The year is 2015. It is Thanksgiving Eve and Philadelphia bars are packed with over-imbibing 20-somethings. Emily walks into an upscale cocktail bar, Howl at the Moon, with a group of girlfriends. They dance to Uptown Funk and revel in what a great year pop music is having. Emily sips from one of seven straws placed inside a “fish bowl” cocktail, a neon drink aptly named, as its container is large enough to be mistaken for an aquarium. She locks eyes with the man sipping across from her. “Is that… Ben Grossman?”

Memories flood back to her. Being asked out in front of her middle school locker. A first date at Renato’s pizza shop. An oversized teddy bear and a faux diamond necklace on Valentine’s Day. Emily and Ben had “dated” in sixth grade. He was her first boyfriend, until she remembered that she was 12 and didn’t have much use for a boyfriend. This history gave Emily and Ben much to talk about that night. They began dating sometime soon after.

They moved to Boston while Ben attended law school and returned to Philly in 2020 where they recently bought a house together. They got engaged while visiting France in 2022 and are looking forward to getting married this fall.