Celia and John first crossed paths on August 3rd, 2019, at a friend’s housewarming party—held, by fate or chance, in the same apartment complex where they now live together.

Their connection deepened during a brief Dungeons & Dragons campaign, where they discovered a shared love for stories, laughter, and a bit of magic.

In early January 2020, John worked up the courage to ask Celia out—on a quiet stairwell, heart pounding.

Their first date was simple, sweet, and unforgettable: tacos followed by a visit to one of Celia’s favorite places—a cozy, familiar bookstore. As the world began to change in March 2020, they chose to face it together, deciding to quarantine side by side. That decision led to moving in together officially in November of the same year, and by July 2021, they’d ventured out and picked a place to call home together.

Then, in November 2021, John brought Celia back to that beloved bookstore from their first date. In the fiction aisle, with two dear friends quietly watching nearby, he knelt down and asked her to begin the next chapter of their lives together. Celia, thinking he had stumbled, knelt down too—before realizing what was happening. Through laughter and happy tears, she said yes.

With love, laughter, and a lifetime ahead, the next chapter begins ....