Our story began at Boston University - specifically in an apartment building at 6 Buswell Street. Through a series of happenstances, Melissa and her roommates became friends with the boys in the apartment next door, who happened to be friends with Dylan (whose apartment also happened to be directly above Melissa’s). After Dylan came out of hibernation at the end of the fall semester- thanks to the relief of getting a full-time job - we met and kept hanging out at our mutual friend's apartment parties.

Our mutual interest became pretty clear early on, and as the year went on, we spent more time together and grew closer. Dylan graduated, and we spent the summer in different cities - Melissa working in Boston and Dylan back home in Lombard, IL, with plans to return to Boston full-time in the fall. But that summer in 2018, we made our relationship official, and we’ve been taking on the world together ever since.

Over the years, we’ve been there for each other through Melissa earning her PhD, the start and end of Dylan’s amateur DJ career, a three-day, two-night backpacking trip in the Smoky Mountains that Dylan feared might turn Melissa off hiking forever, watching the Chicago Bears every Sunday (usually to Dylan's disappointment), several visits with each other’s families, five apartments, and eventually a move from Boston to DC. After our move, because our life was too calm and quiet, we got our crazy Golden Retriever puppy, Rooster.

In May of 2025, while back in Boston for a visit, we grabbed coffee at our favorite coffee shop and took a walk through the Boston Public Garden, where Dylan proposed. Melissa, of course, said yes—officially bringing our days as just boyfriend and girlfriend to a close.

In our time together, we’ve built a life filled with love, laughter, support, and growth, and we can’t wait to officially take each other off the market and celebrate with you all!