Mathis and Stephanie first met in early 2019 on a chilly winter night, seated around the table of a hibachi grill in Greenville, South Carolina. Stephanie, who had been settling back into the Upstate after a brief time in Boston, was out to a birthday dinner with friends. Mathis, having recently moved to Greenville after graduation, was reluctantly convinced by a co-worker to attend a birthday dinner of someone he didn’t even know.

To say that Stephanie and Mathis actually met that evening would be a bit of an exaggeration. In fact, there was no formal introduction between them. A more accurate account of this night is better equated to Stephanie wondering how a random guy, who seemingly no one in the group knew, ended up there to begin with, and Mathis being captivated by the breathtakingly beautiful girl with striking red hair on the other side of the table (Stephanie’s POV: there was no actual recollection of Mathis being in attendance). Unfortunately, that’s about all that can be said for their first interaction, however, the spark of the onion tower on the hibachi grill that night was foreshadowing of what would soon become so much more.

Over the course of that next year, Mathis and Stephanie’s paths crossed sparingly. It turns out that they both worked at TTI, but in an office of nearly 1,000 people, while also working in different functions and on different brands, their worlds couldn’t have seemed farther apart. Occasionally they would see each other in passing around the office but Mathis could never seem to find a way to strike up a conversation with Stephanie, nor did she ever seem too intrigued by that prospect.

However, as 2019 came to an end and the calendar flipped over to 2020, it was through mutual friends, Logan and Tyler, who started to date, that Stephanie and Mathis finally got the opportunity to know each other beyond just an occasional passing in the hallway at work. What started as a friendship (with a hint of a crush) comprising of long texts, seeking out advice and guidance (including Mathis asking Stephanie for advice about another girl he was interested in), and poking fun at one another, quickly blossomed into something much more. Then, when COVID hit and everyone in the world seemed to be pushed away from one another, Stephanie and Mathis found themselves spending many days (probably too many) together. Through this, their shared interest in one another, and taco bell, become increasingly apparent, marking the true beginning of their love story.

Fast forward one year of dating, just as the world was coming out of COVID lockdowns, Mathis was offered a job in London with TTI that Stephanie soon found out was a 3-year contract. There was an initial hesitation to commit to a 3-year long distance relationship, especially one that would see them in different countries, but they decided that what they had was worth fighting for. Over the course of the next 3 years, Stephanie and Mathis not only kept their long-distance relationship strong but used it as an opportunity to see the world together. With Stephanie being able to spend prolonged periods working from London, the two were able to brave the cold, dreary and dark London winters together by seeking out the coziest of coffee shops and trendiest of cocktail bars. They were also able to explore Europe together, traveling to places like Paris and Saville, always seeking out the best restaurants.

Approaching the end of the 3 years in London, Mathis had one last trip back the U.S. to spend time with Stephanie and her family over 4th of July weekend on the beach in New Jersey. Mathis brought Stephanie to a winery in Cape May, NJ (one of their favorite places on the Jersey Shore) and got down on one knee. The rest is history…