We met in August 2020 when, quite serendipitously, we moved in as across-the-hall neighbors of the same house, beginning our post-baccalaureate (i.e. glorified pre-med) year at Bryn Mawr College. That first day, Alex was quickly impressed by Pete’s chivalrous deed of helping move her heavy furniture. Noting Pete’s rippling biceps and well-groomed beard, Alex immediately fell head over heels for her mysterious new neighbor, and the rest is history. Well, of course, that didn't happen (though Pete did, in all actuality, help move the furniture). Instead, Alex relegated Pete to the unforgiving “friend zone,” forcing him to play what any guy would recognize as “the long game.” Claiming Alex was “so much better [than him] at organic chemistry,” Pete would knock on her door to study and drink herbata (tea, for us mere Americans) on a near-nightly basis. His perseverance eventually paid off as we became more than friends (and ironically, Pete somehow ended up outperforming Alex in organic chemistry that semester). By the end of the year, Pete had to admit to his family that his "Polish friend" neighbor was, indeed, now his girlfriend. Fast forward to Spring '21, the University of Michigan Medical School admissions team seemingly committed a grave clerical error, accepting Pete into its incoming class. Ok, ok—self-deprecation aside, Pete, a loyal Michigander, was thrilled to return home. Meanwhile, Alex sensed that to make the relationship work, she would unfortunately need to leave her beloved East Coast and move to a dreaded “flyover state" 😱. Despite her initial fear, apprehension, and utter lack of any geographical knowledge of Midwestern states, Alex took it in stride, moving with Pete to Ann Arbor and landing a one-year research job at UM Hospital, a role she would juggle while applying to medical schools herself. Soon thereafter, Alex met Pete’s parents and found a kindred spirit in their high-energy, lovable standard poodle, Ozzie. In fact, Alex and Ozzie *actually* experienced the whole love-at-first-sight thing, so we could truthfully be writing an “our story” about them instead, but we digress... Less than a year later, the stars aligned again as Alex also began medical school at the University of Michigan. We spent the next three years living together in our humble abode, trying to have as much (cheap) fun as possible. Other than Pete's all-important task of introducing Alex to the wonders of Northern Michigan via summer camping trips, the two of us spent countless weekends with Pete’s parents in Williamston and utilized Alex's resourcefulness and planning acumen to enjoy international trips to England, Spain, and Poland. We were also lucky to visit friends and family in places like DC, Chicago, NYC, Austin, and Seattle. Our relationship grew stronger as we supported each other through boards, rotations, and the residency application process. And, by March 2025, after Pete had dragged his feet long enough on the whole "when are you going to propose to me" question, he mustered up the courage to propose to Alex in Chicago. Pete, now with some wind in his sails after officially punching above his weight, graduated in May 2025 and matched into a surgery residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. The story wraps up (for now) in May 2025, when we traveled to Olsztyn, Poland—Alex’s birthplace and home to much of her family—and stayed at Hotel Przystań. Nestled on a tranquil lake and surrounded by forests, we fell in love with the resort and its ambience. Even more meaningful was that Alex’s late grandfather had spent many cherished days at the very marina where the hotel now stands. After just a couple days, we both agreed—this was where we wanted to get married. Olsztyn is a special place (in a special country) that we want to share with you. We sincerely hope you’ll be able to attend our wedding and can’t wait to celebrate with you! Do zobaczenia! –Alex (Ola) and Pete (Piotr)