After finishing grad school and working through a messy break-up, I was on my single-girl self-love journey. I was all about self-reflection, accountability, and emotional growth to make sure I was in the best possible place when I got into my next relationship. This time was so necessary and I developed some of the most beautiful friendships of my life, but when love didn't find me at the moment I felt "ready," I was immediately discouraged. After 3 years, I was preparing to fully embrace the “crazy cat lady” stereotype. Fast forward to a sunny day in May 2021 on the volleyball court at Back Alley. I had signed up for a blind-draw mixer volleyball tournament with my friend Tanner, who knew some of the other people on our randomly selected team. After some chatting, we discovered that our teammate Justin lived in the same city, on the same street, and only 2 houses away from me! Justin was a landlord and gestured toward his tenants, also at the tournament, and that is when I first saw Josh. Despite living only 2 houses away, I had never seen him before, but I thought he was SO cute. A bunch of us from the tournament, along with my roommate Erin, all got together at Justin/Josh's later that night. I remember innocently telling Josh about my horrible dating history, growing up three miles north of the infamous "8 mile," and that one time I clogged the toilet - all while Erin stood by mortified by my over-sharing. I will never forget the way Josh looked at me while I rambled on - his eyes so wide and present and his smile so genuine. The night ended, but the timing wasn't right just then. I went back to my apartment, just two houses away, and tried to continue life as usual, but I thought about Josh and that night often. A few months later, I got a message from Josh, endearingly known to my friends as "cute neighbor boy." Clearly, my over-sharing had left some sort of impression and seemingly a good one. I sat on the other side of my duplex with my housemate Amelia, and squealed, "OH MY GOSH cute neighbor boy just messaged me!!" I was so giddy, and as a good friend does, Amelia helped me stalk Josh's profile while I tried to figure out the intention behind his message. That conversation fizzled out, but another one began. By the second day of messaging, we had already trauma dumped about our past relationships and the emotional work we had done to grow and heal. We truly have not stopped talking since that day. Josh is the most amazing person I have ever met. Just like he listened to me ramble on that first day we met, he continues to make me feel heard and appreciated every single day. He is patient and gentle with my anxiety, he not only accepts, but embraces my quirks and he makes me laugh constantly. Life with him is better than anything I could have ever imagined. I knew after 1 month that I loved him, and I'm so excited to marry him in September.

Jess is the kind of girl a guy is lucky to find, and somehow we found each other exactly when we were supposed to. When we first met, I was going through a pretty rough patch in my life. Jess was playing in a volleyball tournament on a team with my landlord, and that is when they realized she lived just two houses down from us. After the tournament, she and her roommate Erin came over to hang out. Meanwhile, I was doing what I do best, being antisocial in the screen room watching UFC by myself. Jess and Erin came in to chat, and from the moment we started talking, it felt like we had known each other forever. We talked for awhile, and she told me everything, stories about her life, where she is from (Eleven Mile, you know almost like Eminem) and just who she is at her core. I remember so clearly what she was wearing, a mustard yellow Carhartt hat, a baggy sweatshirt, and sweatpants, and thinking, “Wow, she is so cute and she is not even trying.” That is what drew me to her. She was so genuine and so effortlessly herself. She was never trying to be the center of attention, but somehow she was impossible to ignore. She made a huge impression on me that night, but I also knew I was not in the right place for something serious. I took time to work on myself, but she never left my mind. When I finally felt like I was in a better place, I reached out with what might be the worst line ever. I said, “Hey, do you know of any volleyball tournaments coming up?” I did not even ask if she was playing or if she wanted to play with me. She replied with “uhh idk,” and I thought I completely blew it. A few days later, during a Bills game, she posted a picture in Bills gear. I saw my second chance and went for it. I do not remember exactly what I said, but it was something like, “Bills gear? What happened to Eleven Mile?” Somehow, thankfully, she replied. And I am not kidding when I say this, we have not stopped talking since. I got her number and we started texting, until I switched from an iPhone to an Android and did not realize iMessage does not work like normal texting. Our messages were not going through, and I was convinced she had lost interest. So I grew some courage and I messaged her on Facebook, and luckily she thought the same thing. While we were chatting there, I kept accidentally hitting the thumbs up button, which actually turned into a running joke between us and even one of our little handshakes now. The next Sunday, we had our first real date. She was hosting a Bills party with her housemates, and I walked over to join. I met everyone and they were all great, but Jess and I talked the entire time. She told me so many embarrassing stories about herself, and I was falling for her hard. She was open, honest, funny, and so incredibly easy to love. Before I met Jess, I do not think I really believed in soulmates, but she changed that for me. As we have gotten to know each other, we have realized how many times we were almost in the same place at the same time, just barely missing each other. It really feels like everything led us to meet exactly when we were supposed to. And for that, I feel incredibly lucky. I am lucky to have someone so caring, supportive, funny, and full of love in my life. There is not a day that goes by that I do not look at her and wonder how I got so lucky.