Although our relationship didn’t begin until November 2022, our story started a bit earlier. In the spring of 2022, Hope was on her final clinical rotation for PT school down in DC. Hoping to learn more about the city and decide whether she wanted to move there, her close childhood friend Gaby shared Josh’s contact information. Gaby knew Josh from college and knew he lived in the area. Text messages were exchanged, but we didn’t meet in person until after Hope officially moved to DC.

When Gaby was visiting the DMV area with her brother to tour colleges, she insisted that the two of us finally meet and get the friendship rolling. During the meal, there was a point when Hope and Josh were left to their own devices—and rather than sit in awkward silence, Hope started asking questions and chatting Josh’s ear off.

A few days later, Josh invited Hope to trivia night with some of his friends. On the drive over, Josh played his “random music” playlist, which included everything from Ke$ha and Hannah Montana to country and heavy metal. Neither of us actually paid much attention to trivia; instead, we spent the night talking and laughing together.

Over the next week, we texted intermittently and then made plans to watch the Hannah Montana movie—since Josh’s playlist had reminded us it had been years since either of us had seen it. From that night on, we haven’t stopped hanging out, exploring, and making memories together.

We’ve loved getting to experience life side by side so far, and we’re beyond excited to see what the future holds. We can’t wait to celebrate this next chapter with all of you!