We have been friends since high school, and apparently, Matthew had a "crush" on me then! I never thought much of it, he was a good friend to have. We remained close through the end of high school and Matt moved off to Georgetown, where he played lacrosse for Southwestern University. We stayed in touch for the first year of college (he helped me write some of my essays over skype!) but then busy college life happened and we drifted. We didn't talk much after that first year. Fast forward about 6 years, Matthew was again living and working back in Dallas, and we had run into each other a time or two. I was waiting tables at the time and every now and then I caught him at my restaurant on a business lunch. Many months had passed and for really no reason at all, under no explaination other than he popped into my head out of nowhere, I thought about Matt Zagurski and how we hadn't talked in a while. I wondered if he still had the same phone number after all this time, even though I had a new number and thought for sure he didn't have it. Regardless, I sent him a message. "Matt Zagurski?" I asked. "Yes, how can I help you?" He replied. How weird, I thought... oh well, keep going... "This is Mikayla Allen, I was just thinking about you and figured I would say hello and see how you've been!" To my surprise, after a few messages of briefly catching up, he asked me to dinner the very next night. I was hesitant, thinking it would be like a "date" and I was not in a place for anything serious, but he was my old friend... What's the harm? So we went to dinner, closed the place down after being the only two people standing and screaming at the TV watching a Stars hockey game, and the rest is history.

Christmas day 2020 was our second Christmas together, but our first in our new house. We woke up early and made coffee, stayed in our pajamas and big fuzzy robes as we opened presents and played with the dogs. I was picking up the gift wrapping mess and Matt had left the room, returning several minutes later, and stood with me in front of our Christmas tree and said, "So... you know that Christmas is a very important day to my family, and it is such a magical time of year. I thought it would be even more magical if I asked you to marry me!!!" In the warm comfort of our first home, just the two of us, it was very personal and the perfect proposal for us. I am still absolutely shocked, totally surprised, and completely over the moon to be marrying my true soulmate.