Black & Brown Love Series: Serena & Malin

“Malin and I are best friends. In April of my sophomore year, I was interviewing to be the co-chair of the Multicultural Affairs and Diversity Outreach Committee, and I saw someone walking out of the interview room right before it was my turn. Little did I know, that someone would end up being my co-chair, my best friend, and my rock here at Carolina and in life. Ever heard of a platonic soulmate? For me, that's Malin. From the very first time we met, I knew we were going to be friends, but I had no idea just how good friends we would become. Doing Diversity & Inclusion work, especially on this campus, is incredibly difficult, and can really define a relationship. For us, it brought us closer than we ever thought we'd be…

We went from setting expectations of each other as co-chairs to spending hours talking on the phone during the week off we had when Florence hit to making random late night runs to Cookout to watching 90 Day Fiance together every Sunday night. Malin is one of the few people that's ever seen me cry -- he's someone I truly feel comfortable being my true authentic self around. Whenever he's having a bad day, I try to get him his favorite candy or give him a hug. I very much believe in the spiritual connection we form with people, because whenever Malin isn't close by, or if I haven't heard from him in a while, I feel off and low-energy. He pushes and challenges me to be the best version of myself every day, and I do my best to do the same for him. Malin is the type of person you can just depend on -- no matter what. He is the kindest, most thoughtful, amazing person I have ever met, and I am so grateful that I can call him my best friend.” - Serena Singh