?" This is something he does often, and I never say 10 or “perfect” for anything, but I surprised even myself by saying 10 that day. Brandon and I walked down to the beach known as Ram Site, and he asked if I wanted to take a picture together. So he propped his phone up on a drift log, and instead of setting the shutter timer like I thought he was, he set it to record. He walked back to me, pulled something out of his pocket, and got down on one knee. I had not suspected it at all. There was a lot of watery eyes and hugs, then when we returned to the house and showed the ring on my hand to our families there were even more. Brandon: I didn’t know that would be the time and place. I had the ring in my pocket for whenever I decided. I ask Tori often how she feels on a scale of 1-10. It’s my way I guess of trying to know how she is doing. In the years of us being together she has said 9/10 often. I have only heard her say 10 once. I knew in that moment the time was perfect and I was not going to let a 10/10 go by.