My name is Lauren Elizabeth Bloom, soon to be Lauren Elizabeth Magrecke. Although this is a time of uncertainty for many Americans and citizens across the globe, there is one thing that I am 100% certain of, I have found the person that I want to grow old with. I am fortunate enough to say that I am truly in love with my best friend.

Brad and my journey began 6 years ago in a small town called Winona, Minnesota. We were both attending Winona State University hoping to obtain a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and Human Resources. We only had one class together, but had mutual friend groups. It was not hard to develop a crush on Brad. He was polite, down-to-earth, and genuine. You don't typically find guys like this in college that are single. It was just my luck to find out, he had a girlfriend.

Over the next couple months, our friendship grew. Through group projects and study sessions, I knew Brad was the kind of man that I wanted to be with someday. Out of the blue, my roommates and I were informed that Brad and his girlfriend had broken up. As excited as I was that he was now on the market, I didn't want to jeopardize our friendship. A few weeks before Graduation, our friend group was at the favorite local bar, ZaZa's. I was trying to help Brad pick up a new girl because I was the best lady friend /wing woman ever. I had asked him to describe what type of girl he was looking for, and he described a woman that fit my description. I jokingly stated he was looking for a girl just like me. And, to my surprise, he agreed with me.

A few weeks later, Brad and my best friends graduated college and left me behind to finish my Senior year. Since we had mutual friends, I knew the girls already approved of him. So, I truly believed that Brad would be my secret crush forever, the "one" that got away.

Fast forward a couple months later, Brad had reached out to me and as we were catching up, he asked me to attend a wedding with him as his date. Of course, I said yes. What I found out that night, changed my life forever. Who knew... this entire time, Brad had a crush on me. From then, our relationship began, our romance blossomed, and our love grew from just a crush to soulmates forever. After graduation, I moved to Wausau to start our journey together, officially.