let's make it official!

Looking back, I think we can all agree that 2020 turned everyone's world upside down. But out of all the chaos that year brought, meeting my best friend and life partner was hands down the best and most unexpected thing to come from it. When quarantine hit, I had just graduated from UNCG and was still living in my college apartment. At the time, I was working at Bill’s Pizza Pub in Oak Ridge with my best friend, Quinn. We had picked up the job while we were still in school and kept it going after graduation. Like a lot of people back then, I wasn’t totally sure what was next for me — but I knew I wanted to stay in Greensboro for a little while longer. At Bill’s, it was pretty much just me, Quinn, and a couple of other people over the age of 18... until Creighton showed up that summer. His last semester at UNCW had been cut short, and after moving back home, he decided to pick up some shifts at the same pizza place he had worked at during high school. Before long, the three of us were working most of our shifts together, and we made the best of it. No shift or day off was ever boring with us. As the months went on, Creighton and I had more chances to really get to know each other. We started going on dates, meeting each other’s friends, and just naturally becoming a bigger part of each other's lives. From the first time I met him, I knew there was something different about him. He had this easygoing energy that just lit up a room, he was spontaneous in the best ways and was able to bring that side out of me so easily. The day before Thanksgiving in 2020, Creighton asked me to be his girlfriend (: and we’ve been building a beautiful life together ever since, just the two of us (and our little cat, Pepper). We fell in love in a pizza place, and honestly, I wouldn’t have wanted it to happen any other way. <3

When I was finishing school during the spring of 2020 (we all know what happened then), I found myself looking for answers to a lot of big questions. What now? Where can I find a job? Where do I even go from here? I was able to find some temporary answers when I rejoined the cook staff at my old high school job, Bill’s Pizza Pub. It wasn’t exactly where I thought I’d be after college, but it gave me some much-needed stability, and even better, it led me to some pretty incredible people. Kasie was working on the wait staff at Bill’s, fresh off completing her senior year at UNCG. Along with her friend Quinn and a few other college-aged staff members, Kasie and I quickly became friends. From the start, there was something special about her. Our friendship grew fast, and once COVID restrictions lifted a little, we started going out for drinks and spending more time outside of work. Our friend groups blended together, which only gave me more chances to get to know her better. The more time we spent together, the stronger my connection to Kasie became. I found myself noticing all the little things. The way she looked out for people, how genuinely kind and thoughtful she was, and how she carried herself with so much positivity. It wasn’t long before I realized there were countless things to love about her. In a way I never saw coming, Kasie started becoming the answers to all those questions I had been asking. She brought a kind of happiness and certainty into my life that I didn’t even realize I was missing. Right before she was set to head back to her hometown for Thanksgiving in 2020, I asked her to be my girlfriend. It felt like one of the easiest and best decisions I’ve ever made. I felt proud to be the one bringing her around my friends and family, and proud just to be by her side. Kasie has this uplifting presence that makes everyone around her feel lighter, and I honestly wish everyone could experience it. Going back to Bill’s wasn’t part of the original plan, but it ended up being the most positively life-changing thing I’ve ever done. If I had to do it all over again, cooking pizzas, washing dishes, whatever it took... I’d do it a thousand times over if it meant getting the chance to fall in love with Kasie again. :)