Gabriel and Julia were both working at HEB Lakeline in the throws of the 2020 chaos. Julia was 22 and started working there a few weeks after they shut the world down. Gabriel was 18 and had already been working there as a college job, and thus ended up training Julia on how to do the shopping for curbside orders. Luckily Julia doesn't base everything on first impressions, and didn't hold it against Gabriel that he had no patience whatsoever while training her. A few months went by, and by June 2020, they began to become work friends. A couple more months went by, and Gabriel made it very clear he was interested, to which Julia repeatedly responded "Call me when you can buy me a drink." (Gabriel was 18 at the time, and Julia was freshly 23).

Famous last words.

They ended up organizing a group trip to Zilker Park with friends from work, where Julia was impressed with how alert and protective Gabriel was of everyone in the group, but especially the dog that Julia was watching for a friend. Gabriel turned 19 soon after, and while Julia was still freaked out about the 4-year age difference, she gave him a chance after he came over to bake brownies with her and her sister-in-law, Natalie.

That night, Julia and Natalie stayed up late, drinking wine and trying to find something wrong with him, (other than his age) to no avail.

Gabriel took Julia on their first date on October 27, 2020.

A few minor details and a year of on and off later, the two parted ways in December of 2021, deciding not to talk for 6 months. During that 6 months, Gabriel moved back to New York and applied for the Police Academy. Julia remained in Austin, working at Emergent Order Foundation.

They reconnected over text as friends mid-way through 2022, and realizing how much they'd both grown while apart, began hanging out as friends once again when Gabriel moved back to Austin in August of 2022. After a lot of deep and meaningful conversations and months of putting friendship first, they decided to date again, with the intention of getting married.

Gabriel asked Julia to be his girlfriend (again) at Wurstfest on November 12, 2022, and they have been happily together since then.

On December 9th, 2023, Gabe dropped to one knee in Julia's apartment after they got back from Mass, right in front of their Christmas tree, and asked her to marry him.

For the only time in her whole life, Julia was speechless.