Taylor Hill Was 'Nerding Out' After Meeting Blake Lively at the 2022 Met Gala: 'Obsessed with Her' (Exclusive)

The model, 28, reminisces with PEOPLE on some of her favorite Met Gala moments — and teases whether she'll be in attendance this year

The Met Gala is always a starry affair, but Taylor Hill remembers one particular interaction that rendered her basically speechless on fashion’s biggest night.

The model, 28, says the annual gathering at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City is “a really fun night” every time she attends — and she’s been going for nearly a decade now.

“That was really exciting, going for the first time,” she tells PEOPLE of her Met Gala debut in 2016. “I was like... ‘What am I doing here? I can't believe I'm here.’ ”

Her first year is one of her favorites, she says, but admits that “all of them” hold a special place in her heart.

Her 2019 look — a dreamy blush pink strapless Ralph Lauren gown paired with a fabulous feather shrug — also stands out amongst her memories, as she says that was a “really fun year.”

“I was like, ‘I'm wearing Ralph at the Met. What is happening to me?’ ”

Related: Sydney Sweeney Reveals Her Current Fashion Mantra — and Teases If She'll Attend 2024 Met Gala (Exclusive)

Fashion moments aside, though, there was one particular A-list moment that still renders Hill speechless almost two years later — meeting the “queen of the Met”: Blake Lively.

Praising Lively, 36, as “the nicest person ever,” Hill gushes, “I’m kind of obsessed with her.”

“It was the year she hosted, and you go up and you greet everyone. And I walked down the greeting line and it was like an, ‘Am I supposed to be here?’ kind of moment,” she recalls. “And she was just so sweet. She's meeting all these people, and she's like, ‘Hello, how are you? Nice to meet you,’ actually looking at me. And I was like, ‘I'm Taylor, and I love you.’ And then I was like, ‘I have to leave now.’ ”

The former Victoria’s Secret Angel admits she was “nerding out” over the interaction with the Gossip Girl alum. “That's one that really sticks out in my mind.”

Related: All About the 2024 Met Gala, from the Co-Chairs to the Theme

Aside from fangirl moments like meeting Lively, Hill says the Met Gala is like a “back-to-school moment” for her.

“I see friends I haven't seen in forever. People fly in from all over the world to go to this. So I meet people from all over the world, and I travel all the time, and friends move away,” she says. “People move to crazy places. And it’s like, ‘I'm never going to see you again.’ And then the Met Gala happens and you're like, ‘Oh, friends!’ ”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

She continues, “So for me, that's kind of where I get giddy and excited, because I'm like, who am I going to see? Which of my friends am I going to see tonight that I haven't seen in forever?”

This year, she says she's not quite sure yet whether she'll be gracing the Met steps on May 6.

"It always happens really at the last minute for me," she admits. "We're always winging it. So we'll see."

Even if she's not in attendance this year, she'll be eagerly watching the stars arrive. "It's a really fun night. Even when I don't go, I'm just like — it's fashion. It's so much fun, and it's just so cool. It's our Oscars."

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.