We're getting married!!

They say Hinge is the app designed to be deleted, but I never thought it would work quite this well. When Laura first saw my profile, she probably rolled her eyes at least once. Maybe twice. A lawyer with a penchant for thrill-seeking? Not exactly a rare breed. But then, she saw the video. The one where I nearly killed myself. Picture this: a 75-foot cliff in the middle of Arkansas, a river gleaming below, and me—confident, maybe too confident—taking the leap into the water. What followed was less of a graceful dive and more of a full-body catastrophe. I landed straight on my back, the kind of impact that makes onlookers gasp before they laugh. Somehow, I survived with only bruised lungs, broken ribs, and a temporarily crushed ego. For some crazy reason, that was what caught Laura’s attention. She swiped right. A few messages later, I had convinced her that, despite my reckless cliff-jumping tendencies, I was still someone worth meeting for dinner. Bellflower in Ypsilanti was the spot—our spot, though we didn’t know it yet. The place was loud and packed with people, but I barely noticed. Laura walked in, and everything else blurred into background noise. She had this energy about her—like she had already figured out life’s best-kept secrets and was just waiting for me to catch up. We talked, we laughed, and we ignored how chaotic the restaurant was. I just wanted to listen to her. To watch how she talked with her hands when she got excited. To see how her eyes lit up when she teased me about that ridiculous cliff jump. The night ended too soon. I walked her to her car, heart pounding. Now, I’m a gentleman, so I asked if I could kiss her. She laughed. “What took you so long?” Fast forward three years, and here we are. Getting married! To this day, I still wonder what Laura’s getting herself into. But one thing’s for sure—falling for her was the real free fall. And this time, I stuck the landing. -Dylan

Dylan had a plan. A really good plan. He wanted to propose to me in the Rivera Court at the Detroit Institute of Arts, surrounded by the stunning murals and the quiet beauty of the space. It was romantic, thoughtful, and perfect… except for one tiny thing: we were both so nervous. Like, could barely breathe nervous. And I couldn't help but think about how Diego mistreated Frida Kahlo, which lead to more thoughts of Frida, her art, the movie, and on and on and on we go... So, in true “we can’t handle this right now” fashion, I suggested we take a detour. “How about we get out of here,” I said. I also hinted to Dylan I knew what he was up to and said "It doesn't have to happen here." And Dylan, looking relieved, agreed. He always appreciated my straight-forwardness. A cocktail sounded much less stressful than an impromptu public proposal, right? We headed to the Whitney in Detroit—one of our favorite spots—and after a while I started feeling a bit more relaxed. But Dylan was still on edge. So, before we even got our appetizers, he suddenly turned to me and, in a rush of nervous excitement, asked, “Will you marry me?” Right there, at the table, with the appetizers still on their way. Of course, I said yes—though we both couldn’t stop laughing about how we had completely sidestepped the carefully planned out proposal. We joked with the waitress about our “anxiety-induced” engagement and how neither of us could hold it together. But, honestly, it was perfect. It wasn’t about the fancy location or the right timing; it was about us, the two of us, completely ourselves in that hilarious, spontaneous moment. And just like that, we were engaged—without a plan, but with a whole lot of love. -Laura