Our friend groups had merged for a pregame at her sister’s house before we went on a night out, but it wasn’t until we wandered back to the house afterwards that I finally saw her. She was curled up on the sofa, laughing with her friends, when someone suggested firing up the old Wii for a round of Mario Kart. Having just met this gorgeous girl, obviously, I had a plan. Let her win a couple laps. Fall behind here and there. Just close enough to boost her confidence. Play the long game. What I did not plan on was getting absolutely obliterated. To this day, 4 years later, I can still picture her, crying laughing, Wii-motes in hand, celebrating her 1st place finish as Peach while I was somewhere on the other side of the planet at 12th place in my own embarrassed silence. That small, humbling moment still makes me smile. The journey to forever doesn’t always start with fireworks. Sometimes, it starts with a single blue shell.