It all started one night when I was in full panic mode, cramming for a chemistry final. My friend Kathryn, who was great at solving problems—just not chemistry ones—suggested we head to the general chemistry room for some help. She knew this “really smart guy” named Michael who might save us. Spoiler alert: Michael was no help. He made jokes, threw Skittles at me while I was trying to focus, and generally proved to be more of a distraction than a tutor. (I later learned he went back to his dorm at about 2am to start studying for our 8am final. He got an A+ on that test. I’m still mad about that.)

The next time I saw Michael was the following year, thanks to our mutual friend Trevor. Trevor, in a masterful attempt to date me, roped Michael into being his wingman. The grand plan involved dragging us to the front row of our Genetics class, where Trevor reintroduced us. Over the next few months, Michael and I became inseparable. We realized that our dorm rooms in Sienna Terzo were just down the hall from each other, and Trevor soon declared Michael the world’s worst wingman—because, well, Michael and I spent all our time together, studying, eating, and playing Mario Kart... and we kind of forgot about Trevor. Sorry, Trevor (love you, though).

Fast forward to the Solar Eclipse weekend of 2017 at Kathryn Haag's family's farm. Between watching the eclipse, celebrating, and consuming a questionable amount of “Country Smash,” I realized I had feelings for Michael. The funny thing is, neither of us actually confessed our feelings in a normal way. After watching Crazy, Stupid, Love, we just looked at each other, kissed, and he fell in love with me (he may tell the story a little differently). Not long after, Michael and I had a candlelit picnic at Anchorage Trail, and he asked me to be his girlfriend. A week later, I broke up with him (not my best decision.)

Then came January, and fate, in the form of a snowstorm, stepped in. We were snowed in at Dr. Lee Schmidt’s house, where an abundance of what he calls "truth serum" (aka margaritas), endless rounds of Mario Kart, and some very wise advice from Dr. Schmidt himself helped us reconcile. We've been inseparable ever since.

We both graduated from Bellarmine in 2019 and moved to Memphis, TN, where Michael began dental school and I began a Ph.D. program. Memphis became our home away from home and brought us even closer. We adopted two cats and a crazy, beautiful dog named Sienna (named after our Bellarmine dorms), watched way too much Supernatural, battled bed bugs, survived apartment floods and apartment rats, made countless memories during snow days, and more. He is my very best friend.

After seven wonderful, chaotic, adventure-filled years, Michael proposed at the Anchorage Trail, the site of our first official date. And now, we can’t wait to celebrate the next chapter of our story with all of you!