Way back in 2011, we met in Pierre's apartment at UCLA—home to four boys and definitely a few cockroaches. Over many Westwood wanders, study sessions, and perhaps a few drinking games, we developed a strong friendship and occasionally hazy memories of fun in the LA sun.

When Pierre invited Elana to a casual hangout multi-phase date on Valentine's Day, not even SF fog could hide the spark. Pierre fed that spark for six months bussing from LA on the weekends. Thankfully, Elana helped him land a new job and apartment (not in the Tenderloin, after some convincing). We began our lives together with a tiny budget and a lot of sandwiches, learning to navigate the ups and downs on the hilly streets of San Francisco.

Once we got our feet under us, they started itching to explore. We traveled from Santorini to Sapporo, enjoying good food, culture and company. Inspired to eat more than sandwiches, Elana dragged Pierre to cooking classes, and we shared our new skills with friends at our Tasty Thursday dinner parties. We learned to support each other—through career changes, natural disasters, and bad haircuts—ready for the next adventure together.

Our hair care (and sanity) were truly tested during COVID. We retreated to a tiny town on the California coast where there are more deer than people. After months in isolation and successfully not murdering each other, it reinforced that we had built something strong. Elana grew kale, Pierre grew a Fabio mane, and we both grew more certain that we could weather whatever storms came our way.

Trading in coastal cliffs for the concrete jungle, we moved to NYC with the promise of great food and a pool in the building. Since, we've been enjoying (almost) all the city has to offer—from arts to culture to the three weeks a year it's not sweltering or freezing. Along the way, we've made new friends, eaten an absurd amount of pizza, and learned that if we can make it here, we can make it anywhere—as long as the G is actually running.

Celebrating 10 years together, we traveled to French Polynesia where we got scuba certified in three days and ridiculously sunburned in five minutes. Pierre had convinced Elana he wasn't going to propose, but was oddly eager to get to a romantic beach before sunset the last night. Pierre took a knee in the shallow surf as the sky exploded into color, and we made official what we'd known for a while: that we'd share (cheesy) magical moments for the rest of our lives.