We met in January 2009 at the tender age of 13 when Sam transferred to the same school that Kristal attended, Bancroft Middle School. One of Kristal's classmates befriended Sam within the first few weeks that he started at Bancroft and she introduced us. Immediately, Sam became an integral part of Kristal's friend group. It was not long after meeting that, unbeknownst to each other, we developed crushes on one another. We lived in the same apartment complex next to Bancroft and we can distinctly remember trying to align the time that we left for school so that we could "accidentally" run into each other on our walk. Another distinct memory of ours is the first time we hung out one-on-one: meeting at the apartment complex mailboxes to do homework. We watched foreign movies, collected lucky pennies to be thrown in the man-made lake at our local park, sat side by side gazing at the moon, had quirky inside jokes, and laughed a lot. We were obsessed with each other from the beginning. As our friendship (and admiration for one another) deepened, we recognized how unique and special our connection was. We became boyfriend and girlfriend in our freshman year of high school. Even at the age of 14, we both felt that we would spend our lives together. Unfortunately, it was cut short when Sam moved to Pismo Beach, approximately four hours away from Lakewood - a seemingly cross-country distance to two 14 year-olds. The distance did not prevent us from staying in touch, however. We texted often and saw each other when he periodically visited throughout the years that Sam lived in Pismo Beach. Most importantly, our unique connection and admiration for one another never waned. Fast forward to 2017, Sam was living in Lakewood again and we started dating. The rest is history, as they say --- we have been together ever since. Our story is a long one, filled with love, respect, learning, and growing.

We often go down to the jetty in Seal Beach and sit on the rocks to watch the waves, surfers, and sunset. When Sam suggested we do this on July 21, 2023, Kristal didn't have any reason to believe something out of the ordinary would happen. While watching the sunset, Sam asked Kristal to stand and proceeded to get down on one knee. Kristal screamed and jumped with joy (which is very uncharacteristic for her), and enthusiastically accepted. We are so excited to embark on this next journey together and can't wait to celebrate with you!