We met in the late 90s in our tweens through a mailing list, where we connected over a shared love of Sailor Moon. It's been 25 years! As we grew from penpals to best friends, we managed to convince our families that we should be allowed to meet in person. At 15, Zeb flew across the country in a red suede trench coat and Zach nearly knocked him over with a hug the minute he stepped out of the plane -- that was back when folks could meet arrivals at the gate!

Though we lived across the country from one another and went to different universities, we maintained our closeness online and over the phone, with regular late-night chats into the small hours. We grew up together, despite the physical distance between us. Those 12 years of friendship bloomed into mutual admiration and off-again, on-again romance between 2007 and 2009, but in 2010 Zach moved to help Zeb out of Florida, where he was in graduate school as his health took a turn for the worse. by 2011, we were back in California and Zeb's health was better managed. It's hard to believe sometimes that we've been together more of our lives than we spent apart.

We've been a couple for 15 years now, but we were always committed to our relationship, whether it was friendship or something more. It's a joy to live together as beloveds, and we're excited to take this new step with the family we're building together. We're getting married!!