We met on the first day of high school in our AP World History class. However, we didn't really talk much until Matthew broke his leg in wrestling and I started being one of the people to push his wheelchair from class to class. My "shift" was from 4th period Geometry to lunch. For me, it was an excuse to get out of the worst math class early and Matthew can attest I was not a good driver... (sorry!) To be honest, Matthew and I didn't really get along very well in the beginning. I thought he was trying to be suave and a "player" and he thought I was a total nerd (which I was) but our friend groups overlapped a lot so we got along okay.

During sophomore year, Monica became more laid back and Matthew started to be himself. This year we shared both AP English Language and Italian. On the first Italian class of the year, we were instructed to talk about what we did over the summer and much to our mutual surprise we had spent our 15th birthday on the exact same cruise on the exact same boat only three weeks apart. So now we had started to become friends in our own right, often partnering on assignments and group projects. And that friendship continued into our junior and senior years, where we kept in touch despite slowly not sharing classes anymore due to our different electives and course loads. We went to Junior Homecoming together with a group of friends and that I think was when I started to look at Matthew in a different light. I had mistakenly worn a new pair of heels and by the end of the night, I wanted to cut off both my feet but mom didn't raise a quitter. Matthew saw me struggling to walk back to the car so, like a true gentleman, he supported my weight as we walked in tandem and then made sure I got home safe. It wouldn't be until we spent all of senior year doing senior activities that I realized how much I really liked him and how sad I would be when we graduated. The last day of school came faster than either of us anticipated and when we said our goodbyes, we both felt saddened at the possibility of not seeing each other again. Fortunately, the last day of school was not the end because we still had graduation! And with graduation, of course we had to have a graduation party at a friends house. We ended up holding hands briefly and when we went home, stayed up all night texting. One week later in June we had our first kiss and Matthew asked me out <3

Shortly after our first summer together, we continued our relationship long-distance. Although 120 miles away, we spent every night on the phone and enjoyed many activities online. We saved every penny to buy each other gifts, send letters, and traveled once a month to see each other. After 1 year we both transferred to FIU and continued our education and relationship closer together. We both agree that the best class we ever had at FIU was the only one we were able to take together. From there, Monica graduated with a Bachelors in Nursing and Matthew graduated with a Bachelors in Information Technology.

After 8 wonderful years together, I decided it was finally time to propose to Monica. Ironically, as I was planning it, Monica had a dream where I proposed to her on a cruise and the details were strikingly similar to what I had envisioned. When she recounted the dream, I had wondered whether I should change the plan and even the date. Ultimately, I decided that I just had to make it more exciting, while still keeping her wish of having a very intimate and personal proposal. The date is July 8th, 2023. The first day of her "birthday cruise", so she had her guard down! I planned a scavenger hunt around the cruise. I wrote 8 letters to her, each one recounting a year that we have been together thus far. Each letter contained a clue, riddle, or activity pointing to a different location on the cruise. After reminiscing through the 8 years, Monica received a 9th letter, describing my excitement towards the future. I ended it with a question, whether she would like a glimpse at our future? She replied yes and I led her to our stateroom decorated with roses spelling "Will you marry me?" She said yes!