Our story starts in the fall of 2018, when I (Toby) met Abby for the first time at a Tabor choir rehearsal. That first year at Tabor was a mix of curiosity and confusion for us, because I was in a relationship while Abby was envisioning finding “the one” before her time at Tabor was over. Even though I wasn’t looking for anyone to date at the time, it was impossible not to notice Abby’s passionate love for Jesus and her intention to follow Him with her whole life. She was energetic about campus ministry, serious about getting involved on campus, talented in her various activities, and attractive in beauty and personality. Well into our sophomore year, Abby was surprised and excited to hear through the grapevine that I had been single since the start of school. The mutual connection and attraction between us began to grow, and I worked up the courage to ask her out. But before things could grow any further, it was clear that both of us had areas of our lives that needed serious work before a serious relationship would be possible. However, we both were still secretly hoping that one day it would work for us to have a second chance. That second chance could have come at the start of our junior year. I wanted to tell Abby that I had received healing and restoration from my past that I needed and that I was open to reconnecting with her. But before I could communicate this, Abby informed me that, for her, “the door was closed” on our relationship. After hearing this, I tried to not reveal my devastation and left the conversation confused and disheartened. What I didn’t know, however, is that, despite her words, Abby still desired a relationship with me and wanted me to continue pursuing her. This led to an epic game of cat and mouse for most of our junior year. At times, I felt like I might be winning her over, while at other times I felt like “the door was (still) closed.” Apparently, I needed a class in female attraction symptoms because Abby was trying desperately to make me pursue her. But instead of being the hero of the romance novel, I was like a colorblind person playing hide and seek with a chameleon. It wasn’t until April of 2021 that my proverbial colorblindness was cured, and I had the biggest “Aha!” moment of my life. It took a pep talk from one of our track coaches for me to recognize the signals Abby was sending, and after wrestling with my lingering insecurities for a couple days, I asked Abby out for our second “first date.” After the awkwardness of meeting each other’s families for the second time, our relationship started to grow before I left on an overseas mission trip for the entire summer. This proved to be the most trying time of our relationship, but looking back we can see God’s hand all over this time. A few weeks after I returned home, we started our senior year at Tabor, and the more time we spent together the closer we became. We did homework together, went on dates, ate in the Caf together, took trips to Oklahoma and Arkansas to see family, and cheered for each other in cross country and track. After Christmas, we started to seriously discuss where our relationship was going, and engagement and marriage entered the picture. It wasn’t always happy and perfect, but we began to understand one another and liked what we saw. By the time of graduation, Abby was “ready to be a fiancée,” and we were both anxiously waiting engagement. I proposed to Abby on August 19, 2022, and she said yes! We celebrated with a small group of close friends and family that evening, and we began to spread the news that June 24 would be the wedding day. Engagement has brought unique challenges to our relationship, but it has also brought grand joy and anticipation. We can hardly wait to come home to each other every day and begin cultivating a life together that honors God, encourages others, and reflects the selfless, endless love of Jesus in every way.