They first met in June 2018 at an orientation in Orlando, Florida. They didn't remember much of each other from that time. They were in some of the same skit groups but didn't remember each other being in them. After the training, they continued to keep up with each other, along with others at their training. Mid-August, she moved to Dallas to do some training in World Arts. He was also preparing to move to Dallas. They emailed about her transition to Dallas. He arrived in Dallas on September 30th. She helped him unload his stuff and showed him around the guesthouse where they were staying. Now reunited in Dallas, their friendship started to grow. They spent more and more time together. They went on walks, hiking on the trails in the woods, carpooling to church and Bible study, and sharing life together. They both started to think separately to themselves that they had grown close together, enjoyed spending time together, and soon should move one direction or the other. Both separately initially thought they should just be friends. But then, he had second thoughts. He realized he enjoyed spending time with her and was never drained by her, but instead she brought him peace.

During Thanksgiving, her parents came up to visit. He met her parents at a Thanksgiving potluck. During that weekend, he thought hard about what to do about their friendship. On November 26th, they went on a walk in the woods and stopped at a beautiful place that looked out over the trees and lake. He said to her, "You know how you're always talking about how its easier to express emotions through art... well this may be stretching it a bit..." and pulled out a drawing. The drawing was of two trees. Her, a willow tree, with long willowy hair. In the face of the winds of ill fortune, she is resilient and bends but never breaks. Him, an oak tree, who stands strong and sturdy in the face of the same winds of ill fortune. Above them, the sun/"Son" of God smiling down on them. To the side, the storm clouds of practical difficulties loomed near. Their roots were intertwined and connected under the surface. And then he asked the question, "could they be connected above the surface too?" She said she would pray about it. The next day he sent her an email about some possible solutions to the practical difficulties. He also attached a cover of a song. He had rewrote some of the lyrics to "Must've Done Something Right" by Relient K, and recorded himself playing the piano and singing the song to her. He didn't know yet that one of her "goals" was for her future husband to sing her a song. That evening they tutored her friend in math. He felt so awkward because he still didn't know what her answer would be. She knew her answer but hadn't found a good time for them to talk. On November 28th, they went back to the same place. She pulled out a piece of paper with song lyrics. The song affirmed her feelings for him. Then, she pulled out a poem. The poem said she was willing to "go into the unknown" together. That evening they went to a restaurant called Amore, which means "love."

Over the next 8 months, they went on a journey together of learning to love each other through their different love languages, to resolve conflicts and express their feelings in healthy ways, to understand each other. Through it all, they grew closer together. December 6th was her birthday. He threw a surprise party for her on campus. He had asked her about the things she had done on her birthday before, and he tried to do them all. In December, she was in her hometown in Missouri for the holidays. He went to a conference in St. Louis, just an hour away from her hometown, so she showed him around St. Louis. He spent New Year's Eve and New Year's Day with her and her family. In February, they spent their first Valentine's Day together. They went back to Amore, where they had their first dinner together as a couple. Then, they went to their favorite park, Bradford Park. They walked around the lake and exchanged gifts. He made her a photo album with their memories in it, telling the story of the willow tree and the oak tree. She gave him a binder for his piano music, a collage of photos of them together, and a beautiful picture of the woods with Proverbs 3:5-6 on it. In April, they had a beautiful time in the Dallas Arboretum together before he left to go to LA for a few weeks. He was visiting his dad, who had just had quadruple bypass surgery. While he was gone, she made him a surprise scavenger hunt to do when he came home. She came a couple weeks later for her Easter break. She spent Easter in his hometown meeting his family and friends. He greatly appreciated her support during these times, and they started talking more about potentially getting married.

By June, they had grown a lot in their relationship. He prayed to ask God about when he should propose. God told him to wait. That summer they traveled to Missouri, Iowa, and Washington state to visit each other's friends. Then they went to a training together in North Carolina for a month. During this training they continued to grow together. They read books together about how to have a strong marriage. On August 8th, the second to last day of their training, he took her out to dinner at an Italian restaurant. Then, they went to a park and walked down a trail through the woods along the huge lake. On the bridge, he pulled out a piece of paper and handed her the song lyrics to a song called "Marcy." He pulled out his phone and played a recording of the instrumentals while he sang her the song he wrote. At the end of the song, he got down on one knee and asked her if she would marry him. She said yes :) Their friend secretly took photos from the bushes. They arrived back on the campus of their training, where their friends set up a surprise (for her) engagement party. Their new friends from their training had decorated the room in red and white, made a homemade fruit cake, homemade oreos, and ice cream. She had wanted many friends to be able to join them in their celebration. Less than two weeks after the engagement, they sent the ring in to get resized. They went to a shopping mall to buy her an inexpensive temporary ring to wear during the time her engagement ring would be gone. In that shopping area, by a little stream, he proposed again with the temporary ring. Once again, she said yes :) A couple random strangers congratulated them thinking it was the real proposal. Awkward haha.