It all started with our sweet dog, Tucker. I was walking Tucker one afternoon in the parking lot when I first met Derek. We lived at the same apartment complex, so we had seen each other before; however, at the time we both weren't looking for a relationship. Derek was with Andre (a close friend of Derek's) and ran across the parking lot, which caught me by surprise. He introduced himself, asked me what my name was, and soon after started talking about a few things we had in common- we are both foodies and have a connection to the education field (his sisters and cousins are teachers). After talking for a while, Derek asked me if I wanted to grab a bite to eat. Thinking nothing of it (mind you, I wasn't interested in dating at the time), I said SURE with the biggest smile! Then he asked for my number and it all clicked. He was asking me out on a date! While I was freaking out, Derek was looking for his phone to grab my number but to his surprise he didn't have it. I took advantage of the fact that he didn't have his phone and told him that he would just have to catch me another time!

Fast forward a few days later, after I had just returned from a run, I saw Derek again. To my surprise, Derek pulled into the parking lot. He told me that he had his phone, so I gladly gave him my number. After what seemed like 3 weeks (Derek says it was only a few days), he contacted me to set up our first date. He asked me if I liked comedy and said that we were going to a comedy show. Derek picked me up on Friday night and we went to an amateur Christian comedy show. It was funny but Derek was a little flustered because it lasted longer than expected. Afterwards we drove a restaurant, but it was closed so we opted for another one. We decided on Destihl in Downtown Champaign. We had a wonderful dinner and both didn't want the date to end there, so we went out for drinks. We talked for hours until in the cocktail lounge until we both grew tired. We enjoyed the date so much that we went on a second date the next day....and the rest is history! We have been inseparable and madly in love ever since. We absolutely cannot wait to spend the rest of our lives together!