How We Met: Nick and I met during our sophomore year of college through a mutual friend. Our friendship developed slowly and we got to know each other better over many months. I thought he liked me, and I certainly knew I liked him, but he was shy. So one day after a squash match (that he clearly had let me win), I asked him, quite bluntly, if he liked food. He said that he did and I watched the light bulb go off in his head as he suggested that we go to get some together one day. Happily, this evolved into our first date. I studied French in high school and loved the culture and food so he decided to take me to Les Halles in lower Manhattan. When we got off on the subway, there was construction and we ended up wandering around for 30 minutes in the cold of January looking for John Street!! He was frustrated, but I thought it was a fun adventure and enjoyed that everything didn’t go perfectly. The rest of the night was wonderful. Unfortunately, neither of us was ready for a big commitment and it resulted in an “on and off” relationship every few months. Still, we always remained good friends when we weren’t together. There was always tremendous respect and care for one another, which is probably why we always came back to one another. After 2 years of flip flopping back and forth, we both realized how much we meant to each other and how meant for each other we really were. From that point of commitment, our relationship flourished. We started talking about “the future” and spending more time with each other’s families. Now for the exciting part.
how they asked: Nick asked my mom if he had her permission to marry me. Of course, neither of them could keep a secret and both ended up telling me (and joking that she had said no). At this point, I knew a proposal was coming, but I had no idea when. One Friday in April, I had scheduled to get my hair cut and to meet Nick after for our weekly sushi date. He said he made reservations at a formal sushi restaurant and met me after my hair appointment. The sushi was amazing, but when we were done, Nick looked at his watch and said we had to go. I asked where we were going and he said he made reservations for dessert. This was not typical and a red flag went up. I asked him where and he said it was a surprise. Now I really knew something was up. We took a cab and walked the last few blocks to this “mystery dessert place.” We were only a few steps away when I finally saw the sign (he was grateful for my lack of observation skills). I gasped and squeezed his hand tightly. He said “you’ve figured it out haven’t you?.” Of course I had! And it was absolutely perfect. We stopped in front of the same restaurant where everything had begun a little over 3 years ago. He took my hand and knelt down on one knee.
A couple who happened to be following us up the street exclaimed, “Oh I haven’t ever seen this happen before! This is so beautiful” and the woman began to cry. It was amusing, but Nick and I were too focused on one another to pay any attention to it. He spilled out beautiful words about how I had always pushed him to be a better person and more confident in himself and how he was confident that I was the only woman in the world he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Of course by the time he said “will you marry me?” I had tears rolling down my face and a huge smile. “YES” I exclaimed and pulled him up for a hug and a kiss. He pushed me back softly and said, “Here, look at the ring.” I had totally forgotten about that part, and OH MY was it stunning! Of course I couldn’t see it fully for several minutes until the tears had been wiped away. The spectators on the street congratulated us. We went inside our restaurant and celebrated with dessert and wine. A perfect proposal that was totally 100% us.
