It was a random day while I was working a footwear shift at Dick's Sporting Goods. My manager called out and since I was new, I couldn't be left alone in my department. The store manager called Ethan to come sub for my Footwear manager. As soon as I saw him, I was starstruck. I really was not that confident back then, but something came over me and I started flirting with him ASAP. I didn’t even know how to flirt so I would bump into him walking out of the back to the footwear floor. I would also pretend to not be able to reach shoes on the top rack (we literally had stepping stools and I DEFINITELY could reach them). I would just find any and every excuse to see him or talk to him or play around with him. He made me feel so giddy and giggly and I hated and loved it at the same time.

I knew I had to shoot my shot because he was shy and would not ask me out no matter how many times I bumped into him. I got his number from my manager to ask him "to take my shift" and even then, when I texted him, he did not ask me out. I almost gave up (I needed to preserve some pride) until he found me on Instagram and tried to friend me. My Instagram is NOT easy to find since I use a fake last name so I DM'ed him and finally asked him to meet me for coffee.

We went for coffee at Roots Coffeehouse and the rest is history.

I don't remember the exact day, but I had started picking up more shifts because I wanted to impress management so that I could move up in the company (Dick's Sporting Goods).

Truthfully, I wanted to learn more about the other departments in the store. When the manager for Footwear needed a day off, I was absolutely going to take that shift. There was a girl with dark hair and highlights who was really mysterious. This was during COVID, so we had masks on I couldn't really gauge how beautiful she was so I was really intrigued to see her without her mask.

A couple of shifts in she would consistently bump into me, it didn't matter if we had 10 feet of space she always bumped into me, honestly, I didn't realize she was flirting at first...

There was one specific day when it was really slow, and I was talking with a co-worker about how I had started a TikTok account and had gained a whopping 40,000 followers. She came over, and I was swiping through my phone. She saw a picture of me. I can't remember exactly what she said, but I think she made fun of me. I said, 'Well, let me see you,' and she took off her mask. I was hooked from there on.

I knew I loved him, but any realistic couple knows that love is not enough. You need more than love, you need consistent effort, love, commitment, understanding, patience, etc.

Knowing this, I struggled with the idea of knowing whether he was the one. I don't think it's real when people say "oh, you just know" and I struggled a lot with this as time went on. Especially because I didn't know if I had already felt the "you know" moment. I kept asking married couples how they knew and every time I got the same answer.

It's not until someone told me that if I kept waiting to feel the "you know" moment that every married couple was saying, I was going to wait a lifetime and if that was my only determinant of whether I wanted to be Ethan's wife, then it wasn't even a good reason to marry him. Then she asked me why I would even marry Ethan. It was then that I snapped out of my trance of fear and thought of all the handwritten letters, the flowers, the smaller moments of patience and love that he shows me every single day even after 4 years. I had no reason to doubt that he was made for me and I was made for him. I almost felt ridiculous for doubting how perfectly our imperfections were made for each other.

I had no doubt that I would show up for him and he would show up for me every day for the rest of our lives. I just needed to step outside of my head and fear and see everything for what it truly was.

(Currently tearing up as I write this, so bear with me)

Gisel is unlike anybody I have ever met before. Before I can tell you how I knew she was the one, I have to give you some context.

I knew I wanted her to be my girlfriend very, very early—almost too early in people's eyes. But I truly believe that waiting for a societal timeline gets you nowhere when you know in your heart.

When I asked her to be my girlfriend on November 16th, 2020, we started trying to pick up the same shifts at Dick's Sporting Goods every day, every week, and every month. One specific time, she even picked up the same shift as me, but it was a truck day and it started at 4:00 a.m. For our break, we went to Starbucks, and while we were in line, for some reason, I just asked her to kiss me. That was our first kiss.

From that moment and over the last four years, she has cared for me like I've never been cared for in my life. She learned how to love me through working together, then moving closer to her and moving in with her brother, still loving me as I want to be loved. After quitting Dick's and taking on a monumental shift in my life, she continued to be there for me and show up. Then, starting my business with the early mornings, the long nights, and everything in between, sacrificing time together—she still showed up and loved me how I needed to be loved.

So, I say this: there was no specific moment. She shows up, cares for me, and loves me every single day. And when she doesn't, I pick up the slack because some days we just need a moment to ourselves. It's a collection of these moments over the last four years that has truly shown me that she is the one for me.