Michael & Ava Collins

I truly believed it was just a birthday dinner. Michael had been a little secretive all week, but he’s always thoughtful when it comes to my birthday, so I assumed he was just planning something sweet. He told me to dress up because he had made reservations somewhere “special,” and I didn’t question it. When we arrived and I realized it wasn’t a restaurant but a private rooftop decorated with candles, white roses, and soft string lights glowing against the night sky, I was already overwhelmed.

Dinner felt intimate and intentional, filled with laughter, memories from the past year, and conversations about the future. I remember feeling completely loved and celebrated in that moment, thinking this was already the best birthday I’d ever had. When it came time to blow out the candles, I leaned forward to make my wish, but he gently stopped me and said, “Wait — there’s one more thing.” Before I could even process what was happening, he stepped back, reached into his jacket, and got down on one knee. My heart immediately started racing as he told me that birthdays represent new beginnings, and he wanted this year to be the one where we begin forever together.

When he opened the Monclaire ring box, the diamond sparkled brilliantly under the city lights — elegant, timeless, and exactly what I had always imagined wearing one day. I started crying before he even finished asking, and of course, I said yes. What made it even more unforgettable was discovering that our closest friends and family were waiting downstairs to surprise us with an engagement celebration. It went from the most perfect birthday dinner to the most meaningful night of my life, and now every time I look at my Monclaire ring, I’m reminded not just of the proposal, but of how deeply loved and chosen I felt in that moment