Matt and Emily met while in graduate school at George Mason University. They were part of a great friend group, and they stayed just friends for the first year and a half of school. When they came back to Manassas in August 2020 after going home from Covid, Emily bothered Matt a lot to come to their weekly friend dinners. He finally started to come, but claimed it was only to see Emily's roommate's dog, which was always in attendance. Thankfully, he continued to come most weeks and they got to talk more through the fall. Eventually, Emily worked up the liquid courage to let Matt know how she felt, and they've been inseparable since. After Graduation, Matt and Emily promised each other to follow their dream jobs no matter the location. This led to them doing long-distance for two years while Matt was in Boston and Emily was in Nashville. While it was not always easy, they stayed connected, put in the work, and finally came back together in Charlotte, where they have started their life together. Between the year and a half it took them to get out of the friend-zone and the 2 years of long-distance, they have had an interesting journey together, but they wouldn't change it if they could. They can't wait to take the next step in their relationship and celebrate their marriage with so many friends and family!