We met volunteering in September 2018, where Elian struck up a conversation, but we didn't see each other again for months. Luckily our mutual friend stepped in and sent Elian my Instagram, so he could slide into my DMs and the first date was set.

In January 2021, we visited Elian's friends in San Diego. Little did I know that Elian was planning to propose on the second day of our trip, when we went to Joshua Tree National Park. We hiked up a large rock formation to a stunning vista with sweeping views of the landscape filled with Joshua Trees and the snow capped mountains in the distance. As we were admiring the view and discussing our lives together, Elian got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.