Picture it - summer of '18. I had just finished stuffing sushi into my face with two of my close girlfriends (shoutout to Nicole) when we decided to head a few shops down to Graney's, a local bar, for a few drinks. We sat at one of those iron grate tables outside and ordered a round of beers; Nicole sat across from me, Josette next to her, and to my right there was an empty seat between me and Josette (this is relevant, I promise). We're chatting about all of the usual things when we find ourselves on the topic of marriage. I took a swig of my beer and said with a confidence that only one too many Bud Lights could induce, "I don't believe in it. I'm telling you, what's the point? It's just a piece of paper...". Now, if you know Nicole, you already know that she wasn't havin' it, "Okay Shan, whatever you say, but I'm calling bullshit." It was then, as I was rolling my eyes, that I caught sight of someone approaching our table. He was tall, with big brown eyes and the best kind of toothy smile - that's right, you guessed it, 'twas Matthew. Before I knew it, he was inserting himself into our conversation, making himself comfortable in the seat to my right, and agreeing with (almost) everything I said... I know what you're thinking - ballsy, right? Turns out he knew Josette from a kickball league they played in together so he was more than comfortable to join us. Thirty minutes later I'm following him inside as he goes to find the friends he was there to meet originally... there may have been a few more bud lights in between, I'm not sure, but next thing I know we're all heading to the next bar. It was the last time either of us have seen three AM... We met on a Saturday night and had our first date that Monday, I left Tuesday morning for a two week trip to Key West and Long Island but we stayed in touch daily. Matt and I went on our second date as soon as I got back and the rest, as they say, is history. Matt jokes that all he wanted that night was a burger with his buddies, and I joke that I would have been perfectly content to continue with my notion that marriage is a hoax. In the end, I think we both got a better deal out of it. Needless to say I've changed my mind about marriage...and I'm pretty dead set on the whole "soulmate" thing too. As for Nicole, she gets the right to say "I told you so" for as long as she wants.