St. Patrick's Day, 2023. A clear Friday evening, temp in the mid 40s. In a rare turn of events, Ray's friend Justin had convinced him to go out for St. Patrick's Day. They pass an Irish Pub in Wayland Square (Providence). Seeing a crowd spilling out into the street, they decide the true St. Patrick's Day experience isn't worth it. Instead, they enter Diego's, a Mexican restaurant and bar on the same street, for a much more relaxed dinner and drink. Julie had been going out with her friend Sam annually for St. Patrick's Day in honor of Sam's Irish grandmother. This year was different because it was a Friday, Julie told her family on a FaceTime call before she departed. She'd thought about wearing an oversized green T-shirt, but at the last minute decided on a cute green dress and some makeup. She joked to her family, "who knows...maybe I'll meet my Irish prince charming tonight!" The two ladies ride over to Wayland Square, where they enter a *packed* Irish pub and migrate to the bar for a compulsory Guinness ale. Above the din, they can make out the tunes of a live fiddler in the corner. Sam gestures to some of the tables near the fiddler. "Do you think they'll be finishing their meals anytime soon?" she asks Julie. "There's no way," Julie replies. "They've probably been here since 4. Look, it's almost 9. Let's finish these beers and get some food before all the kitchens close." So the two girls wander down the street until they find something they'd both enjoy. Mexican food! The host tells Julie and Sam there are two seats available at the bar. As the ladies approach the bar, they do, in fact, observe 2 open seats. However, said seats are on either side of two gentlemen sitting right in the middle. "Well, there's 2 seats," Ray and Justin hear behind them, "but they're not next to each other... if only there was a way we could sit together!" The two men exchange a knowing glance, get up, and shift 1 spot to the right. Julie and Sam grin at the success of their hint-dropping and take seats at the bar, as Ray hands Julie his menu. The ladies proceed to dive into their own personal conversation like they always do when they're out and about. At some point, a very drunk young man, dressed head-to-toe in a homemade Larry Bird uniform, stumbles in to the bar area loudly enough to get many people's attention. He decides to try to hit on Sam by teasing her, telling her that her sweater is the wrong color green. This tactic, and other strategies that follow, fail miserably. Julie and Sam take the opportunity to give this fella a hard time in return, much to the entertainment of Ray and Justin. After Larry Bird retreats, the 4 of them begin to talk and laugh as a group. Suddenly, another drunk young man, this one wearing a plaid collared shirt and a fleece vest, stumbles into the bar. "Bartender!" he exclaims, "I need a shot and beer, stat! I just saw my ex-girlfriend with a new man!" The bartender turns to the man, unfazed. "So, the regular?" she asks. Sam, Julie, Ray, and Justin chuckle from across the bar. Sam, sitting diagonal from the heartbroken man, starts to interview him. We learn he's a dentist, he loves trivia, and this ex-girlfriend just left him last week because she was too busy with school. "Or," Sam postulates to the dentist, "Was she just not that into you?" Julie, feeling less interested in playing therapist, turns to Ray and strikes up conversation with him. She learns he also grew up part of his life in southeastern PA! The conversation flows seamlessly and covers many topics. After they'd all signed their checks, Sam whispers to Julie, "Are you going to ask him for his number? He seems like a good egg!" "I'm not going to do that!" Julie replies, "He's definitely attractive, and we really hit it off, but if he's interested he'll ask me." Much to her surprise, as she turns around to grab her coat, Ray asks for her number! And within 48 hours, he asks if he can take her on a date that week. The rest is history!