I am American and was living in the UK with a partner for 5 years (we had been together for 8 years in total) when he decided to cheat on me! This made my unmarried partnership visa invalid and I had to go back to the USA. I was heartbroken.
I remained in touch with some friends from the UK and over time I had saved up money to go travel with one of them. We traveled together for over a year and fell in love. We had been best friends before I even had to leave the UK so it feels like I've known him forever! We spent most our time in New Zealand where he proposed to me. Now we are currently in the process of applying for the K-1 visa so we can marry in the states. Sometimes it feels like such an uphill struggle. I know of a couple cases in the UK where people have taken advantage of the system and get to live there on their lies. It hurts to see someone dishonest reap the rewards when all we want to do is be together.