...while dancing the “Harlem Shake” (yes, that long ago), Maurice landed Gabriella’s phone number. Thing was, it wasn’t Maurice who asked, but a friend in costume who spotted her somewhere in the crowd. He had forgotten his phone, and Maurice, in ski gear, obliged. And so, Maurice had the number of this girl he never met… A few months later, Gabriella was told she needed to meet this “nice guy from Berlin who put a 500-watt sub woofer in his dorm.” They met at a restaurant among mutual friends, and when they laid eyes on each other they knew they were in trouble. Since Gabriella wasn’t single at the time, Maurice looked for someone “like” Gabriella – cool, intelligent and beautiful; never thinking he’d end up with the "original" herself. The following summer, now-single Gabriella and Maurice learned their parents lived close by in Northern Virginia. Gabriella, unable to shake the feeling from their first encounter, invited Maurice to a beloved little lake near her house in June. It was a magical and instant connection between the two of them. Since then, they’ve been each other’s partners in crime, through sickness, university, remote internships, moving across the country, and so much more. After seven years, Maurice proposed to Gabriella at the lake where it all started; and now on the ninth anniversary of that meeting in June they will marry! Maurice and Gabriella are so grateful to continue life together as soulmates, and to celebrate this incredibly special day with their beloved family and friends!