Jessica had just arrived at the University of Manchester to begin a year studying abroad. Ryan was entering his second year at University. They first met during a party in the student resident halls and a few weeks later started dating. After going their separate ways they stayed in touch over the years. It wasn't until December 2015 when Ryan had a few too many beers and booked a last minute trip to San Francisco that they got back together. A few months later they both packed their backpacks to go traveling together in South East Asia. They moved to Chicago in the summer of 2017 and got engaged on December 2, 2017.