Just like Raissa and Kai in our first interview, Lizzi and Paul had to struggle with the issue of living in different countries when they met, but Lizzi was ready to risk it all for the possibility of happiness. Now, over three years later, her sacrifice has paid off and they are ready for the biggest challenge of their relationship.
Hi Lizzi, hi Paul! So, when did you join the LPU?
– Lizzi: I joined the LPU when preordering Living Things in 2012. Always wanted to join before but money was always tight.
– Paul: I first joined the LPU in 2006.
When and where did you talk for the first time?
– Lizzi: The LPU chat is where we talked the first time! I joined the chat twice that day. One time during the day with a friend of mine. Paul was there, too, using his webcam. My friend noticed him, pointed at the screen and said “He’s cute!”. I agreed but didn’t think more of it at that point. I went back into the chat later that day and Paul was there again. We all started talking in a group but eventually had a private chat going to get to know each other better. That’s how it all started!!
– Paul: I was a student at the time so spent quite a lot of time in the chat. Glad I did or I might never have met Lizzi. And that’s a horrible thought. A very horrible thought indeed.
Knowing you guys now, it’s definitely crazy to imagine that! But what was your situation like back then?
– Lizzi: When I spoke to Paul the first time I was still in a 4-year relationship at that point. In fact, I was engaged. But I didn’t feel appreciated or loved by my then-partner at all. It was nice to speak to Paul. We had an instant mutual interest in each other and it was just another piece of evidence that I shouldn’t be with (or marry!!) the other guy.
Paul made me feel special from the first minute even though we didn’t even live in the same country.
– Paul: I had just finished my 1st year at University. I was single but not interested in meeting anyone. Especially at Uni. But then Lizzi came along. I knew straight away I couldn’t let her go. We spoke everyday without fail until she moved here.
So, for how long have you been together now?
– Lizzi: We’ve been together for 3 years and 5 months today!
Where did you meet in person? Was that when it became “more” than just friendship?
– Lizzi: It was already “more” before we even met for the first time. At some point my then-fiance and I split up and Paul and I were able to talk about “us” properly. We knew we were going to be together. My ex then wanted to kick me out of our apartment so Paul said that I could just move in with him. I always wanted to leave Germany behind as I never felt home there. How could I ever say “no” to the opportunity to live in England AND be with someone who truly appreciates me? Paul even bought me a one-way plane ticket to London Luton Airport where he would pick me up. I was nervous as I had never met the guy and – better yet – I had never been on a plane before. So I was a little scared. But when I was up in the air and saw the sun rise above the clouds (which is one of the most amazing things I have ever experienced!) I knew I was going to be okay.
I landed, took my luggage and waited outside. I’ll never forget the first time I saw him in person! We hugged and had our first kiss and just knew everything was alright.
– Paul: Yeah, it became more than friendship very early on. Just a couple of MSN/skype conversations and we knew we had something special. We first met face to face on September 14th, 2012 at Luton airport. She had already landed by the time I got to the airport. I walked around the airport looking for her. When I went outside I saw her standing by a barrier. I walked over to her and said her name. She turned round and we hugged instantly and had our first kiss.
Awww, so was it love at first sight?
– Lizzi: I personally don’t believe in first sight. Attraction; Interest: yes! Not love. But if it does exist then it was pretty damn close.
– Paul: not in the literal sense. But I fell in love with her very quickly. She’s amazing!
But, how did you manage the long distance before Lizzi moved to England?
– Lizzi: We talked every single day from the first time we started talking on the LPU. We would text each other throughout the day, cam in the evenings after work and leave the cam on overnight so we wouldn’t have to go to sleep alone.
– Paul: We spoke every day without fail. MSN, Viber (when I had no internet!) And Skype. We always found a way to talk everyday no matter what.
You guys just got engaged and have some other big news to share. Can you tell us more about your future plans together?
– Lizzi: Only one week after Paul proposed to me I found out that I was pregnant! Since last month we know that we are expecting a girl! So now that we’re starting a family, our biggest plan is to be good parents and make sure our daughter gets all the love she can get and lives a happy life.
– Paul: We are expecting our first child in June and our latest scan showed that its a girl, so our plans are to live a happy life, make sure our child(ren) are happy and grow up to be Linkin Park fans!
Raissa Walberg says:
Such a cute story <3
Orena Bitri says:
Great job on these articles guys, made me teary! Maybe someday we could bring stories for the true friends we found through LP.