Gabrielle & Nick, The Stroke of Fate Story

"I immediately texted my best friend saying I just met my future husband…"

Gabrielle & Nick, The Stroke of Fate Story

The summer after high school, Gabrielle was spending her days working at a tanning salon, just trying to make some extra money until it was time to go to college. One Wednesday in August, Gabrielle got called in to cover someone else's shift. She agreed and did her boss the favor, even though she didn't usually work on Wednesdays…

Next to the tanning salon was a pizzeria where Gabrielle and her coworkers often went to for lunch. Working in such close proximity to each other, those who worked in the tanning salon and those who worked in the pizzeria became friends. Gabrielle's boss -the owner of the tanning salon- became close friends with the pizzeria owner and his brother. That Wednesday, the brother brought his friend Nick to the pizzeria for lunch. In what seemed like a planned operation, Gabrielle's boss urged her to go with him to the pizzeria, for there was someone there he needed her to meet.

Although confused and somewhat nervous, Gabrielle went to the pizzeria with her boss, curious as to who it was she needed to meet. Before even getting the stranger's name, though, her boss happened to embarrass her so much that she walked out and went back to the salon. A few minutes later, the stranger she was meant to meet walked into the tanning salon and introduced himself. He gave her his name -Nick-, they spoke for a while, surprisingly hitting it off, and exchanged phone numbers.

After Nick walked out, Gabrielle immediately texted her best friend: "I just met my future husband."

A few days later, Gabrielle made the first move and texted Nick. They spoke for a couple of days before they went on their first date in Brooklyn soon after. It went well from August through October, but for no reason in particular, they ended up losing touch. Gabrielle thought she would never see Nick again.

It was May of the following year when Gabrielle and her friends decided to go to Atlantic City for a weekend. On the way there, they stopped at a gas station rest stop.

…and then she saw him.

There Nick was. She hadn't spoken to him in 8 months, but in a stroke of fate, the man she deemed her future husband was standing there in front of her, unexpectedly, and in a grungy old gas station rest stop.

After that fateful day when they were brought back together, they spoke every day, making sure to never lose touch again, and fell in love…

The Perfect Proposal, from Gabrielle…

"Nick and I had been together for five years. We're such big foodies, so the fact that we were going out to dinner at a new restaurant was nothing new -nothing that made me feel like something big was about to happen. It was Christmastime, and we made reservations at this restaurant in the city called One if by Land, Two if by Sea, which I didn't even realize is often cited as "the most romantic restaurant in New York City" and is the "go-to spot in NYC for engagements…"

We went through dinner and spoke about the million things we had going on: I was applying to grad school, my sister was getting married -so many things that had us so busy and preoccupied that I never expected what was about to happen to be happening so soon!

I ordered an apple souffl? for dessert. It was hot so I spent some time blowing on it, waiting for it to cool off. When I finally picked up my spoon, I noticed something strange. There was an engravement on my spoon…

I read the engravement on my spoon, "Will you marry me?" and looked up to see Nick in front of me, on bended knee.

I couldn't stop crying. I couldn't believe what was happening. After a few seconds he asked, "So will you?" and I shook my head and finally said the word, "yes!"

He put the gorgeous ring on my finger and made me his fianc?e. It was stunning: 2 carat round brilliant, one-of-a-kind custom-made from Gerald Peters Bridal Collection. Needless to say, as he slid the ring on my fingers, the tears continued to pour out…

The man I was taken to meet on a day I wasn't supposed to be working.

The man I got embarrassed in front of and walked away from.

The man I lost touch with for months.

The man I bumped into at a gas station rest stop.

The man I was destined to meet.

The man I knew was my future husband the second I met him… was going to become my husband.

We're currently planning our wedding for January 2017 in Jamaica. I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with my destiny."