Despite growing up in the same city, and sharing some acquaintances, our story did not start until we attended law school together in our hometown. Amid the stress of classes and first-year finals, we became instant friends who could depend on each other for support, laughter, and a much-needed distraction from school. Through graduation, and studying for the bar exam in the throes of the pandemic, our friendship became stronger, our hangouts more frequent, and we separately began to realize that it was quickly developing into something more. It all culminated in our first “real date,” some drinks at an extremely divey bar. Over the next couple of months, two best friends’ love story began. Soon we began our first adventure together when we moved to New York City and started our first “real” jobs. Those two plus years in New York, spent in an overpriced box of an apartment, helped build the foundation of a relationship that we knew was meant to last. However, as grateful as we were for how close New York brought us to each other, we felt drawn home to be with our families. A year or so later, on November 23, 2024, Cory proposed on a rainy afternoon in his favorite city, Newport, Rhode Island, ensuring it would forever hold a special place in our story. Now we’re enjoying the journey and (impatiently) counting down the days until we can finally say “I do” in front of the people we love most.