On Sunday’s Season 9 premiere of 90 Day Fiance, we were all introduced to Emily and Kobe’s story.
Emily was from a medium-sized town in Kansas but blossomed into a party girl as an adult, traveling the world.
While teaching English in Xi’an, China, she met a hunky underwear model from Cameroon — Kobe.
On the premiere, Emily detailed how the two went from a steamy, dreamy one-night stand to engaged with a baby on the way.
29-year-old Emily may come across as a Horse Girl on camera, but growing up in her small community left her yearning for more.
"Nothing holds me back and I just do what I want to do," she characterized herself honestly.
It was only after going to college that she found that she had real options for how to live her life, traveling with friends to places like Thailand and China.
34-year-old Kobe Blaise is an international underwear model.
It was happenstance when Emily laid eyes on Kobe at a club in Xi’an, China.
She had been teaching English for a few months at the time. When she spotted Kobe, it was thirst at first sight.
"I love Black guys, so of course I found the only Black guy in China," Emily remarked to the confessional camera.
While it’s likely that she was simply joking about ending up with a Black man in China, some viewers worry that there’s a fetishization angle.
There’s a difference between appreciation and dehumanizing fetishization, and hopefully that one line is meant as the former, not the latter.
"But he’s also an international underwear model," Emily praised of Kobe. "Obviously, that’s a perk too."
She detailed: "The night I met Kobe, we were actually having a girls’ night. And I looked over my shoulder."
Emily recalled: "And I saw this guy in all white, he was like, getting on, his dance moves and like, his arms were huge and muscular."
"And," Emily explained, "I was like, ‘Whoa, this guy’s really sexy. I’ve got to get to know him.’"
"So, we hooked up that one night, we had sex," she shared. "It was really hot!"
Emily furnished salacious details: "It actually, like, happened in the shower, on the floor, for like, two hours. It was awesome."
"I thought Kobe was just going to be a really fun one-night stand," Emily admitted.
"But things got really serious, really fast," she shared. "He was just so sweet and just like a genuinely nice guy."
Emily admitted: "I knew it was somebody who I wanted to be with. I was like, ‘Wow, I really think I love you,’ like, even so quick."
"And we just didn’t want to leave each other," Emily expressed.
While she and Kobe were still in Xi’an, Kobe proposed to her — and she said yes.
Four weeks later, Emily noticed tell-tale symptoms, and tested (repeatedly) to confirm: she was pregnant.
Emily was so nervous, but Kobe was overjoyed. Emily would return to America, and Kobe would join her.
Their joy was diminished when Kobe’s visitor visa was denied, causing him to miss the birth of Koban, their son.
Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and Kobe had a long wait — missing so much of Koban’s life.
Emily’s parents are concerned about her dating history, her impulsive decisions, and how realistic her goals are.
They haven’t met Kobe, but they are very attached to their grandchild.
Between financial realities, possible cultural clashes, and more … they keep reminding Emily that it’s okay if things don’t work out.