Natalia and Christopher's story did not begin with love at first sight.. or even soon after. The two met back in early 2020 when Natalia joined Greater Springfield Volunteer Fire Department to become a volunteer EMT, where Christopher was already working as a career firefighter. The two became friends soon after and Christopher had a feeling there was something special between them. Time went on and their friendship grew. They shared some key moments that they now believe were important in the forming of their relationship. For example, when Natalia fell asleep on the couch watching a movie one night at the fire house. She woke up and realized Christopher was the only one who had seen so she asked him to promise not to tell anyone and went to bed. Or when they spent snow days together on shift waiting for a call. And Natalia's favorite, when they came across each other's profiles on a dating app and she swiped left. In early 2021, a few friends from the department all planned to go out to brunch together. However, those plans were ruined the night before when Natalia got hurt at the fire house and spent the rest of the night in the ER. Although it was 3 in the morning, she made sure to text Christopher to let him know they would have to reschedule as they were putting on her cast. They did in fact reschedule for two weeks later and thank goodness they did. That night after brunch and drinks with friends, Natalia and Christopher stayed up all night confessing their feelings for each other and finally deciding to start dating. They quickly knew that the friendship they had built was the perfect foundation for the journey they were about to begin. (Which could have started sooner, according to Christopher, if Natalia wouldn't have been so stubborn)