Some love stories start with a spark. Ours started with smack talk. As Kristie was scrolling through Hinge one night, Braden’s profile stopped her in her tracks. There he was, proudly wearing Green Bay Packers gear outside Lambeau Field with his family. As a loyal Detroit Lions fan, Kristie couldn’t help herself, she messaged him, “Go Lions” as the Lions were playing the Packers for the last game of the season that weekend at Lambeau Field. A little good-natured back-and-forth later, they agreed: loser buys the winner a drink. The Lions won, and true to his word, he sent the text that would change everything: “Guess I owe you a drink.” Their first date didn’t happen right away, but that didn’t slow them down one bit. They texted nonstop for weeks, sending each other long messages that made it clear this connection was different. And when they finally met for dinner at Quartino during Restaurant Week, that feeling was confirmed. It was simply the best. Throughout the past few years they embarked on trips, had countless sports bets, became roommates, made Chicago their home together, and became a teammate for one another. Kristie was getting ready for the weekend and thought it was just a typical “you lost the playoff hockey bracket, you plan date night” tradition, but Braden surprised her with something bigger. After drinks along the Chicago River, he got down on one knee at golden hour, with their families secretly watching from Gibsons Italia, a moment they had all been in on for months. They've become each other's best friends, biggest cheerleaders, and lifelong teammates. From football bets to forever, their relationship has always been easy, fun, and perfectly matched.