Izzy and Zach’s story began shortly after completing their freshman years of college—Izzy at the University of Detroit Mercy and Zach at Wayne State University. They both swiped right and matched on Tinder on May 12, 2019. Zach made the first move by messaging Izzy, “Hey beautiful.”

A few days later, on May 16, 2019, Izzy took what was, in retrospect, a rather bold leap of faith: she agreed to meet Zach in a random parking lot, climbed into the car of someone who was technically still a stranger, and joined him for dinner at a Coney Island before catching a movie together. Thankfully, Izzy’s questionable decision-making worked out in her favor. They hung out again the following night, and by the next weekend, Zach was meeting Izzy’s parents. The rest, as they say, is history.

Six years later, on April 27, 2025, Zach brought their story full circle. Everyone told Izzy they were going to dinner to celebrate the birthday of Zach’s dad, John—the perfect excuse to ensure she dressed up without suspecting anything. The plan worked almost too well: Izzy spent the afternoon suggesting several activities they could do before dinner, including going to the zoo and painting a 3D-printed Dungeons & Dragons figurine as a birthday gift for John.

A few little things eventually made her suspicious. Zach was unusually concerned that a trip to the zoo or an afternoon of painting might ruin Izzy’s outfit. Then, instead of wearing one of his usual graphic T-shirts with athletic shorts, he came downstairs in a button-down shirt and khakis and asked, “Do I look nice?” She became even more suspicious when she checked her mom's location and saw that she had already been at the restaurant for nearly 40 minutes. Izzy assumed she must have accidentally given her the wrong time to meet for dinner. It was not until they pulled into that same familiar parking lot that everything started to come together.

“Is this…the same parking lot where we met?” she wondered aloud.

The restaurant, Mother Handsome, was located in the very parking lot where Izzy and Zach’s story had begun. Zach’s brother, Alex, met them outside and secretly helped attach a microphone to Zach as they walked toward the restaurant. Inside, as they approached the restaurant, Izzy spotted their families waiting inside and stopped to hug Grandma and Grandpa Nicolai. Her mom, Lisa, greeted her with a smile that was just a little too suspicious as she stood in front of a high-top table. Lisa then stepped aside to reveal a bouquet of hot-pink roses, a cake that read “Congrats, Izzy and Zach!” and a hot-pink, 3D-printed sign that read “Will you marry me?” The pink touches were, of course, a nod to Izzy’s favorite color. Zach then dropped to one knee and asked her to marry him.

On May 15, 2027, one day before the eighth anniversary of their first date, Izzy and Zach will be married at Lovett Hall, surrounded by their family and friends.