They say it’s a small world—but somehow, it took a dating app to prove it. Our story began the way all of the great loves began, on Hinge. It was an easy swipe right with an even easier conversation that felt surprisingly natural from the start. Although we were both living in NYC at the time, it didn’t take long for us to discover an even sweeter twist of fate: our families lived 20 minutes apart in St. Louis. Early dates in the city at wine bars, rock climbing, and Central Park runs quickly turned into shared adventures. We (probably too quickly!) took a trip to Portland, Maine after a month of dating and realized that traveling together felt just as easy as that very first conversation. As the years went by, we supported each other as we progressed through our careers—Laine in PA school, and Aaron in orthopedic surgery residency. We moved into our sweet little apartment on the Upper West Side together and created the perfect nightly routine of cooking dinner (Laine), dishes (Aaron), followed by answering approximately 3 questions correctly on Jeopardy. In October 2024, Aaron proposed to Laine in Central Park, in the same spot as one of our first dates (see below). From a Hinge match in NYC to discovering our shared St. Louis roots, we can’t wait for you all to join us in celebration in the city that we both call home.