Allison's Version

I remember "meeting" Jacob for the first time in 7th grade at Coppinville Jr. High in the year 2012-13. I would always see him in the hallway walking behind me to class. That is when we made our first connection and would always say: " hey stalker" to each other when we would see each other in the hallway. We also had a couple of classes together that year, but I barely remember that. Jacob remembers more of that than I do; as you will read below. Fast forward, we graduated from Enterprise High School in 2019. I remember Jacob was in the top 10 in our class and he was on stage at graduation. After that, I pretty much forgot about him. We went to different colleges, we followed each other on social media, but that was it. Fast forward some more to May 2020. On May 11, Jacob randomly texted me to check and see how I was doing after his family saw me at Target. Soon after, I was working a shift at Hook's BBQ and here comes Jacob and his Dad walking in. I saw him from the kitchen and waved to him. He waved back. I made their order and later went out to say hi to them. And that folks is how this all started! Shortly after the reuniting at Hook's, Jacob and I ended up talking to each other every day and then started to hang out as "buddies." We went bowling, to eat at restaurants, to the movies, to church, and more. One of our favorite memories is the time we went to see Jurassic Park at Clark Cinemas in Enterprise. That day it just so happened to start storming real bad just as our movie was starting. Then all of a sudden the lights went out and movie turned off a few minutes after it had started. Us and a few other people in the theater just sat there in the dark for a while until employees came and told us we had to leave. Fun fact: because of that event, Jacob and I bond over dinosaurs and I will be walking down the aisle to the Jurassic Park theme (piano version). Anyways, at this point in time Jacob was only home for the summer and would be going back to UA for school and I would be starting the PTA program at WCC soon. I could tell he was "catching feelings," but I wanted to stay "buddies" so I could focus on school and so we wouldn't have to deal with long distance. After a fun summer of hanging out as "buddies" and growing closer as friends, it was time for Jacob to go back to school. Can you guess what happened? I ended up realizing I caught feelings too and did not want to live without him! I realized I didn't want to go through this crazy life without Jacob by my side. He became my best friend and I knew I wanted to be with him forever and be his wife. We officially started dating on September 4, 2020. We ended up having a long distance relationship the first 10 months of our relationship. He then moved back home and started school at Troy for Electrical Engineering Technology (yay no more long distance!) Now we have been happily dating for over 3 years, engaged for almost 1 year, & cant wait to get married soon!!

Jacob's Version

I remember meeting Ally for the first time in 7th grade at Coppinville Jr High. We had a few classes together back to back to back to start off every day and somehow or another she noticed I’d be following her to said classes and we started joking around and whoever would get to class first would call the other one a “stalker” for following them. She barely remembers all of that, but I do because at the time it was one of the highlights of my day and, something just felt different about it. Fast forward to 8th grade we went from having half of our classes together to none and I fell out of touch with her but one thing I do remember is her being at my first real bowling tournament in Dothan. She was there to watch our friend Spencer, but seeing how we were on the same lane she was technically there and she sat next to my dad. But after that we went down different paths and never really had any classes or anything together in high school so we drifted apart and never really saw each other or talked again. Until COVID hit and in May 2020 me and my family had gone to Target and my mom mentioned that she thought she had seen Allison Pickett that I graduated with. I thought that was kind of odd she recognized her even though I couldn’t remember them ever meeting. Then it got me wondering how Ally was doing with the world being as crazy as it was and so I texted her (yes, I still had her number since middle school). We talked a few times and she mentioned that she worked at Hook’s BBQ in Enterprise and so one day me and my dad went to go get some dinner to take home for our family and she came out and hugged me and said hi and I’ll never forget the joy in her smile. She wrote “Made with love” on all of our Togo boxes and I remember thinking I wanted to get to know her better. Not long after that we started talking and have been talking every day since. Around the end of June one night I remember laying in bed and realizing that I needed to have her and her joy and sweetness in my life, whether it be as a girlfriend or a “buddy” (as we called each other then). I knew she was different and I started to catch feelings. We had a great summer in the midst of a global pandemic and finally right before I went back to school she admitted that she had feelings for me too in the Destin Wendy’s drive thru, but we decided to stay friends and see how the long distance would change things. It wasn’t long after I went back to school that we decided that we needed each other and we would make anything work and we waited to start dating until I could ask her in person. Finally, on September 4, 2020, I asked her to be my first and only girlfriend and the rest is history. Little did I know at the time, but God truly did put her in my life when I needed it most. That second year of college was rough, and I realized what I thought I wanted to do actually wasn’t quite what I really wanted. It was rough and I was burnt out and failed classes for the first time in my life and although academics was where I found my worth throughout high school, because of this I now felt worthless. But, thankfully I had the greatest friend and gift from above that I have ever known to help me through it and her love for me reminded me of who I am and her joy radiated through my life. That’s how I knew we were meant to be. Even from 200 miles away, she was saving me. I became a better Christian and, at least in my eyes, a better person and she loved me even at my lowest point in life and I know that we can get through anything together. After a lot of prayer I felt God calling me home to Enterprise and to move my studies to Troy. I couldn’t be happier with the doors He has opened for me, and the opportunities He has given me. I’ve been so grateful to have this wonderful woman by my side through it all and I can’t wait to spend the rest of our lives together!