LINWOOD, N.C. — Erin Smith, a Davidson County native, was born with a rare condition called Moebius Syndrome.
How rare, you may ask?
According to the American Academy of Neurology, there are on average 2 to 20 cases of Moebius Syndrome per million births.
The condition causes paralysis of the cranial nerves, meaning Erin and anyone with Moebius cannot form facial expressions, like smiling.
On the other side of the Atlantic, Alex Barker, from Coventry, United Kingdom, is one of the few hundred with the syndrome, as well.
While they were born thousands of miles apart, both were close to giving up on love.
"Trying to find potential dates, it's like, I'm quite interesting," Alex explains. "But, 'Oh! By the way, I can't smile.' And it's a real game-changer."
Given they cannot show facial expressions, their display of emotions is much different than that of an average person's.
"The Moebius syndrome slogan is smile with our hearts," Erin says. "I feel that way too, even though I can't smile I can feel it."
In 2011, a Facebook group for the estimated thousand or so with Moebius across the world connected them. After getting to know each other, Alex decided to shoot his shot and traveled to the United States to meet Erin.
After a handful of physical dates and three years of long-distance dating, Alex popped the big question.
Erin, said yes.
"This past year has just been amazing, just being together after being apart for so long," she says.
The new Mr. and Mrs. Barker live in his home in Coventry. This holiday season, however, they're back where their story began: Good ole Davidson County.
The couple, as people who never thought to find love would be possible, says they hope their story inspires others yearning for true love to never give up.
"There's always someone out there, but they may not be in the place you expect them to be and in our case, it was like 3000 miles apart," Alex says.
For the Barkers, you can be fully dressed without a smile because a simple gaze or touch is more than enough.