Mark 10:9

SHE SAID: Ayo and I spoke for the first time back in April 2015. I knew him a little bit through his sister, but I wasn't sure what the deal was. Our first conversation was pretty boring: Where are you from? What do you do? The usual small talk. As we continued to talk though, I realized that we both had a lot in common: we both enjoyed food lol, coding, architecture and traveling. He even appreciated that I laughed at my own corny jokes! There was definitely something special about this guy. Later that summer, we met in person for the first time in the U.S when I was visiting my family. We met again a second time when Ayo came to Paris on his way back from Nigeria after his friend's wedding. He was definitely interested in seeing where this relationship was headed. The only issue of course was the distance between us: 3,504 miles to be exact. To remedy that, we made it a point to see each other every 8 weeks. During those weeks, we traveled to various countries together and got to grow as couple. Finally, after a year and a half of dating, I took the plunge and moved to the States in November 2016 so we could further develop our relationship and ofcourse it was already on the agenda to move close to family. Little did I know that it would lead to one of the most life changing decisions I would ever make.

HE SAID: So it's fall 2017. Dami and I were due for another trip together so we planned to go to Aruba. Unfortunately, due to the hurricanes, we had to cancel our trip. I felt really bad because I knew Dami really wanted to go so I researched and booked a last minute weekend flight to Cancun. Dami thought it was ridiculous to fly in on Friday and leave on Sunday. I just tried to combat her skepticism. At least we have a trip, right? When we arrived at the airport, I mentioned that I made dinner reservations for us at the beach. Nothing too fancy, though. Of course, being Dami, she dressed to the nines for this beach dinner so I guess I shouldn't have expected anything less. As we strolled down the boardwalk, she looked around confused since we were the only people there. I told her the reservation was for a private dinner to apologise for the craziness. I tried to seem as casual as possible. A heart made of rose petals surrounded with candles greeted us when we arrived at the beach. There was also a decorated shed with a candlelit dinner set for two. Excited, Dami approached the table, expecting to see a ring, I'm sure lol. I pretended not to notice since my smile would give it away. Before dinner, I suggested taking pictures on the sand so we went into the heart of roses. While we were taking pictures, the wind blew her hair around and being a gentleman, I told her, "Let me help you with your hair." At that point, I went behind her, pretended to fix her hair and went down on one knee. I think it took a second for her to realise that I wasn't doing anything with her hair because then she turned around and saw me with the ring. She said, "Are you sure?" I said, "Yes, I am." At that point, I put the ring on her finger and we continued taking pictures, this time as an engaged couple! Even with all of the mishaps during this trip, everything worked out the way it was supposed to. I'm so excited to continue the the rest of my life with my better half.