Siena and Shawn met on Hinge in October 2021, exactly one month before Siena was to leave to backpack Europe for 8 months. Their first date was to dinner and a walk along the Edmonds Waterfront. Shawn immediately became enamored with Siena's ability to carry a conversation and her confident presence. Siena was taken by Shawn's kind-heartedness and how passionate he was for what he loved. For the next month, they existed under a false reality in which Siena was not leaving. They met each other's family, friends, and saw each other almost every day. During this time, Shawn asked Siena to be his "temporary" girlfriend, giving him the title of Siena's first (and last) boyfriend. When the time came for Siena to leave, they decided they would go their separate ways but stay in touch. They talked every single day. Siena would be in the middle of touring a famous, historical site, on the phone with Shawn the whole time. They logged hundreds of Discord calls during these months apart. In Winter 2021, Shawn lost his restaurant job due to the COVID pandemic. On a limb, he asked Siena if she would want a travel companion for two months, she said yes. Those two months traveling together are still some of their favorite memories together. It's hard to complain when you're learning how to love each other on the coast of Croatia. Four years later, now living together in Everett with Siena's parents (not quite the same magic as Croatia), and they still enjoy and appreciate the same things about each other. But now with a little bit more of the reality and intimacy of living everyday life together.