Alexander J. Ahmed ’10 and Rebecca J. Morton no longer remember the first time they met, but there’s no shortage of early recollections.

She remembers her friend having a crush on him in middle school. He remembers her in a few of his classes freshman year of high school. Growing up in East Long Meadow, Mass., the two attended school together beginning in kindergarten, but did not begin dating until their senior year of high school, after Morton took the lead in asking Ahmed to a movie. The two continued dating through college, even though they were separated by several state lines and a four-and-a-half hour bus ride.

Throughout that time, those early recollections were joined by new memories. “The last four-and-a-half years have been full of moments when I knew that he was the one for me,” Morton said.

The couple got engaged this past December.

Upon graduating high school, Ahmed and Morton went their separate ways—Ahmed to Harvard and Morton to the University of Maine. Morton said that the two would see each other about twice per month, traveling by a bus that ran conveniently from South Station to the University of Maine campus. “For all the business we gave them, Concord Trailways should thank us,” Morton laughed.

In December, Ahmed popped the question, journeying to Maine with a bottle of wine the two had bought at an Ohio winery on a summer road trip with the intention of saving it for a special occasion. Collaborating with Morton’s roommates, he set up the wine and two glasses on a table in her apartment while she was at work and put their song on and a suit.

When Morton entered the apartment, she said she knew exactly what was going on. “He had a speech, but I didn’t hear any of it because I was freaking out,” she said. Ahmed similarly described her reaction. “She jumped on me and made it very difficult for me to say what I had planned to say,” he said.

Morton said that even though the engagement was anticipated by both families, they were still very excited. “His grandmother started screaming into the phone,” she said.

Though they have not yet set a date for the wedding, Morton and Ahmed said that they would like to have it sometime next summer in their western Massachusetts hometown.

The two plan to live in Boston after graduation. Morton will be attending graduate school at Simmons College for library science and working as a library technician at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Jamaica Plain. Ahmed, currently a resident of Kirkland House and an Applied Mathematics concentrator, is considering working in a math-related job or teaching. He said that after four years, he looks forward to being back in the same place as Morton.

“I’m happy that we made it through four years of long distance, and being close again will be really great for us,” he said. “I’m excited to spend the rest of my life with her.”

—JAMISON A. HILL