See you in Chicago!

Mikey: It was the Spring of 2022 and I was living with Thomas (Stone) and Thomas (Magnuson). I had been on Hinge to try to meet people, which was a big test for my definitive lack of “rizz.” Callie: I was also on Hinge, but what Mikey did not know at the time was that I was in the process of trying to move to London. Mikey: Callie’s profile came up and I decided to go for it… I swiped right. Callie: Mikey did a little bit more than that. Hinge lets you use one “rose” a week - “a special feature used to show a higher level of interest in someone”. Mikey did indeed use his one rose that week on me. Mikey: I wanted to make it count! (see above about lack of rizz) Callie: And it did work!!! Mikey: The specific prompt that I replied to was Callie saying that she claimed to know the best spots in town for espresso martinis. As a longtime coffee/caffeine addict, this was a huge green flag. Callie: So after talking extensively about our love for espresso martinis, Mikey asked if we wanted to meet at Topo Gigio, a classic Italian restaurant in Old Town known for their espresso martinis. Right as I got out of my Uber (Mikey was waiting in the rain), I said I knew a better place that was down the street and Mikey and was possibly hesitant at first because I said that better place was Declans Irish Pub. Mikey: I trusted the expert… and I was excited to get out of the rain. Callie: Who knew Declans was known for their espresso martinis! Mikey: We got to Declans and our waiter almost immediately offered us a shot of tequila because he knew we were on a date. We then ordered our espresso martinis and - probably with the help of the tequila and espresso martini - we quickly got comfortable and it was going really well! I am generally very positive and outgoing, and I quickly realized I was wildly outmatched on both fronts with Callie. Callie: The four espresso martinis that followed definitely helped. Mikey: Before we got to the end of the date, Callie did two things I was not expecting. First, she asked me to rate how the date was going on a scale of 1-10. I was having a great time, but I knew saying 10 would make me seem way too eager, so I said a 9. Then, she asked me out on our second date to the Cubs game on that Thursday (two days later). Between my Hinge rose and this, neither of us were being very smooth, but I was very happy she already wanted a second date! Callie: Hey! When you know you know!! Mikey: We dated for about two months before I officially asked Callie to be my girlfriend and it was clear that I took six weeks longer than I should have. Over more than three and a half years together, bringing home our puppy Chaos, becoming Cubs season ticket holders, and many many espresso martinis later, we are so excited to get married and share this incredible celebration with all of the people we love.