“We’re getting married!”

From Emmanuel's point-of-view: SXSW, March 2015, we met on the east side of downtown Austin. I was hanging with some friends when I bumped into a redhead lady. I apologized and went on with my business when I was yelled at by a random woman (100 lb soaking wet). "HEY! You just bumped into my boss! You need to come back and apologize to her, RIGHT NOW!' Out of fear for this scary woman, I went back to apologize. Come to find out, it was the same redhead lady I had apologized to. I told the scary woman that I had apologized earlier, to which she replied "DO IT AGAIN!" So I did and that was when I heard about her Australian accent. From Melissa's point-of-view: I was enjoying myself at a friends event during SXSW at Volstead on the Eastside. It was extremely crowded and this guy bumped into me and spilt my drink! One of the girls who was with our group decided she was going to give the guy a piece of her mind. She had instructed the guy to come and apologize to me. Which soon led to me apologizing for her behavior. Then he heard my accent and asked, “Are you from Australia?” In the background he was still getting “scolded” by the girl who dragged him back to me. I was slightly embarrassed and felt bad for the guy. So, I continued the conversation and it went like this: “ Can you swim?” “Yes, I can swim.” He then proceeded to tell me that “Nigerians can’t swim.” I had never heard such a thing. He said, “But …we can run really fast.” I was thinking he was pretty funny at this point with his jokes. He then asked, “Can you teach me to swim.” Then in this not so lengthy conversation and him being yelled at, he asked for my number. I gave him a phone number that was actually mine and then we went our separate ways. Over the next few days my friends and I were talking about how obnoxious the girl was yelling at this random guy, who we had now labeled “The Swimmer.” Then randomly a week later, I received a message from “The Swimmer.” He opened communication with “Where do I sign up for swimming lessons.” We chatted for some hours through text messages and we found we were both pretty funny! We ended our conversation and then he called me to hear my voice and to say “Goodnight.” Emmanuel is a big flirt still to this day. So, that is where our story began… We dated and he was a flirt of course, also genuinely funny. He made the “first move”and asked, “ Can I kiss you.” Fast forward a few months and he said, “ I love you” (July 14, 2015) Then he finally proposed…April 3rd, 2022. “ I mean, I waited along time for this proposal.” This is how it went.. while he was on one knee. “Babe, This is your lucky day!” “Do you want to Marry me or what!” I said, “YES!” Now here we are “Getting Married.” Still to this day “The Swimmer” cannot swim!