When we first met, we were just teenagers trying to figure out life, not realizing how important we would become to each other. Our connection was easy and natural, the kind of bond that didn’t need effort or explanation. But life had its own course. DeEllis ended up going to prison and years went by. We grew up in different places, through different experiences, but neither one of us ever fully let go of the memory of each other. It stayed in the back of our minds like a song we couldn’t forget. Then, life did what life often does, it surprised us. After years apart, we reconnected. One message turned into long conversations, long conversations turned into healing, and healing turned into something stronger than what we had. This time, we understood each other in ways we couldn’t back then. This time, the timing was right. When he finally came home, it wasn’t awkward or uncertain. It was familiar. Comfortable. It felt like picking up a story we never really finished. And then came September 5, 2025. The day of DeEllis’s birthday, he was having a party and I was running late and rushing to get there. I expected to walk into a normal celebration, but the moment I stepped through the door, all I could see was lights and I heard this song playing that DeEllis had been playing for months that was oh so familiar to me. The room was filled with family and friends, all smiling, all waiting, and at the far end stood DeEllis. The sight of him standing there, focused only on me, In that instant I realized something special was happening. I was surprised, a little overwhelmed, but more than anything I was happy... the kind of happy that fills your whole chest and makes the moment feel unreal. Then he asked me to be his wife. All those years, all the distance, all the pain and growth, somehow led right to that moment. I didn’t hesitate. I said yes! Our love story isn't perfect. It isn't simple. But it is OURS. And that's what makes it beautiful.