I first really met Erica at the end of the Manhattan College activities fair in 2016. It was a warm fall day and we were each carrying a poster back to the storage room in the Leo Engineering building. She was wearing dad socks hiked up over her gray leggings, and an NYPD shirt, a frequent outfit of her’s. I remarked something about the dumb poster I was carrying, and we quickly connected over the fact that we were both from Queens. This wasn’t the first time we’d spoken, though, a couple times we’d made short sarcastic remarks to each other about making it to class on time or finding our way around the hallways. “Who is this girl?” I thought, after every chance encounter, “she seems special.” Back at the end of the activities fair, I found out that she frequently studies in the Fishbach room, a quiet study area with brown walls and floors, frequented by Manhattan College’s Civil Engineering students. I also discovered that she drives a robin-egg blue Volkswagen convertible, another motif in our relationship. Saying a few words to Erica that warm afternoon after the activities fair changed the trajectory of my life. The next 6 months were the most incredible rush. I didn’t know that I could be so head-over-heels for someone. I found any excuse to talk to her in the Fishbach room. I started going to the gym because I wanted to impress her. I got a C in my Heat Transfer course because I cut class to go on walks with her (she didn’t know I was cutting). We connected in a way I didn’t know you could connect with another person. It felt like I hit the fast forward button on my senior year of college because every day began with the anticipation that I might see her again. One of those days, I leaned over to my good friend John Paul in the Fishbach room and I said “I think I’m in love.” He gave me a look that said “you can’t be serious, it’s been a few months.” But 7 years later, I’m proud to say that I was right all along, and we love each other like nothing else. We can’t wait to share that love with you on our wedding day.