Julia and James first met through mutual friends (thanks Jake & Kath!) at the beginning of 2021 — right in that strange, in-between stage of the pandemic when everyone was cautiously starting to socialize again. Julia had just graduated from nursing school and was figuring out her next steps, while James had recently started his job with the government and was still getting used to the whole “working from home” life. Neither of them were really expecting anything big to come out of a small, casual hangout… but fate (and a few very determined friends) had other ideas. They first met at their friend’s house — masks, hand sanitizer, and all — and instantly hit it off. What started as light conversation turned into hours of laughing, teasing, and realizing how easy it was to talk to each other. Even though the world still felt a little uncertain, being around each other somehow made everything lighter. After that night, they found themselves looking for excuses to hang out again. Coffee/tea runs turned into long walks, “quick” dinners turned into late nights talking, and before long, it was clear this was something special.