Carey and I first met in 2021 through two people who knew us both well:

my pharmacy school Friend, Jessica, and her husband, Joey, who happened to be Carey’s boss in the Air Force. At The time, I was attending pharmacy school at UTEP in El Paso, Texas, while Carey was Stationed just across the state line at Holloman Air Force Base in Alamogordo, New Mexico.

For the next few years, we existed somewhere between friendship and something more. There Was always a connection between us, but the timing never seemed quite right. Carey deployed To Kuwait, and life kept moving us in different directions. Looking back, we both knew there was Something there—we just weren’t ready for each other yet.

That finally changed on February 3, 2024.

We started dating during what was, for me, one of the most uncertain seasons of my life. I had Recently finished pharmacy school, but the path I had carefully planned for myself had fallen Apart. I was studying to take my pharmacy boards, figuring out what came next, and leaning Heavily on my family while I tried to find my footing. Then, almost as soon as Carey and I Realized this was something real, he received orders for a six-month deployment to Greece.

We said “I love you” for the first time on March 7. One month later, on April 6, I drove him to the Airport.

While Carey left for Greece, I moved home to St. Louis to be with my parents, study for my Boards, and rebuild. We expected six months apart to be one of the first great tests of our Relationship. Instead, it became one of the things that made us certain about it. Thousands of Miles apart, we became each other’s biggest supporters. We were both working towarD something—Carey overseas and me toward becoming a pharmacist—and somehow, thE distance never made us feel very far apart.

In September, I flew to Greece to visit him. On September 19, while we were there together, I Found out that I had passed the NAPLEX and would finally become a licensed pharmacist. It is Still one of our favorite memories: celebrating the end of one difficult chapter while standing Together at the beginning of another.

Carey returned home that fall, and on October 5, 2024, we finally got to start an ordinary life Together in El Paso—and we quickly learned just how wonderful “ordinary” could be. I began my First job as a hospital pharmacist, Carey returned to work in the Air Force, and eventually we Rented our first house together. We hosted Friendsgivings, attended weddings, baby showers, And birthday parties, and even tried our hand at matchmaking our coworkers in honor of Jess And Joey. Somewhere along the way, life became quieter, steadier, and happier. We weren't just Dating anymore; we were building a home and growing up together.

As we started talking seriously about our future, Carey decided it was time to pursue a dream He had carried for years: leaving the Air Force, finishing his education, and working toward Medical school. He completed his undergraduate degree and was selected for a six-month Internship at UChicago Medicine through a military transition program. That opportunity brought us to Chicago—and, in a turn of events we never could have planned, brought both of our Careers to the same place.

I was fortunate enough to join UChicago Medicine as a hospital pharmacist. Carey completed His military service and is now a Clinical Research Coordinator in the Genitourinary Oncology Clinic at uchicago Medicine while beginning his Post-baccalaureate studies. After years of different states, deployments, Airports, exams, and uncertain next steps, we somehow ended up as coworkers. (Sort of.)

Our relationship began at a time when neither of us had life completely figured out. Maybe that Is part of why it has meant so much. We have watched each other stumble, rebuild, take risks, Change directions, and become more ourselves. Together, we found a season of life filled with Stability, family, friendship, peace, and a lot of happiness. We often look at the life we have now And wonder how either of us would have gotten here without the other.

On April 3, 2027, we get to begin the next chapter in the city that was home for me long before it Became part of our story together. We’ll be married at The Shrine of St. Joseph and celebrate Afterward at St. Louis Union Station, surrounded by the family and friends who have supported Us through every version of ourselves.

For a relationship that spent years waiting for the right time, we couldn’t be happier that ours Finally came.