Steven and Emily’s story started the way all modern love stories do: with a little matchmaking, a dating app, and a man pretending he was “too busy with work” to meet the girl everyone insisted he needed to know. Steven had just moved back to Pacifica when he was out to dinner with a friend who happened to be dating the cousin of Emily’s maid of honor. Somewhere between dinner and drinks, they asked if he was finally ready to meet someone. They said they had the perfect girl in mind — and one selling point was that she was also a Republican, which Steven apparently considered a major green flag. After seeing a photo of Emily, Steven casually said, “Yeah, I’m down to connect,” while insisting they should wait because of all his upcoming work travel. Apparently destiny ignored that plan completely. About a week later, Steven stumbled across Emily on Bumble and immediately sent his famous “one star of the week” message. They talked nonstop for weeks before finally meeting for their first date at Barrel House in Burlingame. Emily naturally brought her best friend Cheyenne as backup support. Steven showed up in his leather jacket and Air Force 1s looking effortlessly cool, while Emily tried to act far less nervous than she actually was. What was supposed to be a casual first date quickly became something more. After drinks, Steven went back to Pacifica while Emily continued the night with friends down in San Carlos — but not for long. Emily invited him back to come back out and somewhere between late-night conversations, laughter, and refusing to say goodbye, they stayed up until sunrise. From that night on, they were pretty much inseparable. A few weeks later, Emily headed to Las Vegas for a girls’ trip, and by then Steven was already completely locked in — though maybe slightly traumatized by the stories she brought home afterward. Turns out what happens in Vegas absolutely follows you home. As their relationship grew, so did their adventures together. Steven brought Emily to Tahoe where she met his grandparents Debbie and Gary, which was a pretty big deal. Not long after, he helped her move to Redwood City, proving his love through the universal test of commitment: carrying furniture and pretending not to be annoyed about it. Together they traveled everywhere — Seattle, San Diego, Colorado, concerts, work trips, family vacations, and spooky date nights at the Winchester Mystery House where Steven somehow ended up playing in fountains while Emily documented the chaos like a nature documentary. Before long, their lives had blended together. They became part of each other’s families, friend groups, and everyday routines. From San Luis Obispo to Hawaii, they built a life full of laughter, adventure, and a lot of “Are we officially dating yet?” energy — because despite acting like a married couple, Steven somehow still hadn’t technically asked Emily to be his girlfriend. Eventually he got the hint. When Steven’s best friend moved out, Emily was supposed to move into the Pacifica house, until Steven’s cousin — the future best man — and his fiancée beat her to it. Emily patiently waited her turn, spending weekends there anyway until she officially moved in. Once they were living together, life somehow became even more fun. One quick Target trip for socks turned into them coming home with a brand new Cadillac Lyriq, because apparently that’s the kind of decisions you make when you’re in love and unsupervised. Then came baby Barron, their sweet German Shepherd/Border Collie puppy who quickly became the center of Emily’s world. Between raising a puppy, building a home, traveling together, and laughing through every busy moment life throws at them, Steven and Emily found something really special: a top-8 friend to do life with. And through every spontaneous adventure, late-night podcasts, ridiculous purchases, and beautiful memories, one thing became obvious to everyone around them: they were always meant to find each other.