#newbejennings

It all started on March 10, 2022, at cosmetology school orientation. Derek remembers Kinley walking in, ponytail bouncing, and looking like a “total ditz” — his words, not ours! Meanwhile, Kinley couldn't help but notice Derek's “Air Jordans” and immediately thought, he's definitely not from small-town Botkins. Fast forward six days, when classes officially began. Of course, being the extrovert she is, Kinley had to make a comment about Derek’s University of North Carolina gear. (As a Duke fan, this was practically inevitable!) The banter was just the beginning, and it didn’t take long for Derek to ask Kinley to exchange numbers to “trade homework answers” (which, knowing us, was not surprising a bit considering neither of us have ever hit the books very hard). And just like that, after eight weeks of classes, they were inseparable. Derek asked Kinley to go golfing every single day after already spending 8 hours in class together, and she politely declined every single time (for months, actually). He also invited her to several weddings, and, well, those invites were also met with a “No, thanks!” on her end. Thank God he was persistent! Then came October. Kinley took a two-week leave from school to attend the World Dairy Expo, and something unexpected happened — she realized how much she missed Derek. The first day she came back to school, she was excited to see him… only to find out he had skipped that day (shocker). Determined to make up for the time apart, Kinley left on her lunch break to go see him. It only took one afternoon for them to share their first kiss, and the rest, as they say, is history. Since then, life together has been a whirlwind. Kinley’s been recruited to be a North Carolina Tarheel, and Derek — the same guy who wore Jordans on the first day they met — has since been to countless cow shows, up at the crack of dawn helping with chores, and fully embraced this new life alongside Kinley. From that first "ditzy" impression and "trade homework answers" proposal to becoming partners in life, it’s been quite the journey. We can’t wait to continue writing the next chapters together!