Micayla and I first laid eyes upon one another at a little bar/club in Tübingen, Germany called the Schwarzes Schaf. Micayla was finishing up her German degree in Tübingen and worked part-time at this club. I would frequent this club with my teammates as it had the best dancing available in our area. Though it easily could have been a 'love at first sight' story, Micayla was exhausted from the preceding few days of work, and I was less than satisfied by the music played that night - neither of us were at our best. Nonetheless, while I ordered a drink from the bar, Micayla asked if I was American (she had overheard some of the conversation with my teammates). I said yes, and began to ask her a few questions as well. The conversing ended abruptly after about 20 seconds of chatting, and I thought that was it. Micayla, however, went home and told her friends that she had met a "cute, American pro-volleyball player" (her words not mine) in the club that night. After a few minutes of cyber-stalking, her friends found me on Instagram, and Micayla 'slid into my DM's' (sent me a message). We began to chat and get to know one another, and I then asked her to grab some coffee. We met for coffee, had a great time hearing about one another's lives, and began our adventure to fight against the odds. Covid hit a few weeks later, my season was ended, and Micayla and I both had to return to America, she to Long Island and I to Missouri. We thought the story might have ended there, but Micayla has fight in her. She was determined to give us a fighting chance and decided to move to St. Louis in order to be closer to me (as well as pursue a career opportunity). Bumps often arose and faded into the background as we continued to date, but God's grace and our love has overcome every obstacle in our way so far. Now we approach the day that will mark the end of our lives apart from each other and begin a new, better life together.