Rewind back to Halloween 2017. Ryan and I were at a mutual friend's house for a Halloween party. I noticed him and thought "hmm, he's cute" and decided I'd go for it. A few weeks later I was at another mutual friends house when something came over me and I started obnoxiously asking everyone there to invite him over. He didn't come that night, but his friends caught wind of my intentions. A few more weeks go by and we run into each other at a local bar. We were sitting together when Ryan's friend approached and (knowing I had a crush on him) said, "You guys should kiss." Now, mind you, we barely know each other at this point. But anyway, we looked at each other, shrugged, and kissed (don't worry mom it was just a peck and pre-COVID times). We started seeing each other more in social settings and eventually exchanged numbers. We talked constantly and my little crush turned into a real big crush. BUT, there was a problem. He NEVER (and I mean NEVER) asked me to hang out with him. We continued to see each other in group settings, but he never asked me out on a date. Even when I would ask him to see a movie or go to dinner, he would think of some lame excuse. Men are so confusing! Anyway, I persisted because I knew he was something special. We continued this texting all day everyday, but never hanging out in real life bit for about 3 years on and off. We really got to know each other and even made a pact that if we both weren't married by a certain age, we would marry each other (oh the irony). Then, in the summer of 2020, he asked me to come over (finally!) and he said, "I think I'm ready to date you." So, we did and the rest is history!

I was busy doing a whole lot of nothing and still wouldn’t make any time for her, but for 3 years, she didn’t give up on me. Though I was spending all of my time hanging out with friends, I was slowly but surely developing the foundation of a relationship with my best friend. She never stopped trying to break down my walls and I’m glad that she didn’t or else we wouldn’t be where we are today, and I wouldn’t be who I am today. After our first kiss at the bar I knew it was going to all be downhill from there. And now, here we are, getting married!