Gavin and Ari met in July of 2018 at the age of fourteen. They became almost immediate friends, bonding over shared music and book tastes, building a fast friendship and strong connection. At one point, Gavin even thought he was being pranked and set up by his friends with how much him and Ari had in common.

That fall, they both began attending Grants Pass High School as freshmen accompanied by friends and siblings. Throughout high school they enjoyed getting to participate together in football games, dances, and extracurriculars including cross country and track. From the beginning, they were pretty inseparable as close friends.

Gavin and Ari remained close friends until they both turned sixteen during their sophomore year of high school and happily began dating. Their relationship and love for each other grew quickly after the strong foundation of nearly two years of friendship and laughter they'd built.

Despite the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as Ari's family relocating to Utah brought during their high school years, they were able to remain close and still share many special moments together. This included being able to attend senior prom and both graduating early from high schools in different states, keeping their bond strong the whole way.

After both making the decision to graduate high school early, Gavin and Ari were able to spend a wonderful year together attending college at Brigham Young University Idaho in Rexburg after living in separate states for a full year. They relished their time together bonding with new friends and deepening their relationship even more.

In winter of 2023 Gavin proposed to Ari, asking her to marry him and kneeling down on the snowy and frozen surface of Bear Lake in Utah. She of course said yes, and after years of loving each other and waiting to be together, including nearly two years total of living far apart, they were completely overjoyed to now start planning their future together.

On May 21st 2023, Gavin and Ari were married on the beautiful Oregon coast. They honored their love by marrying in an intimate Brookings chapel, "Capella by the sea", which was constructed by a widower to honor his love for his late wife and create a special place for many more couples in turn to exchange vows and promises to each other. The new Mr. And Mrs. Johnston are ecstatic to now be husband and wife, and cannot wait to share their love and begin to build their life together.