We met on the first week of college in 2014. There was an open door night to get to know your neighbors. Emma was cracking jokes in the elevator to her roommate at the time. The roommate was not amused, but David actually laughed. He introduced himself to Emma. After this, Emma completely forgot this interaction but would see this guy around the dorm who would always say hello to her by name. It was starting to bother her that she had no idea who this guy was and he was pretty cute… Finally, she figured out they had a few friends in common and got one of them to introduce us. Our first real conversation, we chatted for over an hour in the hallway of the dorm, bonding over shared love of folk music and Tarantino movies. By the time Emma got back to her room, David had “slid into those DM’s” and left a Facebook message with his phone number and a Shakey Graves music video—the same artist we had bonded over. Smooth!

We were fast friends and became quickly inseparable after this: binging cartoons, going to concerts, walks to the local park swing set, and eating at the dining hall together every day. We would give each other flash drives full of music for each other (modern mix tapes?) We would learn to play our favorite songs together, Emma on the dorm lobby piano and David playing his guitar. Emma was head over heels and wasn’t being subtle about it. But sometimes finding someone you connect with so deeply can be intimidating at only 18-years-old. David was worried that if we started dating, if it didn’t go well, we’d lose this profound friendship. He told Emma that we should just be friends. She was surprised how much she was heartbroken. She decided to take the summer to recoup and get some space.

She failed. Did we maintain any semblance of distance while we got over it? No, of course not. We texted constantly from the minute we woke up til “goodnight” when we were going to bed. So naturally, a little over two months into the summer, David called Emma and admitted it was a huge mistake to try to be just friends. That was the first time David said he loved her (he said it first!)

Emma begged her parents to go to San Antonio a few days before school started that year. David picked her up and we went to his hometown of Castroville. We went on our first real official date, Castroville-style, complete with Bush’s Fried Chicken, Dairy Queen dippy cones, and stolen kisses on the park bench.

Together we faced quinoa-chili-fueled final exams and final reviews, graduations, and a puppy adoption with potty training. We survived the devastating loss of Emma’s father, a cross-country move to Seattle, the grad school weed-out years, and quarantining together. There were also new friends, new family members, travel, and new experiences. We supported each other fully throughout. Our upcoming wedding date is 10 years to the day that David and Emma finally admitted they were in love and wanted to see where it would go. Soon, we get to say “I do” and see where it goes!