Her Story Memorial Day Weekend came around and I had plans to hang with Atiba’s friends and bring two of mine. Late at night, this guy Jowel shows up—wearing the most insane ripped jeans I’ve ever seen. I instantly knew he was going to be a character. Somehow we ended up bonding over the fact that our cousins both live in the kind of luxury buildings in NJ that we always dreamed of living in. That same night, he made me do a "pull" (a.k.a. chug vodka), which absolutely ruined me—but it also kind of set the tone for us. After that weekend, we talked pretty much every day. He even picked me up from a work event in Jersey and drove me all the way to the Bronx where I was staying. Around that time, my boss asked who he was. I said “just a friend.” She told my entire 20+ person team that men aren’t just casually that nice—and she was right. Eventually he admitted he was into me. We went on a date to Bronx Ale House and saw Aladdin on Broadway, and that was the start of everything. He basically became my fourth (sometimes fifth) roommate in my UES apartment, and in 2022 we finally moved into one of those NJ buildings we talked about the night we met. In 2024, he proposed back in my hometown—where it all started—with our closest friends and family around us. The best beginning to what’s next. His Story We met Memorial Day Weekend on a group trip to the Hamptons. She was in the group chat leading up to it, but to be honest — I barely noticed. I was slammed with work and not paying attention. Then the weekend came…and so did the pizza. First time I actually saw her, she was completely destroying a slice. Like, no shame. That’s when I knew she was different. We ended up getting drunk and she couldn’t hang (still can’t, to be honest). She may have texted me a little too much after that weekend, but I didn’t mind. I made the first real move by inviting her to a Broadway show, and from there, we’ve been pretty much never left each other. Now we’re here — five years later — still laughing, still eating pizza (shoutout Montesacro), and getting ready to start the next chapter together.