Kelly and Ryan first met during their senior year at Gonzaga University in 2017. What started as a casual conversation quickly turned into an easy friendship as they discovered they had much more in common than they expected. They had both grown up in the East Bay Area, studied marketing at Gonzaga's business school, served as presidents of their respective club sports, and even shared a lifelong love of cats. In fact, one of their very first conversations was a completely serious debate over whose childhood cat was bigger (Kelly won by a landslide thanks to her chonk of a cat, Ginger.) After graduation they went their separate ways, never expecting their paths would cross again. A year later, life brought them back together in Seattle when they rented a house with some fellow Zags. As roommates, their friendship only grew stronger. Spending time together always felt effortless, whether they were trying to discover the best soft pretzel and cheese appetizer in Seattle, wandering through the Seattle Art Museum making up stories behind the artwork, or staying up late playing Mario Golf while waiting to find out if a snowstorm would cancel work the next morning. After their lease ended, a lucky twist of timing let Kelly and Ryan continue to live together before their new roommates arrived. Quickly their friendship naturally began to grow into something more. Ryan eventually asked Kelly on their first official date: a Mariners game. A couple of weeks after Ryan moved into his new apartment, they officially became a couple. Since then, they've built a life full of adventures together. They've traveled across North America and Asia, cheered each other on at volleyball and ultimate frisbee games, found a shared love for board games, religiously follow Gonzaga basketball, and adopted their cat Ditto (who somehow still hasn't surpassed Ginger's legendary chonk status). In August 2025, Ryan brought Kelly back to one of their favorite spots along the river in Leavenworth, a place they'd discovered on a spontaneous day trip. After opening a few blind boxes and Pokémon cards, Ryan asked Kelly to marry him…. and she said YES!!! They can't wait to celebrate the next chapter of their story with all of you.