We met for the first time way back in August of 2006 when we were both graduate students in the same Masters Degree Program in the Department of Spanish & Portuguese at IU. We were part of a very tight-knit cohort that became very close friends pretty quickly. We took a lot of the same classes together throughout those two years, and were part of a lot of the same study sessions, grading sessions, and frequented the same gatherings a lot. Though, back then there really wasn't a romantic interest stemming from either of us - except for that one time Ryder tried to kiss Julie after she very kindly drove him home after they both attended a mutual friend's party. He was quickly, yet kindly, 'friend zoned' by Julie in that moment and that is where he (and any other possible suitor) firmly stayed for the rest of grad school years. After graduation in May of 2008, Julie acquired a teaching position in the same department and stayed put in Bloomington - something she NEVER imagined she would do...stay in Indiana on purpose (She IS a Tennessean, after all!)! Ryder ventured off into the world finding temporary homes in Switzerland, India, and exotic Indianapolis before eventually returning to Bloomington to stay in 2013. Throughout the next several years, Julie and Ryder would randomly see each other out and about in town or at local gatherings and usually not much more than a 'hello' or head nod of acknowledgement would be exchanged between the two. However, in September of 2018 - the Friday of that year's Lotus Festival - we met again, but this time it was different. We ran into each other at Lucky's Market, a grocery store that sadly no longer exists. We chatted for about 15 minutes and both wanted to keep the conversation going. Instead of giving him her number, Julie told Ryder to find her on Facebook and reach out (this might have been a test, who knows?!) Well, Ryder did find her and reached out the next day. As our friendship rekindled, love began to bloom between us.