On our first day of college, we met in front of Belden Hall. Both extremely anxious to meet new people and take on new adventures, we reluctantly participated in orientation activities. We finally had the chance to introduce ourselves, saying our first words to each other through a corny ice breaker. And, instantly we both knew we’d met someone we wanted to get to know a bit more.

Throughout freshman year we forged an unbreakable friendship. Constantly meeting up between classes, doing homework together; although, it was mostly Mike doing Emily’s homework; and spending countless hours experiencing the college life.

When it came time to leave for the summer, our goodbyes to each other were the hardest of all. We had created so many great memories in just a small amount of time, it was hard to leave each other behind for a few short months.

But… like they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder. When it came time to return for Sophomore year, we couldn’t help but embrace each other with the warmest smiles and laughter. Not shortly after we realized our friendship was so much more (a point our friends say was so obvious to everyone but us)

In October of 2018, we began dating. Creating new memories as a couple. Spending the next winter and summer breaks traveling to be with one another.

In the latter half of our Junior year, we suddenly were hit with an incredible challenge… COVID. By now, we had realized that our best times were the ones we shared together, and spending time apart was simply not an option.

Forced to return home from college, we began traveling to and from each of our houses every weekend, just to spend 48 hours together. After commuting for the better part of two years, we both wanted to branch out into the new world, and eventually decided on a move to Hoboken.

When we first moved to Hoboken we were living apart, but we had finally made the distance shorter. And, after a year we decided it was time to find a place of our own. Shortly after, Mike finally decided to pop the question. And, now the rest is history!