Nicholas and Joseph met during their days as undergraduate students at Kent State University. When Joseph founded the Pre-Dental Club, Nicholas decided to attend the first meeting. A fast friendship ensued between the two, and while each secretly hoped the friendship would become romantic, it was not until months later that they would share their true feelings with each other.

Their “first date” was a trip to Columbus to tour the Ohio State University College of Dentistry with their other friends in the Pre-Dental Club. Joseph had a plan, and forced Nicholas to ride in the same car so he had no choice but to talk to him for the two hour drive to Columbus. They spent all day exploring the campus together and envisioning a future in which they were both happily accepted into dental school. When the time came to make the two hour drive back to Kent, Joseph no longer had to force Nicholas to talk to him.

In the Autumn of 2017, Nicholas decided the two would vacation in Iceland that year. As the trip approached, Joseph felt with increasing certainty that the proposal he had been planning for years would be unforgettable in Iceland. He called on his older brother, Steven, to make a secret trip to Columbus to help him pick out the perfect symbol of his love for Nicholas—A Rolex wristwatch. Joseph kept the watch strapped to his chest under his clothing for the entire trip, and spent every moment trying to find the perfect spot to ask the question. He found it on a rugged outcropping of black volcanic rock, beside the sea in Dyrhólaey. As the spray from the crashing waves turned to snow and fell around them, Nicholas said, "yes."