Once upon a time, in the bustling heart of Queens, New York, a young boy named Brandon first laid eyes on a girl named Ruthann, whom everyone affectionately called Ruthy. Brandon was just about twelve years old when his family decided to leave their old church across Queens for a new place of worship — All Nations Apostolic Tabernacle, known by the congregation as ANAT. From the very moment Brandon saw Ruthy, he thought she was beautiful. They were both the same age, but being new to the church and only children, they spoke just a few shy words to each other. Not long after Brandon’s family settled into ANAT, the church began a new daughter work, All Nations Apostolic Temple, closer to Ruthy’s home. Naturally, Ruthy and her family began attending there, and just like that, the two young hearts were separated. For over seven years, Brandon and Ruthy’s paths rarely crossed. In all that time, Brandon could count on one hand the number of times he saw her in person. Then one day in 2019, as if by a stroke of fate, Ruthy reappeared at the mother church. Brandon spotted her from all the way across the congregation, and just as when they were children, he thought she was gorgeous. But Brandon was nervous. He told himself, If she comes back next week, I’ll take it as a sign from God that I should talk to her. And sure enough, Ruthy returned the very next Sunday, having decided to start attending the mother church again. Week by week, Brandon found small ways to interact with her — first exchanging simple hellos and goodbyes, then sharing hugs, talking about their dreams, their hobbies, their future hopes. Before long, they were texting each other outside of church, their connection quietly deepening. What Brandon didn’t realize was that Ruthy was waiting, rather impatiently, for him to take the next step. Tired of waiting for Brandon to ask her out, Ruthy decided to take matters into her own hands. One day, just as Brandon was leaving his college class, he received a bold text from Ruthy: she wanted to go out. With his heavy backpack slung over his shoulder and the lingering scent of garlic from his Italian lunch, Brandon hurried to their meeting spot. The first words Ruthy spoke when she saw him were, “Wow, your bag is so big.” Brandon, already nervous, felt even more flustered — but the spark between them was undeniable. From that day forward, Ruthy and Brandon became the best of friends, never judging each other, always lifting one another up. Soon after, they made it official: boyfriend and girlfriend. And the rest, as they say, is history.