It was August 2021, and life was in motion. Luke had just landed a job as an Admissions Counselor at Tulane University in New Orleans. Within a week of arriving, Hurricane Ida made landfall, giving him a wet and wild welcome. Thankfully, with support from family and coworkers, he evacuated safely, and his apartment was undamaged. At the time, I (Joy) was living in Nashville with my best friends, but most of my family was still in New Orleans. I kept close tabs on the hurricane, talking to my mom constantly as they figured out evacuation plans and made sure my Maw Maw was safe. While I worried about them, I also started feeling major FOMO. In New Orleans, you always evacuate as a family. It felt strange not to be there. My heart ached—not just to visit—but to come home for good. So, in December 2021, I moved back. My family had some damage from Ida, but nothing we couldn't handle. I was happy to be home again, even though I missed my Nashville crew. Fast forward to January 2022. I was an avid app dater. Luke was not. He dreamed of meeting his future wife in a grocery store. But one day, he told his good friend Emily that he was "maybe sorta kinda" ready to be in a relationship again. Emily said "let's work on the confidence first," then challenged him: “Do you actually want this?” Once he admitted he did, she convinced him to try Hinge. His first date didn’t go well, and he was ready to throw in the towel—until Emily reminded him, “Don’t you always say you have to try things twice before giving up because the first time could be a fluke?” Touché. Luke scheduled six dates in eight days. He was giving it a real shot. When we matched on Hinge, I thought he was so cute and clearly interesting. We texted for three days straight, asking each other every question under the sun. We ran into some scheduling hiccups, but eventually landed on Tuesday (Luke doesn’t do Mondays). I made a reservation at Lola’s near City Park. I was the first of the 6 dates. I walked in and saw his curly hair, colorful plaid shirt, and huge smile already at the table. I was instantly at ease. The conversation flowed—it was fun, thoughtful, and effortless. The wine and food weren’t bad either! It felt like a perfect first date... and it didn’t even end there. Luke, who claims he’s not good at planning, had mapped out three potential post-dinner activities in case things went well. (They did.) We walked across the street to Canseco’s, picked up a bottle of Riesling, and he offered three options: pinball bar, putt-putt, or movie night. I LOVE movies, so that was an easy choice. He already had candy and popcorn ready. We went to his apartment and tried to watch My Big Fat Greek Wedding—but we couldn’t stop talking, laughing, singing, and dancing to music. That’s when we discovered our mutual love for musicals- thanks Dear Evan Hansen soundtrack. After a long, incredible night, I got an uber home and during that car ride, Luke cancelled those next 5 dates. After that night, we were both pretty sure we had met our person. We were right!