It was a Friday night at the end of summer 2013. Lisa was just two days away from moving into college at Monmouth University and Ryan was only a few days away from deployment. They both were at a party with friends and had been flirtatious, but neither wanted to get into a committed relationship. The two would email back and forth, while Ryan was deployed and their feelings started to grow from there. Lisa would hint to Michael (her twin brother) that she started to have feelings for Ryan and that she thought he felt the same way, but Michael kept reassuring Lisa that Ryan “was just being nice”. The holidays were right around the corner. Lisa was coming home from college and Ryan was flying in from Jacksonville, Florida. Lisa was excited, because she was ready to see if Ryan had the same that feelings she did. There was just one problem. Ryan was nervous. He realized that he wasn’t totally comfortable dating his friend’s sister, so he broke things off. It was the start of 2014 and Lisa and Ryan decided to respark their flame and after a couple of months Ryan had the option to get stationed in Little Creek, Virginia. He decided to move, so he and Lisa could be closer together. They went on their first date in March 2014 and had been inseparable ever since.

After living in a 550 sq. ft. apartment during COVID lock-downs, Lisa and Ryan had longed for the day where they could finally go into Philly, eat at a restaurant they’ve been endlessly waiting to try and truly enjoy a night out together. Well, that day finally came on November 13, 2021. It was a rainy Saturday afternoon and Ryan patiently waited for Lisa to finish getting ready. They got into the city early, walked around and enjoyed everything Philly had to offer, but Lisa’s energy eventually ran low. She desperately needed a coffee if she was going to stay awake for their 7PM dinner reservation. The couple hit up Starbucks and made their way to Rittenhouse Square Park, a place they would frequently people-watch throughout COVID lock-downs. They found a bench where Lisa thought they would relax and enjoy their coffees, but Ryan had other plans. While watching a Michael Jackson impersonator, Lisa noticed Ryan was frazzled, but didn’t know why. Little did she know that Ryan was anxiously awaiting the perfect moment to finally get down on one knee and propose!