There are few things that the Internet enjoys more than young love. TikTok stars Zoi Lerma and Baron Schoenvogel had followers rooting for—or “shipping”—them before they had even met. You may recognize them from one of their viral dancing TikToks or being seated front row at fashion shows in New York, Milan, and Paris, or perhaps you know them as part of Los Angeles’ new class of Gen Z cool kids.
In today’s perpetually online society, it feels like there’s a hot new couple or fresh breakup drama every day. Just over three years ago, when the world was still trapped inside with only the Internet to entertain us, a new generation of stars was born bringing with them the typical relationship woes of youth. But Lerma and Schoenvogel are one of the only couples to survive that era, making them something of a digital power couple. Followers are not only invested in their lives individually but their life together. When I spoke to them about the pressures of being in such a public relationship, their responses reminded me of today’s Couple of the Moment, Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift—grateful for the support, unbothered by the negativity. Instead, Lerma and Schoenvogel choose to focus on being Zoi and Baron—two 20-somethings in love, traveling the world and creating memories they’ll keep forever, even if it’s just at home with some takeout.
L’O: How long have you been together?
Zoi Lerma: In April, it’ll be three and a half.
Baron Schoenvogel: We’ve been together pretty much ever since I moved out to Los Angeles.
L’O: How did you guys meet?
BS: I had DM’d her, but we met at a party in LA.
ZL: There’s a deeper story, but that’s the gist is social media. Because [on] TikTok, you know how everyone shipped people together? He had DMed me before he really started TikTok, and long story short, I accidentally opened his DMs. Later down the line, I saw Baron dancing on TikTok, so [I messaged him], “You’re such a good dancer.” And he was like, ”ILY, queen. Thank you.” [Baron glares.] No, [he] literally said that. I went to his profile and [realized] this is the guy that DMed me such a long time ago. But it was funny because the internet started shipping us before we even met each other.
BS: She pretty much [friend-zoned] me at first.
L’O: But you met in person for the first time at a party. How did you officially start dating?
ZL: We were friends first, but only for a month.
BS: We were friends the first time we met. The second time we met, we were more than friends. Shortly after that, I was like, I’ll just go ahead and ask her to be my girlfriend.
ZL: And that was October 18.
L’O: What is it like being in such a public relationship? I’m sure it’s weird having people you don’t know be so invested in you as a couple.
ZL: I feel like it’s fun. There’s the good and bad sides to it, but I feel like it’s fun because not only do you guys love each other so much, but you feel like this whole community also loves you guys equally as much so it feels nice to think that so many other people love our relationship as much as I do. But what comes with that is also people who can be way too invested or look into things way too much. If anything happens, it’s kind of out of your control on social media. What do you think, Baron?
BS: I think the Internet’s a scary place and people can be very nasty on there, but for the most part, Zoi and I, everybody seems to enjoy us and we always have good interactions with people that come up to us. It’s always really nice. And I love, like she said, people who love our relationship as much as us. Most people will say things like, “I want a relationship like theirs.” You don’t need a relationship like ours by any means, but I think things like that are nice.
L’O: Do either of you know your love language?
BS: Zoi’s is physical touch.
ZL: And acts of service. I like to make his life easier. I like cooking or cleaning up stuff. And I think for me, I like words of affirmation, but Baron, he doesn’t understand. I feel like it’s a very girl thing though, but Baron’s just like, “Well, I love you. You know I love you.”
BS: [To Zoi.] I tell you I love you all the time. And I compliment you and do things. But I don’t know— all of them for me.
ZL: Gift-giving is his. I know that for a fact. He loves getting me stuff that he thinks would look good on me or I’ll love, and then me opening it. It’s his favorite part. I’ve never asked for anything specific from Baron because I’m so indecisive and he’s always gotten something that I’ve loved.
BS: I go above and beyond and I try and get her things that I think are really special. I love watching her be happy with what I get her. That does make me really happy. But she’s just saying that because I give you really good gifts. I don’t even ask her what she wants. I just get her whatever I want. And it always is good. What I got her for Valentine’s Day is crazy.
L’O: Speaking of Valentine’s Day, do you remember how you spent your first Valentine’s Day?
ZL: He set up this whole picnic at his house. He ordered us pasta. He had flowers and my gifts and candles. And his last house had a backyard that overlooked the city. It was sunset. It was so pretty and we just listened to music and ate together and it was really cute.
L’O: You’ve been together for over three years now. Do you have any date night or anniversary traditions?
BS: On the 18th of every month, we either order a nice dinner or go out to eat at one of our favorite restaurants and just have a drink and celebrate another month together.
ZL: It’s usually always pasta. Pasta or sushi. But we always make it a thing to do dinner, whether it be chilling at home and getting takeout and just sitting with each other and watching a movie or going out. Baron is a homebody for sure. I can go either way.
L’O: What do you think makes you guys work as a couple?
ZL: I think our communication is really good. Communication is a big deal in every relationship. Obviously, if your communication is bad, the relationship is bad no matter what. I feel like Baron and I have a really good communication style that if we’re feeling some type of way about something or something’s on our minds, we immediately talk about it rather than just letting it go until it builds up. I think it’s also really fun that we do the same things, so we get to travel together.
BS: We have the same job in a sense.
ZL: We get to go everywhere together, which is really fun. We give each other space, but again, that’s the communication part of things. We get to go places together, go to fashion shows together, have these opportunities, together and separate. I feel like that makes us stronger together.
L’O: Are you a couple that travels well together? Because not all couples do.
ZL: Baron can get annoyed with my—
BS: Zoi can’t pack a suitcase that’s not overweight. She just cannot. Last time we traveled, we went to Vegas and we were there for two nights and [her] bag was still overweight. We were only there for two nights. I love traveling with Zoi. I love getting to experience all this stuff with my best friend. That’s amazing. She just is a very last-minute planner. [She’s] just kind of like, “I’m just going to put all my stuff in the suitcase and we’re just going to go. And Baron will do it.” And I love that [she gets] to experience that. Sometimes I want to experience it. But the last thing you want to do at 7 a.m. is put Zoi’s suitcase in a car. It’s terrible.
L’O: What about this year? Any special plans for Valentine’s Day or is it all a surprise?
BS: We don’t really have to go above and beyond with each other because we just enjoy each other’s company. So we’ll just free-ball it as we go. I’ll pick her up and then we’ll say, “Oh, do you want to go to Mother Wolf?” Next thing you know, we’re at Mother Wolf. Maybe an espresso martini, some zucchini flowers. So we don’t really plan much. We kind of just go and do as we please just enjoy each other’s company. That’s what really matters. We’re just happy wherever we are.
