Originally published in Inside Weddings
Michelle Berta and Louis Matthews had the same idea on their first day of law school at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville: They both went to the pool in their apartment complex with their books in hand, intending to study. Instead, the two neighbors (as it turned out, they lived just three doors apart) struck up a conversation and ended up spending the afternoon getting to know each other. Their first official date was supposed to be a short tapas dinner, but it ended up lasting four hours. “On our first date, I knew Michelle was the love of my life!” Louis beams.
Louis was set on receiving his future father-in-law’s blessing before proposing, so he traveled from Virginia to Michigan to ask for Michelle’s hand. After gaining permission, Louis took Michelle to a romantic dinner at their favorite restaurant and out for an evening of dancing, then finally to the historic Rotunda at the University of Virginia campus, where he popped the question.