It all started with Hannah and Caleb, Hailey's sister and brother in law. They met Charlie in flight school in Pensacola. Over the course of many parties at Charlie's house on Island Spirit Drive, weekly trips to Hub Stacy's, and cruises on a pontoon to Crab Island, they became great friends. The conversation would often venture to Hannah's beautiful, younger sister, Hailey, up in Massachusetts. However, poor timing meant that every time Hailey visited Pensacola, Charlie was traveling. Flash forward to 2021, Charlie was learning the P-8A in Jacksonville, and Hailey was studying hard to finish PA school in Massachusetts. Hannah called Charlie to ask if he was bringing a plus-one to their wedding. Charlie responded "no". Hannah replied "good, Hailey isn't either..." Columbus Day Weekend, 2021, Charlie finally met Hailey in person. Hailey, as Hannah's Maid of Honor, looked stunning. Out of his league, Charlie shot his shot. After passing the intense questioning of Hailey's aunts, Charlie asked Hailey to dance. A week later, Charlie was back in the Northeast for Navy Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) training. A planned meetup with Hailey fell through before he went into the field for the couple weeks of training. Charlie emerged from his spa-like time in the field at the end of the month, suddenly 12.5 lbs skinnier. Hailey and Charlie's first date finally happened over white wine and sushi. Charlie and Hailey agreed, it was best to keep things casual with the distance keeping them apart. Fate had other intentions though. Over near daily FaceTimes, Charlie and Hailey soon decided to give long-distance dating a chance. Hailey visited Charlie several times in Jacksonville, and Charlie visited the Parsons in Mass. On pre-deployment leave, Charlie took Hailey to the most romantic place he could think of: a Jayhawks basketball game in Allen Fieldhouse at his Alma Mater, the University of Kansas. Distance dating continued, albeit at longer distance, over the course of Charlie's first six month deployment. In January 2023, Hailey made the leap and moved in with Charlie in Jacksonville, starting a job at the Mayo Clinic. Grady, their Golden Retriever, joined the household, and Charlie left for his second deployment to the Pacific. Hailey visited Charlie for a week at the deployment's halfway point, traveling to Tokyo and Kyoto together. Unbeknownst to Hailey, Charlie received over a phone call her parents' blessing to propose just a week or two later. On Memorial Day Weekend 2024, Charlie led Hailey on a walk through the Chicago Botanical Gardens. There, on an outcrop of a small island overlooking a lake, Charlie got down on one knee and asked Hailey to spend the rest of their lives together. It was an easy yes.