For some, love is best expressed through a fight over the bill.
A video on TikTok posted by Tracie and Cheryl Parsa-Brown (@officialtracieandcheryl) has gone viral after Tracie filmed Cheryl's reaction to her suggestion that they split the bill after a dinner out. Since the video was posted, it has received 7.6 million views.
Tracie and Cheryl, 51 and 62, respectively, spoke to Newsweek about the video's candid hilarity and the dramatic origin story of their relationship.
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In the video, Cheryl appears taken aback by Tracie's offer to split the check: "We are not going to split the check," she says resolutely, putting her card down.
"The audacity!" the couple captioned the video.
Tracie told Newsweek she decided to film Cheryl spontaneously.
"Our marriage is full of fun and surprises, and I love to keep my wife on her toes! She has no idea what I'm up to, but I'm usually up to something," she said. "We just wrapped up dinner at one of our favorite restaurants...I acted like I wanted to pay half of the bill, and she could pay for her part. I'm sure you could tell she was unhappy with that idea."
While she was pretty confident Cheryl wouldn't allow her to split the bill, she didn't know how annoyed she would become at the question. Tracie said the couple typically take turns taking each other out to eat.
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For Cheryl, though, the question absolutely warranted the shock.
"It was the last thing I expected her to say since I don't remember us splitting a check before or since our marriage," Cheryl said. "At the beginning of our relationship, I told Tracie that no one feels special with a split check, and who doesn't want to feel special? I do, and I wanted her to, too."
Cheryl said the two often treat each other to meals, trips and even occasional shopping sprees.
"We spoil each other daily with acts of service and words of affirmation; large and small gestures leave us feeling special daily," Cheryl said.
Viewers loved the video, dropping laughing emojis and comments on Cheryl's big reaction: "Her flabber was ghasted," one person wrote.
"She thought you were speaking another language," another person wrote.
'A Love Story for the Ages'
Tracie and Cheryl are a same-sex and interracial couple who share their relationship on social media platforms, "offering hope, acceptance, and proof that love is love—and love indeed wins," they said.
The beginning of their relationship certainly provided a foundation of deep connection and trust, as well.
Tracie and Cheryl met during the costly and deadly 2021 winter storms in Texas. Both living in Dallas and being long-term Facebook acquaintances, Cheryl was lucky enough to have power and water during the storm, while Tracie had no power, water, or food.
On the third day of the storm, Cheryl came across Tracie's Facebook post: "Day three. No power. No water. No food."
"We have been friends for years on social media, and I knew from her posts that we were downtown neighbors, so I felt there was a good chance I could help her," Cheryl said. "I reached out...'I have food! If you can get here, I can feed you,' I private-messaged my soon-to-be best friend and future wife."
Cheryl said she felt excitement while packing warm food for Tracie: "It felt like I was packing my heart and putting it in the bag."
When the two met, Tracie refused Cheryl's offer of a hug, saying she hadn't had a shower in three days.
"'Get over here!' my smile from ear to ear quickly demanded," Cheryl said. "I hugged her as tightly as possible for what seemed like the longest and best 10 seconds of my life. I can still feel that hug."
The couple has since enjoyed a life together filled with quality time, travel and small treasures—including meals out and viral moments.
"The truth is, that day, we slid into more than DMs and driveways. We slid right into each other's hearts and created a love story for the ages," they said. "We are also best friends. It's how we started, so there is so much comfort in that."
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