Our relationship had a slow but eager start, thanks to back-to-back COVID diagnoses that led to the cancellation of a few first date plans. In many ways, it began like Love Is Blind, where we spent weeks getting to know each other through messages before meeting in person a month later.

We bonded over shared interests like comedy shows, baseball, history, and music, and also some quirky ones, such as our mutual fascination with historic maps. We discovered fun coincidences too—like Brian getting his ears pierced on the Boardwalk in Seaside, and both of us having a connection to the name "Walter Joseph." Brian's dad is Joe, but his full name is Walter Joseph, while Sarah's great-grandfather was Walter, named Joseph Walter. For weeks, we woke up and fell asleep to each other’s texts, eagerly anticipating every message.

Finally, in January 2023, on a gray Sunday, we met for our first date at the Guggenheim, with Grandma’s throat lozenges helping to ease our lingering symptoms. Afterward, neither of us wanted the day to end, so we walked around the Reservoir in Central Park. Still not ready to say goodbye, we continued to Mel’s Burger Bar, where Brian made the surprising confession that he doesn’t like cheese. Somehow, we managed to move past this shocking revelation, and after six hours, we finally had to call it a night—but not before making plans to see each other again.