Our story began on the internet in 2019. We both played the same online game for a while and had chatted before because we had similar interests—mostly games, anime, memes, and other casual things. Vince was living in Pottstown, PA. Sidney was serving in the U.S. Air Force in Tokyo, Japan.
Vince liked to draw, sharing his artwork with our circle of friends. Sidney wanted to commission artwork and offered to pay. At the time, Vince was fundraising for a children's hospital and offered to make the artwork. However, Vince didn't want payment. Instead, Sidney matched Vince's raised donations for the children's hospital.
Over a few months, Vince and Sidney grew closer. Sidney would stay up late at night, while Vince would get up well before sunrise to talk for hours. Sidney and Vince talked a lot about life and travel. Vince wanted to visit Tokyo, so we decided to meet during the week of Valentine's Day in 2020.
By February 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was global. Our flight leaving Japan was one of the last flights to leave the country before the lockdown. We made it home safely. Over the next two years, we lived happily in Pennsylvania.
In August 2022, Vince and Sidney did some spring cleaning, packed our bags and boxes, and prepped the animals for a long trip to Carnesville, Georgia. We bought a new home, hoping for a new place to settle down and build our family.